Latin America: 1800s to the Present Liberal Disappointment and Caudillo Leadership History 134 Jason Suárez History Department El Camino College
Independence and the challenge of consensus Republicanism Mestizos Liberalism Nationalism Criollos Conservatives Independence Consensus Needed
The isms challenge the colonial order Liberalism Republicanism Nationalism Why? Liberalism called for legal equality. The reality was that racialized inequality lived on. Republicanism called for the will of the people to rule. The reality was that voting rights applied only to propertyowning (or sometimes securely employed), literate, adult males. Nationalism called for the glorification of a common identity. The reality was that the divide between urban and rural society was immense; and the gaps between social classes, enormous. It was extremely difficult to change the deeply entrenched realities of colonialism in a generation It was colonialism that had roots stretching back over three centuries in many places. The void left by the failure of liberalism opened the door for caudillos.
The attraction of liberalism Ideas of citizenship was shaped by the social contract, constitutional government, and the will of the majority. In economic terms, individual initiative was promoted (capitalist spirit of entrepreneurship) and governments were to facilitate free enterprise. In social terms, the drive was to establish an ordering of society to be founded on the legal equality of all individuals. Liberals strongly distrusted conservative elements that included traditional sources of authority, particularly the Roman Catholic Church, which they thought infested by superstition, ignorance, and empty ritual. Marie-Jean-Antoine-Nicolas de Caritat, Marquis de Condorcet (1743-1794) Source 1
Natural law for the elite Criollo claims of injustice forwarded by appeals to natural law were made on behalf of a colonial elite. In other words, the language of the rights of man, of representative government, of popular sovereignty they did not and could not cease to be what they had been in the colonial period: aristocrats, landowners, the leaders of society. Thus the attack on empire was an attack on the imperialism that distinguished between peninsulares and criollos. John Locke (1632-1704)
In the end... the rise of caudillos The failure of liberalism to effectively take hold in postindependence Latin America would facilitate the rise of caudillos. Caudillos were a type of military/political leader who had not only experienced the wars of Independence, but also the civil wars that broke out between rival political factions postindependence Latin America. They were able to gain power and carry out their agendas by forming patron-client networks and establishing coalitions of key individuals/groups from varying levels of the social order. From 1840-1860 caudillos were a dominant force in Latin American politics. Source 2
Independence in Latin America two waves Initially, the Andean Areas (Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador) were still subjected to Spanish control during the crisis that led towards independence in Mexico. However, in the fringe colonies of Venezuela and Argentina a different storyline developed. In contrast to Mexico, the revolution in these areas came from above and led by what one historian has described as confident, well-traveled Creoles, some of whom had witnessed European events firsthand. In part, this was due to the juntas of Caracas, acting as cabildos abiertos, recruited the support and leadership of most influential men residing in these cities.
Criollos and dichotomy of Empire Criollos were the benefactors of many privileges. For example economic exploitation and political exclusion of the large Indigenous, African, and mixed-race populations that lived in or near their colonies. Because Criollos were American subjects of European empires they were also socially marginalized, denied equal representation and subjected to commercial policies designed to advance imperial interests at the colonies expense. Portrait of the family Fagoga Arozqueta. An upper class colonial Mexican family of Spanish ancestry (referred to as Criollos) in Mexico City, New Spain, ca. 1730.
Avoiding the reordering of society The question: How could criollos end European rule of the Americas without undermining criollo rule in the Americas? Criollo political thinkers formulated contradictory ideologies which fused anti-imperialist and imperialist positions at the same time. The goal was to undermine imperial rule without relinquishing the privileges that imperialism had bestowed upon them. In other words, eliminate some, but not all of the inequalities that characterized colonial society. Guatemalan Criollos c. 1821
Solidify and consolidate through liberation Consequently, criollo leaders did not seek to rectify the historical injustice of European conquest. On the contrary, they sought to reshaped the colonial socioeconomic and political in ways to solidify and consolidate their positions. Through the process of liberation they actually sought to integrate into their independent states historically marginalized sections of society. Thinking about the future: the post-independence political and economic challenges forced new states to assume an economic global periphery as primary goods producers frequently subject to foreign interventions. Encomanderos
Venezuela a periphery Venezuela was a plantation colony. Its economy was dominated by the export of agricultural primary goods. It had a small rural population. The majority of this population was comprised enslaved and free descendants of Africans. As a periphery, it experiences neglect allowing for criollo elites to attain a high level of autonomy in local affairs. It developed illicit trade networks with other European powers states. The Population of Latin America before and after Independence
Mexico (Nueva España) a center The crown jewel of Spain s American possessions. About half of the empire s overseas population lived in Nueva España. It was densely urbanized. It was economically diversified. Most of the non-european population was composed of Indigenous communities and mestizos. Spanish monarchy had a strong presence in Nueva España. The Colonial Economic System Colonial elite had a trans-atlantic Iberian character through marriage patterns.
