ARA Rivadavia ARA " Rivadavia " was a battleship of the Argentine Navy . Named after the first Argentine president , Bernardino Rivadavia , she was the lead ship of her class and the third dreadnought built during the South American dreadnought race . was " Rivadavia " s only sister ship . In 1907 , Brazil placed an order for two of the powerful new " dreadnought " warships as part of a larger naval building program . Argentina quickly responded , as Brazil ' s ships outclassed anything in the Argentine fleet . After an extended bidding process , contracts to design and build " Rivadavia " and " Moreno " were given to the American Fore River Shipbuilding Company . During their construction , there were rumors that Argentina might sell them to a country engaged in the First World War , but the ships were not sold . " Rivadavia " was commissioned on 27 August 1914 but saw no combat in the war , as Argentina remained neutral . She underwent extensive refits in the United States in 1924 and 1925 . She saw no active duty during the Second World War ; Argentina remained neutral until March 1945 when the country declared war on the Axis powers , and " Rivadavia " did not become involved in the soon - to - end conflict . Stricken from the naval register in 1957 , " Rivadavia " was sold later that year and was broken up for scrap in 1959 . Background . " Rivadavia " s genesis can be traced to the naval arms races between Chile and Argentina which were spawned by territorial disputes over their mutual borders in Patagonia and Puna de Atacama , along with control of the Beagle Channel . These arms races flared up in the 1890s and again in 1902 ; the latter was eventually stopped through British mediation . Provisions in the dispute - ending treaty imposed restrictions on both countries ' navies . The United Kingdom ' s Royal Navy bought the two " Constitución " - class pre - dreadnought battleships that were being built for Chile , and Argentina sold its two " Rivadavia " - class armored cruiser s under construction in Italy to Japan . After was commissioned by the United Kingdom , Brazil decided in early 1907 to halt the construction of three obsolescent pre - dreadnoughts and begin work on two dreadnought s ( the ) . These ships , which were designed to carry the heaviest battleship armament in the world at the time , came as a shock to the navies of South America , and Argentina and Chile quickly canceled the 1902 armament - limiting pact . Argentina in particular was alarmed at the possible power of the ships . The Minister of Foreign Affairs , Manuel Augusto Montes de Oca , remarked that even one " Minas Geraes " - class ship could destroy the entire Argentine and Chilean fleets . While this may have been hyperbole , either one was much more powerful than any single vessel in the Argentinian fleet . Debates raged in Argentina over whether to spend more than two million pounds sterling to acquire dreadnoughts . With further border disputes , particularly with Brazil near the Río de la Plata ( River Plate ) , Argentina made plans to contract for their own dreadnoughts . After an extended bidding process , " Rivadavia " and were ordered from the Fore River Shipbuilding Company in the United States . Construction and trials . Laid down on 25 May 1910 , " Rivadavia " was launched and christened on 26 August 1911 by Isabel , the wife of the Argentine Minister to the United States Rómulo Sebastián Naón . Thousands of people were present to witness the event , including representatives from the Argentine Navy and the country ' s legation in Washington . The United States sent the assistant chief of the Latin American Division in the State Department , Henry L . James , to be its official representative . Two United States Navy bureau chiefs also attended . In mid - September 1913 , " Rivadavia " conducted trials off Rockland , Maine , after a two - week delay due to turbine malfunctions . During speed trials on the 16th , the dreadnought was able to obtain a maximum speed of . On a 30 - hour endurance trial starting the next day , " Rivadavia " damaged one of her turbines and had to put in at President Roads , one of Boston Harbor ' s deep - water anchorages . The turbines were still a problem as late as August 1914 . One was dropped by a crane in July and had to be removed for repairs in August . Attempted sale . Over the course of their construction , " Rivadavia " and " Moreno " had been the subject of rumors that Argentina would accept the ships and then sell them to Japan , a fast - growing military rival to the United States , or to a European country . The rumors were partially true ; some in the government were looking to get rid of the battleships and devote the proceeds to opening more schools , and " The New York Times " reported in late 1913 that the country had received several offers from interested parties . This angered the American government , which did not want its warship technology offered to the highest bidder . Neither did they want to exercise a contract - specified option that gave the United States first choice if the Argentines decided to sell , as naval technology had already progressed past the " Rivadavia " class , particularly in the adoption of the " all - or - nothing " armor scheme . Instead , the United States and its State Department and Navy Department put