A first attempt by an expedition from Spain to establish a fort at Buenos Aires in 1536 was abandoned after five years, largely because of conflicts with Native Americans. A permanent base was founded in 1580, but the settlement, lacking resources beyond the wild horses and cattle that had rapidly spread across the Pampas, grew slowly, to about 14,000 inhabitants by 1750. Subsequently, prosperity and demographic growth were stimulated by an increasing trade in hides, further bolstered in 1776 by the selection of the city as the seat of the large Spanish vice-royalty of Río de la Plata. Independence from Spain, first proclaimed in 1810 and officially recognized in 1816, opened the port to free trade, especially with Britain. Trade flourished, and the population grew to 100,000 by 1850.
The city's greatest period of expansion, based on a flourishing export of hides, wool, grain, and meat, started in the 1860s. European emigrants, especially from Italy and Spain, poured into Argentina's coastal area, but above all into Buenos Aires. Foreign capital, mainly British, added railroads, port facilities, streetcars, and gasworks. Since independence, Buenos Aires had been engaged in a struggle for dominance with other regions of Argentina. The conflict was largely resolved in 1880, when the city was separated from Buenos Aires Province and the Federal Capital district was established. At the same time the city was declared the country's permanent capital (it had been made the provisional capital in 1862). By 1910 Buenos Aires emerged as Latin America's leading economic and cultural center, with a population of 1.3 million, and was preeminent in Argentine politics and economics.
Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Buenos Aires Information info
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