Peru, Republic of

South America (1684–1827 CE)

Imperial Reforms, Indigenous Resistance, and the Wars of Independence

Geographic Definition of South America
The region of South America encompasses all lands south of the Isthmus of Panama, including South America Major—stretching from Colombia and Venezuela through Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, northern Argentina, and northern Chile—and Peninsular South America, embracing southern Chile and Argentina, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), and the Juan Fernández Islands.

Anchors include the Andes cordillera and Altiplano, the Amazon, Orinoco, and Magdalena river systems, the Venezuelan Llanos, Gran Chaco, Pampas, and Patagonian steppe, extending southward to the Strait of Magellan and the storm-lashed sub-Antarctic islands.
Bounded by Isthmian America to the north and Subcontinental South America beyond the Río Negro, this region entered the modern age as a vast, fragmented world of empires, Indigenous sovereignties, and the first stirrings of republican independence.

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Geography and Imperial Frontiers

Between 1684 and 1827, South America stood at the hinge of early modern empire and emerging nationhood. The Andes anchored Spanish dominion, while the Amazon, Guianas, and southern plains remained zones of relative autonomy.
Spain’s empire centered on Lima, Potosí, and Bogotá, but new routes and rival powers eroded its control. Portuguese settlers pushed westward beyond the Treaty of Tordesillas, carving the future Brazil from mining frontiers and sugar coasts. The Guianas hosted Dutch, French, and British enclaves; the Llanos, Chaco, and Patagonia remained largely Indigenous.
From the Bio-Bío frontier in Chile to the Missions of Paraguay and the Upper Amazon, Indigenous confederations, Jesuit enclaves, and frontier forts coexisted in uneasy equilibrium until the revolutions of the early nineteenth century broke the imperial map apart.

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Climate and Environmental Shifts

The late Little Ice Age lingered into the eighteenth century:

• Andean highlands: Frosts shortened growing seasons; glacial advance cut water supply to terraces.

• Amazon basin: Rainfall fluctuated with El Niño and La Niña, alternately flooding and parching river villages.

• Coastal Peru and Chile: El Niño upsets brought famine and fishery collapse.

• Southern pampas and Patagonia: Droughts and winds intensified; cold decades preserved glaciers in Tierra del Fuego.
  Despite these oscillations, Indigenous and colonial agrarian systems—terraces, irrigation, and mixed cropping—sustained resilience across climates.

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Subsistence and Settlement

Colonial economies deepened even as empires strained to contain their frontiers:

• Andean viceroyalties (Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador): Silver and mercury mining at Potosí, Oruro, and Huancavelica remained imperial lifelines; Indigenous mita labor persisted under new guises. Highland farmers supplied maize, potatoes, and quinoa to mining centers.

• Brazil: Gold and diamond booms in Minas Gerais and Goiás (1690s onward) drew settlers inland. Sugar, cattle, and later coffee expanded in Bahia, Pernambuco, and the Recôncavo.

• Paraguay and Uruguay: Yerba mate, hides, and cattle exports linked Jesuit missions and ranches to Atlantic trade.

• Venezuela and Colombia: The Llanos produced cattle and cocoa; Caracas, Cartagena, and Bogotá tied the interior to Europe via Caribbean ports.

• Chile and the Río de la Plata: Wheat and wine sustained the Pacific colonies; Buenos Aires rose as a smuggling and trade hub after its 1776 elevation to viceroyal capital.

• Southern frontiers: Beyond the Bio-Bío, the Mapuche retained independence; Tehuelche horsemen roamed Patagonia; Fuegian canoe peoples survived at the edge of the sub-Antarctic seas.

Urban centers—Lima, Quito, La Paz, Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Caracas, Bogotá, and Santiago—flourished as administrative, mercantile, and religious capitals binding the continent’s diverse ecologies into imperial networks.

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Technology and Material Culture

Colonial material life fused Indigenous skill and European design.
Roads and mule trails replaced Inca highways; stone and adobe churches rose over older shrines. Mining technologies—waterwheels, furnaces, mercury amalgamation—refined Andean ores. Jesuit reductions in Paraguay and Boliviaproduced Baroque churches, carved imagery, and polyphonic music blending European instruments with Guaraní voices.
In southern Chile and Patagonia, horse and iron tools transformed Indigenous mobility and warfare, while Spanish ports outfitted galleons and whalers bound for the Strait of Magellan.

