Lautaro Lodge facts for kids

The Lautaro Lodge (Spanish: Logia Lautaro) was a secret group that played a big role in politics in Latin America during the 1800s. It was first called the Lodge of Rational Knights (Spanish: Logia de los Caballeros Racionales). This group wanted to spread new ideas from the Spanish Enlightenment, which was a time of new thinking about freedom and rights. When Spain went back to old-fashioned, strict rule (called the Absolutist Restoration), the Lodge started to work for the freedom of the South American colonies from Spain.

How the Lodge Started in Europe

For a long time, people thought the Lautaro Lodge was an offshoot of a British group called "The Great American Reunion." This British group was created by a Venezuelan revolutionary named Francisco de Miranda.

However, newer studies suggest that the Lodge actually started in Cadiz, Spain. They also say that Miranda was not one of its founders. He was living in Paris at that time and only returned to London later. It's hard for historians to find out exact details about secret groups like this because they kept their activities very private.

Both the Lautaro Lodge and "The Great American Reunion" were not deeply involved in freemasonry. They just used the idea of being a secret society as a way to promote their ideas about freedom and modern government. This helped them avoid being punished by the strict rulers of that time.

The Lodge in Buenos Aires

Many military officers who had fought in the Peninsular War (a war in Spain), like José de San Martín, Carlos María de Alvear, and José Matías Zapiola, left Cadiz and moved to Buenos Aires. They started to set up a secret lodge there, much like the one they had known in Cadiz.

There were already other secret groups in Buenos Aires. These included the "Hiram Sons" and "Southern Star" lodges, which favored Britain. There was also the "Patriotic Society," made up of supporters of Mariano Moreno. The "Patriotic Society" was against the British-friendly groups. The new lodge created by the Spanish generals joined forces with the "Patriotic Society."

What's in a Name?

Even though this group is most often called "Lautaro," it didn't always use that name. The name "Lautaro" refers to a famous Mapuche leader named Lautaro. This name made a lot of sense in Santiago de Chile between 1817 and 1820, but it didn't really fit Buenos Aires in 1812, and even less so for a group in Europe.

Historian Vicente Fidel López suggested that "Lautaro" was actually a secret code word used by the Masons, meaning "Expedition to Chile." But again, Chile was not a military target for Buenos Aires in 1812. At that time, Chile was still in its "Patria Vieja" period, which was its first attempt at self-government. It didn't fall back under royalist (Spanish) control until the Disaster of Rancagua in 1814.

Because of all the secrecy, it's hard to know for sure what the group's goals were or even its true name. However, Alcibíades Lappas believes that the lodge was called the "Lodge of Rational Knights" in 1812, just like the one in Cadiz. He thinks that José de San Martín renamed it "Lautaro" when he restarted the group in 1815, after Carlos María de Alvear lost power.

See also

In Spanish: Logia Lautaro para niños