Manuel Belgrano
Manuel Belgrano | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Belgrano attributed to Casimir Carbonnier | |
| Committee member of the Primera Junta | |
| In office 25 May 1810 – 26 September 1810 Serving with Manuel Alberti, Miguel de Azcuénaga, Juan José Castelli, Domingo Matheu and Juan Larrea | |
| Perpetual secretary of the Commerce Consulate of Buenos Aires | |
| In office 2 June 1794 – April 1810 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Manuel José Joaquín del Corazón de Jesús Belgrano 3 June 1770 |
| Died | 20 June 1820 (aged 50) Buenos Aires, United Provinces of the Río de la Plata |
| Party | Carlotism (1808-1810) Patriot |
Domestic partner(s) | María Josefa Ezcurra, María Dolores Helguero |
| Education | University of Valladolid |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United Provinces of South America |
Years of service | 1810–1819 |
| Commands | |
| Battles/wars | |
Manuel José Joaquín del Corazón de Jesús Belgrano (3 June 1770 – 20 June 1820), usually referred to as Manuel Belgrano (Spanish pronunciation: [maˈnwel βelˈɣɾano]), was an Argentine public servant, economist, lawyer, politician, journalist, and military leader. He took part in the Argentine Wars of Independence and designed what became the flag of Argentina. Argentines regard him as one of the main Founding Fathers of the country. He was also a supporter of free trade.[1]
Belgrano was born in Buenos Aires, the fourth child of Italian businessman Domingo Belgrano y Peri and of María Josefa González Casero. He came into contact with the ideas of the Age of Enlightenment while at university in Spain around the time of the 1789 French Revolution. In 1794 he returned to the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, where he became a notable member of the criollo population of Buenos Aires; he tried to promote some of the new political and economic ideals, but found severe resistance from local peninsulares. This rejection led him to work towards a greater autonomy for his country from the Spanish colonial regime. At first he unsuccessfully promoted the aspirations of Carlota Joaquina to become a regent ruler for the Viceroyalty during the period when the French imprisoned the Spanish King Ferdinand VII during the Peninsular War (1807–1814). Belgrano favoured the May Revolution, which removed the viceroy Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros from power on 25 May 1810. He was elected as a voting member of the Primera Junta that took power after the ouster.
As a delegate for the Junta, he led the ill-fated Paraguay campaign of 1810-1811. Belgrano's troops were beaten by Bernardo de Velasco at the battles of Paraguarí and Tacuarí. Though his army was defeated, the military campaign initiated the chain of events that led to the independence of Paraguay in May 1811. He retreated to the vicinity of Rosario, to fortify it against a possible royalist attack from the Eastern Band of the Uruguay River. While there, he developed the design of the flag of Argentina. The First Triumvirate did not approve the flag, but because of slow communications, Belgrano would only learn of that many weeks later, while reinforcing the Army of the North at Jujuy. There, knowing he was at a strategic disadvantage against the royalist armies coming from Upper Peru, Belgrano ordered the Jujuy Exodus, which evacuated the entire population of Jujuy Province to San Miguel de Tucumán. His counter-offensive at the Battle of Tucumán resulted in a key strategic victory, and it was soon followed by a complete victory over the royalist army of Pío Tristán at the Battle of Salta. However, his deeper incursions into Upper Peru ended with the defeats of Vilcapugio and Ayohuma, leading the Second Triumvirate to order his replacement as Commander of the Army of the North by the newly arrived José de San Martín. By then, the Asamblea del Año XIII had approved the use of Belgrano's flag as the national war flag.
Belgrano then went on a diplomatic mission to Europe along with Bernardino Rivadavia to seek support for the revolutionary government. He returned in time to take part in the Congress of Tucumán, which declared Argentine independence (1816). He promoted the Inca plan to create a constitutional monarchy with an Inca descendant as head of state. This proposal had the support of San Martín, Martín Miguel de Güemes, and many provincial delegates, but was strongly rejected by the delegates from Buenos Aires. The Congress of Tucumán approved the use of his flag as the national flag. After this, Belgrano again took command of the Army of the North, but his mission was limited to protecting San Miguel de Tucumán from royalist advances while San Martín prepared the Army of the Andes for an alternative offensive across the Andes. When José Gervasio Artigas and Estanislao López seemed poised to invade Buenos Aires, he moved his army southwards, but his troops mutinied in January 1820. Belgrano died of dropsy on 20 June 1820. His last words reportedly were: "¡Ay, Patria mía!" (Oh, my homeland!).
