Local Boards and First Independence

The American Boards (Juntas) from 1810, called autonomists, due to the concept they had about political power, will continue with feelings of loyalty to the Spanish Monarchy without obeying the Regency Council that was established after the self dissolution of the Junta Central at the end of 1809.

In 1810, great part of the creoles didnt recognize the Regency Council and sought their own autonomy inside the Monarchy of Ferdinand VII. They established open councils that will result in Governmental Boards, since the absence of a king gave back the power to the people.

The first of these new boards comes from Caracas. On April 19, 1810 a Governmental Board unwilling to recognize the Regency Council sets. They also criticized the elective calling system of the Courts for limiting the representation of Americans. But in counterpart, other cities from Venezuela did recognize the Regencys authority. The firsts events of the Caracas peoples´ Board were related to trade: free trade, lower taxes, etc., that will only be in favor of the bourgeoisie. A year later the General Congress of Venezuela met and on July 5, 1811 declared the independence of the Federal Republic of Venezuela, although a civil war started and ended its First Republic in July of 1812.

At New Granadas viceroyalty a Governmental Board was established in Cartagena de Indies on May 22, 1810. In Santa Fe de Bogotá an open Council was created and the viceroy Antonio de Amar y Borbón (Zaragoza, 1742-1818?) was arrested. Later after there was a call for Congress, but a wealth of territories from the viceroyalty didnt participate. During the Congress there was a conflict between the Centralism party, who established their capital at Cundinamarca, and the Federalist Party, with capital in Tunja. Those in favor to the revolution divided themselves between these two territories as well as Cartagena. In November of 1811 the Spanish Independence was proclaimed. The arrival of exiled Venezuelans like, Simón Bolívar (Caracas, Venezuela, 1783-Santa Marta, Colombia, 1830) ended the situation.

In Buenos Aires, the viceroy Baltazar Hidalgo de Cisneros wanted to control the situation. But on May 22, 1810 there was a call for an open Council that resulted on the dismissing of the viceroy. Three days later a Government Board was set claiming autonomy inside the monarchy of Ferdinand VII. Some of the board members where: General Cornelio de Saavedra, the attorney Mariano Moreno Valle, the General Manuel Belgrano and his cousin and friend Juan José Castelli. But some of the territories of the viceroyalty of Rio de La Plata did not follow the footsteps of the capital and so, confrontations between them started: The city of Montevideo, governed by Francisco Javier de Elío declared them war. Asunción defeated the people of Buenos Aires and declared independent from Spain. As a result, in 1813 the Republic of Paraguay was born. Santiago de Liniers confronted the Realist from the city of Córdoba de Tucumán and ended executed in August of 1810. At Charcas, the Realists troops from the viceroy of Peru, José de Abascal, commandeering José Manuel de Goyeneche defeated the Buenos Aires troops at the Battle of Guaqui in July of 1811. These confrontations between Buenos Aires and the cities of the viceroyalty continued and in 1816 they declared independent from Spain.

In Santiago de Chile, the substitution of the governor Francisco Antonio García Carrasco (Ceuta, 1743-Lima, Peru, 1813) for the I Count of the Conquest, Mateo de Toro Zambrabo, (Santiago, Chile, 1727-Santigo, Chile, 1810) resulted in the creation of an Open Council on September 18, 1810, taking place the First Government Board. Some of the measures taken were in favor of free trade and summoned a National Congress, inaugurated in July of 1811. Some figures that stood out were: José Miguel Carrera (Santiago, Chile, 1785-Mendoza, Argentina, 1821) and Bernardo O´Higgins (Chillán, Chile, 1776-Lima, Peru, 1842). The confrontation between both and the Realist troops from the viceroy José de Abascal ended this period in the history of Chile best known as Patria Vieja.

In the viceroyalty of New Spain, the priest Miguel Hidalgo (Corralejo, Mexico, 1753-Chihuahua, Mexico, 1811) launched on September 16, 1810 the Grito de Dolores (Cry of Dolores) against the peninsular people: "Viva la religion, viva la Virgen de Guadalupey mueran los gachupines" ("Long Live religion, long live the Virgen of Guadalupe and death to the gachupines"). Hidalgo created an army formed by Indians and mestizos, attacking on both Spaniards and creoles but was defeated by the Realists troops of Felix María Calleja and executed in July of 1811. His work was continued by another priest, José María Morelos (Moreliia, Mexico, 1765-San Cristobal Ecatepec, Mexico, 1815). After occupying many territories, Morelos summoned a Congress that proclaimed the independence and the republicanism. Finally he was defeated and executed in 1815.