Social and Political Chaos of the 19th Century
In the 19th century, Latin America was home to the Amerindian people who were mainly from the Mayan and Inca communities occupying central and southern regions of the western hemisphere. The indigenous communities had some of the sophisticated civilizations, which were conquered by the Europeans explorers in the subsequent years. Most European powers, including the Portuguese, Spanish, British, and French, relied on a divide and rule policy that allowed them to subdue the locals easily. After colonialism, a number of ethnic and inter-clan rivalries were witnessed, which has always contributed to the conflicts between classes in Latin society.
When colonialists occupied the region, they introduced a feudal mode of production whereby the colonial masters, who were mainly associated with the government and the dominant Catholic Church, controlled productive land. All indigenous people in the Latin America region suffered from unnatural deaths owing to poor working conditions in the hacienda farms. European diseases affected some indigenous people, as they were used to simplistic lives. All economies in the region adopted a mercantilist production system whereby production and exportation of natural resources were the main economic activities.
In the early 19th century to the mid 19th century, a number of countries in the region managed to wage successful wars against Europeans. After independence, a number of societies in Latin America went through turbulent periods, which were characterized by political and social chaos. The major problems that faced locals were associated with land and overdependence on foreign aid. In this regard, many revolutionary organizations championed for land reforms and local empowerment. Th leadership of many countries was simply inherited by authoritarian leaders, who fuelled violence in order to benefit themselves politically and socially. Various marginalized groups rose up to fight for their rights. This trend is ongoing even in modern Latin America.
Major Sources of Political and Social Chaos in the 19th Century
As from 1830 onwards, each Latin America republic went its own way, with border conflicts being the major source of conflict. Many colonial powers handed over power to immature political formations that would always be aggressive towards their neighbors. This complicated the peace process and the security of the region. For instance, Spain left its colonies without strong institutions that would spearhead self-rule. Some peasant elites, popularly referred to as mestizos, took advantage of the situation to establish an oligarchic rule. The Spanish did not prepare oligarchs on how to transfer power peacefully.
The effect of this was that ruthless leaders would do everything under their power to frustrate those aspiring to ascend to positions of leadership. In fact, some historians observe that the ambitions of ruthless leaders were the major source of conflicts in the 19th century in Latin America. However, some analysts are of a different view since they note that ruthless leaders provided a solution to the conflicts that rocked the region. Powerful political leaders were drawn from the military, popularly referred to as caudillos. They aspired to create a certain culture that was referred to as personalism.
One of the Latin America independence heroes, Simon Bolivar, was considered caudillo. He was determined to flush out Spanish in the 19th century and establish a local administration that would fulfill his own ambition. He became the president of the liberated republics in the 19th century, just after independence. Caudillo leaders, who were simply interested in fulfilling their interests, but not those of the majority, have always characterized Latin American politics. Such leaders are usually indifferent to the sufferings of the majority in society. This forced the subjugated group to seek justice through violence. This type of politics led to the emergence of various civil organization groups, some being liberals while others were conservatives.
With time, military Juntas emerged, who were even more self-centered as compared caudillos. At this time, liberals were advocating for the establishment of secular education, redistribution of societal resources, and equal access to resources. Conservatives, on the other hand, wanted the church to be a dominant institution in society, as well as the maintenance of the status quo. Conservatives had their way since society supported a discriminative mode of production that favored the few rich individuals.
The majority languished in great poverty, something that forced them to rise up to fight for their rights. In this regard, conflicts were the order of the day. Towards the end of the 19th century, the United States was interested in the affairs of Latin America. The US developed an interest in annexing some parts of Latin America, which led to the American-Mexican War. Latin Americans termed this American westward expansion yanqui imperialism. By then, regionalism was taking root, something that forced the American government to intervene in Honduras in 1911, Nicaragua in 1912, Haiti in 1915, and the Dominican Republic in 1916. American president, Wilson Woodrow, sent American marines to restore peace and stability.
Effects of Social and Political Instability in Latin America
As earlier noted, revolutions in various parts of Latin America were spearheaded by Amerindians and blacks. Before various revolutions were experienced in the world, Tupac Amaru had tried to capture the capital of Cuzco and he nearly succeeded in overthrowing the Spanish. The rebellion resulted in the establishment of strong administrative units that would easily subdue any form of resistance.
A number of rebellions were unsuccessfully in Latin America, apart from the one organized by slaves against the French colony in Saint Dominque (Haiti). In Latin America, freedom had a different interpretation since it was considered liberty for the owners of the means of production. Even though various groups did not succeed in fighting for their independence, a number of changes were witnessed in the region. In Brazil, chaos forced the royal family to seek refuge in the neighboring country. The presence of the royal family discouraged many people from organizing strikes and demonstrations since the royalty instituted reforms that encouraged the locals to forfeit their revolutionary plans. The King brought about changes in the agricultural system, administration, and production system.
