Jose de San Martin in Belgravia Square, London

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José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras was born on February 25, 1778, and died on August 17, 1850. He is known as José de San Martín, a renowned Argentine general who led the southern part of South America's fight for independence from Spain. Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes, Argentina, he left his mother country at the age of seven to study in Málaga, Spain. In 1808, after participating in the Peninsular War against France, San Martín contacted South American supporters of independence from Spain. In 1812, he sailed to Buenos Aires and offered his services to the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata, present-day Argentina. After the Battle of San Lorenzo and commanding the Army of the North in 1814, he organized a plan to defeat Spanish forces menacing the United Provinces from the north. This goal involved creating a new army, the Army of the Andes, in Cuyo Province, Argentina. From there, he led the Crossing of the Andes to Chile and triumphed at the Battle of Chacabuco and the Battle of Maipú (1818), liberating Chile from royalist rule. Then he sailed to attack the Spanish stronghold of Lima, Peru. On July 12, 1821, after seizing partial control of Lima, San Martín was appointed Protector of Peru, and Peruvian independence was officially declared on July 28. On July 22, 1822, after a closed-door meeting with fellow liberator Simón Bolívar at Guayaquil, Ecuador, Bolívar took over the task of fully liberating Peru. San Martín unexpectedly left the country and resigned the command of his army, excluding himself from politics and the military, and moved to France in 1824. The details of the July 22 meeting would be a subject of debate by later historians. San Martín is regarded as a national hero of Argentina and Peru, and together with Bolívar, one of the Liberators of Spanish South America. The Order of the Liberator General San Martín, created in his honor, is the highest decoration conferred by the Argentine government. This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source community effort. If you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.