Why South America Has So Many Countries: The Criollo Revolutions

All those numerous countries in South America—why on earth are there so many of them? In fact, most of these nations are countries that broke away from their colonial motherlands and gained independence from what were once Spanish and Portuguese colonies. It’s exactly like the American Revolution. No, exactly the same.

But aren’t you curious? Why did Spanish and Portuguese people bother to migrate to South America and stage coups?

Colonial Class Structure – Criollos and Peninsulares

Most of the migrants were from the aristocratic class born in mainland Spain and Portugal. They came to South America, had children, and those children were also nobles. But here’s where the problem arose.

Those children—the nobles born in South America—were treated as inferior. Why was that?

The reason is simple. They weren’t raised in mainland Spain or Portugal, didn’t receive mainland-style education, and in an era without the internet, had no interest or affection for the motherland. If a child born and educated in the motherland had migrated to South America, they might have had considerable patriotism for their home country, but could a child born in the Southern Hemisphere have any affection for the distant motherland in the Northern Hemisphere?

So the motherland faced this dilemma: ‘Who should we appoint as governor-general to rule the South American colonies?’

The answer was clear: Someone from the motherland—a person brimming with patriotism.

This created a class distinction:

Structure of Discrimination

※ In modern South America, ‘Criollo’ is sometimes used to refer to mixed-race populations.

Note: In the past, ‘Criollo’ meant whites born in South America, but nowadays it’s used in a broader sense including mixed races.

Discrimination, Taxes, and Rage

Peninsulares received aristocratic treatment, but Criollos, despite being of the same European descent, faced discrimination.

Meanwhile, a message arrived from the motherland: “Pay more taxes.”

Despite discrimination, they paid taxes. Despite discrimination, they paid even more taxes.

At this point, you’re reminded of American independence, right? I talked about this in my last post.

After the Seven Years’ War, when Britain told the North American colonies to “pay more taxes,” that became the catalyst for American independence.

South America followed a similar pattern. The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815) broke out, and Spain and Portugal were on the verge of collapse. As their countries were crumbling, the motherlands told their colonies: “Pay taxes… a bit more… we’re really desperate right now…”

Explosive Discontent! Coups Begin!

The Criollos, already furious about discrimination, thought: ‘Why should I pay more taxes?’

Seeing this as an opportunity, the Criollo aristocratic class began staging coups.

Important point: The Criollos were also nobles. But what if Napoleon conquered the entire motherland? The South American colonies, being subordinate to it, would naturally fall to Napoleon too, and then the Criollo nobles would instantly become commoners. So what did they do?

Before the motherland collapsed, let’s draw the line and declare independence. Then we can survive as South America’s ruling class!

From that point on, propaganda targeting commoners, indigenous people, and black slaves began.

“Everyone! You’ve suffered so much paying taxes to the home country! To escape this suffering… we must gain independence!”

They rallied the masses with such words.

The Emergence of Simón Bolívar and San Martín

This is how Simón Bolívar (1783-1830) and San Martín (1778-1850) emerged.

• Simón Bolívar liberated Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama, Bolivia, and others
• San Martín contributed to the independence of Argentina, Peru, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay, and others

The two men led coups from the north (Bolívar) and south (San Martín) of South America.

Simón Bolívar, from the highest Criollo class in South America, began independence movements in 1810 based on his enormous wealth and status. Through countless successes and failures, he eventually created Gran Colombia (1819-1831), a nation that had never existed before.

Why did he name it Colombia? At that time, Spain and Portugal called South America Colombia. It was derived from Columbus’s name. He took that name for his country.

Gran Colombia had territory equivalent to present-day Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, and Panama combined, but when Simón Bolívar died, power struggles erupted and it split into separate nations.

San Martín was also a revered leader, but after independence, he withdrew from politics and lived quietly. However, his associates again revealed their ambitions and caused divisions, leading to the birth of today’s various nations.

Timeline: The Development of South American Independence Movements

1756-1763 — 🌍 Seven Years’ War breaks out (World war centered on Britain vs France)
↳ War costs led to tax pressure on North American colonies → American independence!

1803-1815 — ⚔️ Napoleonic Wars
↳ Spanish/Portuguese economic collapse → Tax demands on South American colonies

📍 1810 — Simón Bolívar attempts first coup in Venezuela

📍 1816 — San Martín launches independence movement in Argentina

📍 1819 — 🗺️ Gran Colombia is born
(Ecuador + Colombia + Venezuela + Panama)

📍 1821 onwards — San Martín contributes to independence of Peru, Chile, Uruguay

📍 1830 — Bolívar dies → Gran Colombia splits apart

📍 1903 — 🇵🇦 Panama gains independence from Colombia with U.S. support

Side Story: Panama’s Independence Thanks to the U.S.?

Panama was originally part of Gran Colombia, but the United States wanted to build the Panama Canal.

In the late 1800s, the U.S. negotiated with Colombia about building the canal, and Colombia tried to block it through their congress, saying ‘We should get more money~’. The U.S. was furious.

U.S. forces directly invaded Panama and incited independence, and in 1903, Panama gained independence under full U.S. military support.

Panama began canal construction immediately after independence, and it’s still used as a key route for global trade today.

Colombia tried to stop this by mobilizing military force, but U.S. military power was already insurmountable at that time.

Conclusion

While each Central and South American country has a different background for independence, broadly speaking, they’re all results of Criollo nobles staging coups and independence movements by inciting masses who were angry about discrimination from the motherland, in order to protect their vested interests.

In the next post, I’ll talk about Brazil, a country that gained independence in a somewhat different way. It has a fascinating history of independence that’s completely different from the Spanish colonies!