Biography
[edit]Ancestry
[edit]
Manuel José Joaquín del Corazón de Jesús Belgrano was born in Buenos Aires on 3 June 1770, at his father's house. It was located near the Santo Domingo convent, at Santo Domingo street, between the streets Martín de Tours and Santísima Trinidad (the modern names of those streets are "Belgrano", "Defensa", and "Bolívar" respectively).[2] Though the city was still rather small, the Belgranos lived in one of its wealthiest neighborhoods. Manuel Belgrano was baptized at the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral the following day.[3] As he was born in the Americas he was considered a criollo, a social class below the Peninsulars.[citation needed]
His father, Domingo (whose original Italian name was Domenico Belgrano Peri) came from the town of Imperia, Liguria, Italy.[4] Domingo's maternal last name was Peri, which he translated to the Spanish form Pérez; his paternal last name was Belgrano – literally "Fairwheat", a name that denoted good cereal production. He changed his name "Domenico" to the Spanish "Domingo" as well. He was an Italian merchant authorized by the King of Spain to move to the Americas, and had contacts in Spain, Rio de Janeiro, and Britain. He promoted the establishment of the Commerce Consulate of Buenos Aires, which his son Manuel would lead a few years later.[5]
Manuel Belgrano's mother was María Josefa González Islas y Casero, born in Santiago del Estero, Argentina. The family was the second richest in Buenos Aires, after the Escaladas.[2]
Domingo Belgrano Pérez managed a family business, and arranged for his four daughters to marry merchants who would become his trusted agents in the Banda Oriental, Misiones Province, and Spain. The eight living male sons followed different paths: Domingo José Estanislao became canon at the local cathedral, while Carlos José and José Gregorio joined the army. Manuel Belgrano was meant to follow his father's work, but when he developed other interests, it was his brother Francisco José María de Indias who continued the family business.[6]
European studies
[edit]Belgrano completed his first studies at the San Carlos school, where he learned Latin, philosophy, logic, physics, metaphysics, and literature; he graduated in 1786.[7] Domingo had sufficient success as merchant to send his two sons Francisco and Manuel to study in Europe. He expected them to study commerce, but Manuel decided to study law. Belgrano was so successful and attained such prestige that Pope Pius VI allowed him to study forbidden literature, even books deemed as heretical, excepting only the astrological and obscene books.[8] In this way he came into contact with authors like Montesquieu, Rousseau, and Filangieri, who were forbidden in Spain.[9]
Belgrano studied near the intellectual elite of Spain, and by that time there were heated discussions about the ongoing French Revolution. The principles of equality and freedom, the universal scope of the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, and criticism of the divine right of kings were constant topics of debate. Among the supporters of these ideas it was thought that Spain should be remade under similar principles, and critics of such thought were rejected as tyrants or proponents of outdated ideas.[10]
However, the Spanish Enlightenment was slightly different from the French one as it still respected religion and the monarchy. Thus, despite the new influences, Belgrano remained a strong Catholic and monarchist.[11]
Belgrano also studied living languages, political economy, and public rights. The authors that most influenced him were Pedro Rodríguez de Campomanes, Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos, Adam Smith, and François Quesnay.[10] Belgrano translated Quesnay's book Maximes générales de gouvernement economique d'un royaume agricole (General Maxims of the Economical Government in an Agricultural Kingdom) to Spanish. His main interest in the works of such authors were ideas that referred to the public good and popular prosperity.[10]
Like many South American students, he became interested in physiocracy, which stated that new wealth came from nature, that agriculture was an economic activity that generated more income than one needed, and that the state should not interfere at all with it. By that time, South America had plenty of natural resources and a very strict state interventionism in the economy. Belgrano developed the idea that the principles of physiocracy and those stated by Adam Smith could be applied together in the viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. In the development of this approach he was influenced by Fernando Galliani, who promoted the study of particular cases over theoric generalisations, and Antonio Genovesi, who thought that the absolute freedom promoted by physiocrats should be tempered by a moderate intervention by the state, such as the provision of free education for some.[12]