The challenge for Mexican Independence
The failure of consensus The Mexican independence wars highlighted deep social and ethnic divisions in colonial Latin America. On the one side, white, upper-class criollos who sought to replace foreign rule with local autonomy. On the other side, castas and Native Americans seeking to undermine the existing socioeconomic order. Clearly, the challenge was to establish consensus. In the end, Mexico s independence did not initially result from a criollo revolution, but instead from a constituency and ideology that departed from other parts of Latin America.
El Grito de Dolores The first phase of Mexican independence began on September 16, 1810, when Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla (1750 1811) gave the famous Grito de Dolores Calling for independence and the overthrow of the current bad government and aligning the Virgin of Guadalupe to his cause, Hidalgo along with Captain Ignacio Allende (1769-1811) and Councilman Juan Aldama (1774-1811) attracted a predominantly mestizo and Native American following to their cause. Hidalgo, who had adopted Enlightenment-inspired liberal ideals, decreed an end to slavery and a return of Indian lands. La Virgen de Guadalupe Source 3
Capture and execution Hidalgos initial success would be short lived as his forces were eventually defeated by much better-trained Spanish army. Hidalgo would be captured, excommunicated, defrocked, shot, and decapitated in 1811. Unfortunately, the brevity of his leadership prevented him from developing a clear political agenda or vision for an independent Mexico. Hidalgo Executed
Sentiments of a Nation Father José María Morelos (1765 1815), one of Hidalgo s lieutenants and a mestizo priest, next led the rebellion against the Spanish. He too would be captured and executed but not before convening in 1813 a constitutional convention in the town of Chilpancingo. Produced during this convention was Sentiments of the Nation, a constitution that fused liberal ideas with conservative notions. Father José María Morelos Source 4
A military commander who would be emperor Ironically, the quest for independence begun by Hidalgo and Morelos would be consummated by Agustín de Iturbide (1783-1824), a criollo military commander who for nine years had fought against the insurgents. Iturbide, initially supported by conservative churchmen, army officers, and officials, was able to achieve the consensus Hidalgo and Morelos were not. In fact, the Plan of Iguala (1821) was able to bring together royalist conservatives led by Iturbide and liberals led by Vicente Guerrero. Agustín de Iturbide Source 5
The falling of an emperor Mexico s independence from Spain was recognized through the Treaty of Cordoba (August 24, 1821). However, the vision of the Plan de Iguala did not come to fruition as Iturbide established himself as emperor of Mexico. The economic problems the mining industry suffered and the decline of agricultural output stagnated undermined Iturbide s aspiration to rule Mexico. Making matters worse, few if any economic entities wish to partake in Mexico s fledgling economy through investments or loans. Juan O Donojú y O Ryan (1762 1821)
The criticism and decline Criticism against Iturbide by liberal idealists became rampant. Iturbide's suppression of newspapers that criticized his administration moved Servando Teresa de Mier and Carlos María de Bustamante, both liberals, to try to end Iturbide's reign by creating an antimonarchist movement. Leadership of this movement eventually fell on the shoulders of Antonio Lopéz de Santa Ana (1794-1876) and the military officers. Servando Teresa de Mier
The liberal interlude Thus Iturbide rule over Mexico would last only 10 months. Opposition to Iturbide came in the form of the Plan of Casa Mata (1822/23), a declaration that sought to create a republic in Mexico. With the ousting of Iturbide, Mexico experienced a liberal interlude from 1824 to 1833. The ultimate aim of the liberal program was to reduce the role of the Catholic Church, restrict the privileges of churchmen, military officers and hacendados and create a republic. In 1824, a constitution was established that organized Mexico into a federal republic.
