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The founding of Carmen de Patagones was part of a set of political, economic, social and administrative reforms devised and implemented by the Bourbon Kings that had repercussions both in the Iberian Peninsula and in its American colonies.



The revaluation of the Cape Horn route, the expansionist policy of the Portuguese, the presence of the Siberinians in the Rocky Mountains prompted Spanish thinkers to devise an ambitious project that would guarantee their sovereignty in these threatened regions. This is how the emergence of a series of civilian populations from Alta California to the Patagonian coasts was planned and materialized. In short, a complex conjunctural situation gave rise to the population that concerns us.



Francisco de Viedma took the population for granted on April 22, 1779, choosing the southern bank of the Negro River to erect the fort and establish the settlers. Its first name was Establishment of the Río Negro although it was also called indistinctly ´´Fuerte del Carmen and Fuerte del Río Negro´´. Unaware of the river regime, on July 13, one of the usual floods, destroyed the few buildings, deciding to move to the left bank of the river. On October 2 of that same year, the first of the 11 boats that mobilized the settlers arrived, and in the absence of the promised homes in Spain, they had to make the caves / home in the ravine.



The first settlers came mostly from Galicia but the arrival of some maragatos originated the peculiar name. It is important to note that during its first century of existence the population was in a territory dominated by the natives (Tehuelche), with navigation being the only possible means of communication with Buenos Aires and other Christian populations. In this sense, the subsistence of Patagones settled more than 800 km. South of the border line, it is only understandable by abolishing the stereotypical and prejudiced images that do not allow us to appreciate the complex world of relationships that characterized the spaces where neither the Indian nor the white man managed to obtain control of the territory. Whites and Indians were makers of a concerted cultural space, where coexistence and negotiation were founded by trade.



Since its inception the population had a fragile military garrison for defense and a small port. The first twenty years (1779-1810) was marked by isolation with the sporadic visit of ships. The socio-economic structure was of a typical almost self-sufficient farm with a diversified production.

The events of May 1810 meant the loss of the geopolitical sense that supported the existence of Carmen. Patagones had to overcome the most difficult decade in its history to the point of almost disappearing on several occasions. After the May Revolution, the First Government Junta of Buenos Aires took control of Patagones, but in April 1812 an uprising led by detained royalists achieved control of the square, which thus passed into the orbit of Montevideo until December 13, 1814, the date on which it came to depend definitively on the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata.

The 1820s were more promising as a result of the opening of extra-regional markets linked to the economy of the saladeros and the consequent expansion of livestock and trade. In this period, Argentina and Brazil entered the war (the Brazilian War) and this Patagonian population was the corsairs' base of operations since the mouth of the Río de la Plata estuary was blocked by a powerful Brazilian fleet. In 1827, the Brazilian troops tried to take Carmen de Patagones by surprise in order to destroy the fort, the population but mainly the port and the corsairs settled there. However, the authorities and the population reacted in time and managed to successfully repel this force. This episode is known as Battle of Carmen de Patagones. Two of the 7 Brazilian imperial flags that were taken on March 7, 1827 are preserved in the Nuestra Señora del Carmen Church. Towards the end of the decade the town was visited by the French naturalist Alcides d'Orbigny.



In 1854, the Law of Municipalities of the Province of Buenos Aires allowed ´´El Carmen´´ to have an elective municipality and a representative in the Provincial Legislature.

In 1856, the military commander of Patagones, Colonel Benito Villar, erected on the right bank of the river, the Chapel of Our Lady of Mercy, which later gave rise to the name Mercedes de Patagones or Patagones Sur.

In 1885 the Negro River Squadron was created, based in Patagones.



Between 1986 and 1989, the National Executive Power tried to establish the Capital of the Republic in the conurbation formed by Viedma, Carmen de Patagones and Guardia Miter, creating the Federal District of Viedma - Carmen de Patagones, for which on May 27, 1987 After a long debate, the National Congress passed Law 23,512 and later, on July 21 of the same year, through Decree 1,156, the Entity for the Construction of the New Capital - State Company (ENTECAP) was created . Then, at the end of the presidential term of Raúl Alfonsín and after the economic situation of the country, the project was never carried out, since it was ignored by President Carlos Saúl Menem, although Law No. 23,512 was never repealed by the Congress of the Nation and is still in force, however, the 5-year terms to carry out the project that were given by the legislatures of the Buenos Aires and Río Negro provinces, expired. Although the Constitution of Río Negro, modified in 1988, maintains in its article 11: ´´The city of Viedma is the capital of the Province ... It ceases to be capital when the transfer of national authorities to the new Federal District becomes effective´ ´. This text seems to maintain that the Rio Negro territory section is still in force.



