The Colombian Empire: A (mostly) United Latin American TL

[moxn]

For years now I have enjoyed the many different timelines, but I always stuck to making one-shot scenarios and maps. After a lot of preparation and research, however, I think I am ready to create my first timeline. I have already written and posted a number of chapters for it, so I am going to post them all here in quick succession, please let me know if it is considered spamming. 

Like a lot of scenarios that I end up making, this timeline will be something of a wank. I know it may not be the most realistic, but I will be satisfied as long as it turns out interesting. Any comments, criticisms, or suggestions would be more than welcome.



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Prelude part 1

On October 12th, 1807, the first French troops passed into Spain on their way to Portugal. At least, that was what Spanish King Charles IV had believed. For years, his country had been tenuously allied to Napoleonic France, and so he had no quandary with allowing thousands of troops pass through his borders. He could hardly suspect, however, that Napoleon considered the Spanish Bourbons to be untrustworthy allies and so planned to take them out of the equation.

By this point, there had already been increasing tensions within Spain over the growing French influence on its government. While Charles and his wife Maria supported him and dutifully listened to his advice, others in the royal family despised the man. One of Godoy's largest enemies was none other than Charles' own son and heir, Ferdinand. From a young age, Ferdinand hated Godoy and his power over his parents and the nation. Most of Spain agreed, since the upper classes resented being lorded over by a low-born man, the religious were distraught over his confiscation of Church property, and everyone blamed him for the disastrous war with Britain which had destroyed nearly the entire Spanish fleet.

Everything came to a head when Ferdinand's wife Maria Antonietta died under mysterious circumstances. Soon after, Godoy was widely accused of poisoning her in retribution for conspiring against him. Whether this is true or not is still up to debate, but regardless of its validity a real conspiracy began to form against Godoy, and by extension King Charles IV. After Godoy himself warned the king of this conspiracy, Charles had his own son put under house arrest until he could be sure there would be no coup against him. Just as Ferdinand was freed, however, the French troops who had been allowed into the nation finally struck and began to occupy key Spanish cities.

At this point, the royal family, Godoy, and other top government officials fled to Aranjuez, and from there planned to escape to the New World. This is when Ferdinand and his key supporters sprang into action, however. Ferdinand and his allies had mistakenly believed that Napoleon would support his claim to the throne. They had Godoy was imprisoned, and Charles was forced to abdicate in favor of his son. Shortly after this, the French Emperor invited Ferdinand to Bayonne, where any issue of succession would finally be settled.

Little did Ferdinand know that Napoleon planned to replace his troublesome family entirely. The Emperor had planned to put his own brother, Joseph, on the throne, and ensure that Spain would never waver in its loyalty to France. So when Ferdinand finally arrived to the city he was taken captive in the local palace. Ferdinand refused to give up his titles at first, but once his mother and father also arrived and were taken prisoner, he finally gave in.


A political cartoon at the time depicting Napoleon's plot against the Spanish.

The government and people back in Spain refused to recognize their new Bonaparte king, however. The Junta de Gobierno, which was headed by Ferdinand's uncle Antonio and contained all the major ministers of state, continued to recognize Ferdinand as the rightful king and immediately began to resist French occupation.

At the start of the year, Napoleon bragged that he could take all of Spain with fewer than 12,000 troops. By the middle of the year, however, nearly 70,000 soldiers were needed to occupy the nation and they still didn't seem to be enough. During this time, Ferdinand remained a French hostage in Bayonne along with his parents, and a number of juntas had begun to form all throughout the empire claiming to rule in his name. It looked like they would be trapped in France for the remainder of the war. Plans changed, however, by November of 1808 when Charles IV died while in captivity.

The details of Charles' death are still contentious to this day. France and its supporters have always maintained that the 60-year-old man had simply succumbed to his age and the stress of recent events, causing his health to falter and succumb to illness. Spain and its supporters immediately accused Napoleon of having the former king poisoned in order to punish Spain for its resistance, with the clear threat that Ferdinand would be next if they continued to fight.


Ferdinand VII, King of Spain and Prisoner of France.

From this point on, it became the central junta's top priority to find a way to free Ferdinand and protect the rest of the royal line. While Antonio remained in order to lead the resistance, Ferdinand's two brothers Carlos and Francisco finally left for New Spain as was originally planned (his sisters were already living in other countries, and one had even fled to Brazil with the Portuguese court the previous year).

In the late winter of 1809, months of plotting had finally paid off. Ferdinand was successfully freed from Bayonne, thanks largely to the efforts of a woman who worked as his maid while he was kept in the palace. From there, he crossed into Navarre disguised as a commoner, and on more than one occasion narrowly escaping French forces that had been sent to find him. Ferdinand would take great pleasure in retelling the story of his escape for the rest of his life, though he often exaggerated portions when it suited him.

Despite his return to Spain, however, the young king was far from safe. The Junta de Gobierno still feared that Napoleon would recapture Ferdinand and execute him, and so hastily smuggled him out from the country to be with his brothers and other ministers in New Spain. Antonio would continue to rule in Ferdinand's name back in the home country as the new Peninsular Wars burned on.


The Spanish Empire in America in 1809.

And so, from 1809 onward until the end of the war, the Spanish Empire would be ruled from Mexico City. All around the empire, local governments swore their loyalty to Ferdinand as the rightful king, and denounced the Bonaparte pretender to the throne. Not everyone would be happy about the king's arrival to the West, however. Chiefly among them was a prominent Spanish republican figure living in London named Francisco de Miranda, who had sworn to return to his homeland and free it from the tyranny of the monarchy.

[moxn]

Prelude part 2

As soon as word of Napoleon's invasion reached the Spanish colonies, scores of new juntas immediately began to spring up and declare their loyalty to the rightful government of Spain. The vast majority swore their loyalty to Ferdinand, specifically (though a small number in the Rio de la Plata supported his sister Carlota in Brazil instead). In reality, however, a large number of these juntas saw this as their opportunity to achieve much greater autonomy, if not complete independence, and simply claimed to rule in Ferdinand's name as a thin excuse. Some people speculate that if the royal family had never escaped Spain, all of Spanish America would have descended into chaotic revolutions.

Before matters could get out of hand, however, Ferdinand's younger brothers Carlos and Francisco had arrived to America along with a number of important ministers of state. This greatly inhibited the popular support for the independent juntas, and within months most had recognized Carlos as the acting regent. From Mexico City, Carlos would begin reining the colonial governments back in in order to focus on resisting the French and reclaiming Spain.

Not everything would continue on smoothly, however. The initial calls for the formation of local juntas had created some of the first political waves that would eventually become tsunamis. For now, the governments of the viceroyalties simply responded by arresting pro-junta liberals who had signed petitions or made demonstrations. This would strengthen the crown's authority, but only temporarily.

Ironically, Ferdinand's escape from France the following year in 1809 would undo much of the progress made under Carlos and the government in exile. For the first time, many of the elites and citizens alike in New Spain would now have to deal with Ferdinand directly. Ferdinand was a staunch conservative, which alienated many liberals. In particular, Ferdinand supported the continued legal superiority of peninsulares (those born in Spain) over the criollos (those of Spanish descent born in the colonies). The criollos largely felt that because they were racially the same as the Spaniards, they deserved to have all of the same legal rights as them.

The conservatives would eventually find themselves alienated as well. While Ferdinand supported them politically, his brash personality and lack of education often caused him to clash with those around him and fail to earn their respect. The king's very presence in Mexico City had now begun to undermine his own authority. For once, a number of liberals and conservatives had come to agreement on something, since both wished that the war would end and Ferdinand would leave back to Spain as soon as possible.


Mexico City in the early 19th century.

“He has proved himself in many ways the basest king in our history. Cowardly, selfish, grasping, suspicious, vengeful, he seems incapable of any perception of the enormous sacrifices of Spanish people to retain our independence and preserve his throne.”

Retrieved from the journal of a peninsular elite living in Mexico City


Unfortunately for many, the war in Europe would not be over any time soon. Ferdinand and his family would ultimately have another five years to settle in and cement their rule. It was during this time that Ferdinand's two brothers would also start to play a more prominent role in history.

The older of the two, Carlos, was 20 years old when he first arrived in New Spain. He was a very religious young man, and in certain ways even more conservative than his older brother. He enjoyed the power he wielded during his months as regent, but his loyalty to the crown meant that he never plotted to take that power back once he had to give it up. Afterward, he seemed content to remain in Mexico City for the remainder of the war and deal with internal affairs.

The youngest brother, Francisco, was barely 14 years old when he fled with his family. Unlike his brother Carlos, he would not play a large role in early administration and instead continued his education in the courts of New Spain. The mixture of colonial and Spanish tutors exposed Francisco to a wider range of ideas, and also gave him more insight into the inequality of colonial rule.

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The next two years in New Spain would be mostly uneventful. Militias were organized to support the war against France, the last of the remaining juntas were dissolved, and suppression of the liberals intensified. This merely caused more and more tensions to build, however. One of the largest points of tension would develop in Caracas.

