Factbook
Histoire de Uruguay — Chronologie
Dates clés de l'histoire de Uruguay, d'après le Factbook Magna et l'Encyclopédie universelle.
1726The Spanish founded the city of Montevideo in modern-day Uruguay in 1726 as a military stronghold, and it soon became an important commercial center due to its natural harbor.
1821Argentina initially claimed Uruguay, but Brazil annexed the country in 1821.
1825Independence: 25 August 1825 (from Brazil).
1825Uruguay declared its independence in 1825 and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle.
1973A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement named the Tupamaros (or Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros) launched in the late 1960s and pushed Uruguay's president to cede control of the government to the military in 1973.
2004In 2004, the left-of-center Frente Amplio (FA) Coalition won national elections that effectively ended 170 years of political control by the Colorado and National (Blanco) parties.
2019The left-of-center coalition retained the presidency and control of both chambers of congress until 2019.
2023Generation mix — fossil fuels: 8% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 3.8% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); wind: 37% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 27.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) Energy use: 45.755 million Btu/person (2023 est.).
2023Industries: food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages Agriculture: milk, rice, wheat, barley, soybeans, beef, rapeseed, sugarcane, maize, beef offal (2023) Electricity access: 100% (2022 est.).
2023Languages: Spanish (official, Rioplatense is the most widely spoken dialect) Religions: Roman Catholic 36.5%, Protestant 5% (Evangelical (non-specific) 4.6%, Adventist 0.2%, Protestant (non-specific) 0.3%), African American Cults/Umbanda 2.8%, Jehovah's Witness 0.6%, Church of Jesus Christ 0.2%, other 1%, Believer (not belonging to the church) 1.8%, agnostic 0.3%, a Urban population: 95.8% of total population (2023).
2023Major urban areas: 1.774 million MONTEVIDEO (capital) (2023) high-income, export-oriented South American economy; South America’s largest middle class; low socioeconomic inequality; growing homicide rates; growing Chinese and EU relations; 2019 Argentine recession hurt; key milk, beef, rice, and wool exporter Inflation: 4.8% (2024 est.).
2024Military spending: 2.1% of GDP (2024 est.).