diplomatic pressure on the Argentine government . After socialist gains in the legislature , the Argentine government introduced several bills in May 1914 which would have put the battleships up for sale , but the bills were all defeated by late June . Following the commencement of the First World War , the German and British ambassadors to the United States both complained to the US State Department ; the former believed that the British were going to be given the ships as soon as the ships reached Argentina , and the latter considered it the responsibility of the United States to ensure that the ships never left Argentina ' s possession . International armament companies attempted to get Argentina to sell to one of the smaller Balkan countries and expected that the ships would then find their way into the war . Service . " Rivadavia " was commissioned into the " Armada de la República Argentina " on 27 August 1914 at the Charlestown Navy Yard , although she was not fully completed until December . On 23 December 1914 , " Rivadavia " left the United States for Argentina . She arrived in its capital , Buenos Aires , on 19 February 1915 . Over 47 , 000 people came out to see the new ship over the next three days , including the President Victorino de la Plaza . In April 1915 , " Rivadavia " was put into the training division of the Navy ; she remained there until 1917 , when she was moved into the First Division . In 1917 , the ship sailed to Comodoro Rivadavia when communist oil workers went on strike . Later in 1917 , " Rivadavia " s activities were sharply curtailed because of a fuel shortage . In 1918 , she voyaged to the United States with the Argentine Ambassador ; he disembarked at Hampton Roads , Virginia . " Rivadavia " then took on a load of gold bullion and brought it back to Argentina , docking in Puerto Belgrano on 23 September 1918 . In December 1920 , " Rivadavia " participated in ceremonies that marked the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the Strait of Magellan . On the 2nd , the ship called on Valparaíso in Chile ; 25 days later , she took part in an international naval review . Two years later , " Rivadavia " was berthed in Puerto Belgrano and placed into reserve . In 1923 , the Navy decided to send " Rivadavia " to the United States for a full modernization . It took a year before the ship departed on 6 August 1924 , and she reached Boston on the 30th . The refit took two years . " Rivadavia " was converted to use fuel oil instead of coal and had " a general machinery overhaul " . A new fire - control system was fitted with rangefinders on the fore and aft superfiring turrets , and the aft mast was replaced by a tripod . A funnel cap was installed so that smoke from the funnels did not interfere with accurate rangefinding of enemy ships . The 6 - inch secondary armament was retained , but the smaller 4 - inch guns were taken off in favor of four anti - aircraft guns and four 3 - pounders . After sailing back to Argentina in March and April 1926 , " Rivadavia " spent the remainder of the year undergoing sea trials . The dreadnought joined the training division once again in 1927 . After " Rivadavia " made four training cruises , the division was disbanded . As a result , the ship remained docked in Puerto Belgrano for the entire year ; it was not until 1929 that she moved again . Although she was active in both 1929 and 1930 , " Rivadavia " was placed in reserve again on 19 December 1930 . Activated shortly thereafter in 1931 , she was designated as the fleet ' s flagship for exercises held that year , and put into reserve once more in 1932 . Activated yet again in January 1933 , " Rivadavia " remained in full commission for most of the rest of the decade as part of the Battleship Division , along with her sister " Moreno " . In January 1937 , the ship called on Valparaíso and Callao in Peru . In company with " Moreno " , " Rivadavia " left Puerto Belgrano on 6 April and set course for Europe . She visited the French port of Brest and was joined by her sister there after " Moreno " had taken part in the Coronation Review in Spithead . The two ships then put in at the German port of Wilhelmshaven for a goodwill visit . When the two dreadnoughts departed , they split up once more ; " Rivadavia " visited Hamburg and " Moreno " visited Bremen . They returned to Argentina on 29 June . " Rivadavia " made an official visit to Rio de Janeiro , Brazil , in 1939 . Argentina remained neutral for the majority of the Second World War , and " Rivadavia " saw no active service . Her next cruise was from 29 October to 22 December 1946 , after the close of the war ; she called on countries in the Caribbean and northern South America , including Trinidad , Venezuela , and Colombia . This was the last time the ship would be in service under her own power , as she was moored in Puerto Belgrano from 1948 on , was rendered inoperable in 1951 , and was cannibalized over many years for useful arms and equipment . On 18 October 1956 , the ship was listed for disposal , and she was stricken from the Navy on 1 February 1957 . Three months later on 30 May , " Rivadavia " was sold to an Italian ship breaking company for . Beginning on 3 April 1959 , the ship was towed by two tugboats to Savona , Italy , where they arrived on 23 May . She was thereafter broken up in Genoa .