The Army of the North (), contemporaneously called Army of Peru (), was one of the armies deployed by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata in the Spanish American wars of independence. Its objective was freeing the Argentine Northwest and the Upper Peru (present-day Bolivia) from the royalist troops of the Spanish Empire. It was headed by Hipólito Vieytes (1810), Juan José Castelli (1810–1811), Juan Martín de Pueyrredón (1811–1812), Manuel Belgrano (1812–1814), José de San Martín (1814), José Rondeau (1814–1816), Manuel Belgrano (1816–1819) and Francisco Fernández de la Cruz (1819–1820).
The offensive operations started in 1810 and ended in 1817, with the defeat of the forces commanded by Gregorio Aráoz de La Madrid at the Battle of Sopachuy, the last attempt to advance into Upper Peru. Since then, only defensive operations on the Northern frontier were carried on, as the offensive had been transferred to the Army of the Andes, commanded by José de San Martín, who devised the strategy of reaching the main royalist stronghold, Lima, through Chile and the Pacific Ocean. In 1820 the Army of the North was summoned to intervene in the internal strife between the central government in Buenos Aires and the Federal League provincial caudillo leaders. Shortly after, the Arequito Revolt led by the independentist veterans who refused to fight a civil war instead of an independence war, effectively ended the existence of the Army of the North.
During the War of the Confederation, between Chile, Argentina and the Peru-Bolivian Confederation, a new military corps received the name of Army of the North (1837) under the command of Alejandro Heredia. The Army would disband itself without conducting any major operations after the uprising known as North Coalition and the 1838 assassination of Heredia. The war ended in 1839 with a decisive Chilean victory at the Yungay, so the Peruvian-Bolivian army retreated from Argentine territory.
First campaign to Upper Peru
The lack of trained military was one of the most pressing difficulties of the revolutionary government in Buenos Aires. Besides the Patricios Regiment and other corps formed during the British invasions, the only troops with some experience were the Blandengues, lancers militia recruited to patrol the borders of the territories still controlled by indigenous people (mapuche and ranquel). Until 1812, with the arrival of veterans from the Napoleonic Wars, that would join as officers, the army was basically a militia. Most of the commanders were civilians or junior officers, put in charge more for their political leanings, status in society or charisma than for their military capacity.
Army's formation and Liniers' execution What would later become the Army of the North started with troops drafted by Juan José Castelli by order of the Primera Junta on 14 June 1810, to fight viceroy Santiago de Liniers, who headed a counter-revolutionary movement at Córdoba Province. The Junta's order followed its creation documents from 25 May of the same year, which required them to send an expeditionary force to the provinces. It was also in response to the Junta decree that created the Argentine Army on 29 May, five days after its formation.
The Junta started a recruiting drive in Buenos Aires to equip the expeditionary force and created a small army of 1,150 men, which left from Monte de Castro on 6 July 1810 under the command of colonel Francisco Ortiz de Ocampo, and lieutenant colonel Antonio González Balcarce. After receiving their orders they took the road to Córdoba to confront Liniers. Similar to the armies in the French Revolution, they were accompanied by the Junta's representative (political command), Hipólito Vieytes as commissioner and for the army's comptroller Feliciano Chiclana, who reached the army later on 28 July at Fraile Muerto and continued to Salta with a small guard, where he was named governor of Salta and Tucumán. The military command was subject to the political representative and he to the Junta through the Secretary of War Mariano Moreno. Vieytes carried instructions to arrange in each province for elections so the people could designate their representative to the new Junta.
The force was composed of about 1,000 men in two companies with the 1st and 2nd Patricios Regiments, 3rd Arribeños, 4th Montañeses, and 5th Andaluces, plus the Pardos and Morenos regiments and 50 soldiers of the Buenos Aires regiment, all infantry. The artillery was formed by a group of 60 men with 4 pieces and 40 veteran artillery men. They were accompanied by two surgeons and two chaplains. The cavalry was divided into 50 dragoons, 50 hussars and 100 blandengues.
On 14 July the force arrived in Luján, continuing through Salto, and Pergamino. On 8 August they arrived in Córdoba.
On 31 July the royalist commanders in Córdoba had fled to Upper Peru after the dissolution of their regiments, to join the royalist army there. Liniers was captured on 6 August in the Córdoba highlands along with others officers from his command, who were sent to Buenos Aires against the execution orders, but on 26 August they were met in Cabeza de Tigre by the new political command of the Army of the North sent by Moreno. Castelli then ordered and immediate execution by firing squad for Liniers and the Córdoba governor, Juan Gutiérrez de la Concha, lieutenant-governor Victorio Rodríguez, Santiago Alejo de Allende and Joaquín Moreno, but pardoned bishop Rodrigo de Orellana, who was sent as a prisoner to Luján. Domingo French, gave the coup de grâce to the French officer. By order of the Junta, González Balcarce replaced Ortiz de Ocampo as troop commander, with Juan José Viamonte as his second in command replacing Vieytes. Juan José Castelli occupied the post of political representative and Bernardo de Monteagudo the comptroller. French and Rodríguez Peña became part of the new political committee. With Córdoba occupied on 8 August, they replaced their cabildo and Juan Martín de Pueyrredón was named governor, assuming the post that same month. Later they continued their march towards Upper Peru, where the Spanish general José de Córdoba y Rojas was commander of the royalist troops. The spontaneous joining of several cabildos augmented Balcarce's troops. In Salta he received more troops, commanded by Martín Miguel de Güemes. In Santiago del Estero Province a battalion of Patricios was formed commanded by Juan Francisco Borges.