In 1807, a young Venezuelan republican named Simón Bolívar returned from his travels to his city of birth, and over the years slowly amassed a small following of like-minded people. He would often host small parties where men from the local elite families would mingle, discuss politics, and ultimately plan on how best to oust the Bourbon family. They would be forced to act on these plans sooner than expected, however, when Ferdinand ordered further crackdowns on liberal forces in 1810. Arrest warrants were issued for several prominent party members. Facing, exile, imprisonment or even execution once their plot was uncovered, Bolívar and his men instead chose to act and began their revolution. Their first act was to gather the manpower and resources they had managed to organize up to that point and storm a local jail where many political prisoners were held.

The rebel band sent messengers far and wide to try and encourage other regions to join them. Among the messages sent, one was to Francisco de Miranda, who had been staying in Haiti the year prior trying to find foreign support once again. By the time Miranda would arrive in Caracas with a small Haitian militia, the city had already fallen to the rebel forces. This period would mark the beginning of the Republicano Wars.

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The First Republicano War

“Like other prominent Spanish rebels, Francisco de Miranda has long been one of the most controversial figures in Colombian history. For many, he represents the dream of a united and free Hispanoamérica, and is still revered by Latino republicans to this day. To Royalist historians, however, he is often painted as an inept intellectual who was more proficient at talking about independence than actually making it come about. What divides the two factions the most, however, is on how to judge his legacy following the end of the First Republicano War.”

Gabriel Costa, University of San Marcos Press



Flag of the Venezuelan Republicanos, it would come to represent republicanism all throughout Latin America.

From the very beginning, the Republicano forces faced major obstacles. One of the largest problems was their lack of support from both the peninsulare and the mixed-race citizens. The majority of the republican forces under Bolívar and Miranda were made up of the local criollos who were concerned with affirming their own rights first and foremost. Peninsulares were afraid of losing their protected status, and non-criollos rightly suspected the rebels of being unconcerned with their lower statuses. For indios, mestizos, pardos, and others who did seek equality, they did not look to elite slave owners like Bolívar. Because of this, the rebel forces were never able to gain popular support like they had hoped.

Another issue often brought up by historians is the lack of a united Republicano front. There remained deep schisms in its leadership, which mostly stemmed from the tensions between Bolívar and Miranda. While Miranda had a long military career and spent years planning for this rebellion, Bolívar was the main financial backer of the rebellion and commanded a larger role in its leadership. The young man would often butt heads with Miranda, whom he saw as being too cautious, too old for his position, and too set in his ways. Miranda, in turn, thought that Bolívar was too brash and lacked the finer skills needed for diplomacy outside of the battlefield.

Over the next two years the Republicanos would launch a guerrilla war against the Spanish government. While they remained centered in Caracas, they largely operated in the sparsely populated countryside and became known for their strikes from the jungles and mountains. In this time Bolívar would quickly rise further up the rebel ranks and began to directly lead attacks against Spanish strongholds. His natural charisma and string of victories made him popular within the army, while more and more soldiers became alienated from Miranda's harsh treatment and willingness to retreat.

Initially, the Spanish forces left in the region were taken by surprise and fell into disarray. But by mid-1811, Republicano momentum would start to dissipate as reinforcements started to arrive from the other viceroyalties. On paper, the king's brother Carlos lead the forces sent to retake Venezuela. In reality, however, Carlos largely delegated leadership to general Domingo de Monteverde and was content to simply take credit for the mounting victories.

For the next year, the Republicanos would be on the run. Valencia, Tocuyo, Barinas, and other cities returned to loyalist hands, and the rebel leadership in Caracas feared that they would have to flee into exile just as Miranda had done before. In their desperation, they began to look more and more to Bolívar and his more daring plans to retake the lost towns. They had had enough of Miranda and his overly-defensive strategy, and in March of 1812 they finalized their plans to call Miranda back to the city and place his troops under Bolívar's leadership. Before the message could reach the old fighter, however, tragedy would strike.

On March 28th, 1812, the last hopes of the Republicanos crumbled. A massive earthquake struck the city of Caracas, upending nearly all its buildings and killing tens of thousands of its inhabitants. Many prominent leaders perished in the quake, but none of the deaths would hurt the cause more than Bolívar himself. Many historians writing about this period would speculate over what would have happened had the young revolutionary survived.


The people of Caracas search for survivors in the ruins of their city.

For the loyalists, the catastrophic earthquake was nothing less than the act of God. They could not have hoped for a greater piece of propaganda to rally the people behind them, and after this point more and more local militias would volunteer to join Monteverde's army, while more rebel forces began to desert. Miranda would be devastated over the destruction of his city of birth and of the deaths of his compatriots. Many soldiers around him would write in their journals that he became more dour and despondent after that point. Miranda would call for another retreat to the town of Maturín, where he planned to reorganize and convene with the surviving Republicano leadership.

Once in the eastern town, they would not have long to settle in. A rebel commander named Manuel Piar had departed from Maturín shortly after arriving. Over the war, Piar had grown disillusioned with the revolution due to the racial discrimination he faced from the criollo elites (Piar's mother had been a mulatta woman). After Miranda's troops had been pushed back and the earthquake had struck at the heart of the rebellion, Piar could see the writing on the walls and defected to the loyalists.


The defector Manuel Piar. Following his pardon, he would continue to support greater rights for the non-white classes.

Monteverde was determined not to put this information to waste. He sped his army along, afraid that the rebels would catch wind of his approach and flee before he had a chance to arrive. On June 11th, 1812, his army would successfully surround the town and finally forced Miranda to surrender. This day is often considered the official end of the Republicano War, but it would be several more months before the last of the remnant rebel forces were defeated. Most of the Republicano leaders would be executed, while Miranda himself would spend the rest of his days in a prison in Cádiz.

Although peace had finally been restored, it would not be long before the empire would see violence again.

[moxn]

End of the Napoleonic Wars

Overall, 1812 would prove to be a high point for Spain. While the Republicano rebels were defeated in the West, British forces began a major offensive to help the Spanish repel the French and retake Madrid, Salamanca, and other key areas. By year's end, the Grand Armée's defeat at the hands of the Russian winter marked the beginning of the end for the Corsican Emperor.

1812 would also see several concerning trends for Spain. While Ferdinand and his brothers had successfully escaped and continued to run the empire from Mexico City, preventing the government from fragmenting apart, he still ruled Spain itself in absentia. This allowed liberal factions to flourish, at least compared to their compatriots in the colonies. Even while they helped fight the French invaders off, they were greatly influenced by the ideals of the French revolution and enlightenment. They hoped that their common struggle against invasion would create a greater sense of national unity that would give them a chance to further their progressive goals. However, those hopes would be dashed against the reports of liberal purges and suppression in the viceroyalties and Ferdinand's plans to maintain his absolute rule.

Back in New Spain, General Monteverde and his men would return from Venezuela fresh off their victorious campaign. Despite his leadership, however, much of the credit for crushing the rebels would go towards the king's brother, Carlos, who received the title of Captain General of America. Monteverde would not forget this snub any time soon.

Tensions would also develop within the royal family itself. While both Ferdinand and Carlos were staunch conservatives, their younger brother Francisco had been exposed to the writings of Voltaire, Locke, and others, and became more influenced by their philosophies. This would spark contentious fights with his brother Carlos, who said that while he was risking his life to put down traitors, Francisco was safe back at home studying their works.

Despite this, Francisco was hardly a liberal, let alone a revolutionary. He naturally continued to reject the republican ideology that wanted to overthrow his family, and simply came to hold more moderate monarchist views. Generally, he was not especially interested in politics and found more interest in the arts and, now that he was beginning to enter adulthood, travel. After 1812 he would be found visiting several cities around New Spain, and eventually an interest in the arts and ruins of the ancient Inca drew him to Peru. He would be the first in his family to step foot in that land.


The young Francisco.

Even though the republicans of Venezuela were beaten back, their ideology continued to live on. Those who survived the political purges continued to hold secret meetings and form their own plans against the monarchy. The two regions with the largest unrest would be Mexico, with the greatest imperial oversight, and the Rio de la Plata, the area with the least.

In the north, tension would arise from the criollo class who had up to that point enjoyed local prestige but always played second fiddle to the peninsulares. With the surge in immigration from Spain and the heavy hand of Ferdinand's rule, many feared that there would never be true equality between white citizens (few cared about the non-white majority). Further south, secret plots against the crown stemmed from the demand for greater autonomy. The Southern Cone had always been a remote end of the empire, and in practice they had enjoyed a greater deal of local autonomy as a result.

The high point for the Spanish Empire would end in 1814, when Napoleon was taken prisoner and Ferdinand decided to finally return to his homeland. It was in this state of transition back to Madrid that the building resentment against the king would finally erupt in what would be known as La Ruptura.


An unenthused Napoleon being sent into exile.

[moxn]

La Ruptura part 1

The powder keg that King Ferdinand had left behind in America would hold together for nearly two years after his departure for Spain in 1815. With his brother Carlos still in Mexico City as the acting regent, the persecution of liberal agitators diminished but still continued. This repression is what helped maintain an uneasy status quo.

When Ferdinand finally came back to Madrid, he did not like what he saw. While the Junta de Gobierno had maintained a central authority on the peninsula in his name, liberal forces had managed to better organize in his absence. Despite their requests for his return to the homeland for years at that point, they were not particularly excited over his arrival. The king, perhaps rightly, feared that the liberals would rally around an upstart general named Juan O'Donojú and attempt to limit his powers, or even overthrow him entirely.

