Latin American Revolution 5.3

6) Where did Portugal operate its empire in 14 years?

1. In 1807, Napoleon's armies invaded both Spain and Portugal. 2. Napoleon's aim was to close the ports of these countries to British shipping. 3. As French troops approached Lisbon, the Portuguese capital, Prince John (later King John VI) and the royal family boarded ships to escape capture. 4. They took their court and royal treasury to Portugal's largest colony, Brazil. 5. Rio de Janeiro became the capital of the Portuguese empire. 6. For 14 years, the Portuguese ran their empire from Brazil. 7. After Napoleon's defeat in 1815, King John and the Portuguese government returned to Portugal six years later. 8. Dom Pedro, King John's son, stayed behind in Brazil.

What countries broke from Mexico in 1823 (and became known as the United Provinces of Central America

Before the Mexican revolution, Central America was part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. It had been governed by the Spanish from the seat of colonial government in Mexico. In 1821, several Central American states declared their independence from Spain---and from Mexico as well. However, Iturbide (who had declared himself emperor), refused to recognize the declarations of independence. Iturbide was finally overthrown in 1823. Central America then declared its absolute independence from Mexico. It took the name the United Provinces of Central America. . The future countries of Nicaragua, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Costa Rica would develop in this region.

Mestizos

Below the peninsulares and creoles came the mestizos, persons of mixed European and Indian ancestry.

Where did Bolivar have to march to free Colombia

By 1821, Bolivar had won Venezuela's independence. He then marched south into Ecuador. In Ecuador, Bolivar finally met Jose de San Martin. Together they would decide the future of the Latin American revolutionary movement.

Creoles

Creoles, Spaniards born in Latin America, were below the peninsulares in rank. Creoles could not hold high-level political office, but they could rise as officers in Spanish colonial armies. Together these two groups controlled land, wealth, and power in the Spanish colonies.

What was the Grito de Dolores

In 1810, Padre Miguel Hidalgo, a priest in the small village of Dolores, took the first step toward independence. Hidalgo was a poor but well-educated man. He firmly believed in Enlightenment ideals. On September 16, 1810, he rang the bells of his village church. When the peasants gathered in the church, he issued a call for rebellion against the Spanish. Today, that call is known as the "grito de Dolores" (the cry of Dolores). The very next day, Hidalgo's Indian and mestizo followers began a march toward Mexico City. This unruly army soon numbered 80,000 men. The uprising of the lower classes alarmed the Spanish army and creoles, who feared the loss of their property, control of the land, and their lives. The army defeated Hidalgo in 1811.

Miguel Hidalgo

In 1810, Padre Miguel Hidalgo, a priest in the small village of Dolores, took the first step toward independence. Hidalgo was a poor but well-educated man. He firmly believed in Enlightenment ideals. On September 16, 1810, he rang the bells of his village church. When the peasants gathered in the church, he issued a call for rebellion against the Spanish. This unruly army soon numbered 80,000 men. The uprising of the lower classes alarmed the Spanish army and creoles, who feared the loss of their property, control of the land, and their lives. The army defeated Hidalgo in 1811.

Where did San Martin lead his forces to free Chile?

In 1817, San Martin led an army on a grueling march across the Andes to Chile. He was joined there by forces led by Bernardo O'Higgins, son of a former viceroy of Peru. With O'Higgins's help, San Martin finally freed Chile.

Mulattos

Next were the mulattos, persons of mixed European and African ancestry, and enslaved Africans. Indians were at the bottom of the social ladder.

Peninsulares

In Latin American colonial society, class dictated people's place in society and jobs. At the top of Spanish-American society were the peninsulares, people who had been born in Spain, which is on the Iberian peninsula. They formed a tiny percentage of the population.

San Martin (see top of page)

Jose de San Martin; 1778-1850. Unlike the dashing Bolivar, San Martin was a modest man. Though born in Argentina, he spent much of his youth in Spain as a career military officer. He fought with Spanish forces against Napoleon. He returned to Latin America to be a part of its liberation from Spain. Fighting for 10 years, be became the liberator of argentina, Chile, and Peru. Discouraged by political infighting, San Martin sailed for Europe. He died, almost forgotten on French soil in 1850.

What triggered revolts in the Spanish colonies

Napoleon's conquest of Spain in 1808 triggered revolts in the Spanish colonies.

Gran Colombia

San Martin's Argentina had declared its independence in 1816. However, Spanish forces in nearby Chile and Peru still posed a threat. In 1817, San Martin led an army on a grueling march across the Andes to Chile. He was joined there by forces led by Bernardo O'Higgins, son of a former viceroy of Peru. With O'Higgins's help, San Martin finally freed Chile. In 1812, San Martin planned to drive the remaining Spanish forces out of Lima, Peru. But to do so, he needed a much larger force. San Martin and Bolivar discussed this problem when they met at Guayaquil, Ecuador, in 1822. No one knows how the two men reached an agreement. But San Martin left his army for Bolivar to command. With unified revolutionary forces, Bolivar's army went on to defeat the Spanish at the Battle of Ayacucho on December 9, 1824.

Simon Bolivar (see top)

Simon Bolivar 1783-1830. Called LIbertador (Liberator), Bolivar was a brilliant general, a visionary, a writer, and a fighter. He is called the "George Washington of South America." he planned to unite the Spanish colonies of South America into a single country called Gran Colombia. The area of upper Peru was renamed Bolivia in his honor. Discouraged by political disputes that tore the new Latin American nations apart, he is reported to have said, "America is ungovernable. Those who have served the revolution have ploughed the sea."

Who defeated Padre Morelos and when

The rebels then rallied around another strong leader, Padre Jose Maria Morelos. Morelos led the revolution for four years. However, in 1815, a creole officer, Agustin de Iturbide, defeated him.