With central and northwest Argentina free of royalist governors, as also the cabildos of San Luis (13 June), Salta (19 June), Mendoza (25 June), San Miguel de Tucumán (26 June), Santiago del Estero (29 June), San Juan (7 July), La Rioja (1 September), Catamarca (4 September) and San Salvador de Jujuy (14 September) professed allegiance to the Junta in Buenos Aires and sent deputies. Tarija, in today's Bolivia, also joined on 25 June.
First operations in Upper Peru With the insurrections in Upper Peru, Balcarce initiated the march towards it with 400 men. The first armed action of the Army of the North in Upper Peru was the Battle of Cotagaita, about North of San Salvador de Jujuy, on 27 October. The battle was not favorable to Balcarce and the outcome undecided, in part for the numerical superiority of the royalist, forcing the expeditionary troops to retreat to the South without pursuit. Balcarce reorganized his troops two days later in Tupiza.
On 3 November, the Junta created the 3rd Infantry Regiment in the Argentine north, and placed it under the command of colonel Juan José Viamonte, with the infantry obtained from Buenos Aires and contingents from Tucumán and Santiago del Estero.
On 5 November the royalist forces started their march towards Tupiza, so Balcarce left that town the next day, and it was then occupied by 1,200 royalist troops. He stopped at Nazareno, where he received a reinforcement of 200 men from Jujuy with two pieces of artillery. On 7 November they again confronted the same troops they had met before at Suipacha, where the Argentine army obtained its first victory. The battle was favorable to Balcarce even though he again had numerical inferiority (800 royalist against 600 rebels, and in Cotagaita 2,000 royalists against 1,100 rebels). Balcarce earned the rank of brigadier, and the confidence to advance towards the Desaguadero River, border of the viceroyalty in colonial times. Due to internal disagreements Castelli had to dismiss Güemes and his gaucho soldiers.
The royalist defenses were left in charge of general José Manuel de Goyeneche, who met with Castelli and signed an armistice to last for forty days from 16 May. The army moved from the encampment at La Laja, where they were since April, to the new encampment at Huaqui.
General Pueyrredón was named president of the Audiencia de Charcas. On 21 November, a decree from the Primera Junta in Buenos Aires created the 7th Infantry "Cochabamba Regiment" with veteran forces from Upper Peru, composed of 12 companies of 100 soldiers each, with Cochabamba's governor Francisco del Rivero as their new commander.
Defeat at Huaqui and retreat from Upper Peru On 20 June 1811, Castelli violated the armistice and tried to surround the royalist troops crossing the Desaguadero River, Goyeneche ordered and attack (according to other sources he violated the armistice first), at what became the Battle of Huaqui. The 5,000 rebel soldiers and the indigenous peoples with them could not deal with the strongly armed 6.500 royalist soldiers and suffered their biggest defeat to date. As a consequence of this battle, Goyeneche captured La Paz and Cochabamba after the battle at Amiraya (also known as first Battle of Sipe Sipe) on 13 August 1811. The disorganized remainder of the army retreated south, taking refuge first in Potosí, which had been abandoned by Pueyrredón when he took the silver treasure from the city, then in Jujuy and finally in Salta's territory, where they would receive help from Güemes and where Balcarce was replaced by Pueyrredón.
General Eustaquio Díaz Vélez with 800 soldiers was sent by Pueyrredón to support the insurrection at Cochabamba in a new attempt to advance on Upper Peru, but were repealed at Nazareno on 12 January 1812.
On 26 March 1812 the first campaign of the expeditionary army ended officially when Pueyrredón was replaced by brigadier general Manuel Belgrano.
Balcarce and Castelli were considered responsible for the debacle and were put on trial. Castelli died before sentence was pronounced, and Balcarce absolved and rejoined the fight, this time under the command of San Martín.
Second expedition to Upper Peru
Belgrano assumes command In 1812, with the new commander Manuel Belgrano, the Junta decided to fund a second expeditionary campaign to Upper Peru with the objective of finally defeating the royalist troops, conquer Upper Peru and avenge the overwhelming defeat at Huaqui, and also to raise the moral of the troops and citizenry.
On 26 March, Belgrano received command from Pueyrredón at Yatasto (Salta Province) and immediately advanced towards Jujuy Province, where he established a defensive perimeter.
When Belgrano took charge, the Army of the North comprised the following units: Reestructuración del Ejército del Norte Artillery: under the command of captain Francisco Villanueva, with 10 pieces of artillery and 106 men. 6th (Peruvian) Infantry Regiment commanded by lieutenant colonel Ignacio Warnes, with 613 men. Pardos and Morenos Regiment (mulattoes): commanded by lieutenant colonel José Superí, with 305 men. Fatherland Hussars (Húsares de la Patria): under the command of Martín Rodríguez, with 264 men. By decree of 26 November 1811, they were incorporated by Belgrano into the Fatherland Dragoons Regiment (Dragones de la Patria). Light Dragoons of Peru: under the command of lieutenant colonel Antonio González Balcarce, with 305 men. Created on 3 November 1810.