born Feb. 14, 1811, San Juan, Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata
died Sept. 11, 1888, Asunción, Para.
Educator, statesman, writer, and president of Argentina (186874).
A rural schoolteacher, he entered provincial politics and was exiled to Chile by Juan Manuel de Rosas for his outspokenness. There he became an important figure in journalism and education. In his important book Facundo (1845), he denounced the Rosas dictatorship and the culture of the gaucho s. He returned to Argentina to help overthrow Rosas in 1852. Elected president in 1868, he ended the Paraguayan War , developed the public school system, established technical and professional schools, and upheld civil liberties.