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| Gaucho Cisplatine 1811- 1828 |
| As soon as Uruguay conquered its independence the new republic entered a period of constant civil war and foreign intervetions. Almost all male population took part in the fights that emerged since then. This gaucho reflects such reality. He is wearing the xiripa (skirt) over the bombacha (trouser) along with the tipycal gaucho boots. A very common dress by that time. In fact, these were the common cloths wore by civilians on both sides of the conflict. For defense the cavalrymen used to be equipped with a long saber and a pistol. Over the plain field os the Pampas (Uruguay, south Brazil and northeast Argentina), during the campaign against Brazil, the gaucho cavalry proved to be much more flexible than the stereotypezed tatics of infantry shown by the Imperial Army. Nevertheless, it was a matter of time until the imperials learn and put into pratic the same tatics the uruguayans did. In 1851 and 1864 the Imperial Army would return in superior numbers, mainly on horseback. |