Libertadores

Simón Bolívar, one of the greatest libertadores (liberators) of Spanish America

Libertadores (Spanish and Portuguese for "Liberators") refers to the principle leaders of the Latin American wars of independence from Spain.

They were largely bourgeois, criollos (local-born people of European, mostly of Spanish or Portuguese, ancestry) influenced by liberalism and in most cases with military training in the metropole (mother country).

The most prominent libertadores were Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín, who had a famous meeting in Guayaquil in 1822, where they discussed their efforts of the past few years and the future of South America. They played a crucial part in the liberation and independence of most South American countries. Bolivar acted in the north liberating Venezuela, New Granada and Quito, and San Martín secured the independence of Argentina by liberating Chile and Peru.

Other prominent libertadores include José Gervasio Artigas (Uruguay), Bernardo O'Higgins (Chile), José Miguel Carrera (Chile), Manuel Belgrano (Argentina), Antonio José de Sucre (Venezuela) and José Joaquín de Olmedo (Ecuador), who played an important role in a more local fashion.

Others also referenced to as libertadores in different contexts include Francisco de Miranda (usually called a precursor of independence), Manuel Rodríguez (Chile), and independence supporters and idealists such as José Bonifácio (Brazil), Eugenio Espejo, (Ecuador), Juan Pablo Duarte (Dominican Republic), and José Martí (Cuba).

Legacy

The flags of Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador follow Francisco de Miranda's design of 1806. Also, Bolivia was named after Bolivar, who in turn was president of Colombia, Bolivia and twice of Venezuela. San Martín served as "President Protector" of Peru.

Liberators' names were used all over South America to name anything from towns and places to institutions and sports clubs. Also, the most prestigious international club football competition in South America is named the Copa Libertadores in their honour.

List of libertadores

Portrait	Libertador	Born	Died	Religion	Contributed to the independence of
	Simón Bolívar	July 24, 1783(1783-07-24) Caracas, Venezuela	December 17, 1830 (aged 47) Santa Marta, Colombia	Roman Catholic	Colombia, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia
	José de San Martín	25 February 1778(1778-02-25) Yapeyú, Corrientes, Argentina	August 17, 1850 (aged 72) Boulogne-sur-Mer, France	Roman Catholic	Argentina, Chile and Peru
	Manuel Belgrano	June 3, 1770(1770-06-03) Buenos Aires, Argentina	June 20, 1820 (aged 50) Buenos Aires, Argentina	Roman Catholic	Argentina
	Bernardo O'Higgins	August 20, 1778(1778-08-20) Chillán, Chile	October 24, 1842 (aged 64) Lima, Peru	Roman Catholic	Chile
	José Miguel Carrera	October 15, 1785(1785-10-15) Santiago, Chile	September 4, 1821 (aged 35) Mendoza, Argentina	Roman Catholic	Chile
	José Gervasio Artigas	June 19, 1764(1764-06-19) Montevideo, Banda Oriental	September 23, 1850 (aged 86) Ibiray, Paraguay	Roman Catholic	Uruguay
	Antonio José de Sucre	February 3, 1795(1795-02-03) Cumaná, Viceroyalty of New Granada	June 4, 1830 (aged 35) Berruecos, Colombia	Roman Catholic	Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia
	Ramón Castilla	August 31, 1797(1797-08-31) Tarapacá, Peru	May 30, 1867 (aged 69) Tarapacá, Peru	Roman Catholic	Peru
	José Joaquín de Olmedo	March 20, 1780(1780-03-20) Guayaquil, Ecuador	February 19, 1847 (aged 66) Guayaquil, Ecuador	Roman Catholic	Ecuador

Bibliography

• Robert Harvey. Liberators: Latin America's Struggle for Independence. Woodstock, The Overlook Press, 2000. ISBN 1-58567-072-3
• Marion Lansing. Liberators and Heroes of South America. Boston, L. C. Page & Co., 1940.
• Irene Nicholson. The Liberators: A Study of Independence Movements in Spanish America. New York, Frederick A. Praeger, 1968.

External links

• (Spanish) "Sucre, Bolívar y San Martín" Argentine Ministry of Economy

This South American history-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v • d • e