During his time in Europe, Belgrano became president of an Academy within the University of Salamanca devoted to Roman legislation, forensic practice and political economy.[8] In 1794, he translated the Maximas del Gobierno agricultor, which had wide readership in Argentina before the revolution in 1810.[13]
This publication, along with Belgrano's other works, showed his preference for a combination of the ideas of the physiocrats and the neomercantilist thought by Antonio Genovesi. For him, this was the right economic model that could support Argentina's independence.[13]
Work in the consulate
[edit]He was driven by his vision of imperial partnership and drafted a well-known representacion to the Crown of 1793.[14] A short time before his return to Buenos Aires on 3 June 1794, Belgrano was elected by Don Diego de Gardoqui as "perpetual secretary" of the Commerce Consulate of Buenos Aires, a new local institution which dealt with commercial and industrial issues in the name of the crown. This date would be later known in Argentina as Economist Day.[15] He would remain in this office until 1810, and would deal with commercial disputes and promote agriculture, industry, and commerce. Not having enough freedom to make big changes in the economic system, he made big efforts to improve education. Influenced by Campomanes, he believed that the true wealth of countries was human ingenuity, and that the best way to promote industrialisation was through education.[16]
Belgrano maintained frequent discussions with the committee members of the consulate, who were all merchants with strong interests involved in the monopolic commerce with Cádiz.[17] He made many proposals, influenced by free trade ideas.[18] By this time, Belgrano thought that "The merchant must have freedom to buy where he can be best accommodated, and it's natural that he does where he is supplied with the best price to be able to earn the best profit".[16] Those proposals were rejected by the committee members; his only supporters were Juan José Castelli, Juan Larrea, and Domingo Matheu. However, Belgrano had some successes, such as creating the Nautical School, the Commerce School, and the Geometry and Drawing Academy. He created the Commerce School to influence future merchants to work towards the best interests of the nation,[19] and the nautical and drawing ones to provide the youth with prestigious and lucrative careers.[20] The schools were situated next to the Consulate so that Belgrano could easily supervise their development. The schools were in place for three years before they were closed by a ruling of Manuel Godoy, from the Spanish monarchy, who considered them an unnecessary luxury for a colony. It was felt that Buenos Aires might not be able to maintain them.[21]
Belgrano tried to promote the diversification of agriculture via the production of linen and hemp, following experiences with his friend Martín de Altolaguirre. He proposed to keep reserves of wheat to help have control over its price.[22] He also tried to make leather recognised as a product of the country, in order to promote its commercial potential.[23] None of these proposals were accepted. He designed a system to give prizes to achievements that would boost the local economy, diversify the agriculture, or deforest the pampas.[24] The system did not work as expected, and as nobody met the requirements no such prize was ever given.[25]
He helped to create the first newspaper of the city, the Telégrafo Mercantil, directed by Francisco Cabello y Mesa.[26] He worked with Manuel José de Lavardén, and edited nearly two hundred issues. The newspaper was closed in 1802 because of conflicts with the authorities of the viceroyalty, who did not like the criticisms made in it or the jokes and parodies. He also worked at the Semanario de Agricultura, Comercio e Industria, directed by Hipólito Vieytes. He used this newspaper to explain his economic ideas: manufacturing and exporting finished goods, importing raw materials to manufacture, avoiding importing luxury goods or raw materials that could be produced or extracted locally, importing only vital products, and owning a merchant navy. The newspaper specialised in the "Philosophy of History, Geography and Statistics". Many revolutionary principles were presented as essays.[27]