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Movement and Interaction Corridors

The continent’s arteries of exchange intertwined:

• Silver highways: Carried bullion from Potosí to Lima and Buenos Aires, then to Seville.

• Amazonian rivers: Sustained mission networks and trade in cacao, dyes, and forest goods.

• Jesuit routes: Linked the Guaraní reductions to coastal Brazil and Peru until their 1767 suppression.

• Slave routes: Africans entered through Cartagena, Bahia, and Rio de Janeiro, infusing the Atlantic littoral with Afro-American cultures.

• Frontier circuits: Horses, cattle, and textiles moved between the Llanos, Chaco, Araucanía, and Pampas, blurring boundaries between empire and autonomy.

• Southern seas: The Falklands and Juan Fernández Islands became whaling and provisioning hubs; the Strait of Magellan gained strategic significance for global shipping.

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Cultural and Symbolic Expressions

Baroque Catholicism shaped public life—cathedrals, processions, and festivals dominated cities—yet beneath its veneer Indigenous and African traditions thrived.
In the Andes, saints merged with huacas and mountain spirits; in Brazil, candomblé and capoeira fused faith and resistance; in the missions, music and sculpture translated theology into local idioms.
Creole intellectuals absorbed Enlightenment ideas: scholars such as Juan Pablo Viscardo y Guzmán, Francisco de Miranda, and Simón Rodríguez envisioned liberty and reform. Across the south, Mapuche ngillatun and Tehuelche rituals reaffirmed identity against colonial advance, while sailors and exiles endowed remote islands with myths of endurance—from the Jesuit martyrdoms of Chiloé to Selkirk’s solitude on Juan Fernández.

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Environmental Adaptation and Resilience

Agricultural and ecological ingenuity persisted:
terraced farming, irrigation canals, and crop diversity buffered Andean villages; shifting cultivation and forest gardens stabilized Amazonian societies.
Pastoralism spread—cattle on the Pampas, sheep on Patagonian plains—reshaping grasslands and displacing wildlife.
Indigenous nations south of the Andes adapted the horse, expanding mobility and defense. Coastal communities recovered from earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, rebuilding cities with brick, tile, and lime.

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Technology and Power Shifts (Conflict Dynamics)

By the eighteenth century, reform and resistance accelerated collapse of the old order:

• Bourbon Reforms (Spain) and Pombaline Reforms (Portugal) sought efficiency and revenue, tightening imperial control but provoking resentment.

• Jesuit Expulsion (1759–1767): Dismantled mission economies and destabilized Indigenous frontiers.

• Indigenous revolts: The Comunero uprisings (New Granada, 1781) and Túpac Amaru II’s Rebellion (Peru, 1780–81) fused anti-tax protest with ancestral revival.

• Slave and maroon resistance: Palmares in Brazil and quilombos across the Guianas and Venezuela embodied enduring defiance.

• Wars of Independence (1810–1824): From the Caracas junta to the crossing of the Andes, revolution swept the continent. Leaders—Simón Bolívar, José de San Martín, Bernardo O’Higgins, and José Artigas—toppled viceroyalties and declared new republics.

In the south, Chile’s patriots triumphed after Chacabuco (1817) and Maipú (1818); Argentina secured independence under the United Provinces; Brazil separated peacefully from Portugal in 1822 under Dom Pedro I. Yet Indigenous nations in Patagonia and Araucanía, though weakened, remained outside firm national control until late in the following century.

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Transition (to 1827 CE)

By 1827 CE, the map of South America was redrawn. The viceroyalties of Spain and the captaincy of Portugal had dissolved into a dozen republics and one empire.
Lima, Buenos Aires, Bogotá, Caracas, and Rio de Janeiro emerged as capitals of sovereign states.
The Mapuche, Tehuelche, and Fuegians still held the far south; the Falklands and Juan Fernández Islands became contested imperial outposts.
Mining and plantation economies endured but shifted under new flags, while slavery, tribute, and caste hierarchies began to crumble.
The colonial age had ended: South America entered the modern era forged in rebellion, grounded in geography, and alive with the intertwined legacies of empire, Indigenous endurance, and creole revolution.

