Portrait of Toussaint L’Ouverture by John Kay

Toussaint L’Ouverture (1743-1803): François-Dominique Toussaint L’Ouverture was born a slave around 1743 in Saint-Domingue (modern-day Haiti).  Toussaint’s master was relatively liberal and allowed Toussaint to get an education. At the age of 33, Toussaint was given his freedom but he chose to stay on at the plantation as a salaried employee. In 1791, Saint-Domingue erupted in a massive slave revolt. Toussaint initially joined the rebellion as a field doctor but quickly rose through the ranks and helped secure an alliance between the rebels and the Spanish of Santo Domingo (present-day Dominican Republic). On February 4, 1794, the French government declared abolition of slavery in Saint-Domingue. Toussaint responded by shifting his allegiance from the Spanish to the French. The British, never keen on missing an opportunity for colonization, promptly invaded Saint-Domingue and sided with the Spanish. Now leading the French forces on the island, Toussaint fought a long campaign against the Spanish-British alliance and by 1797 held de-facto control over Saint-Domingue. Events in France upset the delicate balance that had been established. In 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte took over France and promised to issue a series of new laws restricting the autonomy of its colonies. Toussaint responded with the Constitution of 1801, making him governor-for-life of Saint-Domingue. Despite the insubordination, Toussaint still considered himself a Frenchman and wrote to Napoleon explaining his position. In 1802, Napoleon dispatched General Charles Leclerc to bring Saint-Domingue back into the French fold through diplomacy. Leclerc, sensing it would not be possible to peacefully assert French authority, ordered Toussaint to be arrested and transported to France. Toussaint L’Ouverture died in prison on April 7, 1803. His death inspired a second full-scale rebellion in Saint-Domingue that resulted in complete independence and the establishment of the Republic of Haiti.

Portrait of Simon Bolivar Courtesy of the University of Texas Libraries, The University of Texas at Austi

Simón Bolívar (1783-1830): Simón Bolívar, known as el Libertador of much of South America, was born in 1783 in Caracas to wealthy Creole parents. Bolívar’s parents died when he was a young boy, leaving him in the care of tutor Simón Rodríguez. From Rodríguez, Bolívar learned of and was inspired by Enlightenment thinking, as well as the French and American Revolutions. When he was sixteen, Bolívar left Caracas for Europe. In Paris he observed the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte, which symbolized to the young Venezuelan both the failure of republicanism and the power of an individual to change history. In 1807, Bolívar returned to Caracas, already committed to independence for all of Latin America. When a provisional junta was established in Caracas in 1810 in response to the forced abdication of King Ferdinand in Spain, Bolívar retreated from political life because the junta refused to consider full independence. Finally in 1811, the junta declared independence for Venezuela and created the First Republic. Bolívar fought for the republic against royalist forces, but after a devastating earthquake in 1812 convinced the populace of the divine folly of autonomy, the First Republic fell to Spanish troops. Defeated, Bolívar fled to New Granada where he led a successful campaign against the Spanish. By 1813, Bolívar had amassed a sizeable army. Marching into Venezuela, he delivered a number of stunning victories for independence and took Caracas on August 7, 1813, in what later was known as the Admirable Campaign. The Second Venezuelan Republic was established but the Spanish refused to accept independence and launched a successful counterattack in 1814. Bolívar once again fled, this time heading to the Caribbean. In Jamaica, Bolívar wrote his famous Letter from Jamaica, which called for Latin American independence and the creation of a unified Latin American republic. Never one to accept defeat, Bolívar quickly returned to Venezuela and led yet another military campaign against the royalist forces. After stunning victories in the Battles of Boyaca and Carabobo, Bolívar secured independence for Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador. Still hopeful of confederation, he declared the creation of Gran Colombia out of the liberated territories. Bolívar was appointed President of Gran Colombia, but as he was a liberator at heart and much of South America remained in royalist control, he quickly abandoned his political duties. At the Battle of Junin on August 6, 1824, Bolívar defeated the Spanish and forced them out of Peru, bringing independence to the last major royalist stronghold. The Congress of Upper Peru declared itself the autonomous state of Bolivia and made Bolívar the President. As ruler of much of South America and a hero to the people of the region, Bolívar sensed that his goal of a unified Latin American republic was in reach. Alas, it was not to be. Political problems contributed to instability in Gran Colombia, and as each territory asserted its autonomy, Bolívar’s prize fell apart before his eyes. In 1830, Bolívar left South America for Europe, where he later died of tuberculosis.

Francisco de Paula Santander

Francisco Santander (1792-1840): Francisco de Paula Santander was born in 1792 in New Granada (present-day Colombia). Raised in a wealthy Creole family, Santander entered law school but was interrupted in 1810 by the creation of a provisional junta in Bogotá and the fight for independence of the newly formed United Provinces of New Granada. Santander joined the independence army and quickly rose through the ranks. From 1815 to 1816, the royalist forces and Spanish army waged a successful counterattack and conquered the United Provinces of New Granada. Santander fled to the Venezuelan border where he met up with Simón Bolívar. Joining Bolívar’s army, Santander led the vanguard and was instrumental in the liberation of New Granada. After New Granada gained its independence, it was absorbed by Bolívar’s pet project of Gran Colombia, and Santander was elected as the Vice President of the new state. Bolívar, who had been chosen as President, grew tired of politics and left office to liberate the rest of South America. As a result, power passed to Santander and he served as President of Gran Colombia from 1819 to 1826. During the next several years, ideological differences between Santander and Bolívar increased. Tensions culminated when Santander was exiled after being accused of an assassination attempt on Bolívar in 1828. After Gran Colombia dissolved in the early 1830s, Santander returned from exile and was elected President of the Republic of New Granada (1832-1836). Francisco Santander died in 1840 but his ideology lived on in the form of Colombia’s durable Liberal Party.

Daguerrotype of Jose de San Martin

José de San Martín (1778-1850): José de San Martín was born in modern-day Argentina in 1778. Several years later, his family moved to Málaga, Spain, where San Martín entered school. By 1789, he had begun his military career as a soldier in the Regiment of Murcia. San Martín rose through the ranks of the Spanish Army and served in the Peninsular War against French invaders. For uncertain reasons, Santander resigned from the Spanish Army in 1812 and returned to South America, pledging his support for independence in the process. Beginning with command of a small force of revolutionary soldiers, San Martín proved his worth with a number of victories and was appointed head of all forces in Buenos Aires. In 1814, San Martín took control of the “Army of the North,” tasked with liberating Upper Peru. Despite his organizational skill, the Army of the North continued to suffer defeat by royalist forces. San Martín proposed to liberate Peru by way of Chile rather than Upper Peru and he was appointed commander of the Army of the Andes to lead the campaign. In February 1817, the Army successfully crossed the freezing cold Andes and entered Chile. They met the royalist forces at the Battle of Chacabuco on February 12 and the Army of the Andes won a surprising victory. After another series of battles, San Martín succeeded in liberating Chile and then set his sights on Peru. Throughout 1820 and 1821, San Martín defeated Spanish forces in Peru, and he marched into a free Lima on July 12, 1821. San Martín set about establishing a provisional government in Peru, and in 1822 he met with fellow freedom fighter Simón Bolívar in Guayaquil. It is unclear exactly what happened at the meeting, but San Martín decided to step down and give Bolívar complete control over the wars of independence. Unable to find political success in Peru, Chile, or Argentina, San Martín resettled with his daughter in France. He died there in 1850.