Belgrano had symptoms of syphilis, which he had caught during his time in Europe.[28] This sickness forced him to take long leaves from his work in the consulate, and to suggest his cousin Juan José Castelli, who had similar ideas, as a possible replacement during his leaves.[29] Rejection by the committee members delayed the approval of Castelli until 1796.[citation needed]
British invasions
[edit]Belgrano was appointed as captain of the urban militias in 1797 by viceroy Pedro Melo de Portugal, who was instructed by Spain to prepare defences against a possible British or Portuguese attack.[30] Belgrano by then worked in the consulate, and was no longer interested in pursuing a military career.[31] Viceroy Rafael de Sobremonte requested that he create a militia to counter a possible British attack, but he did not take interest in it. His first participation in a military conflict took place when the British, under William Carr Beresford, arrived with 1,600 men and captured Buenos Aires, as part of the first British invasion of the River Plate. Belgrano moved to the fortress as soon as he heard the warning, and gathered as many men as possible to join him in the fighting. However, as most of them lacked any formal training, his men marched in disorder and Belgrano ordered them to disband after a single British cannon shot scattered his panicked men.[32] Belgrano would write later in his autobiography that he regretted not having by then even the most basic knowledge of militia work.[33]
After the British captured the city, all Spanish authorities were requested to pledge allegiance to the British crown. Belgrano thought that the members of the consulate should leave the city and join the viceroy, but the others did not agree. They acceded to the British request; Belgrano refused to do so.[34] He said that he wanted "either our old master, or no master at all".[35] To avoid being forced to pledge allegiance, he escaped from Buenos Aires and sought asylum at the chapel of Mercedes, in the Banda Oriental.[34]
The British Army was defeated by a force under the direction of Santiago de Liniers, and Spanish authority was restored.[36] It was expected that the British would return, and the whole city started to prepare for that possibility. Belgrano returned to Buenos Aires after the reconquest, and put himself under the command of Liniers. He was appointed sergeant of the Patricians Regiment, under the command of Cornelio Saavedra, and started to study military strategy.[37] After some conflicts with other officials, he resigned as sergeant and served again under the command of Liniers. A new British attack took place in July 1807. During the battle he served as field assistant to a division commanded by Balbiani.[38]
Belgrano resumed his work in the consulate and discontinued his military studies. Due to his knowledge of French he had a brief interview with the British officer Robert Craufurd, who proposed British support for an independentist movement. Belgrano turned down the offer, suspecting that Britain might withdraw their support if their attentions were distracted by events which could occur in Europe, and in such case the revolutionaries would be helpless against a Spanish counterattack.[39]
Carlotism
[edit]
Manuel Belgrano was the main proponent of the Carlotist political movement in the Rio de la Plata, a response to recent developments in Europe, where Spain was at war with France. Through the abdications of Bayonne, the Spanish king Ferdinand VII was deposed and imprisoned and the Frenchman Joseph Bonaparte was appointed King of Spain by the French victors. This led to a partial power vacuum in the viceroyalty, as the legitimacy of the new king was rejected by all parties. The purpose of the Carlotist movement was to replace the authority of the deposed king with that of Carlota Joaquina, sister of Ferdinand, who was then living in Rio de Janeiro. The project was supported as a means to achieve more autonomy, and perhaps independence, for Spanish colonies in the New World.[40] Belgrano kept a fluent mail communication with Carlota, and convinced many independentists to join him in the project, such as Castelli, Vieytes, Nicolás Rodríguez Peña, and Juan José Paso.[41]
The project, however, found strong resistance. As Carlota was married to John VI, a prince of Portugal, many people though that Carlotism was a trick to conceal Portuguese expansionism.[40] Carlota herself had different political ideas than those of her supporters: Belgrano and the others shared the ideas of enlightenment, but Carlota aspired to keep the full power of an absolutist monarchy.[42] By 1810 the project was forgotten.
