Military Life in the Seventies

This chapter investigates how the military remember the Seventies, focusing on their identities as young Argentines and professional soldiers. Interviewed officers often justified their involvement in violence as a necessary duty, emphasising the period before 1976 while avoiding details of their actions during the dictatorship to preserve their public image amid contemporary condemnation and legal repercussions. The chapter highlights the Army’s strong sense of unity, rooted in discipline, camaraderie and mutual support, which extends into family life. Military families are deeply embedded in this environment, with spouses playing a crucial role in sustaining these connections. The chapter interprets military camaraderie and solidarity among wives as forms of fictive kinship, essential for adapting to military life. It also examines how military families create complex social networks, replacing biological ties with constructed kinship among other military families, fostering solidarity and resilience. These relationships, along with their connection to the military institution, profoundly impact officers’ lives and careers. Military wives, in particular, hold the family network together, providing support and stability. The chapter views these bonds as strategic alliances, with comrades and spouses as critical allies. It explores the silence of military spouses during the Seventies as both a protective measure and a sign of commitment to the military community. Ultimately, the chapter reveals the intertwined nature of military and family life, showing how these relationships shape behaviours and memories, particularly regarding the contentious events of the Seventies.