South America Major (1684–1827 CE)

Revolts, Reforms, and the Birth of Independence

Geographic Definition of South America Major
The subregion of South America Major encompasses all lands north of the Río Negro, extending across the full continental span of Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, northern Argentina and northern Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador(excluding the Cape lands at the Isthmian boundary), Colombia (excluding the Darién region, which belongs to Isthmian America), Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.

Anchors include the Andes cordillera and Altiplano, the Amazon basin, the Orinoco and Magdalena river systems, the Venezuelan Llanos, the Gran Chaco, the Uruguayan Pampas, and the Guiana Shield.
Bounded by Isthmian America to the north and Subcontinental South America to the south, this subregion forms the continental heartland of South America—linking the Pacific and Atlantic worlds through its intertwined highlands, forests, plains, and river systems.

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Geography and Imperial Frontiers

Between 1684 and 1827, South America Major transformed from a colonial realm into a constellation of independent nations. The Andes still anchored Spanish power, while the Amazon basin, the Guiana forests, and the southern plains remained vast, contested frontiers. The Portuguese advanced deep into Brazil’s interior, expanding beyond the Tordesillas meridian through mining and ranching; Spain struggled to govern its mountainous viceroyalties from distant Lima and Bogotá. The region’s geography—its cordilleras, rivers, and forests—both connected and divided peoples, shaping the uneven course of empire and revolution.

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Climate and Environmental Shifts

The late Little Ice Age brought alternating droughts and floods, influencing agriculture and settlement.
In the Andes, glaciers advanced slightly, shortening growing seasons and threatening terraced crops.
Across Brazil’s cerrado and the Guiana forests, rainfall swings altered river regimes and harvests, while El Niño events disrupted Pacific fisheries and Peruvian coastal farming.
The Llanos and Pampas alternated between lush pastures and parched plains.
Environmental volatility spurred adaptation—new crops, irrigation, and migration—within both colonial estates and Indigenous territories.

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Subsistence and Settlement

By the 18th century, the subregion was a patchwork of imperial economies and Indigenous persistence:

• Andean highlands: Mining towns like Potosí, Oruro, and Huancavelica remained economic cores. Encomienda and mita labor systems evolved into wage and debt peonage, sustaining silver and mercury production. Highland farmers grew maize, potatoes, and quinoa; imported wheat spread in valleys.

• Coastal Peru and Ecuador: Plantation agriculture expanded around sugar, cotton, and vineyards; coastal ports like Lima, Guayaquil, and Callao handled global trade.

• Brazilian interior: Gold and diamond booms in Minas Gerais (1690s onward) transformed Brazil’s economy, drawing settlers inland. Cattle ranching and sugar plantations flourished in Bahia, Pernambuco, and the Recôncavo, while the Amazon sustained missions and extractive trade in cacao, dyes, and forest goods.

• Paraguay and Uruguay: Yerba mate, hides, and cattle became major exports; Jesuit reductions integrated Guaraní communities into mission economies until their expulsion in 1767.

• Venezuela and Colombia: The Llanos supported cattle ranching and cocoa cultivation; the Magdalena and Orinoco rivers formed transport arteries between highlands and coasts.

• Guianas: French, Dutch, and British outposts extracted sugar and timber, relying heavily on enslaved African labor.

Despite growing European control, Indigenous and Afro-descended communities remained central to labor, knowledge, and resistance across every ecological zone.

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Technology and Material Culture

Mining innovations—mercury amalgamation and mule-driven mills—deepened dependence on Indigenous and enslaved workers.
In Brazil, smelting, waterwheels, and canalized sluices spread through mining districts; in Andean Peru, silver-processing patios reshaped entire valleys.
Agricultural technologies mixed Iberian plows and presses with Indigenous irrigation and terracing.
Architecture fused baroque cathedrals and mission churches with local materials—adobe, stone, and timber.
Textiles, pottery, and metalwork blended European and Indigenous forms: the Cusco School of painting, Jesuit mission music, and Afro-Brazilian festivals reflected a growing creole aesthetic.

