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Latin American Revolutions

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Latin American Independence Movements In the late 1700s, Enlightenment and revolutionary ideas spread from Europe and the United States to Latin America The success of the American Revolution and the French Revolution showed Latin Americans that foreign and oppressive rule could be overthrown Beginning in the 1790s, they struggled to gain independence as well as other rights and freedoms

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Social Structure Social classes based on privilege in Latin America Peninsulares colonial leaders born in Spain or Portugal Held all important military and political positions Creoles - American born Spanish aristocrats, they owned most of the land but were treated like second-class citizens, and were denied political rights Mestizos Latin American of mixed Native American and European ancestry Faced social, political, and economic racism Worked as servants, unskilled laborers

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Haiti French planters owned large sugar farms called plantations Nearly half a million enslaved Africans worked and lived in terrible conditions Free mulattos were granted limited rights

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Toussaint LOuverture Dissatisfied creoles led conflict against social system Well-educated and wealthy 1791 revolt led by self- educated former slave named Toussaint LOuverture Haitian slaves won their freedom in 1798 Clashed with Napoleon and won independence from France in 1804

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Simn Bolvar An educated creole, Bolvar led resistance movements against the Spanish Called the Liberator, he vowed to fight Spanish rule in South America and became one of the greatest Latin American nationalist leaders of the period

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Simn Bolvar In 1810, Simn Bolvar started his 12 year struggle with the Spanish He led campaigns that won independence in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia (named after him!) He later joined forces with Jose de San Martin Martin had defeated the Spanish in Argentina and Chile previously

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Simn Bolvar Had dreams of creating a unified South America Spains former empire became divided into separate independent states Nations faced long struggle to gain stability, achieve social equality, and eliminate poverty

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Independence Movements South America, 1790South America, 1828