Tomás Villalba

{{Short description|19th-century Uruguayan politician}}

{{family name hatnote|Villalba|Albin|lang=Spanish}}

{{Infobox Officeholder

|name = Tomás Villalba

|image = File:Tomás Villalba.jpg

|office =20th President of Uruguay

|vicepresident =

|term_start = 15 February 1865

|term_end = 20 February 1865

|predecessor = Atanasio Aguirre

|successor = Venancio Flores

|birth_name = Tomás Villalba y Albin

|birth_date = {{birth date|1805|12|9|df=y}}

|birth_place =

|death_date = {{death date and age|1886|7|12|1805|12|9|df=y}}

|death_place =

|party = Blanco Party

|spouse =

|religion =

|signature =

}}

Tomás Villalba y Albin (9 December 1805 – 12 July 1886){{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pK1pAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Tomás+Villalba%22 |title=Studies in Genealogy and Family History in Tribute to Charles Evans on the Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday |page=121 |author=Charles F. H. Evans |publisher=Association for the Promotion of Scholarship in Genealogy |year=1989}} was a Uruguayan politician who served as interim President for five days (15 to 20 February 1865),{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8zphhcVRroAC&pg=PA235 |title=The Paraguayan War: Causes and Early Conduct |page=235 |author=Thomas Whigham |publisher=University of Nebraska Press |year=2002|isbn=0-8032-4786-9 }} at the end of the Uruguayan War,{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QCMuAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA17 |title=The History of Paraguay: With Notes of Personal Observations, and Reminiscences of Diplomacy Under Difficulties |volume=2 |page=17 |author=Charles Ames Washburn |publisher=Lee and Shepard |location=New York| year=1871|isbn=978-0-404-06857-8 }} which had begun on 10 August 1864. The war was fought between the governing Blanco Party and the Colorado Party, with the latter supported openly by the Empire of Brazil and covertly by the Argentine president, Bartolomé Mitre. The Uruguayan War was part an almost continuous struggle between the Blanco and Colorado factions since Uruguayan independence in 1828,{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bw1ZW3nfW6MC&pg=PA29 |title=To the Bitter End: Paraguay and the War of the Triple Alliance |page=29 |author=Christopher Leuchars |publisher=Greenwood Press |year=2002|isbn=978-0-313-07685-5 }}{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/uruguay/5.htm |title=Beginnings of independent life, 1830–52 – Uruguay |publisher=Library of Congress Country Studies |access-date=19 January 2014}}{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/uruguay/6.htm |title=The Great War, 1843–52 – Uruguay |publisher=Library of Congress Country Studies |access-date=19 January 2014}} and was closely linked to a wider regional conflict involving Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay which culminated in the Paraguayan War (also known as the War of the Triple Alliance).{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4pwSAQAAIAAJ&q=1865 |title=The age of the caudillo, 1791–1899 |page=314 |author=Robert L. Scheina |publisher=Brassey's Inc. |year=2003|isbn=978-1-57488-449-4 }}{{cite web |url=http://countrystudies.us/uruguay/7.htm |title=The struggle for survival, 1852–75 – Uruguay |publisher=Library of Congress Country Studies |access-date=19 January 2014}} The Colorado leader Venancio Flores started a rebellion in 1863 to overthrow Blanco President Bernardo Berro, who led a coalition Colorado–Blanco government.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=khU0sFxgyjMC&pg=RA2-PA1842 |title=Latin America's Wars |page=1842 |author=Robert L. Scheina |publisher=Potomac Books |year=2003|isbn=978-1-59797-477-6 }} After a series of battles, the Colorados and the Brazilian army controlled most of the country, with the Blancos left in control of just the capital, Montevideo.{{rp|235}} On March 1, 1864, President Berro stepped down and was replaced by a hard-line senator, Atanasio Aguirre.

On 2 February 1865, the Brazilian navy began a blockade of Montevideo, but temporarily relaxed it to allow foreigners to be evacuated to Buenos Aires.{{rp|234–235}} The relaxation of the blockade was extended to the middle of February to allow the Uruguayan Senate to elect a new President of the Senate.{{rp|235}} Anastasio Aquirre's term ended on 15 February, whereupon the Senate elected the moderate Tomás Villalba to replace him.{{Cite web|url=http://www.parlamento.gub.uy/htmlstat/PL/OtrosDocumentos/ParlamentariosUruguayos.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029204334/http://www.parlamento.gub.uy/htmlstat/PL/OtrosDocumentos/ParlamentariosUruguayos.pdf|archive-date=October 29, 2013|title=Parlamentarios Uruguayos 1830-2005|date=October 29, 2013|author=PRESIDENCIA DE LA ASAMBLEA GENERAL Y DEL SENADO PRESIDENCIA DE LA CAMARA DE REPRESENTANTES|website=www.parlamento.gub.uy}} Villalba immediately asked for a contingent of foreign troops, from Britain, France, Italy and Spain, to land in Montevideo as a means of preventing the more radical members of the Blanco Party from attempting to overthrow Villalba.{{rp|236}} The new president reached an agreement with Flores and a peace accord was signed on 20 February, which included a general amnesty for Blancos and Colorados. Villalba stepped down to allow Flores to become interim president, prior to new elections.{{rp|236}}

Before assuming the national presidency, Villalba had been the President of the Senate of Uruguay from 24 April 1863 until 15 February 1865.{{cite web |url=http://www.parlamento.gub.uy/htmlstat/PL/OtrosDocumentos/ParlamentariosUruguayos.pdf |title=Parlamentarios Uruguayos 1830-2005 |date=December 2006 |publisher=Parliament of Uruguay |language=Spanish |access-date=19 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029204334/http://www.parlamento.gub.uy/htmlstat/PL/OtrosDocumentos/ParlamentariosUruguayos.pdf |archive-date=29 October 2013 }} Previously, Villalba had also served as the Minister of Finance from 29 March 1860 to 22 June 1861, in the second government of President Berro,{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PEE-AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Tom%C3%A1s+Villalba%22 |title=Formación económica del Uruguay |year=1971 |author=Felipe S. Vázquez Varini |publisher=Escuela-Impr. "Don Orione"}} prior to which he appears to have served as Accountant General in 1858.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aB8rAAAAIAAJ&q=%22Tom%C3%A1s+Villalba%22 |title=Historia Rural Del Uruguay Moderno: 1851–1885 |page=74 |language=Spanish |author=José Pedro Barrán |author2=Benjamín Nahum |publisher=Ediciones de la Banda Oriental |year=1967}} After stepping down from the presidency, Villalba published a report on 18 March 1865, about the Uruguayan banking industry,{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uywTAQAAIAAJ&q=%22Villalba%22 |title=From Batlle to Batlle: Uruguay in the Late Nineteenth Century |pages=82–83 |author=Doris Brandenburg McLaughlin |publisher=University of Michigan |year=1973}} followed by a decree on 23 March 1865, which created banking regulations for the first time in Uruguayan history.