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Movement and Interaction Corridors

Continental networks intensified:

• Silver highways: From Potosí to Lima, mule trains and caravans linked mines, ports, and European markets.

• Brazilian gold routes: Trails from Minas Gerais and Goiás led to Salvador and Rio de Janeiro, shifting Brazil’s economic center southward.

• Amazon and Orinoco rivers: Served both Indigenous canoe trade and Portuguese mission expansion.

• Atlantic slave routes: Enslaved Africans arrived at Bahia, Cartagena, and the Guianas, embedding African culture into creole societies.

• Mission networks: Jesuit and Franciscan roads connected Paraguay’s reductions, Amazon missions, and Andean highlands.

• Trade corridors: Buenos Aires rose as a smuggling hub, connecting the Rio de la Plata with Potosí’s silver traffic, despite royal prohibitions.

By the 18th century, contraband trade and overland communication tied the continent together as never before.

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Cultural and Symbolic Expressions

Baroque Catholicism dominated urban and rural life. Churches, processions, and festivals blended European theology with Indigenous ritual and African devotion. Saints’ cults and pilgrimages mapped sacred geography across the Andes and coasts.
In the Amazon and Paraguay, missions combined Gregorian chant and local music.
Creole intellectuals and clergy began articulating local pride—Garcilaso de la Vega, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, and Jesuit scholars in Lima and Quito bridged colonial scholasticism and early Enlightenment.
Indigenous and Afro-descended populations kept older spiritual systems alive beneath Catholic veneers: Andean huaca worship, Guaraní dances, and Afro-Brazilian congado and candomblé merged cosmologies into living syncretism.

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Environmental Adaptation and Resilience

Agricultural and ecological ingenuity persisted across regions:

• Terracing and crop rotation sustained Andean villages under frost and drought.

• Irrigation canals and sugar mills stabilized coastal economies.

• Amazonian peoples used shifting cultivation and forest-garden mosaics to preserve fertility.

• Cattle and sheep grazing expanded across the Llanos, Chaco, and Pampas, reshaping ecosystems into ranching frontiers.

• Urban centers managed periodic famine with granaries, trade, and church relief.

Even under imperial extraction, local adaptation ensured survival and continuity.

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Technology and Power Shifts (Conflict Dynamics)

By the 18th century, reform and resistance redefined empire:

• Spanish Bourbon Reforms (from 1700): Centralized administration, curbed local autonomy, and taxed trade and mining; these policies fueled unrest among criollo elites.

• Brazil under Pombal (1750s–1770s): The Marquis of Pombal reorganized administration, expelled Jesuits (1759), and encouraged secular colonization in Amazon and frontier zones.

• Indigenous and popular uprisings: The Comunero Revolts in New Granada (1781) and Túpac Amaru II’s Rebellion in Peru (1780–81) blended anti-tax grievances with calls for justice and autonomy.

• Slave resistance: Palmares in Brazil’s northeast and smaller maroon communities across Suriname, the Guianas, and Venezuela embodied defiance and survival.

• Foreign wars: Spain’s and Portugal’s European conflicts—War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) and Napoleonic invasions (1807–1808)—weakened colonial control.

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Transition (to 1827 CE)

By 1827, South America Major was no longer colonial. Revolutions ignited by Simón Bolívar, José de San Martín, José Artigas, and others swept through Andes and plains.
From Caracas to Buenos Aires, new republics—Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Brazil’s empire—emerged from the ruins of Iberian dominion.
Mines and missions, ranches and plantations, cities and forests—each bore the marks of both conquest and continuity.
The subregion entered the modern age through conflict and transformation: Indigenous persistence, African cultural legacies, and creole aspirations forged a South America no longer imperial, but still profoundly shaped by its colonial past.

