Wars of Independence, Part II

Why did Spanish colonies declare independence or not, and how did they achieve it?

I. Catalyst

A. Events in Spain

1808: Napoleon captured Ferdinand VII; Spaniards elect juntas to govern in his absence
1810: Appointment of Regency to rule for king
1812: Election of Parliament (Cortes) which passes a Constitution
1814: Ferdinand VII restored: Rescinded Constitution and Reconquest of American colonies

B. Elite Creole Responses

1. Formed local juntas and sent representatives to Cortes (Parliament)

a. Early optimism for reform within system
b. Growing disillusionment

i. Treated as 2nd-class citizens within Cortes
ii. violent retribution during “reconquest” after 1814

2. Faced hypothetical questions:

a. Q1: More to gain remaining within the empire or declaring independence?
b. Q2: Could they prevent revolution from below?

II. Course of Events in Spanish South America: variation and interaction

A. Rio de la Plata

1. Q1: Independence? Yes: taxation; representation; free trade

2. Q2: Prevent Revolution from Below?: Yes

a. fewer slaves and indigenous communities; about 38% population white
b. repelled 1806 British invasion: strong creole militia

3. Military success vs. Spain, but civil war among provinces

B. Venezuela

1. Q1: Independence? Probably
2. Q2: Prevent Revolution from Below? split

a. slaves
b. 60% mixed race (pardos)
c. Crown helping or hurting?

i. Slave Code (1789) may have raised expectations of slaves
ii. Gracias al sacar: the highest elite did not approve of this process (even Bolivar feared "pardocracy")

3. 1811: 1st republic declared independence outright; federalist constitution
4. 1812 royalist victory
5. 1812-21 civil war, high casualities (1/7 Venezuelan population)
6. Bolivar recruited slaves and ranch hands
7. Venezuelan congress did not pass emancipation of slavery

C. Peru

1. Q1: Independence? No, better to negotiate reforms within empire

a. Viceroy decreed reannexation of Upper Peru (Bolivia) to viceroyalty
b. Sent Spanish troops to reconquer Upper Peru and Chile

2. Q2: Revolution from below likely
3. Bolivar and San Martin brought armies to defeat Spanish in Peru

D. Film Clip from "The Buried Mirror, Part 4: The Price of Freedom"

1. How does film version of Bolivar fit with your reading about and by him?

2. The final defeat of Spanish army by combined South American forces took 8 years

III. Conclusions

A. Q1: Ironically the colonies doing the best most likely to rebel: raised expectations
B. Q2: Mixed results in terms of popular unrest; race and labor systems important factors

Question:

Why did Spanish colonies declare independence (or not) and how did they achieve it?

I.D. Terms:

Ferdinand VII
Slave Code (1789)
“pardocracy”
Simón Bolívar

Places:

Buenos Aires
Caracas
Lima

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