A new viceroy, Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros, arrived from Europe to replace Liniers. Belgrano had failed to convince Liniers of the benefits of the Carlotist plan, so he aimed instead to convince him of refusing to give up the viceroyalty, as Liniers had been confirmed as viceroy by a Spanish king. Cisneros, appointed by the Junta of Seville, lacked such legitimacy.[43] Liniers refused this proposal as well, and handed command to Cisneros without resistance. Belgrano later convinced the new viceroy to allow him to edit a new newspaper, the "Correo de Comercio". This allowed him to gather with other revolutionary leaders with the excuse of discussing the development of the newspaper.[44] He also supported Cisneros when he allowed foreign trade at the port (previously only Spanish ships were allowed), but this ruling was strongly rejected by Spanish merchants. The lawyer Mariano Moreno wrote The Representation of the Hacendados, an economic essay that convinced Cisneros to maintain the free foreign trade. Some historians, such as Miguel Ángel Scenna, suggest that the essay was actually Belgrano's work, or a work by Moreno from a draft written by Belgrano.[45] Belgrano may not have been able to present such a work himself, because he held a political office and because his past opposition to Cisneros may have risked its rejection.[46]
Belgrano resigned from his work in the Consulate in April 1810 and moved to the countryside. A short time later he received a letter from his friends requesting him to return to Buenos Aires and join the revolutionary movements.[47]
May Revolution
[edit]The Peninsular War was not developing favourably for Spain, and by May 1810 a ship arrived with the news of the defeat of Seville and the disbanding of the Junta of Seville.[48][49] Without either a recognised Spanish king or the Junta that had appointed Cisneros, many people thought that the viceroy no longer had any authority. Cisneros tried to conceal the news by gathering all the newspapers brought by the ship, but Belgrano and Castelli managed to get one.[48] Cisneros then explained the European developments to the public. Belgrano and the members of the Carlotist party, despite having given up their original idea, plotted to remove the viceroy and replace him with a junta. Under the advice of Cornelio Saavedra, they waited for the news of the defeat in Spain to take action.[50]
Belgrano and Saavedra, representing the military and the intellectuals, got an interview with Cisneros to request an open cabildo, but without getting an answer.[51] Cisneros called the military leaders and requested their support, but they refused, under the grounds that his viceroyalty lacked legitimacy.[49] Castelli and other patriots insisted in their request, and Cisneros finally accepted. A massive demonstration the following day ensured that Cisneros would keep his word. The open cabildo was held on 22 May, with all political leaders present, and armed men filling the Plaza and ready to invade the cabildo in case the peninsulars attempted a disruption, which would be indicated by a signal from Belgrano.[52] He supported the stance of his cousin Castelli, who made a speech explaining the concept of the retroversion of the sovereignty of the people, and that Spanish America was subject to the King of Spain but not to Spain itself. At the time of voting, Castelli's proposal was coupled with the one of Cornelio Saavedra, with Belgrano among its supporters.[53] This joint proposal for the removal of Cisneros and the creation of a government junta prevailed over the others. However, the cabildo attempted to keep Cisneros in power in spite of this result, by creating a junta with Cisneros as its president. This was rejected by the revolutionary leaders and the population. A great state of turmoil ended when the Junta was disbanded on 25 May and replaced by the Primera Junta. Belgrano was included in this junta, among many other local politicians.[53]
In his autobiography Belgrano declared that he did not have any previous knowledge of being included in the junta, and that his appointment took him by surprise.[52] Nevertheless, he accepted the role. He was part of the political line of Mariano Moreno; they were expecting to use the government to make big changes in the social order. One of his first rulings was the making of a Maths Academy, located in the building of the consulate and with the purpose of instructing the military.[54][55] Belgrano was appointed its protector. He supported the banishment of Cisneros and the members of the Real Audience, and the execution of Liniers and other counter-revolutionaries defeated in Córdoba. Some historians suggest that he would have promoted the creation of the Operations plan, a secret document written by Moreno that set harsh ways for the junta to achieve its goals, while others consider the whole document a literary forgery done by royalists to discredit the junta. A few others suspect that some paragraphs or the whole document may have been the result of collaborative writing between Moreno, Belgrano, and Hipólito Vieytes.[56]
Expedition to Paraguay
[edit]
Three months after the creation of the Primera Junta, Manuel Belgrano was appointed Chief Commander of an army sent to gather support at Corrientes, Santa Fe, Paraguay, and the Banda Oriental. A few days later his goal was made more specific: he must aim for Paraguay. The Junta had been informed that the patriotic party was strong, and a small army would suffice to take control.[57] Trusting this information, Belgrano went to Paraguay with two possible goals: get acknowledgment for the Junta in Paraguay or promote a new government that would stay on friendly terms with Buenos Aires. Belgrano was unaware that on 24 July a general assembly in Paraguay discussed the Junta of Buenos Aires, and decided to reject it and pledge allegiance to the Regency Council of Spain.[57][58]
