Buenos Ayres 1823

The United Provinces of the Río de la Plata (1810-1831) consisted of the following provinces: 

1. Governate of Moxo (Bolivia)
2. La Paz (Bolivia)
3. Cochabamba (Bolivia)
4. Charcas (Bolivia)
5. Governate of Chiquitos (Bolivia)
6. Potosi (Bolivia/Chile)
7. Salta (Argentina)
8. Paraguay (Paraguay/Bolivia/Argentina/Brazil)
9. Cordova (Argentina)
10. Buenos Ayres (Argentina/Uruguay/Brazil)

Buenos Ayres and Cordova are the largest in area, touching Patagonia to its south, while its other neighbours are Brazil, Peru and Chile in the east, northeast, west and southwest. This post focuses on the province of Buenos Ayres, that's today spelt as Buenos Aires and is also the capital of Argentina. 

The Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru extended to the coast of Buenos Aires in 1587 after they had expanded on the western coast of South America. Stretching from Peru, Ecuador, northern Chile, and western Uruguay and crossing the northern region of Argentina, it touched the coast of Rio de la Plata, a strait dividing Uruguay from Argentina. Some of the earliest habitations around this coast from a 1611 dated map are S. Espirito (Sancti Espirito; the first European settlement in Argentina), Ningatas, S. Anna, Asumption, Mepenes, S. Francisco, Cananoa etc. The Rio de La Plata strait branched out numerous tributaries marked beautifully on 17th-century maps. Rivers such as Xanaes, Caramagna, de Carcarana, de Carandias emerged into Argentina, while rivers such as Negro, S. Saluador, de S. Barbara etc., into Uruguay. One of these rivers emerging into Argentina is marked as Rio de Beunas Arres and no settlement around this river can be seen on the map. On other 17th-century maps, one would see Uruguay marked as Morpion while Chica and Patagones for Patagonia. Even in the 1630s, the prominent settlement was Sancti Espirito while Buenos Aires was yet to develop. 

Coming to the late 17th century, one can spot a district division by the name Rio de la Plata that forms on the coast of the riverine from Buenos Ayres to Assomption (Asunción, Paraguay) in the north. This would be part of the larger province Vrvaig (Uruguay), which is part of La Plata. Everything beyond Buenos Aires was Terre de Magellan. A 1700 map by Edward Wells divides South America into seven divisions: Firmland (the northern countries of Colombia, Venezuela and the Guianas), the Country of the Amazones (northwest Brazil and parts of Colombia and Venezuela), a much bigger Peru (covering everything west to the Amazones till the top of Chile), Chili (Chile with portions of Argentina added), Magelanick Land (Patagonia) while the remaining portion left as Paraguay, much larger than what it is today. This region would cover today's Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, remaining Argentina and Brazil. The two settlements marked around Rio de la Plata are Buenos Ayres and San Salvador (denoting the river that flows in Uruguay). 

The early 1700s would mark Buenos Ayres as part of Rio de la Plata, with neighbouring Urvaig (Uruguay) as part of Bresil (Brazil) to its east while Chili (Chile) and Terre Magellanique to its west and south. Another 1736 dated map shows a clear division of Uruguay between La Plata and Brazil, while a continuous road connecting Buenos Aires to Potosi, in today's Bolivia. The road would connect towns such as Salta, St. Iago de Istero (Santiago del Estiro, Argentina), Santa Espirito and connect the Rio de la Plata river at Buenos Aires. A 1799 dated map shows Provincia o Grano Buenos Ayres (Province of Buenos Aires) covering entire Uruguay and Argentina portions around Rio de la Plata. In the early 19th century, the phrase Rio de la Plata and Buenos Ayres were used interchangeably on several maps. 

The 19th century saw the shaping of Buenos Aires as well as Argentina. In 1813, Paraguay separated, while in 1816, Argentina declared independence but excluded Patagonia, as United Provinces of Rio de la Plata stretching from Bolivia to Argentina and covering Paraguay, Uruguay and parts of Chile and Brazil. In 1828, Uruguay declared independence, and in the coming decades, one would see a full-fledged Argentina in its current shape. Patagonia would be annexed under the military campaign 'Conquest of the Desert' between the 1870s and 1884. 

Certain short-lived political entities are interesting to mention. The Republic of Entre Ríos, just above the Buenos Aires province, was an intermediate proclamation of an independent state against the Spanish (1852-1861) monarch existing between 1820-1821. A slightly longer duration was lived by the State of Buenos Aires because of the throwing of the Argentine Confederation government in the Buenos Aires province. 

Below is a recreated 1823 version of the United Provinces map originally sketched by Fielding Jr. Lucas.