The spark that finally lit everything off came early in the year 1817. For the last few years, King Ferdinand had decided the Spanish colonies would need to contribute even more to the empire in order to fund rebuilding the homeland and increasing the size of the military to protect against any rebellions or coup attempts. This meant higher taxes for the criollos, mestizos, and others, higher tributes paid by the various indios, and even higher tariffs for all. Perhaps most controversially, it also entailed further confiscations of property.

For many people across the continent, it became clear that even with King Ferdinand back in Spain, there would be no changes to the outdated system and no rewards for their contribution to the war. So long as the conservative monarchy remained in power, any desires for equality, autonomy, or even representation would forever fall on deaf ears.

It is here that Father Miguel Hidalgo entered the picture in the city of Dolores, New Spain.


Hidalgo leading the march on Mexico City.

Even before the war, Hidalgo had been at odds with the conservative leadership and popular with the common man. He had been an advocate for elevating the destitute in Dolores from their poverty by teaching people various crafts, ranging from beekeeping to wine cultivation to leather making. This caused him to run into trouble with the law, which tightly controlled the colonial economy and prohibited expanding these new industries. He would also butt heads with the religious authorities as well as the secular. Despite his vows to celibacy as a priest, Hidalgo had fathered five children and was known to enjoy gambling and dancing. This often caught the attention of the inquisition, though he never faced serious charges.

His most egregious crime, however, were the liberal views he espoused. During the frequent purges, Hidalgo had finally been targeted by the government and had his three haciendas confiscated by the state. When he still continued to support government reform, a warrant was finally put out for his arrest. Once the townspeople heard of this, however, they refused to turn him in to the authorities. For several tense days, Hidalgo was taken in to their homes and remained hidden, until his appearance in the town square on February 12th. It was there that he gave his now famous speech to the citizens of the town, provoking them to gather their arms and march on the capital to make their voices heard. Armed with old rifles, farming equipment, and machetes, thousands of people began their march to Mexico City, and with every town they passed their numbers grew.

Prince Carlos would never get the chance to hear their demands, though it's unlikely he would have been open to negotiations. While the thousands marched under Hildago, Carlos quickly tried to organize an army to crush them and defend the city. During these preparations, he made an appearance in one of the city barracks, where a young soldier named Manuel Antonio Acosta was stationed. Acosta had been a liberal sympathizer, especially since his own brother had died in a colonial prison. Once he heard the news of Hidalgo's march, he believed the time had come to throw off the chains of tyranny and cut the head of the snake off directly.

When the Prince walked past him with his small retinue of bodyguards, Acosta produced a pistol and got off a single shot. Nearly instantly the guards turned on him and struck him down, but the initial shot was all he needed. The bullet had pierced the prince's chest and mortally wounded him. While Acosta was instantly killed, Carlos would cling to life for another three days before passing. The leadership of New Spain was left in disarray from these events. Two factions soon coalesced as a result.


The injured prince was quickly moved to a bed by his guards.

The first rallied around José de Iturrigaray, the former viceroy of New Spain. Iturrigaray had been disliked by the king, stemming from the fact that he had served under and later been appointed to his post by Godoy, the previous Prime Minister who was dearly hated. Iturrigaray also became unpopular with the peninsulares due to his perceived favoritism of the criollos. Despite this, he had been an able statesman and continued to serve the crown in exile. With the king back in Spain, the regent now dead, and a mass uprising on their hands, Iturrigaray let his liberal sympathies be known and attracted those in the leadership who agreed with the demand for reforms and greater autonomy, though he disavowed any calls for overthrowing the king.


The elder Iturrigaray, who was already pushing on 75 during the uprising.

The other faction would be lead by Francisco Venegas. Venegas had a long military career, and had come out of retirement during the Peninsular war. As the united front against the French began to fail, however, he joined many other elites in America to be in direct contact with the king. Venegas was a staunch supporter for the crown's absolute rule, and easily gained the support of the conservatives in the leadership who wanted nothing more than to destroy the uprising and weed out any treason within their ranks.

[moxn]

La Ruptura part 2

“[...] Of course, what we know today as Le Ruptura was not called such at the time. It was only with subsequent generations that historians fully recognized this event as the defining breaking point, not only within the Empire but within the royal family itself. While most understood its importance at the time, […] the term would not come into use until the latter half of the 19th century.”

Luis Hidalgo, Mérida Historical Society

Before Prince Carlos' body could go cold, forces within New Spain were already turning on each other and violence began to break out in a number of cities. While the conservative elites quickly found themselves outnumbered, they gained strength behind a united front (support for King Ferdinand and the status quo). The liberals, meanwhile, found themselves struggling to find a common cause. Many simply wanted reform, while some called for complete independence. Some supported a continued monarchy, while others wanted to create a republic in the style of France or the United States. Several radicals supported complete racial equality and the abolishment of slavery, which terrified many of the white liberals and conservatives alike.

This fractious nature allowed the conservatives to hold their own in the early days of the revolution. While Iturrigaray used his political influence to try and coordinate the reformists and suppress the republicans, Venegas' forces swiftly took control of the city's munition stores and armories. Venegas, an old military man, wisely expected this crisis to spark an all-out war and planned to have the upper hand from the start. Within days, Iturrigaray was forced to flee the city along with many of his supporters, and preparations were being made to withstand a siege.

Part of these preparations included safeguarding against any insurrections from within, which involved going through the city's prisons and mass-executing their many political prisoners. These criminals were liberal supporters who had been arrested during the purges of the last several years. What could have been a relatively covert affair, however, was turned into a public spectacle under Venegas' orders. Prisoners were marched out from their confines and humiliated and abused by the city's soldiers before finally being killed, all to the crowd's horror. Stories of people dying to bayonets in order to conserve on ammunition began to spread far and wide, though it is still debated how much truth there was to them. These actions had the intention of scaring potential traitors and rebels into submission, but instead ultimately turned the city against Venegas.

This act would forever stain Venegas' legacy even amongst loyalist historians.


The 'Massacre of Mexico City' would remain a stain on the loyalists all throughout the war.

All the while, Hidalgo's makeshift army continued to build momentum and grow in numbers. Despite the priest's total lack of military experience, he instilled an almost supernatural fervor in the thousands of villagers who joined his ranks. Their sheer numbers and morale lead to many early victories, as the army took hold of Celaya, Irapuato, Guanajuato, and finally the town of Valladolid, where Hidalgo had once worked before being expelled. Despite the number of commoners, the oversized mob was not without its professional soldiers, either. Among them were Juan Aldama, a cavalry leader who had defected along with his men, and Ignacio Elizondo, a militia captain from the northern frontier.

The growing army finally came crashing against the capital city on August 2nd. The relative ease it had taking other towns had made many of the men overconfident, which played into Venegas' favor. The better disciplined and armed defending forces were able to keep the invading army back from the gates despite their smaller numbers. Venegas planned to keep Hidalgo's army preoccupied while he called for reinforcements from surrounding towns, whose numbers would allow him to destroy the rebels entirely. These reinforcements would never be able to arrive, however.


Venegas had long been a supporter of the conservatives, absolutists, and peninsular elites.

While Hidalgo and his men marched from the north-west to Mexico City, Iturrigaray's forces had reorganized in the city of Puebla and were now returning up from the south-east. The elder statesman was able to organize a much more professional army, and once it arrived in the capital Venegas found himself surrounded behind his city walls. Although a number of provinces announced their support for Ferdinand's continued absolute rule, many more recognized Iturrigaray as the legal regent following the death of Prince Carlos, and began to seize the opportunity to try and force the king's hand in favor of reform. Many provincial elites still had a bad taste in their mouths from King Ferdinand's presence in New Spain, and were not eager to remain under his total control.

The capital city was on the verge of a popular revolt once it was surrounded, and Venegas soon realized that his current position was untenable. The general gave in to meeting with Iturrigaray and made a deal for his safe release. In exchange for surrendering the city and leaving their arms behind, Venegas and anyone who cared to join him were free to leave back for Spain. This deal outraged Hidalgo, who wanted to take Venegas prisoner and make him answer for the prison massacres. By the time he had learned of it, however, Venegas had already left the city.

At this point, Iturrigaray assumed his former office as Viceroy of New Spain and held large meetings with his supporters to try and decide how to proceed. Hidalgo and many of his own men would also attend and found themselves holding a greater sway in the court due to the large army still slowly disbanding outside the city. One of the first orders decided on were to have all political prisoners released from the surrounding cities and beyond. Beyond this, however, the assembled men struggled to come to a consensus.



Iturrigaray re-entering the capital city after Venegas' surrender.

The assembly would fiercely debate for the following weeks. It was during this period that Iturrigaray, who already had independence sympathies by that point, began to be swayed by Hidalgo and his supporters. His initial goal of seeking reform would never be agreed to from King Ferdinand, who would likely organize an army as soon as news of the latest events reached him. Even as the calls for independence filled the city halls, however, many people still opposed the progressive republic that Hidalgo envisioned.

It was here that Prince Francisco once again entered the picture.

By this time the 23-year-old had become known for his liberal sympathies, which made him the black sheep of the family and kept him from holding any political power. Despite this, he had taken a liking to his home in exile and remained in New Spain with his brother Carlos even after King Ferdinand had returned to Spain. Without any administrative duties to take up his time, he often traveled to various locations in the empire and stayed out from the limelight. He was back in Mexico City at the time Hidalgo gave his famous speech and began his march, and was evacuated to Puebla to avoid any of the fighting. Following his brother's death, he remained in the city even after Iturrigaray arrived, gathered support, and quickly left.