Bolívar assigns the task of extending Colombian rule to the Presidency of Quito (present-day Ecuador) to his lieutenant, Antonio José de Sucre, who goes initially to the port of Guayaquil, where another local uprising has already deposed the Spanish authorities, and eventually wins a decisive victory in the Battle of Pichincha, on the outskirts of Quito itself, in May 1822.

The defeated royalist commander quickly surrenders the rest of the presidency to Colombia.

The royalist army holding out at Pasto is now in an untenable position and surrenders, too.

Guayaquil still poses a problem, for it had been operating as an autonomous city-state since its own rebellion against Spain, but Bolivar has no intention of allowing Quito's principal outlet to the sea to remain outside Colombia.

In July, just days before he meets in Guayaquil with the Argentine liberator Jose de San Martin, who is at this time serving as protector of Peru, which also has designs on Guayaquil, Bolívar's followers take control of the port city.

A vote on joining Colombia is held, but the result is predetermined.

The efforts of liberal-minded congressional representatives to subject the military more fully to civilian courts are seen by the latter as an affront,and much of the clergy resents legislation designed to curb church influence, such as measures closing small convents and promoting secular education.

Bolivar, as a committed freethinker, does not oppose the objectives of these first anticlerical measures, and as one who supports total abolition of slavery, he definitely opposes the campaign of slaveholders to water down the free-birth law passed by the Congress of Cucuta in 1821, but he feels that many of the reforms adopted are premature, thus needlessly promoting unrest, and he assigns part of the blame to Vice President Santander, a man who had dropped out of law study to fight for independence but as chief executive surrounds himself with ardent young lawyers as helpers and advisers.

What the country needs, in Bolivar's view, is a stronger executive, a less assertive legislature, and a partial rollback of overhasty reforms.

He also hopes to see some form of a new constitution that he has drafted for Bolivia adopted in the Republic of Colombia.

Its central feature is a president serving for life and appointing his successor.

Some other features are highly liberal, but what attracts attention is the call for a life-term president, who in the Colombian case will obviously be himself.

Bolivar journeys back from Peru to Colombia in September-November 1826.

He finds little real support for introducing his constitutional panacea, but he solves the Venezuelan rebellion by meeting with General Paéz in Venezuela in January 1827 and pardoning him, as well as by promising to call a convention to reform the existing constitution in some way.

This September Bolivar returns to Bogota and resumes the presidency of Colombia.

Bolívar enters La Paz in triumph on August 8, 1825.

During his brief rule of less than five months, he issues a flood of decrees, resolutions, and orders reflecting his ideas about government.

He declares the equality of all citizens and abolishes the tribute payments, replacing them with a "direct contribution" (contribution directa) that amounts to less than half of the previous payments.

Bolívar also decrees a land reform to distribute land, preferably to Indians, and tries to reduce the influence of the Roman Catholic Church in politics.

Most of his decrees cannot be implemented during his short tenure, but they are included in the constitution he writes for Bolivia after his departure in January 1826.

Despite his efforts at reform, Bolívar is outspoken about his doubts as to the ability of Bolivians to govern themselves.

He is careful to avoid recognizing Bolivia's independence, always referring to the country as Upper Peru and signing his decrees as dictator of Peru.

Only in January 1826, when he turns the country over to Sucre, does he promise that the Peruvian legislature will approve Bolivia's independence.

Simón Bolívar, first president of what becomes known as Bolivia, transfers authority over Upper Peru in 1825 to his lieutenant, Antonio José de Sucre, who calls a constituent assembly in Chuquisaca to determine the future of the region.

Almost all delegates want an independent Upper Peru and rejected attachment to Argentina or Peru.

The assembly adopts a declaration of independence on August 6, 1825.

Five days later, the assembly, hoping to placate Bolívar's reservations about the independence of Upper Peru, resolves to name the new nation after him.

The new Republic of Bolivia, created in the territory that had formed the audiencia of Charcas, faces profound problems.

The wars of independence have disrupted the economy.

The entire mining industry is in decline because of destruction, flooding, and abandonment of mines.

Lack of investment and scarcity of labor contribute to a sharp drop in silver production.

Agricultural production is low, and Bolivia has to import food, even staples consumed by the Indian population.

