Chapter 25 - The Consolidation of Latin America, 1830-1920

Chapter 25
The Consolidation of Latin America, 1830-1920

1. Introduction
   1. Maximilian I – Austrian emperor – firing squad in 1867
      1. Killed after years of Civil War
      2. Proved need for Latin America to figure out future w/ out Europe
   2. Early 19th century – Latin America created new nations
      1. Problems…many divisions over how to address the following
         1. Role of religion
         2. Type of society
         3. nature of economy
         4. form of government
      2. Plus…always threatened by
         1. Foreign governments
         2. new imperialist regimes
         3. neighbors seeking territory/economic advantage
   3. Is it a “developing nation” or part of European Enlightenment?
      1. Enlightenment
         1. Shared virtues of progress, reform
         2. Representational government
         3. Constitutional government
         4. private property rights
      2. Problems of colonial government
         1. No history of participatory government
         2. Dependence on invasive central authority
         3. Class/regional differences divided nation
         4. Huge wealth/income disparity
         5. European industrialization made Latin America a dependent nation
2. From Colonies to Nations
   1. Introduction
      1. Shared resentment of creoles and others (Natives/mestizos/mulattos)
         1. new taxes and administrative reforms
         2. Creoles – Enlightened ideas
      2. But…still…class differences too much to overcome
         1. Many attempts at independence failed – wealthy worried about losing power
   2. Causes of Political Change
      1. Events encouraging change
         1. American Revolution – 1776
         2. French Revolution – 1789
            1. But…regicide, rejection of Church, social leveling too much
         3. Haitian Revolution – 1791
            1. Toussaint L’Overture overthrows French colonial control
               1. Makes local wealthy very hesitant to enlist the masses
         4. Confused Iberian political situation
            1. Napoleon’s appointed brother vs. juntra central
            2. Independent juntas self-servingly set up own juntas
   3. Spanish American Independent Struggles
      1. Mexico
         1. Father Miguel de Hidalgo encourages Indians and mestizos - 1810
            1. Later captured and executed after early victories – threat to elite
         2. 1820 – Augustin de Itubide – creole captures Mexico City w/ mestizo/Ind help
            1. Proclaimed emperor of Mexico
            2. Initially all of Central America attached, but by 1838 all had split off
      2. South America/Caribbean – break away in reverse order of exploration
         1. Argentina/Venezuela first and Caribbean last
            1. Fearful of slave resistance – bonjour Haiti
            2. 1820-1833 Gran Colombia – then broken to Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia
         2. Creole Jose de San Martin fights for Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay independence
            1. Conservative creoles eventually supported after a ton of victories
         3. By 1825 all Spanish South America had gained its independence
   4. Brazilian Independence
      1. By end of 18th century Brazil economically important
         1. European demand for sugar, cotton, cacao
         2. Creoles, upper class unwilling to risk change – lose to lower classes
      2. Portuguese king and queen flee Portugal and head to Brazil
         1. After Napoleon’s invasion
         2. Rule Portugal from Brazil
         3. Brazil not seen as inferior – equal to Portugal
         4. Rio de Janeiro becomes imperial city
            1. Leads to immigration of bureaucrats – threatens authority
         5. By 1820, things change – king moves back – Brazil pathetic again
            1. Dom Pedro – Dom Joao VI’s (king of Portugal’s) son
   5. Final conclusions
      1. So…Mexico becomes monarchy, Brazil monarchy under Portugues ruling family, rest of South America a parliament
3. New Nations Confront Old and New Problems
   1. Introduction
      1. Initially people think there might be reform
         1. meritocracy
         2. representative government
         3. right to private property
         4. individual as basis to society
      2. Issues
         1. Should Catholicism be national religion?
         2. Free slaves/egalitarian vs. economic focus as priority – Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil
         3. Color distinction
            1. Many mestizos/Natives concerned that political offices won by same corrupt aristocracy
   2. Political Fragmentation
      1. nations divide due to political divisions, regional rivalries, economic competition
      2. Gran Colombia only held together under leadership of Simon Bolivar
         1. his death puts out fire of protest
      3. Why did uniting fail?
         1. Geographic barriers
         2. Great distances
            1. Poor roads
         3. Regional differences/political divisions too much
         4. Mass of population outside political process
         5. Becomes 18 separate nations
   3. Caudillos, Politics and the Church
      1. Problems for new nations
         1. Decade of warfare had destroyed economies/devastated land
         2. Caudillos gain power
            1. Independent warlords able to organize army
            2. These caudillos could make/unmake governments
            3. Leads to government reaction of needing to hyperfinance military
            4. Interested in power for own sake, not for country
            5. Support different groups – some elite, some mestizos, some Indians
         3. Centralists vs. federalists
            1. Central government controls everything or strong regional governments
         4. Liberals vs. conservatives
            1. rights of individual vs. maintenance of status quo
            2. secular nation vs. Catholic nation
            3. Conservatives wanted to maintain order – not encourage competition
            4. Leaders still come from elite class – regardless of position
         5. Role of the Church
            1. Role in education
            2. Should role in civic life be limited
            3. What are problems of mixing Church and state
         6. Constitutions
            1. Too specific, overturned with each new government
            2. More successful gov’ts gave more power to monarch/president
         7. defects in the “Latin” character?
            1. personalism, lack of civic responsibility
4. Latin American Economies and World Markets, 1820-1870
   1. Introduction