When he was eventually summoned to return to Mexico City, he expected to inherit the title Captain General of America and be named the nominal regent by the city's leaders. What he found instead was an offer for a crown.

[moxn]

La Ruptura part 3

“Like Charlemagne of old, Francisco I of Colombia had his crown sprung onto him as a complete surprise. At least, that is how it is taught to countless schoolchildren. While he is often portrayed as being conflicted over the choice to accept it, but it is unlikely the early court of [Mexico City] would have ever made the offer if they were not already sure of the answer.

Instead, the young man seemed genuinely eager to support the new nation. While never confirmed, it is likely that his readings and travels had exposed Emperor Francisco to the ideas of Francisco de Miranda and other revolutionaries, who envisioned a united and free Hispanoamérica. Although Miranda would not live to see the day, his dream would would still see its day in the sun, and so secure Miranda's legacy as an early figure in independence despite his failed rebellion.”

Gabriel Costa, University of San Marcos Press

It is said that it took Prince Francisco three days to consider his future in America before he finally accepted the burden of the crown. Most likely, however, this is simply propaganda developed years after the fact. Iturrigaray had already had independence sympathies before, and it has been theorized that he had floated the idea by Francisco before when both men were in Puebla. Regardless, the mythologized three days were spent discussing terms for the new Emperor. On the final day, September 13th, the Prince would be crowned as Francisco I of Colombia. This day would later be celebrated as the official independence day of the nation.


The crowning of the Emperor was presided over by Archbishop Francisco Lizana.

The name of the new nation was a romanticized homage to Christopher Columbus, who had discovered the New World for Europe centuries before and began the age of Spanish dominance in the region. Other names were briefly considered, including variations of America or Hispanoamérica, but were rejected for being too generic, vague, and potentially confused with the United States.

Shortly after the crowning, the interim junta printed what it called the “Ten Guarantees” to be distributed throughout the American colonies, outlining the future plans for independence. They read as follows:

1) The new nation of Colombia shall be free and independent of Spain and all other nations. It will only recognize the legitimacy of the Emperor, whose powers shall be outlined and limited with a constitutional government. This new constitution shall be debated on and signed by representatives from all across the Empire.

2) The Catholic Church shall remain the officially sanctioned faith of the nation, and will continue to enjoy all its legal protections. All ministers of the Church shall support themselves exclusively and entirely from tithes and first-fruits, and citizens shall not be enticed to make any offerings beyond what their own devotion demands of them.

3) Sovereignty must spring directly from the citizens, who shall deposit it in a representative government, whose powers shall be divided into Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary branches. The previous viceroyalties, kingdoms, captaincies, and other colonial administrations shall be reorganized into provinces and territories.

4) The legal divisions between the criollos and peninsulares shall be erased, and from this point men from these former classes will enjoy inalienable suffrage to elect virtuous representatives.

5) The newly created provinces shall enjoy local autonomy in their laws, so long as they do not conflict with the finalized constitution. Popular elections shall decide both their internal governance and external representatives in the capital. Territorial leaders shall be directly appointed by the Imperial court.

6) Provincial and territorial representatives shall serve four year terms following popular elections. Their salaries will be sufficient for sustenance and no more, and for now they shall not exceed 8,000 pesos.

7) Mexico City shall serve as the interim Imperial capital, until a suitable location is found where land can be set aside to build a new, more centrally located capital city.

8) Our ports shall be open to all friendly foreign nations, who will be free to conduct all matters of trade with a 10% tax levied upon their merchandise.

9) The great abundance of highly oppressive tax impositions should be ended, and each individual shall pay 5% of his earnings, or another equally light charge, which will replace the sales tax, crown monopoly, the tribute, and others. This small contribution and the goods confiscated from the enemy shall be sufficient to pay the costs of war and the salaries of public employees.

10) The new legislation shall protect the freedom to speech, print, assembly, and property. It shall forbid torture and unjust imprisonment, and recognize the rights to legal representation in a court of law.

[steve59]

Moxn

Interesting TL. Not sure such a large and disparate state can be held together given the differences in assorted populations and the poor communications but I could see a core state, probably based around a larger Mexico and possibly friendly relations with assorted daughter states elsewhere.

The rebels may have defeated the loyalists in Mexico but I suspect the latter will still put up a fight elsewhere and Ferdinand will seek to send armies from Spain itself - although IIRC he was having problems there and ultimately had French support to suppress unrest in Spain. However I suspect the change of easy access to the markets of Columbia will make sure Britain and the US will give the OTL support in blocking any intervention from the conservative powers in Europe.

Anyway like it so far and looking forward to seeing where things go from here.

Steve

[moxn]

Apr 24, 2017 23:24:38 GMT steve59 said:

Moxn

Interesting TL. Not sure such a large and disparate state can be held together given the differences in assorted populations and the poor communications but I could see a core state, probably based around a larger Mexico and possibly friendly relations with assorted daughter states elsewhere.

The rebels may have defeated the loyalists in Mexico but I suspect the latter will still put up a fight elsewhere and Ferdinand will seek to send armies from Spain itself - although IIRC he was having problems there and ultimately had French support to suppress unrest in Spain. However I suspect the change of easy access to the markets of Columbia will make sure Britain and the US will give the OTL support in blocking any intervention from the conservative powers in Europe.

Anyway like it so far and looking forward to seeing where things go from here.

Steve

Thank you for the support, it's great to get any feedback I can Ultimately, the goal will be to keep the colonies united. While this will be a really big challenge, I don't think it would be necessarily impossible. I am trying to keep things as believable as possible, though I am willing to bend realism a bit for the sake of entertainment. 

Spain is definitely going to try and stop this rebellion in its tracks, but it's going to run into a few roadblocks long the way. Mostly it will have to rely on local royalists to do most of the fighting. Hopefully things make more sense with the next updates, I'll be putting up all the rest of the chapters after this. 

[moxn]

Reactions to Revolution part 1

Over the following months, copies of the 'Ten Guarantees', along with a list of grievances against King Ferdinand and a formal declaration for independence, were circulated throughout the empire. The various regions of mainland New Spain were the first to react to the news, and so were the first to break out into violence. A number of large land owners and a contingent of the military under General Félix Calleja declared their loyalty to King Ferdinand, and began their campaigns against the rebelling junta in Mexico City. Matters were further complicated when it turned out General Venegas had not gone back to Spain, but instead had gathered support in Cuba and was now landing fresh loyalist troops in Veracruz.


Loyalist forces besiege the city of Puebla.

Further south, New Granada was next to receive the invitation to join arms with Colombia. The area had been a hotbed for rebellion only a few short years ago, and a number of people there still held pro-independence sentiments. Many rose up in support of the revolution and militia numbers swelled. The fighting proved less widespread than in Mexico, however, as the government did nothing to stop the new militias. This was because in the years following the First Republicano War, General Monteverde had become the Viceroy of New Granada, and once news reached him of the war in Mexico he declared an uneasy neutrality. Monteverde was a staunch monarchist, and in fact an absolutist, but his time spent with King Ferdinand had soured his support of the king. However, he was not particularly eager to start fighting against the old king, either. The viceroy ordered the troops under his command to give no resistance to the rebel militias, and to even help them if they so wished. His official support one way or the other would only come once he learned which faction had won in Mexico. This would not prevent the Venezuelan elites from ignoring Monteverde's orders and announcing their support for Colombian independence.

Beyond there lay Peru, where Joaquín de la Pezuela served as viceroy. Like Monteverde, Pezuela was a supporter for absolute monarchism. Unlike the general, however, he was not willing to turn against the king. Viceroy Pezuela refused to support the new Colombian nation, but Peru's position against the revolution was not as firm as he would have liked. Weeks after the 'Ten Guarantees' had arrived, a captain general named José de la Serna staged a coup against him, and declared support for the new Emperor. This sparked several revolts and counter-revolts as Peruvian forces refused to recognize Serna as the legitimate viceroy. The fighting was the most intense around the lucrative silver mines, which both factions needed to control in order to pay their soldiers.


Colombian forces defend Lima and push against loyalists in the mountains.

At the bottom of the American continent was the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata. The remote region welcomed the promises of greater autonomy, but many republican figures scoffed at the idea of continuing the Bourbon monarchy. The viceroy at the time was Santiago de Liniers, a Frenchman who had become a hero of the region after defending it against British invasion. Liniers was the only one of the three legitimately appointed viceroys to immediately support the revolution and recognize the authority of Emperor Francisco. Like Pezuela, however, his support was not absolute as three factions quickly arose. The first supported absolute Spanish rule, but remained a small minority, while the second backed Liniers in the decision to support a constitutional monarchy. A third faction, however, rejected them both and saw this political chaos as an opportunity to form new republics free from both Madrid and Mexico City.

Among the ardent republicans were Francisco Ramírez, the governor of Entre Rios, and José Artigas, a military captain in Montevideo who had the support of the local gauchos. Both men envisioned a federation between the local provinces, and began an armed rebellion against both the loyalists and Liniers. Ramírez and Artigas were not the only ones to reject both monarchist factions. A man named Dr. José de Francia resided further north in Paraguay and began to amass power. Dr. Francia was unconcerned with who claimed the throne of either Spain or Colombia, and was also unconcerned about the formation of a new federation for that matter. As he gained more and more influence in his small frontier province, he put forth his plans to create the perfect utopia built on enlightenment principles, and killed anyone who tried to oppose it.