The government has serious financial difficulties because of the huge military expenditures and debt payments to Peru as compensation for the army of liberation.

All these problems are aggravated by the isolation of the new republic from the outside world and the difficulties of securing its borders.

Sucre's attempts at reform are only partially successful because Bolivia lacks the administration to carry them out.

Many Conservative Party criollos turn away when his reforms threaten to challenge the economic and social patterns of the colonial past.

As opposition increases, the local nationalist elite comes to resent the leadership of their Venezuelan-born president.

The invasion of Bolivia by the Peruvian general Agustin Gamarra and an assassination attempt in April 1827 lead to Sucre's resignation in 1828.

Antonio José de Sucre succeeds Bolívar in January 1826 and continues to rule by decree.

He is formally installed as Bolivia's first elected president after the Constituent Assembly convenes in May and elects him.

During his three-year rule, the government tries to solve its grave financial problems, which are aggravated by the lack of foreign credit.

Sucre reforms the existing tax structure in an effort to finance public expenditures and tries to revive silver mining by attracting foreign capital and technology.

In one of the most radical attacks on the church anywhere in Latin America, he confiscates church wealth in Bolivia and closes down many monasteries.

The Roman Catholic Church in Bolivia will never recover the powerful role that it had held.

Import duties and taxes on the internal movement of goods are also important sources of state revenue.

In addition, Sucre reestablishes tribute payments in an attempt to solve the country's financial crisis.

Isthmian America (1816–1827 CE): Path to Independence and the Vision of a Continental Alliance

Between 1816 and 1827, Isthmian America, particularly Panama, undergoes critical political transformations leading to its independence from Spain. Influenced strongly by revolutionary movements across Latin America—especially those led by Simón Bolívar—the region emerges into independence peacefully yet finds itself at the heart of broader continental diplomacy and post-colonial political tensions.

Panama’s Peaceful Separation from Spain

Panama’s initial separation from Spanish rule occurs without violence. Following Bolívar's decisive victory at the Battle of Boyacá on August 7, 1819, which secures independence for New Granada (present-day Colombia), the Spanish viceroy flees from Colombia to Panama, where he rules harshly until his death in 1821. His successor, a liberal constitutionalist, permits the establishment of a free press and patriotic associations. After raising troops locally, this governor soon departs for Ecuador, leaving a native Panamanian, Colonel Edwin Fábrega, as acting governor.

Panama City immediately initiates independence plans, but the city of Los Santos preempts these moves by declaring its freedom from Spain on November 10, 1821. Prompted by this declaration, Panama City convenes a meeting and officially declares independence on November 28, 1821, a date subsequently commemorated as a national milestone.

Union with Gran Colombia

Following independence, Panama engages in substantial debate regarding its political future—whether to remain part of Colombia, unite with Peru, or join Mexico. The bishop of Panama, a native Peruvian, argues persuasively for union with Peru, citing potential commercial advantages. Despite his efforts, the proposal is rejected. Similarly, emissaries from Mexico propose integration into their newly independent empire, but this too is declined.

Panama ultimately chooses union with Colombia, governed under the Constitution of Cúcuta (1821). It is designated a department within Gran Colombia, comprising two provinces—Panama and Veraguas. With Ecuador later joining, this broader political entity solidifies as Gran Colombia.

The Congress of Panama (1826) and Bolívar’s Vision

In 1826, Bolívar honors Panama by selecting it as the venue for an ambitious diplomatic summit—the Congress of Panama. Convening from June to July 1826, the congress gathers representatives from four American republics: Mexico, Central America, Colombia, and Peru. Delegates draft the "Treaty of Union, League, and Perpetual Confederation," designed to bind member states to mutual defense and peaceful dispute resolution. Recognizing threats from Europe and possible internal reactionary shifts, the treaty includes a clause excluding any republic that substantially changes its government unless unanimously approved for readmission.

Ultimately, the treaty is ratified only by Colombia and fails to become effective. Frustrated by repeated unsuccessful attempts at regional unity, Bolívar famously laments before his death in 1830, "America is ungovernable; those who served the revolution have plowed the sea."

