View of the High Altar of San Francisco
The Temples Burn
Original source: 1955 Guerra Civil. La Revolucion Libertadora y la caída de Perón
On the night of June 16-17, 1955, Peronist mobs assaulted and set fire to the historic temples of Buenos Aires in retaliation for the aerial bombardment
The terrible violence unleashed that day did not stop after the fighting. The reader will remember that around half past four in the afternoon, bands of exalted Peronists rushed into the Metropolitan Curia to sack and burn it, a fact that General Ernesto Fatigatti witnessed when he passed through the place, in the heat of the fight.
The mob destroyed objects of enormous artistic and cultural value and, along with them, the Historical Archive, with its old documents from the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, "a unique and irreplaceable treasure", in the words of Isidoro Ruiz Moreno.
A woman cries before the desolation in San Francisco (Courtesy Fundación Villa Manuelita)
On that chaotic day, invaluable pieces of art and historical artifacts belonging to the city of Buenos Aires were tragically lost forever. The chaos ensued when the Curia building caught fire, and in the midst of the turmoil, a mob appeared, carrying off sacred objects, precious artistic vestments, ancient chalices, ciboriums, monstrances, patens, habits, and cassocks. These individuals then proceeded towards the main temples of the city with the clear intent of vandalizing them.
Two groups marched towards the convents of Santo Domingo and Nuestra Señora de la Merced. At Santo Domingo, the religious witnessed the arrival of agitators in trucks who, upon passing the temple, displayed aggressive gestures and shouted curses against the Church. In fear of an imminent attack, the friars and seminarians hurried to secure the doors and windows, but due to the escalating situation, they eventually had to evacuate under the guidance of their prior, Fray Luis Alberto Montes de Oca, who was deeply concerned for their safety. Despite the difficulties in communication caused by the cut telephone lines, Fray Luis chose to remain at the convent as its custodian.
Another vandalized altar in San Francisco
At 5:30 p.m., a frenzied crowd surged toward the gates blocking the atrium's access, while some individuals attempted to enter through the windows on Calle Defensa by breaking the bars. The devoted religious had no option but to hastily disguise themselves in civilian attire and escape through a small door in the 5 de Julio passage, blending in with the chaotic mob.
The historical temple, which held the tomb of General Manuel Belgrano and other iconic figures from the country's history, suffered merciless destruction and burning. This sacred place held invaluable cultural treasures, including the banners captured from royalists during battles in Salta and Tucumán, as well as from the British during the invasions of 1806 and 1807, along with precious artworks, images, and religious artifacts. Despite Fray Luis's attempt to seek help from the 2nd Police Station, the authorities responsible for maintaining public order did nothing to contain the savagery.
Two blocks away, at the corner of Defensa and Alsina, the San Francisco church and the adjoining chapel of San Roque also caught fire. This was the place where General Lavalle had been appointed governor of Buenos Aires in 1828.
Inside the convent's oratory, Fray Cecilio Heredia, along with fifteen other religious, was offering prayers of gratitude for Perón's call for calm when a deafening commotion from outside startled them. The terrifying noise of the mob invading the temple grounds and the sight of the friars fleeing through a side door in civilian clothes shook the cloisters. Fray Cecilio managed to escape but remained nearby, deeply saddened to witness the convent and church consumed by flames.
Just a short distance away, a similar scene unfolded at the church of San Ignacio, the oldest building in the city, connected to the historic Colegio Nacional (formerly known as Colegio Real de San Carlos, the birthplace of heroes). The enraged mob, armed with heavy objects, violently assaulted the grand doors and hurled insults at the religious and the Church as a whole.
This is how the ceilings of the Curia chapel appeared after the incident:
Father Alberto Lattuada, the parish priest, was engrossed in reading in his room when the sound of screams reached his ears. He rushed to the staircase and witnessed the crowd breaking through the porticoes, storming inside with shouts and raised clubs. The Jesuit bravely confronted them, raising his arms in a plea for calm and reason, urging them not to carry out an attack they would regret.
As Father Alberto attempted to restrain the vandals, he felt someone forcefully grabbing his arm and dragging him away. It was a young blond boy who shook him violently, forcing him outside amidst blows and insults. The boy threatened him with lynching if he dared to stay in the vicinity.
