The Anglo-French Blockade: Argentina's Sovereignty Test

In 1845, the combined navies of Britain and France blockaded the Río de la Plata, aiming to break Juan Manuel de Rosas's stranglehold on trade and navigation. For nearly five years, the blockade choked Buenos Aires, forced Argentine merchants into contraband, and sparked a fierce debate about sovereignty and economic independence. This episode explores the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado, where Argentine forces under Lucio Norberto Mansilla chained ships across the Paraná River to resist the European fleet. We examine the role of Giuseppe Garibaldi—yes, the same Garibaldi who later unified Italy—commanding the Uruguayan fleet in support of the blockade. We discuss the diplomatic aftermath, the eventual lifting of the blockade in 1850, and how this episode shaped Argentine national identity and Rosas's own political fate. From the muddy trenches of Obligado to the halls of French and British parliaments, this is the story of a young nation standing up to the world's two superpowers.

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