This period in the Rio de la Plata would mark the beginning of the Second Republicano War to historians.

[moxn]

Reactions to Revolution part 2

Reactions to the revolution would vary outside of the American mainland just as much as they did inside it.

In the Caribbean, Spain maintained its oldest colonies as well as the bulk of its American naval fleet. After General Venegas was forced to surrender Mexico City and declared an enemy of the legitimate government there, he fled to the island of Cuba. During his month spent organizing an army to retake New Spain with, Venegas called in as many troops as he could from all across the empire's Caribbean holdings. While Cuba and Puerto Rico were able to provide soldiers without any protest, this order proved to be problematic for Santo Domingo and Florida.

For Santo Domingo, the recall of troops came at a time when the colony was still struggling to recover from the prolonged warfare of the Haitian revolution, occupation, and return to Spain. The government there realized that sending the majority of their garrisoned forces off to fight in New Spain would give Haiti, which itself had recently been reunified under Jean-Pierre Boyer, the perfect opportunity to retake the eastern half of the island. So when the order to surrender the colony's soldiers came, Lieutenant Governor José Álvarez de Toledo instead declared independence from Spain and solidarity with the Colombian rebels.

At that time, Florida was in a similar precarious situation with an annex-happy neighbor. Unlike Toledo, however, the colony's small administration remained loyal to Spain and sent as many men as it could to support Venegas. Unfortunately for them, this only left a skeleton crew to man many of their forts. Along the western panhandle, this presented the ideal time for the illegal American settlers and sparse pro-republican Spanish colonists to declare their independence. The new Republic of West Florida was announced in St. Francisville the following year, and from there rebels stormed east to take the city of Mobile. They would continue on until Pensacola, which represented the easternmost extent of their control. The new republic would not exist for long, however, as it petitioned to join the United States months later.

To the far west in Asia, news of the revolution would not arrive until well into 1818. An envoy from the fledgling Colombian empire arrived in Manila and encouraged the elites there to take up arms. Up to that point, the Philippines had been administered from New Spain, and since Colombia had replaced the old viceroyalty it figured that it would continue its dominion over the islands as a distant province within the new empire. The invitation to join the rebellion stirred up the colony's elites, which were dominated by a small minority of whites and mixed race people. While this small elite chafed under Spanish rule due to the same lack of autonomy and inequality with the peninsulares that the Americans faced, they also feared an uprising from the native Filipino peoples who greatly outnumbered them. Because of this, the Philippines did not send any delegation to Mexico City like other regions had by that point.

The brief talks over sovereignty and independence would continue to create waves within Filipino society, however, especially within the military. If the Colombians could strike out on their own, why couldn't they? One of the men who was particularly inspired by these ideas was Andrés Novales, who was barely 18 and already a veteran of the Peninsular War in Spain and a lieutenant in the military.


A young Novales, who was fighting pirates in the southern Philippines at the time.

Outside of the empire, a number of nations saw in the Colombian revolution a great new opportunity to further their personal agendas. First among them was the British Empire.

For countless years, Britain had been locked out from the Spanish American markets. Its merchants were forced to become smugglers and operate in the various colonial black markets. Spain had been interested in keeping the wealth of the colonies to itself, much to British chagrin. Of course, the British imposed similar trade restrictions in a number of their own colonies, but that didn't change their feelings against Spain.

Because of this, news of a mass Spanish American uprising was warmly welcomed in Britain. The empire sent an official diplomat named John Potter Hamilton in late 1818 to evaluate the chances of success, and if they were favorable to push for trade deals. The Colombians themselves largely welcomed this, since one of the main goals of the revolution was to liberalize and open the economy. Colombian leaders also hoped that Britain's interest in trade would also draw in the unofficial support of its navy and mercenaries.

Over in the United States, the situation was more complicated. While it philosophically supported Colombian independence, it wished the country would do so as a republic instead of becoming a new monarchy on its southern borders. The United States also rightfully feared that an independent Colombia would mean increased British influence on the continent. Despite this, its leaders still felt they could work this revolution to their advantages. Unlike Britain, they were not so much interested in trade as they were in land. The border between the United States and New Spain was only vaguely defined, and both nations held many conflicting claims after the Louisiana Purchase. They had previously sent delegates to King Ferdinand while was in Mexico City to try and work out a deal, but quickly found out that Ferdinand had no interest in giving up a single foot of land. With a new king, or rather emperor, in power, they could find someone more willing to strike a deal.

Some corners in the States wanted more than just an established border. A number of figures felt that the chaos and instability in Spanish America would give them the chance to acquire new lands altogether, either by purchasing them from a new nation desperate for funds, or simply taking them from an exhausted Colombia or Spain too weak to stop them. The United States especially wanted Florida, both because it held a large number of its citizens and because it was seen as a stepping stone to claiming Cuba. Beyond that, there were also many who dreamed of reaching the Pacific coast, and so sought the bay of San Francisco. Because of these territorial desires, President Monroe sent an ambassador named George Erving to the Colombian congress to see how many concessions they were willing to make.


John Hamilton and George Irving at the early Colombian congress.

[moxn]

Chaos in Old Spain, Progress in New Spain

Back in Spain, the news of the revolution was disastrous. It had been three years since King Ferdinand had returned to Madrid, and during that time he had made enemies out of the locals just as he had done in Mexico City. While the Spaniards were happy to see the French leave and have their rightful king return, they were not expecting him to assume total control of the nation. The military in particular sought to have a constitutional monarchy similar to the British system put into place. To this end, they rallied behind General Juan O'Donojú, a Spanish general of Irish descent who quickly rose up the ranks during the Peninsular War. Other prominent Constitutionalists included Pablo Morillo, Rafael del Riego, and Francisco Ballesteros.

Because of this division between the military and central government, Spain was left unable to immediately respond to the Colombian Revolution. The Constitutionalists saw the revolution as validation for their cause, since if Ferdinand had adopted a constitution and accepted limitations to his power and greater representation for citizens of the empire, the uprising never would have happened. They unanimously wanted to compromise with the rebels, not fight them. The plan under O'Donojú would have accepted some of the points of the Ten Guarantees, with the exception of moving the capital, enshrining the Church, or recognizing Francisco for the throne. Of course, some radicals did want to have Francisco come to Madrid to replace his brother and keep the empire together.

To Ferdinand and the other Absolutists, all of this was no better than outright treason. By finding a common cause with the Colombian rebels, the Constitutionalists might as well have been rebels against the king themselves. Ferdinand was not interested in surrendering any of the hard-earned power he had his men fight the French for. What came to be known as the Crisis of 1818 began when Ferdinand ordered the top generals to either sail for America to retake the colonies, or present themselves to his court to be stripped of their rank. José de San Martín, one of the Constitutionalists, seemed to accept the order at first, but once his men were boarded and on their way off he announced his plan to return to his homeland of the Rio de la Plata and help take up the Colombian cause instead.

General O'Donojú himself seemed content to go to Madrid, but brought his armies with him instead of going alone to be demoted. The Constitutionalists had no desire to go across the ocean just to preserve the king's power, and if Ferdinand would not freely listen to their demands they would simply surround the capital and force him to listen.


The royal court was trapped in Madrid and forced to convene on limiting the king's powers.

Because of this political gridlock back at home, General Venegas and other loyalists would not see any reinforcements coming to relieve them. In the beginning, it seemed that he would not need them as his professional army met up with the one under General Calleja in Veracruz and won many early victories against the disorganized rebels. Many of the initial Colombian forces were gathered from Father Hidalgo's original army, and so had little military experience. The tides began to turn, however, once the loyalists penetrated all the way to Puebla and attempted to besiege the city. During the siege, the army of Ignacio Allende finally arrived to support the city and push Venegas' forces back. Allende had once been a commander under General Calleja, and now had under his own command many professional soldiers who had defected to the Colombian side.

With the greater discipline and organization under Allende, Aldama, and other commanders, the royalists were once again on the run. The Spanish forces had entrenched themselves in Veracruz, but momentum of the rebels and the lowered morale of the loyalist army forced Venegas and Calleja to retreat back to Cuba by the end of 1818 and beginning of 1819.


General Allende rapidly rose up the ranks during the revolutionary war.

The biggest problem that the loyalists faced was a sheer lack of public support throughout New Spain. The Colombian rebels had found a very effective carrot and stick system which the Spaniards simply couldn't match. The Ten Guarantees attracted the support from the most radical liberals through its promise of independence and reform, the conservatives with its continuation of the monarchy, the clergy because of its recognition of Church powers, and finally from the entire class of criollos who sought equality with the peninsulares. For the peninsulares themselves, it promised to recognize their own rights and protect their property in a new state, and threatened to confiscate their lands and wealth if they fought against it.

It was this final policy that helped fund and supply the early state, as its optimistic tax scheme was not able to support such widespread and sustained fighting. One of the most important long-terms effects, however, was the breaking up of some of the largest haciendas and other land plots, distributing them into smaller claims amongst more people. While this was not intentional at first, this would help stimulate greater economic growth down the road as more lands were opened to development to criollo and mestizo farmers and craftsmen.

