By the latter half of the 17th century, the rule of Spain in the New World was reaching 200 years. Times were changing, both in the New World and in Europe, and the leaders of Spain knew it. Their problem was what to do about it. Spain had never had a coherent policy in its imperial rule. Since 1492, Spain was seemingly constantly at war, with an endless series of crises thrown into the mix. Solutions had to be found for the here and now, the future would take care of itself.
Erick Redington continues his look at the independence of Spanish America by looking at Francisco de Miranda and Simon Bolivar. He looks at how they both wanted independence from Spain, but came from different generations - one an elder statesman, the other an idealist revolutionary
If you missed them, Erick’s article on the four viceroyalties is here, Francisco de Miranda’s early life is here, his travels in Europe and the US is here, and his later years is here. Then, you can read about the Abdications of Bayonne here, the start of the Mexican War of Independence here, how Hidalgo continued the war here, the impact of José Morelos here, and the changes of the 1810s here, and Mexico’s sudden independence here, and Colombia’s Revolt of the Comuneros here.
Francisco de Miranda by Martin Tovar y Tovar.
Miranda the Gadfly
Unlike the other pre-Bayonne viceroyalties, Gran Colombia had a small independentist movement. This can be ascribed to the workings of one man: Francisco de Miranda. Although a very thorough series about his life can be found here, an abbreviated version is in order.
Miranda was born in Caracas in 1750 to parents who did not quite fit into the city’s socioeconomic structure. On a racial and class basis, the Mirandas did not have a comfortable life due to persecution by the city’s Basque, old-money elites. This caused a great deal of resentment for Miranda. His father had been forced to sacrifice his military position and a significant part of his wealth refuting accusations of “racial impurity”.
Resentment against the colonial structure that enabled the Byzantine rules of New Granada made the decision to leave the colony easy for Miranda. After serving in the Spanish army in North Africa fighting the Moors and in the Caribbean and North America during the America Revolution, he was caught up in some illegal business deals, and potential spying, and became an object of suspicion for the Spanish colonial authorities who ordered his arrest. Miranda fled first to the United States and then to Europe.
While in Europe, Miranda met many of the most prominent people of the time, from William Pitt the Younger to Catherine the Great. When the French Revolution broke out, Miranda, a student of the Enlightenment, enthusiastically joined the French army and was made a general. As the French Revolution ate its own, Miranda got swept up in the persecution and was briefly put in prison, though he was later released and fled to Britain.
With his previous contacts and notoriety as a friend of seemingly every prominent person in Europe at the time, Miranda was able to leverage his contacts to fulfill his dream of liberating his homeland from the oppression of Spain. At the time, Spain was allied to Revolutionary France, and Miranda very pointedly told the British government that if they supported him with money, ships, and men, he could lead a revolutionary movement against Spain, deprive a British enemy of their most lucrative colonies by igniting a hemispheric revolutionary movement, and open the area to increased British commerce. Seemingly constantly, Miranda would come up with new plans and memoranda and send them off to Prime Minister Pitt looking for more of everything for his revolutionary projects. Eventually, he would tire of waiting on the British and returned to the United States to reignite his contacts there.
In 1806, Miranda, with alleged support from the administration of Thomas Jefferson, organized several ships and a few hundred volunteers and attempted an invasion of New Granada, landing at Coro. A British ship and some Royal Marines helped in the attack. It was a total catastrophe. Ashore for not even two weeks, Miranda would retreat back to the safety of his ships when Spanish troops arrived, and the expedition broke up.
Back in Britain, Miranda, having shown himself to be a man of action, began to receive real support from the British government. After a failed invasion of the Viceroy of Rio de la Plata that was defeated mostly by local forces, the British realized they needed the support of the local populace. Here is where the British thought Miranda would be useful. Still with contacts in New Granada, Miranda could be used to set the stage for local support for a British invasion of the colony. Being unable to directly strike the Napoleonic juggernaut, the British could strike at the soft underbelly of the Napoleonic system, the Spanish Empire.
Chaos of Bayonne
The stage had been set. A large British army under the command of General Arthur Wellesley was all ready to go. Miranda would go as well to lead his people. Then, the Abdications of Bayonne happened. Spain was no longer a British enemy. With now-King Ferdinand a prisoner of the French, the new revolutionary Junta that claimed to be leading Spain in his name was an ally. Additionally, that army now needed to be used in Iberia, not all the way in South America.