      1. Spain/Portugal want to refocus colonization in Latin America
         1. But…US and Britain w/ Monroe Doctrine keep L. America independent
      2. Britain benefiting from Latin America w/ out colonization
         1. L. America gets loans from Europe
         2. Britain market for L. American goods
            1. dominated market in early 19th century
      3. Nation’s economies hurt by foreign goods
         1. Port cities benefit and landowners benefit, but…
         2. Mfg. can’t compete – not as cheap/as quality
      4. Reliance on foreign markets/foreign imports mimics colonial economic heritage
   2. Mid-Century Stagnation
      1. Exports eventually increase
         1. Coffee > Brazil, Hides > Argentina, Guano > Peru, Minerals > Chile, Sugar > Cuba
            1. Increase in wealth allowed some social changes
               1. Abolish slavery
               2. End American Indian tribute
            2. Also made more vulnerable to world markets
               1. Patterns of economic change
                  1. Remember…still differences for each nation
                  2. Independence
                  3. 1820s/1830s attempts at radical reform – end colonial heritage
                  4. Economies can’t handle these social changes
                  5. Conservatives retake control in 1840s
                     1. Landowners/peasants vs. middle class/urban modernizers
   3. Economic Resurgence and Liberal Politics
      1. Liberal changes do work end of 19th century
         1. Based on Auguste Comte’s positivism
            1. observation + science to make changes – scientific management
         2. Second industrial revolution made mfg. more efficient
         3. Populations doubled
         4. As people made money through new industrialization, people accepted liberal
      2. Sometimes these “ideas out of place” – implementing European models on L. America
      3. Negatives of economic growth
         1. Immigrants treated horribly – tenancy, peonage, disguised servitude
         2. Small farmers displaced
         3. Church lands seized
         4. Peasant lands taken
   4. Mexico: Instability and Foreign Intervention
      1. Problems of Mexico’s 1824 Constitution
         1. Maldistribution of land
         2. Status of American Indians
         3. Problems of Education
         4. Vast numbers of poor
      2. Liberals attack on Church not appreciated
      3. Santa Anna in control during middle of century
         1. Northern territory of Texas wants independence then is annexed by US
         2. US wants a coast to coast empire – manifest destiny
            1. Mexican-American War ended w/ unfair Treat of Guadalupe Hidalgo
               1. Gets ½ of Mexico’s land – all the way to California
               2. Mexico loses economic potential
               3. Mistrust of USA by Latin America
         3. Benito Juarez – intellectual who pushes for secular nation
            1. Not influenced by military/church
      4. Liberal revolts – La Reforma began in 1854
         1. Wanted to redistribute land – took Indian communal lands and Church lands
            1. But…just bought up by land speculators
            2. Rich get richer and poor get poorer
      5. Conservatives look to Europe for help
         1. France – Napoleon III sends in troops
            1. Shared Latin culture
            2. Please Catholics in France
            3. Economic benefits
         2. Austrian archduke Maximilian von Hapsburg rules
            1. But eventually assassinated
   5. Argentina: The Port and the Nation
      1. Originally a backward, rural area
      2. Hesitant to enact reforms to church or government – don’t want to centralize
      3. 1862 Argentine Republic – Balances central government and federalist
         1. Domingo F. Sarmiento
            1. Political/economic reforms
            2. Deplores caudillo influence of region
         2. Political stability leads to foreign investment
         3. Expansion of economy – exported beef, hides, wool
            1. With money, could implement reforms
      4. War between Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay led to heightened nationalism
      5. Defeat of Indians allowed expansion
   6. The Brazilian Empire
      1. Transition to nationhood relatively smooth – kept slavery, large landholding, export economy
         1. Conflict between conservative monarchy vs. liberal faction
      2. Economy based on exports – coffee primarily – fazendas – coffee estates
         1. Intensification of slavery – staple crop like cotton in S. USA
            1. Abolitionist movement didn’t start until 1870
         2. Nobles/courts bound to success of government
         3. Industrial/communication revolution encourages foreign investment
         4. Following 1850, huge immigration boom
      3. Monarchy starts to fall with abolition of slavery – remember, they supported owners
         1. 1889 – bloodless military coup starts Republic
         2. Peasant unrest with resulting transition
            1. Antonio Conselheiro leads rebellion from community of Canudos
            2. Represented battle between traditional values and modernization
5. Societies in Search of Themselves
   1. Cultural Expression after Independence
      1. Borrowed heavily from neo-Classical traditions of Europe – especially elite
      2. Next generation turned to Romanticism and national indigenous culture
      3. Politicians began writing histories of nation
      4. With industrial revolution – new writers dealt with corruption, prejudice, greed
      5. Popular dance, art, folk music differed from the elite – oh…really…
   2. Old Patterns of Gender, Class, and Race
      1. Though politically a time of change, much of society kept the same
      2. Women
         1. Though they participated in independence movements – kept patriarchal
         2. Under father – then husband’s – control
            1. Can’t work, enter into contracts, control estates w/out permission
         3. Lower class have more activity in markets, but still not equal
         4. But…public education
            1. Teach women, they can then teach their children properly
            2. Some compulsory education, but only 10% of women literate
            3. Women became teachers
      3. Caste system
         1. Stigma of skin color, former slave status still limits options
         2. Indians/mestizos still frustrated with position
            1. Though they did make gains in army, professions, commerce
         3. Small, white Creole upper class controls most of economies/politics

         d. Even with rapid urbanization, still remained rural, agrarian cultures