1846 Pedro Pico Plan of Montevideo, Uruguay (During the Great Siege)

This is an elegant and rare 1846 Pedro Pico map of Montevideo, Uruguay. It was published in Montevideo during the Great Siege of Montevideo during the Uruguayan Civil War (1839 - 1851).

A Closer Look

This map was drawn by Argentine surveyor Pedro Pico, who was among Montevideo's defenders during the siege. Red and blue manuscript marks the lines of the besieged and the besiegers, while the positions of artillery batteries and specific military units are printed. It is likely that Pico's work began prior to the siege, and that his primary focus - as a surveyor to the Department of Mines - was on the developing salt industry. Seven salt pans are noted. The plan also notes a cervezeria, possibly the first recorded brewery in Uruguay.

The Great Siege of Montevideo

The newly independent nation of Uruguay was wracked by civil war from 1830 to 1851. Opposing presidents, Fructuoso Rivera and Manuel Oribe, formed opposing political parties: the Colorados and the Nationals, respectively. Oribe's Nationals, wearing white armbands, came to be known as Blancos. Rivera's, with red armbands, and were dubbed Colorados. Following the defeat of the Colorados at the battle of Arroyo Grande, the Blancos moved to swiftly take Montevideo. The Colorado defense of the city, with substantial support from a large community of foreign exiles (including the famous Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi), and a contingent of 5,000 free slaves, forced a protracted siege, defending the city for 9 years. The siege ended when the British navy opened a supply line for Montevideo, effectively breaking the siege.

Publication History and Census

This lithograph was prepared and published in 1846 in Montevideo by Litografia de Mege y Lebas (Calle del 25 de Mayo, No. 233). The present map is the first and scarcer of two known editions. A second edition, published in Paris by Chaix, is easily distinguished from the first as battle lines are printed, and the composition of the scales differs. There are only four examples of the second edition of this map noted in institutional collections. Of this first edition, printed in Montevideo, we note only one other example, located at the University of Wisconsin.