International Influences and the United States’ Reluctance

Bolívar's envisioned confederation aims chiefly to safeguard former Spanish colonies against renewed European threats, particularly from Spain and its allies. Initially, Bolívar seeks protection from Britain and remains wary of involving the United States, due in part to American neutrality during the independence wars and the contentious issue of slavery. Although Bolívar initially opposes inviting representatives from the U.S., he eventually acquiesces when Colombia, Mexico, and Central America extend invitations for U.S. observers.

Despite the sweeping implications of the Monroe Doctrine (1823), U.S. President John Quincy Adams decides that American delegates—if attending—should avoid discussions of regional security, focusing solely on neutrality and commerce. U.S. congressional opposition and bureaucratic delays prevent the American delegation from reaching the congress. However, Britain and the Netherlands send unofficial observers, underscoring the global interest in Isthmian America’s geopolitical significance.

Bolívar, nonetheless, remains deeply skeptical of U.S. intentions, famously remarking: "The United States seems destined by Providence to plague America with misery in the name of Liberty."

Panama’s Contribution to Bolívar’s Campaigns

Demonstrating solidarity with broader liberation struggles, Panama contributes concretely to Bolívar’s campaigns by sending a contingent of seven hundred troops to support liberation efforts in Peru, aiding the final struggles against royalist forces. However, even after hostilities conclude in 1824, significant internal divisions emerge within Gran Colombia regarding governance and constitutional order.

Bolívar’s proposed constitution, modeled on the constitution he drafted for Bolivia, advocates a centralized presidency with lifetime tenure, extensive executive power, and limited legislative oversight. This proposal sharply divides opinion. Although Panama avoids armed conflict over these constitutional debates, it joins other regions in petitioning Bolívar to temporarily assume dictatorial powers until a new constitutional convention can assemble.

During this uncertain transitional period, Panama proclaims itself a "Hanseatic State", asserting temporary autonomy and special commercial privileges, awaiting definitive constitutional decisions.

Vision of Continental Unity and Bolívar’s Legacy

The continental vision promoted by Bolívar and debated at the Panama congress embodies the era’s idealistic aspirations. Revolutionary leaders across Latin America, including Bolívar, José de San Martín, and previously Francisco de Miranda, advocate varying visions of unified governance, some proposing a single vast monarchy with an emperor descended from the Incas. Bolívar, however, emerges as the figure most committed to a federalist republic of Spanish-American states.

Despite Bolívar’s ultimate disillusionment and the failure of the proposed confederation, the Congress of Panama (1826) symbolizes a significant historical moment in Latin America’s early post-colonial diplomacy—underscoring Panama’s strategic importance and its integral role in shaping continental politics.

Thus, the period 1816–1827 proves foundational for Panama, marking its peaceful transition to independence, its critical involvement in continental diplomatic initiatives, and highlighting enduring tensions within the newly independent Latin American republics as they grapple with post-colonial governance and regional unity.

The league or confederation envisioned by Bolívar is to foster the blessings of liberty and justice, but a primary purpose is to secure the independence of the former colonies from renewed attacks by Spain and its allies.

Bolívar seeks Britain's protection in this endeavor.

He is reluctant to invite representatives of the United States, even as observers, to the congress of plenipotentiaries lest their collaboration compromise the league's position with the British.

Furthermore, Bolívar feels that the neutrality of the United States in the war between Spain and its former colonies would make its representation inappropriate.

In addition, slavery in the United States would be an obstacle in discussing the abolition of the African slave trade.

Bolívar nevertheless acquiesces when the governments of Colombia, Mexico, and Central America invite the United States to send observers.

Despite the sweeping implications of the Monroe Doctrine, President John Quincy Adams—in deciding to send delegates to the Panama conference—is not disposed to obligate the United States to defend its southern neighbors.

Adams instructs his delegates to refrain from participating in deliberations concerning regional security and to emphasize discussions of maritime neutrality and commerce.

Nevertheless, many members of the United States Congress oppose participation under any conditions.

By the time participation is approved, the delegation has no time to reach the conference.

The British and Dutch send unofficial representatives.