On March 24, 1976, Argentina’s military seized power by force and removed President Isabel Perón from office. Juan Perón’s third wife had fallen out of favor with conservative sectors that considered her incapable of guaranteeing the country’s stability.
The junta that took control set out to impose what it called a “National Reorganization Process.” Its leaders were Jorge Rafael Videla, Emilio Eduardo Massera and Orlando Ramón Agosti, who cast themselves as defenders of “Western and Christian civilization.” But their patriotism and faith did not prevent them from launching a campaign of state terror under which tens of thousands of their fellow citizens were detained, tortured and killed.
This is the story of how Argentina’s military dictatorship began and the brutal campaign that would become known as the “Dirty War.” From the coup that promised order to the systematic violence that followed, we examine one of Latin America’s darkest chapters and its lasting impact on Argentine society.