The city of
La Paz
La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the third-most populous city in Bol ...
, in the region of
Upper Peru
Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to t ...
(now
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
, then part of the
Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata ( es, Virreinato del Río de la Plata or es, Virreinato de las Provincias del Río de la Plata) meaning "River of the Silver", also called " Viceroyalty of the River Plate" in some scholarly writings, i ...
), experienced a
revolution
In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
in 1809 that deposed
Spanish authorities and declared independence. It is considered one of the early steps of the
Spanish American wars of independence
The Spanish American wars of independence (25 September 1808 – 29 September 1833; es, Guerras de independencia hispanoamericanas) were numerous wars in Spanish America with the aim of political independence from Spanish rule during the early ...
, and an antecedent of the
independence of Bolivia. However, the revolution was defeated shortly afterwards, and the city returned to Spanish rule.
Background
In 1781, for a total of six months, a group of
Aymara people
Aymara may refer to:
Languages and people
* Aymaran languages, the second most widespread Andean language
** Aymara language, the main language within that family
** Central Aymara, the other surviving branch of the Aymara(n) family, which today ...
laid siege to La Paz. Under the leadership of
Túpac Katari
Túpac Katari or Catari (also Túpaj Katari) (c. 1750 – November 13, 1781), born Julián Apasa Nina, was the indigenous Aymara leader of a major insurrection in colonial-era Upper Peru (now Bolivia), laying siege to La Paz for six months. His w ...
, they destroyed churches and government property. Despite the failure of the indigenous peoples’ plight, eventually crushed by the military alliance of Spanish and Creoles, thoughts of independence continued flourishing. Thirty years later indigenous people laid a two-month siege on La Paz – where and when the legend of the
Ekeko
The Ekeko is the Tiwanakan (pre Columbian civilization) god of abundance and prosperity in the mythology and folklore of the people from the Peruvian and Bolivian Altiplano Its chief importance in popular culture is as the main figure of the an ...
is set.
It was not until the autumn of 1807 when Napoleon moved French troops through Spain to invade Portugal and with Spanish authority already fatally weakened, that the prospect of independence re-emerged in the native imagination. The United States’ independence in 1776 was certainly an inspirational example of empowered colonists deposing a despotic foreign rule. With Spanish authority deteriorating, as Charles IV renounced the throne in favor of Ferdinand VII (with the furious Carlists vs. Fernandists turmoil that ensued), and he in favor of
Joseph Bonaparte
it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte
, house = Bonaparte
, father = Carlo Buonaparte
, mother = Letizia Ramolino
, birth_date = 7 January 1768
, birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...
, it was ripe for revolution.
Development
On July 16, in the city of
La Paz
La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the third-most populous city in Bol ...
, as celebrations for the Virgin of Carmen were enfolding, a group of revolutionaries led by Colonel
Pedro Domingo Murillo
Pedro Domingo Murillo (September 17, 1757– January 29, 1810) was a patriot of Upper Peru who played a key role in Bolivia's independence.
Biography
On 17 September 1757, Pedro Domingo Murillo was born in the city of La Paz. His father, Juan ...
and other individuals besieged the city barracks and forced the governor,
Tadeo Davila and the Bishop of La Paz,
Remigio de la Santa y Ortega, to resign. It was on July 16, 1809 that mestizo Pedro Domingo Murillo famously said that the Bolivian revolution was igniting a lamp that nobody would be able to extinguish. Many historians agree that this marked the beginning of the Liberation of South America from Spain. Political power went to the local cabildo until a "
Junta Tuitiva de los Derechos del Pueblo" ("Junta, keeper of the rights of the people"), headed by Murillo, was formed.
On July 27, the Junta proclaimed colonial independence.
José Manuel de Goyeneche, despite suspected of having Carlists sympathies, was called forward to lead royalist forces against the insurgents. While many revolutionaries enlisted and marched to Chacaltaya to await enemy troops, a counter-revolution headed by Pedro Indaburo broiled in the capital.
La Paz was defended by Murillo, who was able to maintain a military force of approximately 800 men. Viceroy José Fernando de Abascal sent troops from Lima to repress the revolt and seized this opportunity to decree the reannexation of Upper Peru to his jurisdiction of Peru. Royalists there formed a clear majority, even among americanos. Elites in Lima, in particular, whose wealth and influence had declined since the Bourbon repartitioning of South America, placed their hopes not in the seemingly illusory promises of liberation but rather in the rewards they could secure through fidelity to the Crown.
[ ] Murillo and the other leaders were
beheaded
Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the au ...
and their heads exhibited to the people as deterrent.
See also
*
Bolivian War of Independence
*
Chuquisaca Revolution
*
May Revolution
The May Revolution ( es, Revolución de Mayo) was a week-long series of events that took place from May 18 to 25, 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the terri ...
References
{{Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
Colonial Bolivia
1800s conflicts
Bolivian War of Independence
1800s in South America
19th-century revolutions
19th century in the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
1809 in Bolivia
July 1809 events
History of La Paz