[moxn]

Fundraising 

After mid-1819, the deadliest stage of the war in New Spain began to die down and was succeeded by a longer stage marked by less destructive, lower-intensity fighting, mostly spread out along the countryside. The areas around New Granada had similarly simmered down, though the fighting there was never as intense to begin with. The majority of the fighting to come would be in Peru and the Rio de la Plata, where royalists and republicans, respectively, still fought on in the hinterlands.

The greater security combined with the arrival of most of the colonial representatives allowed for the first real congressional sessions. On top of the four main viceroyalties, statesmen from the smaller provinces, audiencias, and more were also present, including Venezuela, the kingdom of Guatemala, Santo Domingo, Yucatan, Panama, Chile and others. A single representative from Cuba and Puerto Rico each were present, but both islands remained firmly in Spanish control under Venegas. The congress still expected the seats reserved for Paraguay and the Philippines to be filled, but pressing matters forced them to act without them.

One of the most pressing matters for the new government was securing outside funding. While money from the meager taxes and confiscations was coming in, it was not enough to cover arming, feeding, clothing, transporting, and overall supplying the revolutionary army. Fortifications also had to be erected and prepared for the inevitable Spanish invasion, which they expected to come at any day. It is here that the foreign ambassadors were willing to step in to help.

Unlike his brother, Emperor Francisco and his congress was more than willing to concede land claims for material and financial support, especially if it was land mostly seen as worthless and uninhabited anyway. For example, one of the first deals made was with George Erving, the United States diplomat, which officially recognized American control of West Florida up to the Apalachicola river in exchange for a small sum of money and shipment of rifles. This helped Colombia save some face diplomatically, although it was clear they would be forced to surrender the land whether a sale was made or not.

The biggest benefactor of these land concessions was Britain. John Hamilton was able to secure a large line of credit to Colombia in order to secure greater claims to the Mosquito Coast, the Mayan coast, and Guyana, as well as withdraw all Colombian claims to the Oregon territory north of the 42nd parallel. He would also obtain East Florida, the largest sale in terms of size up to that point in the fundraising.

While Colombia was still willing to work with its northern neighbor, it resented the fact that the United States had taken advantage of its compromised position and had forced its hand in the sale of West Florida. Although the eastern half was much less valuable, some of the congress members took consolation in the fact that the States would be denied the entire region. For the British, this was also seen as a good move, as it gave them an even stronger presence in the Caribbean. More importantly, it also gave them another foothold right in the States' backyard in case they got any bright ideas and tried to start another war.


East Florida largely remained uninhabited due to its harsh environment, hostile natives, and passing between Spanish and British control.

Shortly after these deals were made, rumors started to spread throughout the capital that the congress was preparing to make a land sale larger than all the others combined. It is possible that, after his failure to gain East Florida, Erving started the rumors himself in order to test the waters and see how much support the idea would have among the Colombians.

The rumor itself was that Emperor Francisco was ready to sell the entire northern frontier, or at least a large piece of it, to the highest bidder. Up to that point, this massive area was sparsely populated and far beyond the control of the central government. Most of the few settlements were concentrated around the Bravo and San Antonio rivers and were constantly raided and harassed by the Apache and other native tribes. While it held dubious value to Colombia at best, its leadership knew that many of the Yankees up north desired a Pacific coast above all else, as well as the valuable agricultural lands and potential mineral wealth that Alta California had. As soon as the congress began discussing the matter, Erving began a fierce campaign to seal the deal for the United States and began sending messages back to Washington, D.C. get congressional approval for a larger sale and emphasized the importance of keeping the region out of British hands.


The vast territories of California, Texas, and other regions had already attracted some American settlers.

Just as the congress had hoped for, Colombia gained more than just funds and supplies from the land deals. Although neither nation had recognized its independence yet, the mere fact that their diplomats were already negotiating new borders and trade concessions made an unofficial statement that Britain and the United States accepted Colombian sovereignty and would encourage other nations to follow suit. It also gave both countries more of a vested interest in Colombia's success, since falling back under Spanish rule, no matter how unlikely it was, would mean all of their new arrangements would become null and void. Of course, the Spanish empire would refuse to recognize any of the concessions made for years to come.

[moxn]

Organizing the New State

In the latter half of 1819, the first congress turned much of its focus to internal affairs. Specifically, now that it has organized armies to do the fighting and funds to pay for the fighting, they now had to work out a government worth fighting for.

One of the first acts of the government was the reorganization of its vast territories as promised in the Ten Guarantees. One of the major problems of the old colonial system was that it was divided into large units that struggled to effectively govern. Because of this, the new provinces would be smaller in size, taking into account geography, population, and historic borders. The congress hoped that this new configuration would make it easier to enforce local laws, develop the land, and better maintain new local autonomy.

Because of this, four former viceroyalties were divided into fifty new provinces:

NEW SPAIN

1) Chiapas
2) Coahuila
3) Comayagua
4) Cuba
5) Guadalajara
6) Guatemala
7) León
8) Manila
9) Mérida
10) México
11) Oajaca
12) Puebla
13) Puerto Rico
14) Santo Domingo
15) Valladolid
16) Veracruz
17) Zacatecas

NEW GRANADA

1) Amazonas
2) Apure
3) Boyacá
4) Caracas
5) Cauca
6) Cuenca
7) Cundinamarca
8) Guayana
9) Guayaquil
10) Magdalena
11) Panama
12) Quito
13) Zulia

PERÚ

1) Arequipa
2) Ayacucho
3) Chiloé
4) Cochabamba
5) Concepción
6) Cuzco
7) Junín
8) La Paz
9) Lima
10) Potosí
11) Puno
12) Santiago
13) Trujillo

RIO DE LA PLATA

1) Buenos Aires
2) Córdoba
3) La Pampa
4) Mesopotamia
5) Paraguay
6) Salta
7) Transplatina


In addition, it also organized eight territories which had small populations and less representation:

1) Alto California
2) Baja California
3) Nueva Vizcaya
4) Nuevo México
5) Patagonia
6) Santa Cruz
7) Sonora
8) Tejas

After this, they drafted the first section of the constitution which outlined the separation of powers between the branches of government, their functions and areas of control, and the processes for filling their various offices:

The legislative branch of government would be divided into an upper and lower house.

The upper house would be organized into the National Senate, whose members consisted of representatives from each of the many new provinces and territories (two senators per province, one per territory). Senators were assigned their position by the Governor General, a viceregal representative of the monarch, on advice from the Prime Minister and provincial governors. Due to being unelected, their powers were more restricted. Their main function was to vote on and approve national laws; however they could not propose new legislation nor amend the laws they were voting on. Each senator would serve six year terms, with no upper term limits.

The lower house, called the National Assembly, would be larger in size and come to hold greater power. Seats in the Assembly were apportioned among the provinces by population, with one assemblyman for every 100,000 active citizens, and each province guaranteed at least one assemblyman regardless of population. The territories would also receive one representative, however they would be unable to vote. The Assembly would serve to propose new legislation and amend old laws, which would then be approved by the Senate. Just like the Senate, its members would serve six year terms with no upper limits on terms served.

The judiciary branch of government was organized into many smaller courts and presided over by the Supreme Court, which was made up of seven Judges appointed by the Emperor and voted in by the Senate. Unlike the legislative branch, the seven supreme Judges served lifetime terms, and so were able to exist outside of the party politics around them. The Court would be the final arbiter of the Colombian constitution, and be able to strike down laws it found unconstitutional.

The final branch was the executive, whose purpose was to enforce the laws enacted by the Senate and Assembly. Officially, it was lead by the Emperor, who served as Head of State. Much of the actual administrative powers were held by the Head of Government, the Prime Minister, who would delegate power to other ministers (Ministry of Finance, Ministry of War, etc.). The Prime Minister was nominated by the Emperor, but could only be confirmed into office by the Assembly.

All three branches would operate from the capital, which would remain in Mexico City for the time being. In the future, however, a new capital would be built, and it was during the early congress that its location was decided upon. Originally, a location in Panama was considered, due to its central location. However, disease was a major problem for most of the area. For this reason, a location further north near Lake Nicaragua was decided on. This location would also offer another advantage, since the Spanish Empire had surveyed and studied it over the last few centuries for the purpose of building a large canal to connecting the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. While it would be a monumental task up to that point, the congress still expected to eventually be able to dig one.


Location of the future Colombian capital, situated on the Pacific Ocean and within the province of León.

With its location settled on, the future capital was dubbed Santa Rosa, after Saint Rose of Lima, a patron saint of the Americas within the Catholic Church.

[moxn]

Maps of Colombia in 1820

In the beginning of 1820, the Colombian claims and internal divisions...



...and the territories they actually controlled.

[moxn]

Constitutional Rights

While the new Colombian constitution separated the branches of government and put a system of checks and balances in place, some representatives felt that there was still a risk of the nation sliding into despotism and civil strife. For this reason, they pushed for the addition a Bill of Rights to better codify the rights and duties of the provinces and citizens alike. The biggest supporters for this were the republicans, who took influence from the United States' own documents. While many of the conservatives felt such a bill was unneeded, some eventually came around and saw its merit. They also saw the utility in adding a mechanism to amend the constitution should the need arise again in the future, therefore making it a living document.