The foretelling of the future Mexico's first elected president was Guadalupe Victoria (r. 1824-29). However, the end of Victoria s presidency ushered in a period of chaos for Mexico as church leaders and conservatives began to challenge the republican experiment. Mexico s next president, Vicente Guerrero, faced the Spanish invasion of Tampico in 1829. Coming to Mexico s rescue was Antonio López de Santa Ana whose forces eventually forced a Spanish surrender. The end of the Spanish threat allowed Anastasio Bustamante along with conservative military officers, to oust Guerrero from power in 1830. Guerrero would meet he same fate as Iturbide, execution for treason. As one historians has noted, These events seemed to foretell an ill future of foreign invasions and military takeovers with deadly consequences for Mexico. Anastasio Bustamante
The rise of a caudillo Antonio López de Santa Anna is a famous example of a caudillo, in this case, a Mexican caudillo. Most are familiar with this caudillo because of his command of the Mexican Army in the Battle of the Alamo (1836). Santa Anna military career catapulted during the War for Independence when he served the royalist cause. He battled against the French Navy in the 1838 Pastry War and the U.S. Army in the Mexican-American War of 1846 1848. He served on numerous occasions as President of Mexico between 1833 and 1847. Antonio López de Santa Anna
Simón Bolívar (1783 1830) Simón Bolívar emerged as the great hero of Spanish American independence. A native of Caracas and the son of a wealthy Criollo, was steeped in the classical republican tradition and became concerned with the cultivation of civic virtue, collective liberty, mixed models of government and territorial expansion. He attacked Spanish rule in America because it denied criollos autonomy in the management of colonial affairs. He believed that Venezuela s constitution should be a republic with a new fourth branch he called the Poder Moral or moral power. He favored equality but an equality that needed to be established and practice properly.
The Liberator Bolívar would become one of the most prominent military and political leaders in South America as he demonstrated adept military strategy, powerful personal charisma, and a singularly expansive vision of his revolution s potential world-historical import. Through Bolívar s military leadership, present-day countries of Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia secured freedom from Spanish rule. His success against the Spanish branded him the title The Liberator (El Libertador).
The Caracas experience Caracas became first the seat of an intendancy, a captaincy-general and an audiencia. Bourbon Reforms has some positive financial impact on the elite but tension was still generated from regulation as they believed that the internal power structure of the colony would be compromised. He believed since criollos had been denied an active role in imperial politics they lacked the civic virtues that would move them to seek independence. Caracas 1839
Defeats and a letter In 1808, Bolívar joined and became a leader of the Patriotic Society of Caracas. Bolívar was eventually promoted to the rank of colonel in the militia. the Sociedad Patriótica de Agricultores y Economía. (s6) In 1811, the Venezuelan congress declared independence from Spain declaring it to be a republic only to find its movement crushed by Spanish forces from Puerto Rico in 1812. (s7) In 1813, Bolívar reentered Caracas from Nueva Granada and declared a war to the death against the Spanish, but was once again defeated by royalist forces this time led by José Tomás Boves in 1814. The second republic was crushed. Bolívar was forced to flee to Jamaica where he wrote La carta de Jamaica ( The Letter from Jamaica ), an overview of his political thought. (s8) José Tomás Boves Source 6/7/8
A democratic federation of independent republics In 1816, Bolívar returned once again to Venezuela and consolidates his position. Three years later he issues the Angostura Address (1819) in which he laid out his revolutionary principles. (s9) In 1821, Caracas fell to Bolívar, and few days later, Venezuela was finally completely free from Spanish rule. Because of his successful military campaigns, Bolívar became the president of Gran Colombia (a state covering several Latin American countries, recently liberated from the Spanish). However, Bolivar s grand vision of a federation of Latin American Republics (like the United States) proved difficult to hold together a civil wars broke out under liberal leadership. In 1830, disheartened, he resigned this post and prepared for exile in Europe. Source 9
The rise of a caudillo On December 17, 1830, Simón Bolívar died in Santa Marta, Colombia, of tuberculosis Bolívar left a detailed trail of his opinions on the Spanish imperial system, the justice of the cause of independence, and the proper forms of government for newly established American polities. In his writings and ideas, Bolívar focused on the particular threat posed by the effects of long-term servitude or dependence on subject populations: the habits of servility or corruption thought to be typical of populations accustomed to authoritarian rule. He believed that Spanish Americans, because of their historical lack of participation in the political process, lacked the motivators that would move them to seek full independence. He reasoned that a strong central government controlled by a powerful executive was the only alternative to anarchy.