On Tuesday, July 9, 1816, under a winter sun in the city of San Miguel de Tucumán, a group of representatives made a decision that would forever shape the destiny of what is now Argentine territory. That day, in a colonial house that would later be known as the Casa Histórica, the Act of Independence was signed.
The United Provinces of the Río de la Plata formally declared their emancipation from the Spanish monarchy and renounced any other form of foreign domination. The event was celebrated as the culmination of a process that had begun years earlier, in the context of the May Revolution of 1810.
The path to independence
Although the first cry for freedom had erupted in 1810, there was no immediate consensus on how and when to formally break ties with Spain. Political tensions became evident between those who demanded a radical change, such as Mariano Moreno and his followers, and those who advocated for a more gradual transformation, such as Cornelio Saavedra.
Revolutionary ideas coexisted with diplomatic fears. The international context, shaken by the fall of Napoleon and the resurgence of European monarchies, was not favorable to openly republican movements. For this reason, internal discussions extended until 1816.
That year, Ignacio Álvarez Thomas—who had assumed the role of Supreme Director in place of José Rondeau—convened a General Constituent Congress in Tucumán, hoping to achieve a political definition.