As in the other viceroyalties, the Abdications of Bayonne created chaos. Few wanted to accept the new King José I of Spain (Joseph Bonaparte). The Junta in Spain claimed authority over the colonies, but as the colonists saw it, by what right? If the Spanish people could rise up against the usurper, they could rise up as well to defend their rights.
By 1810, Juntas began forming in the colonies. The Supreme Junta of Caracas, like the Junta of Seville, declared itself the supreme government of all of the Captaincy-General of Venezuela. What was interesting was that the Junta only claimed to represent Venezuela, just one constituent part of the whole of New Granada. Officially the Junta was simply a sort of regency for the captive King Ferdinand. It was on this basis that the Junta requested help from the British. See, they were not rebelling against Britain’s ally Spain, they were fighting for King Ferdinand, and the British should help them succeed. It was just obvious. The diplomatic mission sent over to Britain by the Junta toed this line until a young hothead in the delegation, a man named Simón Bolívar, ranted to the British diplomats about how Venezuela should be free and independent.
Bolívar Meets Miranda
The meeting between Bolívar and Miranda would be a crossroads in both of their lives. Here was Miranda, the elder statesman. French revolutionary, Spanish-American revolutionary, world traveler, and supposed lover of Catherine the Great. Bolívar was a young idealist. The first “great man” he worshipped was Napoleon, but Bonaparte had betrayed his ideals, in Bolívar’s mind, when he crowned himself. Now, here was Miranda, the man who had been fighting to make America free since almost before Bolívar was born.
Bolívar’s Early Life
Like Miranda, Bolívar was from Caracas, having been born there in 1783. Unlike Miranda, Bolívar’s family was descended from the group of Basques that dominated the high society of Caracas. Although he was born into one of the wealthiest families in the Americas, tragedy struck early in Bolívar’s life. His father died when he was only 3 years old, and he would go on to be raised by relatives away from his siblings. He would be sent to live with his uncle, Carlos Palacios y Blanco, whom Bolívar would despise since he was convinced that the man was only after the family’s inheritance.
Carlos Palacios knew he had to at least do the bare minimum to show he was caring for his nephew, so he sent him to school. From there, he would meet one of the formative people in his life, Simón Rodriguez. Rodriguez was a liberal who believed in independence for Venezuela. He would be considered one of the earliest influences on Bolívar’s political upbringing.
First Taste of Revolution
Eventually, Bolívar would run away from his uncle’s care and fled to live with his sister and her husband. Not particularly wanting the very defiant and unruly boy hanging around too much, his sister arranged for Bolívar to move in with Simón Rodriguez to further his education. Rodriguez would teach the boy the values of the Enlightenment that we so much in vogue at the time. Bolívar, being a naturally defiant child, eagerly lapped up the philosophies that taught questioning established authorities and the vaguely libertarian outlook that early Enlightenment philosophers held.
Bolívar’s political education would end prematurely in 1797. Rodriguez was caught up in what was called the Gual and España conspiracy, named after two of the leaders. This conspiracy sought to throw off, what they saw, as the shackles then in place in Venezuela. Although the exact details of the conspiracy are shrouded by the mists of time and unclear, what is clear is that the basis for this movement was a checklist of Enlightenment philosophies: free trade and the elimination of tariffs and burdensome taxes, elimination of the tribute that Indians were required to pay, the immediate and total abolition of slavery, and complete racial equality. Independence for Venezuela was not an explicit goal; neither was republicanism. It was also not explicitly anti-Spanish, as many later rebellions would be. The conspirators believed that the interests of all people in Venezuela were in alignment and that no Venezuelan was an enemy.
While the conspiracy was broken up with ease by the colonial authorities, it did show that even at this early time, Venezuela was a hotbed of dissent. Simón Rodriguez would be exiled to Europe and Bolívar’s formal education in Venezuela was at an end. After a brief stint in the colonial militia, he would be sent by Carlos Palacios to Madrid to continue school. While in Madrid, Bolívar’s education would be broadened to create a more well-rounded education.