The first section of the new bill enshrined provincial autonomy and outlined what it specifically entailed. Each of the new provincial governments would be responsible for collecting their own taxes which they could then spend as they saw fit; enact their own laws (so long as they did not violate the constitution or federal law), and raise their own militias for the purpose of defense. The governors would also share their power with their own bicameral legislature and provincial courts. Unlike the murky legality of state sovereignty in the United States, however, it also clearly stated that provinces did not have the right to enter in foreign treaties, mint their own currencies, nor legally secede from the empire.

For individual rights, the constitution proclaimed that all of the empire's current subjects and those born within its borders would be granted citizenship. However, it also differentiated between active and passive citizenship. Active citizens were defined as free-born, Spanish-speaking men over the age of 21 who could trace their ancestry to Spain or the rest of Europe, and owned a parcel of land equivalent to 10 or more acres. They enjoyed inalienable suffrage, the ability to run for public office, and numerous unofficial advantages. Additionally, only the active citizen population was considered when seats in the National Assembly were being apportioned. Foreigners who had lived in Colombia for at least one year and met the above requirements could also qualify for active citizenship.

Because of these restrictions, large segments of Colombian society were left as passive citizens, unable to participate in their new government. However, in certain ways it was still more progressive than many of its peers, since it gave suffrage to qualified mestizos and mulattos along with white subjects. This was largely achieved as a compromise between the radical republicans and liberals, who supported universal, or near-universal, suffrage, and the conservative factions who wanted to keep suffrage limited to white men at most.

Although active citizens enjoyed more rights than their passive counterparts, all citizens were guaranteed a number of basic civil rights. Specifically, the government could not infringe on the inherent rights to speech, political association, a free press, a fair trial, and peaceful assembly and petition, nor could it prohibit the freedom of movement between the provinces. It also recognized the property rights for both active and passive citizens who were not enemies of the state, which could not be confiscated or searched without court approval or due compensation.

Perhaps even more important than what was included in the new bill was what was excluded. First, universal religious rights were not protected. The constitution continued to recognize the Catholic Church as the state religion, though it made small provisions for religious freedoms. Specifically, it could not force citizens to be baptized into nor attend the church, nor force citizens to financially support the church beyond their personal tithings and donations. Additionally, it vaguely protected the rights of “other Christian faiths” to practice within their homes, though they still found themselves largely excluded from government positions and unable to perform missionary work. There were no legal protections offered to other religions, although they were not outlawed on the federal level either.

Another burning subject that was left untouched was slavery. To the dismay of Father Hidalgo and other figures who wanted a complete nationwide end to slavery, the issue would be left to the individual provinces. Another problem was that even while some of the provincial government outlawed slavery, they still had to recognize the property rights of citizens from other provinces, which included any runaway slaves.


Many black and Indian citizens saw little difference between the old Spanish (left) and their new Colombian masters (right).

With all of these new additions and constitutional debates, some conservative Colombian citizens feared that foreign powers were holding too much sway on shaping the future nation. In particular, they grew to dislike the United States diplomat George Erving, who did not make it a secret that he wished to see a United States of Colombia replace the imperial government. Despite acting as an ambassador, he tried to influence the liberal factions to look to his home country as an example to imitate, especially when it came to religious freedoms. To this end, he continuously used official recognition from the United States as a bargaining chip to try and sway Colombian officials desperate for outside support.

Because of this, the republican faction in government began to draw greater criticism within the capital, due to their association with other republican nations such as the United States. As one paper wrote:

“We believe that our independence is a grand and glorious feat, and also a necessary and inevitable one. The [Ten] Guarantees unite all spirits, all sympathies; because the clergy, the army, and the people are assured of a future full of glory and prosperity for the fatherland. This is why many Spanish priests, military men, and merchants still remain in Colombia, performing their tasks and services.

But this is not to say that the revolution may be consumed by blood and ruin yet. The United States have begun to build an empire of a different sort in Colombia: its books and ideas, […] promising to drag our noble trustful nature down new and dangerous roads. The republicans overlook our differences of origin, of religion, and of history; without considering that our social, political, and religious unity make us best suited for the monarchical form of government. The republicans in congress throw themselves into the arms of the United States, servilely trying to imitate its institutions and slavishly following its perfidious advice...”

Excerpt from the Editors of Diario de México, one of the oldest Spanish American newspapers.

[moxn]

The Peruvian Campaign part 1

While the revolutionaries enjoyed widespread success in New Spain and spent their time working out the details of a new constitution in 1819, their peers further south were hitting hard times. For the last two years, José de la Serna had led the Colombian forces within Peru, first as the Viceroy of Peru and later as the provisional commander of the new local provinces. At first, the Colombians held an advantage in the region, as de la Serna took control of Lima, imprisoned the loyalist leadership of the colony, particularly Viceroy Pezuela, and began to liberate the surrounding coastal areas. However, as the years wore on, the Spanish forces left in Peru gained the upper hand, quite literally as they fortified themselves in the Andes mountains.

From the start de la Serna struggled to get the disparate regional governments to recognize his authority due to his illegal coup. While Pezuela wasted away in a Limean prison, various captain generals and governors formed makeshift juntas to rule in his name and maintain Spanish control. Unlike the other viceroyalties, many Peruvians, and more importantly many in power, were more firmly conservative and had no problem with keeping the status quo in place. Part of the reason for this was the much larger native population, which the small white elite feared would rise up against them. The rebellion of Túpac Amaru II was still in living memory by this point, and to some of the Peruvian elites it was only the protection from the Spanish Empire that prevented it from happening again.


José de la Serna found much less support for the Colombian cause than the other viceroys had.

Things got even worse as the royalists took hold of the primary mines for silver and other precious metals, strangling the Peruvian economy in the process. De la Serna found himself unable to pay all of his troops, and found some of them defecting to the Spanish side, since at least then they would collect a salary. To try and make up for the silver deficit, de la Serna relied even more heavily on alternative payment methods. The two most commonly used were payments of land, usually confiscated from royalists, and newly issued government bonds promising a higher payout once the war was over. Because of this, the Colombian army in Peru found itself more and more dominated by the native indios who seized the opportunity to break up the largest estates and try to reclaim lands that had been gradually chipped away from their own families and nations over the centuries.

While the royalists were able to find refuge in the mountains, they still found themselves on the losing end of a war of attrition. Colombia maintained control of the coasts, thanks largely to its stronghold in Lima, the small navy that had moved up from Chile, and the lack of any real Spanish naval power in the region. This left them cut off from the outside world, unable to receive fresh shipments of men, ammunition, and supplies. Although they could use the black markets, it wasn't enough to meet all their needs. Royalist leadership realized this problem, and decided they would have to knock the Colombians out in one large strike.

This campaign started out from Cuzco in the early spring of 1819. Several thousand men, mainly made up of peninsulares and indios, relentlessly marched through and down the mountains to try and take the Colombians by surprise. Many towns and villages fell to them in quick succession, and it became clear that their ultimate goal was Lima. Fearing that the royalists would be able to take the city and force him to flee, de la Serna decided to execute Pezeula and the other Spanish prisoners just to make sure that they could not be freed. He also hoped that this would cause some internal chaos within the royalist forces once news of it reached them, but ultimately the action did nothing but hurt his own popularity and take away valuable prisoners that Colombia could have used for negotiations.

De la Serna ended up fearing the campaign for nothing, however, as the loyalists were not able to keep up the momentum over the rugged terrain, and the constant marching and skirmishing was taking its toll on their men. The Spanish still attempted to attack the city, but were narrowly repelled from the city walls. Despite their weary state, the loyalists still put up a fierce fight at the capital, and at several points almost entered the city. The most famous area of fighting was the Gate of Maravillas, where a regiment of Huanca soldiers made their brave last stand against the Spanish and would serve as inspiration for the Ballad of Lima years later.


The Gate of Maravillas would go on to become a national landmark.

Near the fall of 1819, the besieged Colombians received much-needed reinforcements from the north. General Monteverde of New Granada had finally recognized Emperor Francisco's power and threw his lot in with the revolutionaries after the second defeat of General Venegas. After traveling to Mexico City and organizing a contingent of men, Monteverde had marched south to Huatulco and taken command of the tiny Colombian Pacific fleet, which was made up of Spanish ships that had either defected or been captured, and a number of large former fishing boats. From there he sailed further south, making stops along the way and picking up more men and vessels here and there. Just when morale among the Spanish soldiers was starting to break, Monteverde's fleet landed in Callao, just outside of Lima. The ships flew the new Colombian flag and brought with them fresh men, munitions, and most importantly, the latest news: the British Empire had officially recognized Colombian independence and had begun to help them push the Spanish out from the continent.


Design for the Colombian flags that waved on Monteverde's ships.

[steve59]

Fascinating and things going pretty well for Columbia. Holding most things together and the US envoy may help by being so eager to get land from the empire, hardening a sense of national identity. If this goes far enough that might lead to a decision to end slavery, which would both boost popular support and put a big gulf between it and the southern USians who are the main people seeking land from it.#

A bit surprised Britain took E Florida as it will cause tension with the US, especially given there are likely to be raids across the border between the assorted Seminoles and the assorted American settlers. Also its going to give the US a feeling their surrounded.

Looking forward to seeing where things go from here. Still doubtful such a huge area can be held together by a constitutional monarchy but could make for a hell of a powerful state if it does.