Outside, Father Alberto spotted two Army trucks filled with soldiers parked near the church. Desperate for help, he ran towards them, only to receive a disheartening response that left him paralyzed. "We cannot intervene. Seek out the officer in charge," they said.
Deeply disturbed, the parish priest helplessly witnessed the ruffians removing sacred images and objects from the temple and throwing them onto the street while the flames started to engulf the interior. Nearby, Lieutenant priest Guillermo Sáenz observed the scene with a heavy heart. The old convent, which held the tomb of Juan José Castelli and was once the grand "Jesuit empire of the Missions," as described by Leopoldo Lugones, began to crumble under the onslaught.
When the initial acts of violence unfolded, Perón and his associates were gathered at the Ministry of the Army. From there, they saw the smoke and the glow of the first bonfires, realizing the catastrophe unfolding in the city center. The Justicialist leader, seated at a table, stood up and exclaimed indignantly:
-Take action immediately because these are communist gangs that are burning the churches, and then they are going to attribute it to me!The president had barely finished speaking when Lucero urgently called General José Embrioni to inform him about the need to take immediate measures to protect the historical temples and threatened buildings. Embrioni contacted the police chief, who, remembering Minister Borlenghi's directive to keep the force stationed against potential attacks from revolutionary civilian commandos, decided to remain in place and take no action. He firmly believed that the Army would handle the situation.
Perón made a mistake by attributing responsibility to the communists because the attackers of the churches were actually his own supporters, driven by the fury and hatred he himself had incited.
At 6:30 p.m., the fire crews finally left their barracks and rushed to extinguish the fires. Upon arriving at Santo Domingo, Fire Commissioner Rómulo Pérez Algaba witnessed the burning of the Santeria and the altars, fueled by benches set on fire by the protesters.
Pérez Algaba also noticed an overturned tanker truck from which people were taking gasoline to add to the flames. He witnessed thugs smashing sacred images and objects on the pavement, stealing piggy banks, and desecrating ballot boxes containing relics of the heroes. Despite his attempts to communicate with his superiors, the vandals prevented him from doing so.
As he was on site, four individuals dressed in raincoats approached Pérez Algaba and warned him that flags captured from the English and Spanish were inside the temple, and four men were trapped in the library. They urged him to act swiftly to rescue them. Pérez Algaba responded firmly:
-Just as they came in let them come out. As for the flags... that's another thing.
The officer, accompanied by several firemen, ventured into the ruins, their path illuminated by a flashlight. Fortunately, they reached the site just in time to rescue the trophies and safeguard them. The glass covering had miraculously kept the trophies intact, protecting them from destruction. They swiftly retrieved the items and withdrew, narrowly escaping a collapsing column that would have obliterated everything.
During the rescue, Pérez Algaba and two of his men sustained injuries. These courageous individuals deserve the gratitude of posterity for safeguarding these invaluable pieces of our history.
Pérez Algaba and his team members were evacuated, but the four looters, equipped with chandeliers, remained inside. They broke the bars on the windows and daringly jumped from the first floor at the corner of Venezuela and Defensa.
Meanwhile, San Francisco was engulfed in flames on all sides. The firefighters had to engage in hand-to-hand combat with the protesters to halt the destruction. It was a spectacle to behold as burning pieces of wood detached from the central dome, plummeting onto the streets and sidewalks.
At Nuestra Señora de la Merced, the mob attacked and set fire to the left side of the temple. The flames spread to the sacristy, and thick smoke filled the central nave. In contrast, Nuestra Señora de la Piedad was also targeted, but the spilled kerosene did not ignite, thanks to the intervention of neighbors and law enforcement officers who managed to neutralize the threat. Nevertheless, the looting had devastating consequences, and things could have been much worse if the firefighters hadn't arrived in time to extinguish the fire that the protesters had started in the library for the blind on the mezzanine.
A different perspective of the High Altar at the Basilica of San Francisco is shown.
San Miguel endured minimal damage in the central nave, but the sacristy and rectory were ablaze when a team led by Commissioner Severo Toranzo arrived and thwarted a second attack.
Similarly, San Nicolás de Bari, situated on Santa Fe Avenue, suffered destruction as looters set the church on fire and threw valuable artistic and religious objects from the second-floor balconies. The attackers had to escape through side exits to avoid being trapped. It's worth noting that the church was originally founded in 1733 by the Spanish Domingo de Acassuso at its original location on 9 de Julio and Av. Corrientes, where the obelisk now stands [2].
