Dissolution of the Bolivarian dream of Latin American unity

/in /by

Key points:

  • New Lat Am nations feared intervention by European powers in the Americas.
  • Regional blocks of large land masses into one political unit in Latin America quickly splintered into smaller nation-states. Ex.: Gran Colombia broke up to become the nations of Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia.
  • Economic instability plagued new nations. Led to dependence on foreign loans (mostly from Britain).
  • Slavery was abolished by many the newly independent Latin American nations in early post-independence from European powers.

Key terms/historical figures:

  • Ejido: In Mexico, common land belonging to a village.  Previous to the Salinas government (1988-1994), this land could not be bought or sold, and was owned by private individuals.
  • Monroe Doctrine: Issued by US President James Monroe in 1823 declaring the Americas closed to further European colonization and that the US would view any European nation that attempted to do so as a hostile threat to the United States.

Summary:

The newly independent Latin American nations, though no longer ruled by European powers, were still militarily and politically weak and feared intervention in the Americas by European nations.  Their fears were not unfounded as the European nations repeatedly intervened in the affairs of the new governments: Spain – Mexico (1829), Central America (1832), Peru (1860); French – Mexico (1838, 1862-1866), Argentina (1838-1840, 1845-1848).  The United States under President James Monroe issued the Monroe Doctrine in 1823 as a warning to European nations to refrain from intervention in the Americas.

The lack of the idea of national unity combined with a strong commitment to regional identification led to the dissolution of the Bolivarian dream of Latin American unity.  In Central America, the United Provinces of Central America broke up into 5 nation-states in 1838-1839, and Gran Colombia in South America broke up in the countries of Venezuela (1829), Ecuador (1830), and Colombia (1863).  Interstate hostilities between newly independent Latin American nations led to wars between neighboring nations including Argentina and Brazil (1825-1828); Chile, Peru, Bolivia (1836, 1879-1883); Haiti and Dominican Republic (1844); Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay vs. Paraguay (1865-1870). Internal conflicts between conservatives and liberals led to often bloody conflict.

Economic instability led the newly independent Latin American nations to seek European lenders for loans and investments for industrialization and urbanization.  Latin American nations exported raw materials to Europe and imported manufactured goods from Europe.  Most Latin American nations incurred heavy debt financed mostly by European nations.

Slavery was abolished by many of the new Lat Am nations in the early years of independence from Europe.  Only Brazil (1888) and Cuba (1886) continued with the slave system in the late 19th century.  Elite families and the Catholic Church came to control large landholdings, while indigenous and poor campisenos worked small plots for subsistence agriculture and on the haciendas of the elites.  The economic ideas of Adam Smith and David Ricardo of free trade and industrialization captured the hearts and minds of the new Lat Am leaders.

Questions:

  • What were some of the forces that led to political instability in the newly independent Latin American nations?
  • How did European nations continue to influence the affairs of the Americans after the lost the wars for independence in Latin America?