AP World History: Latin American Revolutions

Period 5

I CAUSES

A) PROBLEMS OFTHE SPANISH EMPIRE

B) THEENLIGHTENMENT

C) THEAMERICAN, FRENCH, AND

HAITIANREVOLUTIONS

D) GEOGRAPHY

PROBLEMS IN THE SPANISH EMPIRE

1. Political Disempowerment:

Spanish colonies were run by the Council of the Indies, a group appointed by the King that met in Spain and sent its directives across the Atlantic. Those directives were carried out by the viceroys, officials appointed by Spain to govern the colonies.

2. Economic Disempowerment:

Spain followed the policy of mercantalism. Excluding all competitors, economic policy was set for Spain’s maximum benefit.

3. France invaded the Iberian peninsula (Spain and Portugal)

In the autumn of 1807 when Napoleon moved French troops through Spain to invade Portugal. After feeding more than 100,000 troops into Spain under the pretext of supporting the invasion, Napoleon deposed the existing Spanish monarch in April 1808 in order to place his own brother Joseph on the throne.

Geographical Problems

1. Unlike North America, Latin America did not have any unification.

2. This was partly due to geography; the Andes Mountains and Amazon Jungle for instance!

Andes Mountains, Chile

Amazon Jungle, Brazil

III Simon BolivarA) In 1811 Venezuela became independent

B) In 1813 Simon Bolivar becomes dictator of Venezuela:

1. Abolished Indian tribute and other special privileges

2. But, refused to free slaves, made Catholicism state religion, limited full citizenship to those with property

C) 1814-1816: Spain regained Spain from France. This allowed them to reconquer Venezuela. Bolivar fled to the island of Grenada.

D) In 1816 with Haitian and English support:Bolivar regained Venezuela after agreeing to free slaves

Simon Bolivar: Proclamation of 1813Venezuelans: An army of your brothers, sent by the Sovereign Congress of New Granada has come to liberate you. Having expelled the oppressors from the provinces of Mérida and Trujillo, it is now among you. We are sent to destroy the Spaniards, to protect the Americans, and to reëstablish the republican governments that once formed the Confederation of Venezuela. The states defended by our arms are again governed by their former constitutions and tribunals, in full enjoyment of their liberty and independence, for our mission is designed only to break the chains of servitude which still shackle some of our towns, and not to impose laws or exercise acts of dominion to which the rules of war might entitle us. Moved by your misfortunes, we have been unable to observe with indifference the afflictions you were forced to experience by the barbarous Spaniards, who have ravished you, plundered you, and brought you death and destruction. They have violated the sacred rights of nations. They have broken the most solemn agreements and treaties. In fact, they have committed every manner of crime, reducing the Republic of Venezuela to the most frightful desolation. Justice therefore demands vengeance, and necessity compels us to exact it. . . .

IV San MartinJose San Martin, along with Simon Bolivar are the fathers of South American Independence. In the early 19th century, Bolivar rose as the hero of the independence movement in Venezuela and Columbia, while San Martin was recognized as the champion of the patriotic forces in Argentina and Chile. The two men, however, were unlike in temperament as well as political outlook. When they disagreed regarding the liberation of Peru, therefore, San Martin resigned his command. He could not support Boliver because of their political differences, but he was too great a patriot to lead his armies into a civil war, rather than a war of liberation. San Martin was born to an aristocratic family in Argentina, but was sent to Spain to complete his education. In 1808 he enrolled in the Spanish army to fight Napoleon, and distinguished himself in several battles. During this period, Argentina declared its independence from Spain, and San Martin became interested in the cause. He requested to be relieved of his command and returned to South America in 1812. Within a year of his return to Argentina, San Martin led his first campaign against the Royalists. In spite of initial success he determined that the Royalist strongholds in Lower Peru (now Bolivia) could not be taken by assault because of their mountainous surroundings. Peru could only be taken from the south so he set about planning a military expedition to cross the Andes and liberate Peru's southern neighbor. In 1817 San Martin crossed the Andes with 4000 men. They were met by Royalist forces over whom they achieved a complete victory. In 1818 Chile declared its independence, and San Martin's army swept into Peru.

San Martin Continued…At first he sought to use diplomatic means rather than force to achieve his ends, but after much dithering began to prepare for a military solution. Unfortunately, during this time, all was not well in Argentina. In 1820 the 'Federalist' and 'Unitarian' factions broke into civil war. Alarmed by these developments, San Martin resigned his command, but his resignation was not accepted. During this period San Martin began building up a navy and as part of his plan to liberate Peru and protect patriot ports. In 1921 he finally moved to occupy Lima and called a parliament into session to decide on a manner of government. San Martin, however, did not favor a republic, but promoted, instead, the idea of a constitutional monarchy. This was, in fact, the form of government that was desired by most of the people, because they feared (with good reason), that "democracy" in Latin America would tend to promote civil wars. In 1822 San Martin and Bolivar famously met face to face in Guayaquil to discuss the liberation of Peru. After this meeting, San Martin resigned his command. It is not unlikely, however, that he had resolved on this course of action before hand. He was discouraged by the civil war that had broken out in Argentine and frustrated at the unwillingness of the Peruvians to solve their political problems by diplomatic means. He likely believed that Bolivar had the stomach for a fight that he now lacked. He had attempted to resign his commission on previous occasions and been refused. Now at least he had the opportunity of turning the fate of South America over to a true patriot. After their meeting, San Martin returned briefly to Argentina. When he realized he could not, in good conscience, take either side in the ongoing civil war he went into self-imposed exile in France where he remained the rest of his life. –heritagehistory.com

Jose De San Martin

May slavery be banished forever together with the distinction between castes, all remaining equal, so Americans may only be distinguished by vice or virtue... In the new laws, may torture not be allowed.