The most severe damage occurred at Nuestra Señora de las Victorias, located on Paraguay and Libertad. The mob started a small fire and ransacked everything within reach. Both the parish office and the sacristy were in flames when a member of the parish movement named Marcó Bonorino and an unidentified lady attempted to douse the fire using water from vases. Another individual, named Cullen, alerted the police that several individuals had entered the priestly rooms, overturned a kerosene stove to start a fire, and stolen the collection money stored there.
The destruction at the Belgranian Institute was heartbreaking.
When the violence reached its peak, the parish priest, RP Jacobo Wagner, bravely attempted to intervene and stop the criminals. However, the attack he endured was so brutal that he was left unconscious on the ground. He remained in a prostrate state for forty-five days before tragically succumbing to the injuries inflicted on him.
Other Peronist groups targeted various churches, including San Juan Bautista located in Piedras y Alsina, where the fifth viceroy of the Río de la Plata, Don Pedro Melo of Portugal and Villena, is buried. Our Lady of Mercy and Our Lady of Help, the latter being associated with the drama of Camila O'Gorman [3], also suffered a similar fate.
Militants from the Basic Unit situated on Av. Corrientes and Jorge Newbery attempted to set fire to the church located on Osorio and Warnes. However, they were apprehended in time and detained for further investigation at Section 29.
That day, a devastating wave of destruction engulfed several other important temples including the Metropolitan Curia, Nuestra Señora de la Merced, San Ignacio, San Francisco, San Roque, Santo Domingo, San Juan Bautista, San Nicolás de Bari, Nuestra Señora de las Victorias, San Miguel Arcángel, Nuestra Señora del Socorro, and La Piedad. The fires reddened the low clouds that covered the Buenos Aires night, as described by Ruiz Moreno. But it wasn't only churches that were attacked; other institutions like the Belgraniano Institute, the Brotherhood of Nuestra Señora del Rosario, the Reconquest and Defense Commission, and the Pious Union of Blessed Martín de Porres, adjacent to Santo Domingo, also suffered destruction and fire.
Disturbing images circulated globally, showing the vandals wreaking havoc in the temples and parading around at night wearing stolen priestly garments and holding stolen objects. These actions brought shame to the Argentine people and tarnished their tradition. In a matter of hours, the country lost invaluable treasures of its artistic, historical, and religious heritage.
Miguel Ángel Cavallo offers a description of the events in Bahía Blanca on the night of June 16. Following the failure of the uprising, groups of workers assembled in front of the regional CGT building to hear their leaders' speeches and then marched in columns to the main square, armed with sticks, chains, and stones, prepared to attack the Cathedral. Once inside the city's main temple, they forced open its large doors and proceeded to destroy altars, images, and internal rooms. They even toppled the Carrara marble baptismal font and set parts of the interior on fire. Similar to the events in Buenos Aires, the mob donned clerical clothing, singing and dancing in the streets while chanting obscene and insulting verses.
A parishioner seeking solace in prayer (Courtesy Fundación Villa Manuelita)
Subsequently, the protesters rushed to the Corazón de María church and then to Nuestra Señora de Lourdes, causing similar damage. They continued their rampage by attacking the newsroom of the newspaper "Democracia," a courageous opposition publication led by Luis E. Vera. They wreaked havoc on their offices, destroying furniture, machinery, and facilities, before igniting another fire.
The vandals concluded their destructive spree at the headquarters of the Radical Civic Union, which they also set ablaze. Afterward, they retreated through the streets, singing chants in support of their leader. Surprisingly, neither the firefighters nor the police intervened, and there was no official acknowledgment of the events the following day. The newspaper "Democracia" was shut down, its owner detained and held incommunicado, along with the priests from the churches and religious schools of the city, who were transferred by trucks to the headquarters of the 5th Infantry Regiment [4].
Isidoro Ruiz Moreno provides an approximate estimate of the losses incurred on that fateful day. Commissioner Rafael Pugliese, head of the 2nd Section, discovered the urn containing the remains of General Zapiola lying behind the mausoleum of General Belgrano at the Santo Domingo convent. The urn had been forcefully removed from the Virgin's dressing room.