Locals were actively involved in the production and distribution of goods and services. Moreover, schools and hospitals were set up to offer crucial services to locals. Since the country was ungovernable due to chaos, the King decided to declare independence by signing a charter that would probably establish a constitutional monarchy. In Mexico, Father Miguel Hidalgo, who was against oppression and suppression of the locals, spearheaded the revolution. The colonial government ordered his assassination for going against the plans of the government. Independence was won in 1821, after a long struggle and several assassinations.
In South America, locals developed a sense of consciousness that allowed them to rise up against the colonial government to fight for their rights. Through the instabilities, military Juntas emerged, whose major aim was to overthrow the colonial government and instigate self-rule. There were two major Junta centers in the South American region. One of them was in Venezuela at Caracas. Simon de Bolivar convinced many people to join the Junta led movement since it aimed at uplifting the living standards of the poor. The major aim of the revolutionists was to form a Gran Columbia, which would be a big empire in the northern part of the South American region. The revolution achieved one of its major aims of subduing Spanish, but it did not unite the region. Another Junta was formed in Argentina at Buenos Aires with the leadership of Jose de San Martin.
How the Revolution shaped People Lives
The process of nation building shaped the lives of many people in the region since many were forced to join movements to fight for their freedom. The revolutions brought about changes that could not have been witnessed under normal circumstances. For instance, new systems of administrations were introduced. People in Latin America were used to monarchs, but revolutions led to the emergence of a different system of governance, which was authoritarian in nature.
Under the monarchs, people were allowed to participate in their daily activities without governmental intervention. This meant that they would engage in peasant farming through the acquisition of relevant documentation. However, the new form of government was intolerant to economic freedom since elites in a society controlled all major businesses. Even in modern society, citizens in the region are facing challenges related to authoritarian regimes.
The Role of the Liberal Leaders in Building the Nation
The struggles between liberals and conservatives lasted for at least six decades in Latin America, which was between 1870 and 1930. Liberals emerged winners in the ideological wars that characterized the region several years after independence. The period saw the collapse of the American financial system, which generated a global financial crisis in the early 1930s. Political leaders in the Latin America region took advantage to sell their liberal ideas, claiming that the region would only progress through liberal ideas (Burns and Julie 46). Through liberalism, leaders were determined to develop the region in order to modernize it. In this regard, they advocated for industrialization, development of new technologies, and foreign investment by encouraging immigrants to settle in the region.
Liberal leaders were of the view that nationalism would encourage development hence they encouraged it throughout the region. Liberal leaders believed that the region could move forward if the activities of the church were separated from those of the state. Therefore, they aspired to distance the state from the church. This had worked in other parts of the world, such as Europe and North America. They also ensured that public education is extended since they underscored the fact that education has a major role to play in economic development. The idea of a free market economy was adopted whereby the market was left to operate according to its internal logic.
Liberal leaders believed that development could not be achieved without the rapid construction of industries. They encouraged people to drop their culture and adopt the western cultures that treasured positivism. Positivism was a new concept that was widely adopted in western societies. The French thinker, Auguste Comte, who believed in scientific thinking, developed the philosophy. The locals were urged to drop traditional ways of doing things and adopt modern techniques, particularly in the agricultural sector.
Through positivism, liberal leaders were of the view that development would be achieved. In other words, modernization theory was encouraged meaning that Latin America was expected to follow the footsteps of North America and Europe. In this regard, there was no need for developing a new model of economic prosperity since Europe had succeeded in applying the liberal model. Leaders in Latin America, such as Domingo Faustino, were strong proponents of modernization model.
Such leaders aimed at Europeanizing the region through the provision of adequate education. These leaders encouraged urbanization and development of industries. During the leadership of Porfirio Diaz, positivism was a valued concept in Mexico. The leader paid attention to bringing order and development in the country. In this regard, he advocated for private ownership of property and infrastructural development. During his era, new ports and buildings were constructed. However, the leader was indifferent to the sufferings of the majority since he advocated for the subdivision and even the sale of indigenous land. This led to the Mexican Revolution that ousted his government.
The pursuit of economic development through export economies strengthened the development of contemporary states and incorporated modern Latin America into the global economy. The United States developed an interest in the region when it decided to engage in trade with Latin America. This period is usually referred to as the golden age. Leaders from the region and the American government agreed that the region had various opportunities that had to be exploited to realize economic development. In 1899, Minor Keith was the major businessperson in the region. He established various companies that merged with the United Fruit Company, which controlled the production of bananas in the region. The company developed rail and road transport to speed up transportation of goods and labor.
Works Cited
Burns, Burns, and Julie A. Charlip. Latin America: A Concise Interpretive History. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002. Print.