1. Latin America in the 19 th Century

2. Latin American Independence
 Ended Spanish and Portuguese colonial rule
between 1807 and 1824
 Many Reasons for movements across Latin
America:
 War with France caused Spain to loosen control in
Americas
 The war forced Portuguese Royalty and rule to flee
to Brazil
 Once Independent, Spanish & Brazilian
colonies were unprepared for self government

3. Latin American Independence
 Before the Napoleonic Wars, independence
movements were already kindling across Latin
and South Americas
 When Bolivar arrived in Venezuela in 1812,
Revolution was already underway
 Bolivar assured Independence with the victory
at The Battle of Carabobo, on June 24 1821

4. Latin America at Mid Century
 The Decade of the 1820s saw reform across
Latin America, although much was superficial
 The 1830s-1840s were focused on attaining
order, as well as moderate questioning of
religious, social, and economical policies
 General international trade increased five-fold
between 1840-1870, and US exports increased
8 fold between 1845-1880 across much of Latin
America

5. Latin America at Mid Century
 Andre Gunder Frank suggests that liberal reform
depends on a country's specialized exports (sugar,
coffee, tea) rather than exposure to liberal schools of
thought
 By Mid-century, a generational shift occurred, which
as well contributed to sweeping reformations
 Exceptions like Brazil, with its late abolition of slavery
yet early religious tolerance, and Ecuador, with its
early abolitionism, then dictatorial control under Garcia
Moreno, broke the molds but still pushed forward into
modernism

6. Britain's Influence on Latin America
 At the end of 1824, Britain looked to trade with
the now freed Spanish Territories
 Merchants with cargoed goods established
themselves on Atlantic and Pacific coasts
 At least one third of trade was with Brazil in
1845, and the overall value of trades with Latin
America was valued at an estimated 6.0 Million
Pounds a year
 Britain's economic interest in Latin America
peaked between mid 1870s to early 1890s

7. Britain's Influence on Latin America
 Excepting politics, Britain was involved with and
treating their Latin American trading partners as
if they were British colonies
 By mid-20th century, Britain's involvement in
Latin America greatly diminished
 World War I allowed the United States to step in
and take over for Europe's dwindling presence
 By the 1920's, the majority of Foreign
Investment in Latin America came from New
York

8. Mexico's War of the Reforma
 The Ley Juarez (November 23, 1855) and Ley Lerdo
(June 25, 1856) sparked the conflict dually known as
the War of the Reforma, and the Three Years War
 Ley Juarez (Juarez Law) abolished special military and
clerical priviledge, making all citizens equal in eyes of
the law
 Ley Lerdo forced sales of all land owned by the Roman
Catholic Church
 Liberals in Mexico sought to rid themselves of
restrictions on economic growth and capitalism in their
new republic

9. French Intervention in Mexico
 Napoleon III intervened in 1861 in an effort to instill
Archduke Ferdinand Maximillian as Mexican Emperor
 Juarez' victory in the Three Year War left him 82.2
Million Pesos indebted to foreign powers, and was
forced to delay payments to deal with Maximilian
 As the war stretched on, Maximilian's dependance on
Napoleon's wealth increased
 After war's end, thousands of Mexican soldiers skilled
in guerrilla warfare were suddenly unemployed, and
spread across Mexico and the future American
Southwest as banditos.

10. Mexico
 Mexico is the 5th largest country in the world,
and in Latin America second in population only
to Brazil
 Mexico and the United States share a 1900 mile
long border, the longest in the world between a
fully developed country and one that is still
developing
 Spanish colonialism converted 90% of the
population to Spanish speaking Catholics, with
Nahuatl being the second dominant language
spoken by 8% of the inhabitants

11. Mexico
 After World War II, Mexico has moved away
from Agrarian-based economy, once Mexico's
mainstay in economics
 Mexico is a leading producer of Crude Oil, as
well as one of the top producers of Silver
 Mexico is a very important player in United
States economics, as a member of NAFTA as
well as being the USA's 3rd largest trading
partner