In 1999, Dr. Raúl Alfonsín stated in a note to La Nacion newspaper that, since the law for the transfer of the Capital was in force, "any president would change it with a decree." On July 31, 2009, two national deputies for the province of Misiones, Lía Fabiola Bianco and Miguel Angel Iturrieta, presented a draft resolution in the Argentine Congress where the Executive Branch of the Nation is requested to comply with the provisions of the law 23,512 and materialize the transfer of the Federal Capital. For more information, see Patagonia Project.



In 2003, Carmen de Patagones was legitimately considered part of the Argentine Patagonia; law managed by Haroldo Lebed, former mayor of the city.











Carmen de Patagones, also referred to locally as Patagones, is the southernmost city of the Province of Buenos Aires in the Argentine Republic. It is located 937 km south of the city of Buenos Aires. The city is built on the north bank of the Negro River, the river that separates it from the city of Viedma, capital of the Province of Río Negro, both cities constituting the region of Viedma - Carmen de Patagones. The region is very close, about 30 km, to the mouth of the river in the Atlantic Ocean.



The city is the head of the Patagones Party (13,600 km²), which is the largest in the Province of Buenos Aires and the only one in that province that is found in Patagonia.

It had 18,189 inhabitants (INDEC, 2001), which represents an increase of 6.5% compared to the 17,075 inhabitants (INDEC, 1991) of the previous census. The city of Carmen de Patagones forms a single conurbation together with the town of Viedma, called by INDEC Viedma - Carmen de Patagones, between them they had over 65,000 inhabitants.



Portal city of the Argentine Patagonia, constitutes within the broad Argentine geography, the landmark that marks the very birth of Patagonia. Its more than 230 years of history fill its Old Town with meaning, declared a National Historic Town through Presidential Decree 401/03.

This peculiar portion of the city which develops on the ravine is magnified cultural and historical, the winding streets, the stepped sidewalks, the adobe houses, the bars and lanterns, a unique image of a different place stamping against the pure sky the towers of the Church of Our Lady of Carmen.



It is in the Historic Town of the city where the vestiges that evoke national and local history are preserved, palpable through the visit to the different National Historical Monuments, museums and their characters. Today it constitutes an unbeatable setting that gives shelter to artistic and cultural manifestations that express the knowledge of the people. Artists and artisans congregate here to display their excellent works. During the course of the year, various artistic and cultural events organized by the Directorate of Historical Heritage bring together the community and invite visitors to share a range of activities of notable significance.



The Provincial Festival of March 7 is the most important artistic and cultural event in the district and among the most prominent in Patagonia, year after year it evokes the anniversary of the heroic deed of March 7, 1827 when the Maragato people bravely attacked the Brazilian empire in defense of national sovereignty in these southern territories. During several days the traditional festival summons the most important artists of the region culminating each night with a musical show of national hierarchy.



Thus, the town pays tribute to the heroes of the past, folkloric shows, cultural and traditional activities, regional products, typical gastronomy, artisan walks: matrería, silverware, rope, etc.



The traditional Creole parade through the central streets of the city gathers an innumerable amount of public, as well as the jockey with invited Creole delegations from all over the region, southern Buenos Aires, Lower Valley and southern Rio Negro province.



At its feet flows the majestic Rio Negro, a true oasis of greenery, where its wandering course, its lush vegetation and its fauna catch those who know its particular beauty. Its clean and transparent waters offer the possibility of enjoying it through different alternatives such as practicing nautical sports, strolling in picturesque boats, sunbathing and cooling off in its municipal spas, or simply capturing the best postcards.

The Rio Negro is the natural mirror where the city of Carmen de Patagones is reflected, a landscape without equal where the richness of contrasts encourages visitors to perpetuate the moment through a warm image.



The Balenarian town 7 de Marzo located 35 kilometers from the city of Carmen de Patagones, is reached by traveling along a consolidated road that borders the Negro River to its mouth in the Argentine sea. This maritime area is characterized by its wide and extensive sandy beaches suitable for the practice of different recreational activities such as sun and beach.



During the summer season, this place attracts a large number of sport fishermen who find here a suitable place to practice this exciting activity in an environment that combines tranquility and nature.



Those who choose to go to this place will find buildings for residential use, not yet offering basic services for visitors.



Soccer: its main clubs are Deportivo Patagones and Club Jorge Newbery. There is also a very important neighborhood club: La Loma, which in 2008 joined the Rionegrina Soccer League and participated for the first time in the most important championships in the region.

Basketball: main clubs are Deportivo Patagones, Club Jorge Newbery and Club Atlético Atenas, participant of the National League B (in 2007) (third category of Argentine basketball).

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