Julio Argentino Roca was the Argentine military hero who eradicated Indian opposition from the South, was twice elected President and was a dominant political leader in the last quarter ot the nineteenth century. He served his presidential term as the 9th and 14th Head of the State.
Background
Julio Argentino Roca was born on 17 July 1843 in San Miguel. He was a son of a military officer who had fought for Argentine independence, he was born in the Province of Tucuman, and began his own military activities at age 15 in fighting between the interior and Buenos Aires armies. He later became an officer in the national army and took part in the Paraguayan War and in battles against regional caudillos.
Career
By 1874, at age 31, Roca won promotion to general. He was given command of the frontier armies and embarked on the conquest of Patagonia from hostile Araucanian Indians, opening up the southern third of the country for white settlement.
He served as a President for two terms in 1880-1886 and 1898-1904. After the 1904 election. Roca retired from active political life.