Latin American Independence

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By 1800 most of Latin America was ruled by Spain and Portugal, with a social hierarchy topped by peninsulares born in Spain, then creoles born in the Americas, mestizos, Indigenous peoples and enslaved Africans. Creoles resented being kept out of top posts. Enlightenment ideas, the American and French Revolutions, and Napoleon's invasion of Spain in 1808, which left the colonies without a legitimate king, sparked independence movements.

In Mexico, Father Miguel Hidalgo began a revolt in 1810 with the Grito de Dolores, and independence was achieved in 1821. In South America, Simon Bolivar, called the Liberator, led campaigns that freed Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, and Jose de San Martin freed Argentina and Chile and crossed the Andes. Brazil became independent from Portugal in 1822 almost peacefully under Pedro I.

Bolivar dreamed of a united Gran Colombia, but regional rivalries split it. New nations had problems: caudillos (strong military leaders), unequal land, weak economies, and continued influence from Britain and later the United States, shown by the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. Example: creole elites often kept power while Indigenous people gained little. Misconception: independence did not mean social equality; slavery lasted in places until 1888 in Brazil.