The Desert Campaign: Roca and Argentina's Conquest of Patagonia

In the late 1870s, Argentina launched a military campaign that would reshape the nation and seal the fate of its indigenous peoples. This episode of The Story of Argentina focuses on the so-called 'Conquista del Desierto' – the Conquest of the Desert – led by General Julio Argentino Roca. We explore the context of the campaign: the perennial 'Indian problem' on the frontier, the prior efforts of Juan Manuel de Rosas and Adolfo Alsina, and the political ambitions that drove Roca. We follow the two-pronged offensive in 1879, the surrender of chiefs like Manuel Namuncurá and Valentín Sayhueque, and the brutal aftermath: forced relocation, cultural erasure, and the distribution of millions of hectares to landowners. Lucas and Luna also discuss the historiographical debate – was it a military necessity or a calculated genocide? They touch on the role of the telegraph and the Remington rifle, the fate of the captured indigenous people, and the long shadow this campaign cast on Argentina's national identity. A concise look at a foundational and controversial chapter in Argentine history.

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