Anguish and despair gripped the porteños as they endured fateful hours. Their city was first bombed, and immediately after, their historical, cultural, and religious heritage was devastated, as described by the Courtesy Fundación Villa Manuelita.
In the atrium, antique furniture, some of which had been lent by the convent for the Cabildo Abierto meeting on May 22, 1810, was set ablaze. The main altar and two other sides of the church were consumed by the fire, while several others suffered severe damage.
Nearly all the precious images were removed from their rightful places, either thrown to the ground or set on fire. Crystals and stained glass windows were shattered with stones, and the colonial furniture and historical organ in the choir were consumed by the flames. The Venetian majolica of the vaults was destroyed, and the dressing room of the Virgen del Rosario, where the banners seized from the English in 1806 and 1807, and those captured by General Belgrano from the Spaniards during the campaigns of the North, was demolished. Numerous trophies displayed in the side wall showcases vanished.
The sacristy suffered the same fate, reduced to ashes, with its cabinets set on fire, and the two Carrara marble baptismal fonts smashed into pieces. Internal halls and a minor chapel in the eastern sector were also burned. The priests' rooms were ransacked, their furniture destroyed, and the prior's room was set on fire.
San Ignacio's altars were ruthlessly destroyed, with wood torn from them, and others caught fire, along with smashed furniture. The vandals even set fire to the church's library and the parish priest's room, demolishing the crockery, sideboards, and a grand mirror with a console.
In the chapel of San Roque, the altars were set ablaze, and the linings of the vaults and richly decorated side walls crumbled to pieces. The main images were also destroyed. Nearby, San Francisco faced a similar tragic fate, with all its ancient and artistic altars, including the largest one, lost to the flames. The dome collapsed, leaving only its metal skeleton standing, and precious stained glass windows fell into pieces. The fire devoured extremely valuable paintings and furniture from the 18th and 19th centuries. The presbytery, sacristy, carvings, images, and sacred objects were thrown viciously about, and rooms and dependencies of the convent were engulfed in flames. Priceless chalices, candelabras, monstrances, crucifixes, and other valuables were stolen, many of them made of silver and solid gold, adorned with precious gemstones. Among the ruins, the great 1.50-meter tabernacle stood out, tossed amidst rubble and the remains of charred objects.
In one night, Buenos Aires lost four centuries of history, leaving the city in mourning over its irreplaceable heritage.
Dome and roofs of the ruined Cathedral
Looters attack the Tabernacle in the Cathedral
Absorbed faithful observe the destruction in the Curia
Library and Archive of the Curia destroyed by fire
The great dome of San Francisco victim of the flames
The altar of San Francisco desecrated
The people of Buenos Aires observe in disbelief the desecration of their temples, in this case San Francisco
More destruction in San Francisco
State in which the ceilings of San Francisco were left
Vandalized benches and imagery in San Francisco
San Francisco side altar
San Francisco. Access to the convent
High Altar of San Francisco
Side altar of the Basilica Nuestra Señora del Rosario (Convent of Santo Domingo)
Convent of Santo Domingo. Side view of the High Altar
Ruins and rubble in the church of San Ignacio
Saint Joseph beheaded in San Ignacio
Monsignor D'Andrea's room in San Miguel Archangel burned down
San Miguel Arcangel. Another image of the state in which Monsignor D'Andrea's room was left
Ruins in the Church of San Juan Bautista, tomb of Viceroy Pedro Melo of Portugal and Villena
Notes
- Antonio González Balcarce, Martín de Alzaga, Juan de Lezica y Torrezuri and the general José María Zapiola.
- Miguel Ángel Cavallo, Puerto Belgrano, Hora 0. La Marina se subleva, Cap. III “El 16 de junio en Bahía Blanca”.
- Isidoro Ruiz Moreno, op. Cit., Tomo I, Tercera Parte, Cap XI, “La cruz en la hoguera”.
- Between 1935 and 1936 it was moved to its current location and it houses the marble font in which Bernardino Rivadavia, Bartolomé Miter and San Héctor Valdivielso Sáez, the first Argentine saint, were baptized, as well as pieces of sacred art of inestimable value, something that the scoundrel was completely unaware.
- In a niche of the latter lie the remains of Santa Constancia Martyr, victim of the persecutions of Nero, sent from Rome when it was elevated to a basilica.