[moxn]

The Peruvian Campaign part 2

Monteverde's arrival in Callao gave the weary Colombian forces in Peru a second wind and proved to be disastrous for loyalist morale. Once it became clear that they could not take Lima, Spanish commanders ordered their men to start the long march back to the safety of the mountains. However, many soldiers preferred to either defect or surrender instead of slog through the rough terrain once again for a cause which they no longer believed could be won. To make matters worse, the loyalists who made it back to Cuzco arrived only to find that the entire area had been pulled right out from their grip by the native leadership. The head of this insurrection was Mateo Pumacahua, a local indigenous leader of Ayarmaca and Spanish descent. Pumacahua's ultimate goal was to win over greater autonomy and rights for the native peoples, especially for those with white ancestry such as himself.

The loss of Cuzco split the remaining loyalist regions in half along the north and south, isolating each of them even further. It was not, however, an immediate victory for Colombia. Some native leaders wanted to expel all of the whites from the region and rebuild an Inca state, influenced by the failed rebellion that occurred decades before. More moderate voices, though, were content to remain in a unified state, but only if their interests were protected by the government, regardless of what government that ended up being. Pumacahua would lead this faction for a short period, but his advanced age and declining health allowed Justo Sahuaraura Inca to quickly take his place. Sahuaraura was also a mixed-race indigenous leader, and furthermore a direct descendant of Huayna Capac, and by extension of Pachacuti himself, which gave him a great amount of prestige amongst the local tribes.


Sahuaraura's wealth and ancestry allowed him to become the first governor of Cuzco province.

Once the Spanish lost Cuzco, the second phase of the war in Peru began. This stage of the fighting was marked by drawn-out sieges and grueling marches through and around the mountains. Although the loyalists were cut off from outside help, they still used the terrain to their advantage and made sure every inch of territory they lost was hard-earned by the Colombians.

It was during this point that a young soldier named Juan José Flores began to rise to prominence. He was a native of Venezuela, and despite his young age, had already been a soldier of the revolution for several years. During Monteverde's initial hesitation to join the war, Flores had joined one of the unofficial militias that sailed for New Spain to help oust Venegas. There, he became known for his reckless bravery in the battlefield. After Monteverde finally traveled to Mexico City and began to support the Colombian cause, Flores came under the old general's command and followed him back south to Peru.

In the steep mountains of the Andes, Flores continued to prove his skill in battle. His quick ascension up the military ranks chafed some of the old guard, who disapproved of his lack of education and murky racial pedigree. General Monteverde, one of the more conservative voices in Colombia, was himself had some initial misgivings about the young man. However, it did not take long for him to respect Flores' abilities.

The climax of his short military career arrived during the Battle of Ayacucho. As the loyalist forces defended the city, one of their cannons struck Monteverde's horse, killing the beast and causing it to pin the general's broken leg underneath its body. Soldiers struggled to pry the horse off and drag the general to safety, and the Colombian forces nearly lost their composure during the chaos. It was only the frenzied rallying by Flores that kept many of the men from breaking rank and prevented the army from getting routed in a retreat. Although the young man would not survive to see the city fall, he was still credited for the Colombian victory that day, and over time was elevated to the status of a martyr by state propaganda.

“It is no mystery why such a minor figure as Juan Flores has been so well remembered in [Colombian] history while similar men such as Manuel Valdés and José Córdova have fallen into obscurity. For the empire, Flores was the poster child for the Colombian Dream, a man who rose up from nothing and made a name for himself, regardless of his racial heritage, all while giving his life to the nation. He was proof that the new system had already embraced enlightened ideas and that meritocracy had triumphed over nepotism. Of course, reality has a habit of painting a more complicated and darker picture. Despite what your textbooks would have you believe, much of the old racial hierarchy still plagued the young nation, and men like Flores were often the exception instead of the rule.”

Sofía Cola, Mérida Historical Society


The Spanish commander of the city surrendering to the Colombians.

Flores would not be figure remembered for the Peruvian campaign. In the far south of the former viceroyalty, in the western strip of the Andes known as Chile, a former councilman named Bernardo O'Higgins had seized control of the capital and major settlements. The son of a wealthy colonial administrator, O'Higgins had traveled abroad for his education and had been exposed to liberal ideas. During a visit to London, he had even met with Francisco de Miranda and been drafted to the cause for Latin American independence.

After his return to his homeland, he entered local politics and became a driving force for liberal reforms. This brought him some unwanted attention from the colonial authorities, and during the political purges he was briefly imprisoned. Fortunately for him, he was able to appeal to old friends of his father, who placed the right bribes into the right hands to guarantee his safe release.

Although he had been removed from office, O'Higgins continued to sway public opinion; he joined an underground lodge of fellow liberals, and with them produced illegal pamphlets that lambasted King Ferdinand and his government. At the outbreak of La Raptura, O'Higgins recognized it as the perfect opportunity to break free from Spain once and for all. He had convinced his fellow liberals to support the cause even before the first copies of the Ten Guarantees had arrived in Chile.

What followed shortly after was a three-way power struggle not unlike the one in the Rio de la Plata. As soon as the Spanish loyalists were put on the run and forced to fortify themselves on the Chiloé islands, the revolutionaries began to turn on each other. On one end was O'Higgins and his allies, who wanted to recognize Emperor Francisco (although O'Higgins was hardly a staunch royalist, like many republicans he felt a constitutional monarchy would be a suitable compromise to unite Hispanoamérica), and on the other end was José Carrera, heir to another wealthy family and outspoken supporter for local nationalism.

In such a remote colony, the law was always thinly enforced in many places, and so the power struggle between the two men was enough of a disturbance to push large swaths of land into anarchy. Bandits swelled in numbers and preyed on all three factions, freely switching sides whenever it was most convenient. The most famous were Antonio, Santos, Pablo and José Antonio Pincheira, four brothers who amassed a small band and terrorized the countryside. Even after Carrera was sent fleeing to Montevideo, the Pincheira brothers would continue to raid and pillage the land for years to come.


The Chilean terrain was perfect for criminals to hide from the law.

[moxn]

The Second Republicano War part 1

Further south in the Rio de la Plata, the republicans moved in closer to Buenos Aires. Up to that point, they had slowly ground down both the Spanish and Colombian garrisons around the viceroyalty and consolidated power. Just like Colombia, they had also been busy state building. In 1818 they proclaimed the creation of the Platense Federation, a loose collection of provinces rallied under President Artigas. While the new provinces were theoretically bound together in a single nation, in practice many of the governors acted as local warlords who only worked with the new president out of convenience. The main exception was Francisco Ramírez, the governor of Entre Rios and personal friend to Artigas.


Portrait of a young President Artigas.

Leading the Colombian forces in the region was Santiago de Liniers, a Frenchman turned Spaniard turned Colombian. Although Liniers lacked support from the rest of Colombia at first, he was not entirely helpless against the republican revolutionaries. By this point Liniers had accumulated many years' worth of experience in both government and in battle. Most famously, he lead the defense of the viceroyalty against the British invasion over a decade before, which is what propelled his political career and made him a local hero. Helping him was Manuel Belgrano, a local lawyer who quickly rose to prominence and had military command thrust upon him. Belgrano was one of the most prolific Colombian writers in the region, and had published numerous articles, pamphlets, and essays in support of a constitutional monarchy. He was notable for partially embracing the continent's native heritage, and appealing to Francisco to adopt the title of Inca as well as Emperor.

Despite the capable leadership of Liniers, the Platense forces were still able to slowly surround the capital city. This was largely due to Artigas' relationship and popularity with the rural gauchos, which drew many of them out from the countryside to fight and raid under his banner. Not all of the viceroyalty was so quick to rally behind the federation, of course. To the west were the Andes, which remained under Colombian control ever since O'Higgins won out against Carrera. To the north was Upper Peru, which Artigas sent a token force to claim before they were forced back due to terrain, malaria, and the militias under Pedro Murillo; the north also held Dr. Francia's increasingly isolated and paranoid utopia. Far to the south were the barren lands of Patagonia, which were dominated by native tribes who were inclined to kill any white envoys, regardless of whether they waved a Spanish, Colombian, or Platense flag.


The gauchos were one of many fierce groups who developed on the American plains.

Such was the situation when the defected contingent of the Spanish fleet finally arrived in Buenos Aires in the spring of 1819. Although the small fleet was not strong enough to take Montevideo on its own, the extra men and the leadership of their military commander, José de San Martín, were enough to help turn the tides. San Martín had spent many years fighting the French, British, Moors and others by this point, and had already proven himself as a skilled general. Belgrano in particular was ecstatic to receive the new general and step down from his military post due to his own inexperience and personal health problems caused by syphilis and internal tumors.


The warm welcome between Belgrano and San Martín.

Outside of all of this chaos, the Portuguese court in Rio de Janeiro watched on with interest. The empire was gravely concerned about the Platense insurgency, mostly due to their republicanism, which seemed to be happening right in their backyard. Once an official federation was declared and the republican forces began to close in around Buenos Aires, members of the royal court agitated the king to prepare for an armed expedition southward to crush the radical rebels and restore monarchic authority, regardless of whether it was Ferdinand's or Francisco's rule that prevailed. Although some in Buenos Aires welcomed the news of a possible Portuguese intervention, others were suspicious that their northern neighbor had more nefarious goals in mind.