Revolutions in Latin America Guided Notes
Between 1803 and 1825 as series of revolutions would sweep through Latin America.
These revolutions would cause ____________ to lose almost all of her colonies and completely drive the
______________ out of the New World.
•
_______________________ was a French plantation colony in the Caribbean on the island of
Hispaniola.
•
Slaves, free blacks, and _______________, people of mixed European and African ancestry, were the
majority of people, but did not have the same rights as the minority white population. In 1791 they
revolted against the French colonists.
•
________________________ became the leader of the rebels in 1801 and defeated the French. They
declared their independence from France in 1804, becoming the nation of Haiti.
Causes of Revolutions
People in the Spanish colonies in the Western Hemisphere did not like the way Spain ruled them. They wanted
to become independent from Spain.
1) The people were inspired by the successful revolutions in America, France, and Haiti.
2) ________________________________required that the colonies had to buy manufactured goods only
from Spain and sell colonial exports only to Spain. This drained the colonies of the wealth that went to
Spain, but did little to help the colonies.
3) Unequal distribution of _____________ and _______________ among Latin Americans.
______________________ or people born in Spain, controlled all the important political and military
positions.
___________________ people born in the colonies of Spanish parents, tended to be the wealthy landowners,
mine owners, and business owners.
_____________________children of Spanish and Indians parents usually worked in towns or as overseers on
the big estates.
Both groups wanted a share of political power. Indians, blacks, and Mulattos, or people of mixed African and
European descent, worked on the great farms and in the mines. They did not own land and lived in complete
poverty. They had no chance to hold power.
•
1808 – The French army under the leadership of _____________________ conquered Spain.
Napoleon’s brother becomes King of Spain.
•
Latin American colonists, led by the ____________________ refuse to accept French rule and revolt.
•
After the Spanish king is put back on the throne in 1814, the revolutions continue. The colonists refuse
to return to the old ways. They want _____________________.
MEXICO
• 1810 – A village priest, ________________________ led Indians in an uprising against Spanish rule.
•
Hidalgo and his rebels killed both Peninsulare and Criollo men, women, and children. They were
defeated in January, 1811.
•
•
Hidalgo was executed by firing squad, but the revolution in Mexico continued
•
Jose Maria Morelos – a priest who had trained under Hidalgo, Morelos joined the revolution in 1811
•
A true man of the people, charismatic and devout. He had a constructive vision and belief in a better
tomorrow with ____________ for all Mexicans.
•
He became the ____________________________________ after the death of Hidalgo
•
Morelos fought for independence from Spain, equal rights for all Mexicans, and the continued privilege
of the _____________________ in Mexican affairs.
•
Morelos was a good ____________________ leader, preferring a small, well trained army, rather than
the large, massed rabble of Hidalgo.
•
He was defeated and captured by Spanish forces in 1814 and executed.
•
After the death of Morelos, the independence movement continued in Mexico.
•
1821 – Creole soldiers overthrow the royalist Spanish government and declared a constitutional
monarchy.
•
1824 – Mexico declares itself a ___________________.
SIMON BOLIVAR
• 1808-1811 The revolution in Venezuela is lead by Simon Bolivar.
•
Bolivar is a wealthy Venezuelan aristocrat, educated in Europe. Bolivar is heavily influenced by the
ideas of the _______________.
•
1812 – Spanish forces retake Venezuela and Bolivar flees to Columbia.
•
Between 1819 and 1825, Bolivar successfully led revolutions to drive the Spanish from
_________________, ________________, ____________, and southern Peru, where he established
the nation of Bolivia.
•
Bolivar had hoped to ______________________________________ in a republic like that of the
_____________________________, but was unsuccessful, leading to years of political instability
across South America.
ARGENTINA, CHILE, & PERU
1810 – 1818 Argentina fights for its independence from Spain. One of the military leaders of the Argentine
rebels is_____________________________.
San Martin is a __________________ officer who had served with distinction in the
__________________army during the wars against Napoleon. He is heavily influenced by the ideas of the
enlightenment.
1818 – San Martin leads his army over the ________________and drives the Spanish from Chile. He then led
his troops by sea to Peru, freeing northern Peru from Spanish rule in 1822.
BRAZIL
1807 – The Portuguese King, fleeing Napoleon’s invading French army flees with his court to Brazil. He rules
Portugal in exile from Brazil.
• During this period, Brazil becomes ________________ than the mother country ________________.
•
1821 – The King returns to Portugal leaving his son Dom Pedro in charge of Brazil.
1822 – In a peaceful revolution, he declares himself Dom Pedro I, Emperor of an independent Brazil
VOCABULARY –Identify and define the following.
Caribbean
revolution
Spanish Colonies
Portuguese Colonies
independence
Saint Domingue
Hispaniola
Creoles
Mestizos
Peninsulares
Mulattos
Simon Bolivar
Jose de San Martin
Miguel Hidalgo
Toussaint L’Ouverture
Jose Maria Morelos
guerilla
royalist
TIME TO THINK
Answer the following in complete sentences.
1. How did the European wars of Napoleon Bonaparte have an influence on the Spanish and
Portuguese colonies in the New World?
2. How did the ideas of the enlightenment and the American and French Revolutions influence the
people of Latin America?
REFLECTION
The Creoles were the wealthiest and best educated Spanish colonists. They had more privileges
and a much better life than any other colonial group. Why would they have the strongest desire for
revolution?