Департамент Артигас: География, История и Население

Department of Uruguay

Artigas Department (lang es, aɾˈtiɣas) is the northernmost department of Uruguay, located in its northwestern region. Its capital is the city of Artigas, which borders on the Brazilian city of Quaraí. Artigas Department has an area of , making it the fifth largest in the country. The population is 73,378 inhabitants, according to the 2011 census. It is bordered on the north and east by Brazil, from which it is separated by the Cuareim River. To the south, Artigas Department borders on Salto Department, and to the west is Argentina, from which it is separated by the Uruguay River. Artigas is the only Uruguayan department that borders two other countries. The department and its capital city are named after José Gervasio Artigas (1764–1850), leader of the Orientales (inhabitants of the Banda Oriental, the Eastern bank of the Uruguay River) during Uruguay's wars of independence.

Owner region of a prehistoric past which later became "no man's land" between the Spanish and Portuguese empires. The initial indigenous predominance (chanás charrúas Guarani) was displaced by the native settlement and subsequent colonies of immigrants. Artigas department was created by law on 1 October 1884, on territory previously belonged to the department of Salto; from that date it is designated to Villa de San Eugenio as capital, which in 1915 passed to the category of city with the name of Artigas, capital of the department with the same name in tribute to the national hero of Uruguay José Gervasio Artigas. He was linked to the fact Colonel Carlos Lecueder, first politician and police chief Artigas. Its capital Artigas comes at the end of the "Guerra Grande" in order to consolidate the borders with Brazil, with the name of San Eugenio del Cuareim. It was founded on September 12, 1852 by Don Carlos Catala, choosing as the best site located on the banks of the Cuareim River opposite the Villa San Juan Bautista on the other side of the river, which was a military settlement that was then transformed into what is today the city of Quaraí. A city named Santa Rosa del Cuareim, now known as Bella Unión, was founded by Fructuoso Rivera and Guarani refugees after the Eastern Missions campaign against Brazil in 1829 (see: Thirty Three Orientals). After winning the allies Colorados Brazil national in 1852, territory north of Cuareim was yielded to Brazil which prompted an evacuation of the population. It was re founded in 1853 under the name of Santa Rosa de la Bella Unión Quareim. In 1929, the national government to mark the centenary of the campaign of Missions, sent a bill to the Senate, which established the name Bella Unión, which for that time was a villa.