Victorino de la Plaza

Victorino de la Plaza, born on November second, eighteen forty, was a prominent Argentine lawyer and politician who ascended to the presidency of Argentina from August ninth, nineteen fourteen, until October eleventh, nineteen sixteen. He was the second son of José Roque Mariano de la Plaza Elejalde and Manuela Silva, with his older brother, Rafael de la Plaza, also making his mark in politics as the governor of Santiago del Estero Province.

De la Plaza pursued his legal studies in Buenos Aires, earning his doctorate in eighteen sixty-eight. His early career saw him serve as secretary to Dalmacio Vélez Sársfield, contributing to the formulation of the Argentine Civil Code. His political journey included significant roles such as Treasury Minister under Nicolás Avellaneda in eighteen seventy-six, Interventor in Corrientes Province in eighteen seventy-eight, and later as Foreign Minister and Treasury Minister during the first Julio Argentino Roca administration from eighteen eighty-two to eighteen eighty-five.

In nineteen ten, he was elected vice president for the National Union, led by Roque Sáenz Peña. Following the untimely death of Sáenz Peña, de la Plaza assumed the presidency, marking a critical period in Argentine history. His presidency represented the culmination of the conservative era, which began in eighteen eighty and concluded with his loss to the Radical Civic Union, a shift facilitated by the Sáenz Peña Law that introduced secret, compulsory voting.

After retiring from politics, Victorino de la Plaza succumbed to pneumonia, leaving behind a legacy as the last president of a significant conservative chapter in Argentina's political landscape.