The Consolidation of
Latin America
1830-1920
Chapter 25, pages 562-588
From Colonies to Nations
A combination of internal developments
and the Napoleonic wars set Latin American
independence movements in motion
Causes of Political Change
• American Revolution
• Provided a model for colonial rebellion
• French Revolution
• Offered revolutionary ideology
• Rejected by elites as too radical politically and socially
• Slave Rebellion led by Toussaint L’Overture
• Ended with the creation of the independent republic of Haiti
• Spain & Portugal’s Political Disruption
• Caused by French invasion, occupation, and resistance
• Latin American Creoles declared loyalty to the Spanish ruler but
began to rule colonies themselves
Spanish-American
Independence Struggles- Mexico
• Miguel de Hidalgo
• Early victories
• Lost Creole supportexecuted
• Augustin de Iturbidewon independence
• New state collapses
• Mexico becomes a
republic
• Central America divided
into independent
nations
Spanish American Independence
Struggles- Northern South America
• Simon Bolivar
• Won victories in
Venezuela, Columbia,
and Ecuador
• Three countries
united until 1830
separation
Spanish American Independence
Struggles- Southern South America
• Jose de San Martin
• By 1825, all of
Spanish America had
won political
independence
• Efforts at unity failed
• Republics with
representative
governments
emerged
Spanish American
Independence Struggles- Brazil
• Portugal’s most important
colonial possession
• French invasion of Portugal
in 1807- royal family flees
to Brazil
• Portuguese King Joao VIreturns to Portugal in 1820leavs son in charge
• Pedro declares Brazilian
independence and
becomes constitutional
emperor Pedro I
• Social organization
(slavery) and political
structure does not change
New Nations Confront Old &
New Problems
The new nations confronted difficult problems:
social inequalities, political representation, the
role of the church, and regionalism. These
problems led to political fragmentation. Leaders
with strong personal followings, representing
various interests and their own ambitions, rose to
prominence.
Political Fragmentation
Political FragmentationCaudillos
• Military leaders
• Brought temporary
order to Latin America
but did not always
exert their power
non0violently
• In some cases, used
force to effect the
changes they wanted
and to ensure
obedience
Political FragmentationDifferences Among Leaders
• Centralists- wanted strong governments with broad powers
• Federalists- favored awarding authority to regional
government
• Liberals- Stressed individual rights, opposed corporate
structure of colonial society, and favored federalist
government
• Conservatives- wanted a centralized state and wished to
maintain a society where corporate groups ruled social action
Political Fragmentation- The
Church
• Role of the church became a critical political issue
• Liberals sought to limit its civil role
• Conservatives and Papacy wanted to keep it strong
The result of Political
Fragmentation
• Enduring political instability with rapid turnovers of rulers and
constitutions
• Only a few nations had general stability:
• Chile (after reforms in 1833)
• Brazilian monarchy
• For most of Latin America, the basic questions of government
and society remained unresolved
Post-Independence
Economics- Stagnation
• Monroe Doctrine
• Price for British
support
• Latin America
dependent on
foreign markets and
imports
• Economy stagnates
Post-Independence
Economics- Improvements
• European market
expansion created
demand for local
products
• Brought revenues to
governments, urban
growth, and
transportation
improvements
Attempts at Reform
• 1820s-1830s- liberal reformers tried to break colonial patterns
and follow European trends
• Societies and economies were unprepared for drastic change
• Strength of opposing institutions (church, army) remained intact
• 1840s- Conservatives returned to power in many places
• Halted or hindered reform
• Alliance between landowners and peasantry emerged to
oppose change
Liberals Return to Power
• Last quarter of the
19th Century
• Positivism- Auguste
Comte
• Caused by changes in
the nature of the
Industrial Revolution
and the age of
imperialism
Economic Expansion
• Rapid economic expansion after 1850
• Population doubled
• Economic growth often occurred at the expense of the
peasantry
Social Change
Tension remained in cultural life between European and
American influences, and between elite and folk ways.
Social change for the masses and for women came slowly.
Cultural Expression after
Independence
• Elite followed
Europe’s examples in
intellectual and
artistic life
• Romanticism (1830s)
• Realism & Positivism
(1870s)
• Mass culture was not
effected by the elite
trends
• Traditional forms
flourished
• But were ignored by
the elite
Old Patterns of Gender, Class, &
Race
Women
Class & Race
• Subordinate to males
• Could not vote or hold
office
• Education provided
opportunity for jobs
(teachers)
• By end of century,
women began to actively
demand increased rights
• Latin America ended the
1880s as a
predominantly agrarian
group of nations with
rigid social structures,
dependent on the world
market
The Great Boom (1880-1920)
• Increasing demand in industrializing Europe stimulated Latin
American economic growth
• Liberal ideology prepared the way for expansion
• Export products fueled expansion
• Developing commerce drew attention of foreign investors
• Germany
• U.S.
• Great Britain
Uncle Sam Goes South
• Spanish-American
War of 1898
• Cuba- became
dependent on
American economics
• Puerto Rico- annexed
• Columbia, Panamarevolution
New Latin American Nations
and the World
Latin America, the first non-Western area to
face the problems of decolonization,
possessed a distinct civilization sharing
much of the Western tradition, but in
economics, it functioned more like regions
in Asia and Africa.