In the Belly of the Beast
His time in Madrid would be tumultuous. He stayed with his uncle, Esteban Palacios, who recognized almost right away that, although Bolívar came from an aristocratic family of means, his education was terrible. His uncle set about remaking his young ward. Bolívar was taught not just better grammar and spelling, but also how to dress, speak, and act as a member of his class and station. Part of this effort was getting Bolívar recognized at court. One of Esteban Palacios’ acquaintances in Madrid was a young man of the royal guard named Manuel Mallo.
The Spanish royal court at the turn of the 19th century was a sad parody of royalty. The Queen of Spain, Maria Luisa was the power in the country. It would be generous to call King Carlos IV dim. He was a man completely out of his depth ruling a country and had no discernable self-awareness. Maria Luisa was a woman with no beauty or charm, but she was strong-willed and pursued what she wanted. Two things she valued most of all were power and young, handsome men. For a young man with ambition and good looks, an appointment to the royal guard was also a ticket to the queen’s bedchamber and, subsequently, wealth and power. By this point in the story, she had already convinced her husband to elevate Manuel Godoy from said bedchamber to the prime ministership of the empire. Carlos was probably the only person in the court who was unaware of where Godoy’s rapid rise came from. While Bolívar was in Madrid, the queen cast her eye on Manuel Mallo. He was showered with wealth and power, with the king none the wiser. This relationship was Bolívar’s entry to the court.
Although Bolívar would be expelled from the court for a time for wearing diamonds to a reception, which was forbidden without express permission, his time at court was formative. He became acquainted with the heir to the Spanish throne, Prince Ferdinand, the future Ferdinand VII. There was a story that one day, Bolívar went to the royal palace to visit Ferdinand and they decided to play a game of badminton together. During the game, the shuttlecock came down and hit Ferdinand on the head. As everyone around laughed at the situation, Ferdinand became so embarrassed and angry that he refused to continue to play. Only by his mother shaming him, and her demand that Ferdinand be hospitable, was Ferdinand convinced to continue.
Eventually, Manuel Mallo fell out of the queen’s favor. When he was arrested, Esteban Palacios decided that this would be a good time to take Bolívar out of Madrid and away from court. One can only imagine how much damage close familiarity with the court in Madrid did to Bolívar’s loyalty to the crown. Indeed, Bolívar got a good look at how the Spanish court ran at this time, and it would color his views on both monarchies and the mother country.
A Match Made in Heaven
One thing Bolívar left in Madrid was love. He had met María Teresa Rodríguez del Toro during his time in the capital. She was also from New Granada, and she was a cousin to one of Bolívar’s childhood friends. They had become close during this time, but Bolívar’s abrupt exit from Madrid did not dampen his love for her. When he was able to return In April 1802, Bolívar immediately applied for a marriage license and he and María were married.
With his new bride in tow, and feeling his education complete, Bolívar decided to go back to New Granada. When the new, happy couple arrived, he reconnected with all of his old friends and acquaintances in Caracas. A grand future awaited the couple, splitting time between Bolívar’s estate at San Mateo growing indigo and cacao, and the city of Caracas. For Bolívar, who had grown up being passed around amongst family members who cared more for the inheritance he had than him as a human being, he felt reborn with the sanctity that a marriage of true love can bring. A comfortable life as a wealthy aristocrat awaited the Bolívars.
The Turning Point
Unfortunately, María contracted yellow fever (most likely) soon after arriving in New Granada. After only eight months of marriage, María passed away on January 22, 1803. She was only 21 years old.
For Bolívar, this was devastating. He had finally given his heart to another person after the chaos of his childhood, and now the love of his life was gone in the blink of an eye. Some close to him feared that he might even take his own life. His brother believed that Bolívar was going to go mad from anger and grief. Although he would reach the other side of the dark night, Bolívar emerged a changed man. It was the death of María that would change the trajectory of Bolívar’s life. Prior to her death, he would have been perfectly happy and contented to continue on with the empty-headed life of a colonial aristocrat, achieving prosperity and little more. Now, the nervous energy needed an outlet somewhere. It was this event that placed him on the road to being the Bolívar the Liberator.
What do you think of the Revolt of the Comuneros? Let us know below.
Now, read about Francisco Solano Lopez, the Paraguayan president who brought his country to military catastrophe in the War of the Triple Alliance here.
