Yes, here are two battles that we Brits lost! At the time, Argentina was a Spanish colony and Britain was fighting against France and Spain during the Napoleonic Wars. It made sense for the Brits to try and conquer a Spanish colony, also because Britain had been looking to grab itself some prime south american land for quite some time. The area around the Mar De La Plata, at 220kms wide the broadest river in the world and site of modern-day Buenos Aires, was considered ideal.
The Brits arrived first of all in 1806 and were beaten by an hastily organised armed group of locals who'd been abandoned to their fate by their Spanish colonial masters. Then in 1807 the Brits returned again in more numbers, before once again being repelled by a local army.
These events spelled the end of Britain's attempts to incorporate mainland Argentina into its formal empire and also had other significant consequences for the country.
First of all, during the battles the locals discovered a new sense of unity and pride and sought increasing independence from Spain, which had essentially left them at the mercy of the Brits. This sense of independence would lead them to proclaim their independence from Spain within a decade.
Secondly, many of the British and Irish prisoners of war captured by the Argentinians were later freed and became some of the first settlers from the British isles in Argentina, founding communities which survive until this day.
Thirdly, during the period of the attempted invasions the first wealthy British merchants started moving to Argentina. These people would become one of the dominant social groups in Argentina during the 19th century, bringing games like polo, rugby, football and the tradition of afternoon tea with them.
The Brits arrived first of all in 1806 and were beaten by an hastily organised armed group of locals who'd been abandoned to their fate by their Spanish colonial masters. Then in 1807 the Brits returned again in more numbers, before once again being repelled by a local army.
These events spelled the end of Britain's attempts to incorporate mainland Argentina into its formal empire and also had other significant consequences for the country.
First of all, during the battles the locals discovered a new sense of unity and pride and sought increasing independence from Spain, which had essentially left them at the mercy of the Brits. This sense of independence would lead them to proclaim their independence from Spain within a decade.
Secondly, many of the British and Irish prisoners of war captured by the Argentinians were later freed and became some of the first settlers from the British isles in Argentina, founding communities which survive until this day.
Thirdly, during the period of the attempted invasions the first wealthy British merchants started moving to Argentina. These people would become one of the dominant social groups in Argentina during the 19th century, bringing games like polo, rugby, football and the tradition of afternoon tea with them.
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