V Mexico

Along with other Spanish colonies in the New World, Mexico fought for and gained its independence in the early 1800s. On Sept. 16, 1810, in the town of Dolores Hidalgo, the priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla rang his church's bells and exhorted the local Indians to "recover from the hated Spaniards the land stolen from your forefathers. . ." This is celebrated as Mexican Independence Day. Padre Hidalgo was hanged in July 1811. Hidalgo was succeeded by Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon, another parish priest but a more able leader than his predecessor. Morelos called a national congress, which on Nov. 6, 1812, officially declared Mexico to be independent from Spain. Morelos was executed by a Spanish firing squad in 1815, but his army, led by Vicente Guerrero, continued fighting until 1821. Because of weaknesses and political divisions in Spain, the revolutionary movement gained strength. Agustin de Iturbide, a royalist officer, joined forces with Guerrero and drafted the Plan of Iguala, which provided for national independence under a constitutional monarchy--the Mexican Empire. Not surprisingly, Iturbide was crowned emperor of Mexico in July 1822, and the newly formed empire lasted less than a year. Iturbide was exiled from the country but returned and was executed. General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna then emerged as the dominant political force for some 30 years. Santa Anna was president of Mexico when Texas revolted and during the Mexican-American War of 1846.

Mexico Continued…After nearly a half century of independence, Mexico had made relatively little economic or political progress, and the peasantry continued to suffer. In 1858 Benito Juarez, a Zapotec from Oaxaca, became president. He attempted to eliminate the role of the Roman Catholic church in the nation by appropriating its land and prerogatives. In 1859 the Ley Lerdo was issued--separating church and state, abolishing monastic orders, and nationalizing church property. Juarez had anticipated that Indians and peasants would reacquire the 50 percent of the nation's land formerly held by the church, but the properties were quickly purchased by the elite. Because of the many years of economic and political chaos that had elapsed, Mexico was financially insolvent. In 1861 Juarez announced a suspension of payment on foreign loans, and the British, Spanish, and French occupied Veracruz in order to collect the Mexican debts. The British and Spanish quickly withdrew, but France overthrew the Mexican government and in 1864 declared Mexico an empire with Maximilian I of Austria as emperor. During the war with the French, the Mexican armies won a major battle on May 5, 1862, despite being severely outnumbered and underarmed. That victory is celebrated as Cinco de Mayo, a national holiday. Because of its own Civil War, the United States was unable to enforce its Monroe Doctrine, which prohibited European involvement in the Americas. At the close of the Civil War, however, the United States threatened to send troops into Mexico, and the French army withdrew from the country. Maximilian was executed by the Mexicans in 1867. -historyworld.org

Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla

Jose Maria Morelos y Pavon

Agustin de Iturbide

Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna

Benito Juarez

Maximilian I

Cinco de Mayo

VI THE MONROE DOCTRINE

“The American continents…are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers.” - James Monroe, 1823

The Monroe Doctrine Continued…“President James Monroe’s 1823 annual message to Congress contained the Monroe Doctrine, which warned European powers not to interfere in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere. The Monroe Doctrine is the best known U.S. policy toward the Western Hemisphere. Buried in a routine annual message delivered to Congress by President James Monroe in December 1823, the doctrine warns European nations that the United States would not tolerate further colonization or puppet monarchs. The doctrine was conceived to meet major concerns of the moment, but it soon became a watchword of U.S. policy in the Western Hemisphere. The Monroe Doctrine was invoked in 1865 when the U.S. government exerted diplomatic and military pressure in support of the Mexican President Benito Juárez. This support enabled Juárez to lead a successful revolt against the Emperor Maximilian, who had been placed on the throne by the French government. Almost 40 years later, in 1904, European creditors of a number of Latin American countries threatened armed intervention to collect debts. President Theodore Roosevelt promptly proclaimed the right of the United States to exercise an “international police power” to curb such “chronic wrongdoing.” As a result, U. S. Marines were sent into Santo Domingo in 1904, Nicaragua in 1911, and Haiti in 1915, ostensibly to keep the Europeans out. Other Latin American nations viewed these interventions with misgiving, and relations between the “great Colossus of the North” and its southern neighbors remained strained for many years. In 1962, the Monroe Doctrine was invoked symbolically when the Soviet Union began to build missile-launching sites in Cuba. With the support of the Organization of American States, President John F. Kennedy threw a naval and air quarantine around the island. After several tense days, the Soviet Union agreed to withdraw the missiles and dismantle the sites. Subsequently, the United States dismantled several of its obsolete air and missile bases in Turkey.” –ourdocuments.gov

VII ONE-CROP ECONOMIES

* Now that trade was not restricted to the mother country, the U.S. and Great Britain became the new countries’ major trading partners.

* A colonial economy continued…Latin America mainly exported cash crops and raw materials while importing manufactured goods.

VIII AN IMBALANCE OF TRADE

* As the imbalance of trade grew, Latin American countries took out large loans from the U.S., Britain, and Germany to build infrastructure.

* When the countries could not pay back their loans, foreign lenders gained control of major industries in Latin America.

SUM M ARY BEFORE AFTER

POLITICAL

ECONOM IC

SOCIAL

Dictatorship of the Council of the Indies and the Viceroys

Dictatorship of the Caudillos

Unequal trade relationship with Spain benefiting

Unequal trade relationship with Great Britain and the

U.S. benefiting

Native Spaniards at the top of the social ladder,

followed by creoles, and with the rest of the

population at the bottom

Creoles at the top of the ladder with the rest of the population at the bottom.

Focus Questions

1. Were the Latin American Revolutions more similar or different from the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions?

2. Which L.A. Revolution do you think was the most successful?