Latin America Revolutionary Movements

Population of Latin America in 1800:

About 30,000 peninsulares who control government (born in Spain)

About 3.5 million creoles with significant wealth (New World whites)

About 10 million slaves, mixed race, and indigenous people Creoles wanted to displace the peninsulares, not share power with the majority From 1810 to 1825 Creole led movements gained independence from Spain and Portugal

By about 1850 most lands in Americas had gained independence from European powers

Smaller Latin American states often under military dictatorship

EconomicThemes

Economy came to be dominated by European capital and labor

Resented by many Latin American natives

Industrialization marginally successful

Control of industry and exports remained in foreign hands

Revolution in Latin America

Events in Europe triggered Latin American Revolutions

Napoleon conquered Spain in 1808 and made his brother, Joseph, king

By 1810, creoles rebelled in several parts of Latin America

Simon Bolivar and Jose de San Martin led armies against Spanish rule

By 1824,

Bolivar

establishes

Gran

Colombia

Gran Columbia later broke into three independent nations

Venezuela, Columbia, and Ecuador

This created political instability

Remainder of Spanish South America independent by 1825 Brazil declared independence from Portugal in 1822 • Son of Portuguese king became Pedro I

Central American regions established independence in 1824 and split into independent states in 1838 (from Mexico)

Regimes tended to be more autocratic than in the United States

– Elites prevented mass participation

in the political process – Indigenous people outside political

system

No constitutional methods available to express discontent

– Revolution commonElites also divided

– Liberal vs. conservative – Secular vs. catholic

Conflict with Indigenous Peoples

Land claimed for agriculture and ranching pushed indigenous people out

During mid 1800's Europeans had taken productive land and forced indigenous people into marginal land or forced them to Europeanize

Caudillos (dictators)Heroes of wars of independence were military leaders

Appealed to populist sentiment to maintain political power

Mexico: War and Reform

Mexican revolution against Spain in 1810 initially led by Miguel de Hidalgo

Mexico wins independence in 1821

From 1833 to 1855 Mexico had no fewer than thirty-six changes in presidency

Caudillo Antonio Lopez Santa Anna came to power in 1833

Santa Anna himself directly ruled eleven times!

Turmoil characteristic of Mexican politics

1850’s: Benito Juarez founded a liberal reform movement called La Reforma

1853: Santa Anna once again gains power, exiles liberals

1861: Juarez elected president

1862-67: French rule of Maximilian

1867: Juarez returns to power

La Reforma attempted to establish liberal society in Mexico

• Limited power of military and church • Universal male suffrage • Encouraged land reform through

seizure of church land

Reform opposed by conservative elite Mexican revolution from 1911 to 1920 challenged conservative rule

• Emiliano Zapata and Pancho Villa led agrarian revolt • Could control countryside, but not cities

Emiliano Zapata Pancho Villa

Government forces regained control when Zapata and Villa were killed Constitution of 1917 addressed some lower class concerns• Land reform • Public education • Universal suffrage

The U.S.-Mexico War

Anglo settlers and many Tejanos opposed Santa Anna’s centralist rule

Texas independence declared from Mexico and won in 1836

The Republic of Texas was admitted as a state in 1845…the Mexican government protested.

Mexico never accepted the treaties

signed by Santa Anna permitting

Texan independence

“Manifest Destiny” (U.S. expansion)

Led to war in 1845

American army defeated Mexican

forces in war from 1845 to 1848

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848) United States received a large amount of territory in the southwestTexas was confirmed as part of the U.S.Mexico received fifteen million dollar payment

A lasting resentment against the U.S. will tarnish relations for years to come

The Haitian Revolution

Only successful slave revolt in history Hispaniola center for sugar production

Slave revolt

French, British and Spanish troops intervened in 1792 and 1793

Slaves attacked plantations for supplies and recruitsAs planters lost slaves they imported more

Francis-Dominique Toussaint Louverture

Built strong disciplined army Results of victory Controlled most of Saint Domingue by 1799 Promulgated written constitution

Napoleon sent troops to restore French authority in 1802

Toussaint tried to negotiate a peaceful settlement, instead he was arrested

Republic of Haiti declared Jan 1, 1804

Second independent republic in the Americas

Slavery

Beginning in 1780 some European Christians objected to slavery Britain ended slavery in 1807 With British pressure other states ended slave trading The end of slavery resisted due to supply of cheap labor

End of slave trade doomed the institution Slavery in Latin America ended with independence Last western nation to end slavery was Brazil in 1886 Freedom did not result in equality

Latin American Culture

Multicultural society of Spanish and Portuguese at the top and freed slaves and native people at the bottom Significant mixed race populationOther groups:

Immigrants from Europe Indentured laborers from Asia

Male domination even more common in Latin America than in the north Social elites tended to retain even more political power than further north