Belgrano headed north with nearly two hundred men, expecting to gather more people by the end of the Paraná River. Soldiers from the Blandengues regiments of San Nicolás and Santa Fe joined them en route, and later the Junta sent reinforcements of another two hundred soldiers. The army was welcomed by most of the population along the way, receiving donations and new recruits. Ultimately the army was composed of nearly 950 men, consisting of infantry and cavalry divided in four divisions with one piece of artillery each.[59][60]
By the end of October the army stopped at Curuzú Cuatiá, where Belgrano solved an old border conflict between Corrientes and Yapeyu. He set which territories would belong to Curuzu Cuatiá and Mandisoví, and organised their urban layout around the chapel and school. By November the army arrived at the coast of Paraná near Apipé island, and there Belgrano took measures to benefit the natives that were living in missions. With his authority as speaker of the Junta he gave them full civil and political rights, granted lands, authorised commerce with the United Provinces, and lifted their restriction on taking public or religious office.[61] However, the Junta requested later that he should seek authorization for such changes in the future.[62]
From that point the army moved to Candelaria, which was used as a stronghold for the attack into Paraguay. The terrain gave a clear advantage to the Paraguayan governor Velazco against Belgrano: the Paraná River, nearly 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) wide, was an effective natural barrier, and once it was crossed the patriotic army would have to move a long distance across a land without supplies. Swamps, hills, rivers, and lakes would force the army to march slowly, making a possible retreat very difficult. The Parana was crossed with several boats on 19 December, and a task force of 54 Paraguayan soldiers was forced to flee during the Battle of Campichuelo. Belgrano saw Velazco's army from the Mbaé hill, and despite being greatly outnumbered, he ordered an attack, trusting in the moral strength of his soldiers.[63] When the Battle of Paraguarí started, the patriots briefly held the upper hand, but eventually Velazco, with superior numbers, prevailed. Even with 10 deaths and 120 soldiers taken prisoner, Belgrano wanted to continue the fight, but his officials convinced him to retreat.[64]
The army left for Tacuarí, being closely watched by the combined armies of Yegros and Cabañas. Those two armies had nearly three thousand soldiers, while Belgrano had barely four hundred. They were attacked from many sides during the Battle of Tacuarí, on 9 March. Greatly outnumbered and losing an unequal fight, Belgrano refused to surrender. He reorganised the remaining 235 men and ordered his secretary to burn all his documents and personal papers to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. Belgrano arranged for the troops and artillery to fire for many minutes, which made the Paraguayan soldiers disperse. When the barrage stopped, Belgrano requested an armistice, telling Cabañas that he had arrived to Paraguay to aid and not to conquer; considering the open hostility with which he was met, he would leave the province. Cabañas accepted, on the grounds that the remaining group must leave the province within a day.[65][66]
The campaign to Paraguay was a complete military defeat for Belgrano. However, the aftermath of the conflict led the Paraguayans to replace Velazco with a local junta, and declare independence from Spain. Under the rule of José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, Paraguay broke ties with Buenos Aires as well, and stayed isolated for several years afterwards.[67][68]
Creation of the flag of Argentina
[edit]
After the defeat in Tacuarí, the government of Buenos Aires (which by then was the First Triumvirate) issued a series of conflicting orders. First they requested he should fight the royalists in the Banda Oriental, then to return to the city and be judged for the defeats. However, no charges were formulated against him.[69]
He was appointed as the head of the Regiment of Patricians, replacing the banished Cornelio Saavedra, but the troops did not accept him and started the Braids Mutiny. After that, the Triumvirate requested that he fortify Rosario against possible royalist attacks from the Banda Oriental. Belgrano created two batteries, "Independencia" ("Independence") and "Libertad" ("Freedom"). After realising that both patriots and royalists were fighting under the same colours, he created the cockade of Argentina, of light blue and white, the use of which was approved by the Triumvirate. The reasons for the colours are usually considered to be either loyalty to the House of Bourbon or his esteem of the Virgin Mary. Belgrano created a flag with the same colours, which was hoisted at Rosario near the Paraná River on 27 February 1812. On that same day he was appointed to replace Pueyrredon in the Army of the North, so he travelled to Yatasto.[70]
He found demoralised officials, nearly 1,500 soldiers (a quarter of them hospitalised), minimal artillery, and no money. Some of the officials were Manuel Dorrego, Gregorio Aráoz de Lamadrid, Cornelio Zelaya, José María Paz, Diego Balcarce, and Eustaquio Díaz Vélez. The cities were much more hostile to the Army than those that Belgrano encountered on his way into Paraguay.[71] Salta was menaced by the royalist general José Manuel de Goyeneche; Belgrano had orders to take command and retreat without fighting, but he disobeyed.