Once again, he was inspired by his upbringing of admiration for Classical Antiquity: I have dared to suggest a moral power, drawn from the remote ages of antiquity and those obsolete laws, which for some time maintained public virtue amongst the Greeks and Romans (Bolivar 1819). Prof. Arkenberg has modernized the text. Orientalism. During Habsburg times, a great deal of contraband went on, but with the arrival of the Bourbons, economic regulations were severely tightened and enforced. Bolivars authoritarian turn came later in his political career, well after independence was sealed. The address is presented in Spanish with a short editorial introduction in English. Bolivar must have been aware that his liberal and enlightened audience would object to his proposal, inasmuch as it reminded them too much of the old Spanish imperial regime and its inegalitarian institutions. In this regard, despite his flaws, he is to be considered one the great men of South American history. In his view, federalism may work in some countries, but not in all. The Enlightenment did not reach Spain with the same force as it did in France or Great Britain. Damas, G. 1983. The Angostura Address 200 Years Later: A Critical Reading. Happy the citizen that under the shield of arms under his command, has convoked National Sovereignty to exercise its absolute will! 1 (2018): 7482. Again, Bolivar was certainly a big critic of Spanish imperialism, but he did not seem to mind other empires. Maistre, J. Prof. Arkenberg has modernized the text. Dynamics of Political Transformation, Supplement: Comparative Historical Analysis, Moments and Events of Political Transformation, The Historical and Contemporary Role of Women in Ecuadorian Society, Brazilian Sambas Translation and Dialogue with International Dancesport, Dominican Republic Latin America at the Movies, El Salvador Latin America at the Movies, Chapter 15. He was a high-spirited revolutionary, but he understood the dangers of uncontrolled rage and racial vengeance. The opportunity came in 1808 when Napoleon invaded Spain, and the Caracas junta which became the facto government- rejected Spanish authority in Seville in 1810, and reaffirmed its allegiance to Ferdinand VII, who was imprisoned by Napoleon. Needless to say, Bolivar hoped to become precisely a perpetual figurehead in the politics of the region and went to describe the role as follows: The President of the Republic comes to be in our Constitution, as the Sun that, firm in the center, gives life to the Universe. Roberts, P. 2012. DOI: http://doi.org/10.16993/iberoamericana.427, Andrade, Gand J Lugo-Ocando. Simn Bolvar, "An Address of Bolvar at the Congress of Angostura (February 15, 1819)" Background As a young man, Simn Bolvar (1783-1830), who would become known as "El Libertador" ("The Liberator") in Latin America, spent a few years in Europe. From there, with the auspices of President Alexandre Petion (17701818) that included 6.000 soldiers, money and even a print- (Helg 2003), Bolivar returned to Venezuela with a military expedition. State Fullerton. Altaschul, N. 2012. 2004. of History, Cal. Iberoamericana Nordic Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Yale University Press. The ruling bureaucracy of Oriental despotism: A phenomenon that paralyzed Marx. The Review of Politics, 15(3): 350359. While in Rome and inspired by his early contacts with liberal movements in the old continent (Bushnell 2003) he made an oath to free the American countries from Spanish imperialism (Castro-Klaren 2003). 1. ), EZLN Command (1993), Chapter 4. The Angostura Address 200 Years Later: A Critical Reading. Although Bolivar admired British imperialism more for its liberal ethos than for its military might (as opposed to the despotism of Spain), he was still a man of arms, and imbued his political ideas with militarism. Again the Angostura Address of 1819 clearly shows a Bolivar who was already very concerned with the chaotic potential of an independent South America. His "Angostura Address of 1819" is much more than just a regular speech that any politician would make throughout the course of their career. He was a staunch anti-colonialist when it came to Spanish America; but he had high praises for the Roman imperial ethos, he seemed content with the British imperialism of his day, and he repeated many of the tropes typical of 19th Century colonialist thinking. A republican magistrate is an individual set apart from society, charged with checking the impulse of the people toward license and the propensity of judges and administrators toward abuse of the laws. of History, Cal. The Angostura Address: Cultural identity, ethnic relations Although never formally educated in universities, Bolivar was a self-taught man and had at least two illustrious tutors who were the arguably the leading intellectuals of the region at the time; Simon Rodriguez and Andres Bello. Although those people [North Americans], so lacking in many respects, are unique in the history of mankind, it is a marvel, I repeat, that so weak and complicated a government as the federal system has managed to govern them in the difficult and trying circumstances of their past. Bolivar was given some military assignments in defending the Venezuelan Republic against loyalists of the Spanish monarchy. Download date: August 25th, 2018. Nothing in our fundamental laws would have to be altered were we to adopt a legislative power similar to that held by the British Parliament. The Lycurgus legislature produced glory, virtue, morality and therefore national happiness (Bolivar 1819). ), The Works of Joseph de Maistre. Andrade G, Lugo-Ocando J. Wittfogel, K. 1953. Bolivar insists that, in monarchies, the executive power becomes too powerful, as it enjoys too many advantages. Carta de Bolivar al General Juan Jose Flores. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0034670500001534, Andrade, G. and Lugo-Ocando, J., 2018. La Gran Colombia: una ilusin ilustrada. Angostura bitters, a flavoring. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in Bol var and South American Originally published in 1923, as part of the Cambridge Plain Texts series, this volume contains the complete text of Sim n Bol var's address before the Venezuelan Congress at . His praise for division of powers was also only half-hearted. Unless the executive has easy access to all the administrative resources, fixed by a just distribution of powers, he inevitably becomes a nonentity or abuses his authority. The Bourbons had a clear mercantilist economic program: the Indies were to be ruled only for the benefit of the mother country, Spain (Annino 2015). On February 15, 1819, The Liberator entered the Government Palace of Angostura along with Rafael Urdaneta, Toms Montilla and Indeed, despite his strong criticisms of Spanish imperialism he seemed to acknowledge that Spanish rule offered an important degree of stability and unity while independence could bring instead disunity and possible chaos amongst the emerging nations: The separation of America from the Spanish Monarchy resembles the state of the Roman Empire, when that enormous structure fell to pieces in the midst of the ancient world (Bolivar 1819). Its culminating piece of legislation was the Venezuelan Constitution of 1819, officially adopted on August 15, but quickly made obsolete by the creation of the Republic of Colombia on December 17, 1819. There was no exact distribution of power there. That Constitution, labeled the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, written under the auspices of Hugo Chavez and the self-proclaimed Bolivarian Revolution, went to great lengths in attempting to imitate Bolivarian thinking in every aspect of political organization. Some critics have accussed Bolvar of verbosity. But, admittedly, it had turned out to be very corrupt. Angostura (plant), a genus in the family Rutaceae. But, this second Venezuelan Republic would also prove to be short-lived. Yet, despite his admiration for the United States, Bolivar insists that South American nations are not ready for federalism or even North American institutions as a whole, on account of a cultural mismatch: Would it not be extremely difficult to apply to Spain the political, civil, and religious code of Great Britain? But, it was not a mere cynical ploy to enlarge his armies. If he exists, I certainly have no knowledge of him (Maistre 1965: 80). Charles III introduced a system of comercio libre, free trade, but the name is very deceptive. . An Address of Bolvar at the Congress of Angostura (February 15, 1819). Bolivar, once again, was a man of the Enlightenment, but on this dispute, he seemed to be more on the side of Counter-Enlightenment figures who believed that the same political recipe could not be applied universally to all nations. Unfortunately, again, Bolivars reasoning is very confusing; as every critic of the House of Lords or any other hereditary office reminds us, such an institution is precisely the foundation for a nobility. It would be even more difficult for the laws of North America to be adopted in Venezuela. Throughout the document, he is concerned about whether or not the emerging nations are truly ready for liberal forms of government. Iberoamericana Nordic Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies, vol. But, such celebrations should be devoid of nationalist distortions, and they should be cleansed of the typical hero-worship that has taken place in Latin America for the last 150 years, and has accelerated in Venezuela during the last 20 years. Las Indias no eran colonias. Addressing the Congress of Angostura, 1819 [Bolvar addresses the Congress of Angostura. He first settled in Jamaica, and then in Haiti. By contrast, Counter-Enlightenment authors such as Joseph de Maistre argued thus: In the course of my life, I have seen Frenchmen, Italians, Russians, etc. Bolivar never really says. I will add that that people is unique in the history of the human race, and repeat that it is a miracle that a system as weak and complicated as the federal should have existed under so difficult and delicate circumstances as those which have occurred (Bolivar 1819). But, it still reflects Bolivars anti-colonial convictions, inasmuch as unlike most figures of the Spanish Enlightenment, he was not embarrassed of having African roots. This is an understandable and legitimate point. After some military action in New Grenada (modern-day Colombia), Bolivar returned to Venezuela in 1812 and after a remarkable series of military triumphs he managed to recapture the capital Caracas (Lopez and Lopez 1999). Tocqueville, A. Repeated elections are essential in popular systems, for nothing is so dangerous as to allow power to remain a long time vested in one citizen; the people become accustomed to obey, and he to command, and this gives rise to usurpation and tyranny (Bolivar 1819). Ambition and intrigue abuses the credulity and experience of men lacking all political, economic, and civic knowledge; they adopt pure illusion as reality; they take license for liberty, treachery for patriotism, and vengeance for justice. Again, Bolivar does not make it sufficiently clear. Bushnell, D. 2003. To fully grasp the most brilliant thought of the time, some basic context is required. His success, however, would again be short-lived, as in 1830 Gran Colombia ruptured into its three original constituent countries, and Bolivar would have to march into exile and died on his way in in the city of Santa Marta, before he could make it to Europe. 1826. Bolivar, a man of the Enlightenment himself, continued this trope, by presenting the Turks, Persians and Chinese, as despotic peoples. Contemporary anti-colonialists place much emphasis on the acknowledgement of cultural diversity, and Bolivar certainly took it into account when deciding what the best political path for a nation is. In the midst of the battles for independence, Bolvar summoned a congress in the city of Angostura to reassert New Granadas autonomy and to install a political system that he believed would be capable of sustaining a new republic. Proyecto de Constitucion para la Republica de Bolivia y discurso del Libertador al Congreso Constituyente de Bolivia. DOI: http://doi.org/10.16993/iberoamericana.427, Andrade, Gabriel, and Jairo Lugo-Ocando. Hence, many expect that the 2019 will again be a year of nationalist unexamined joy, celebrating the Angostura Address. One of the main thesis of that classic work of political philosophy, is that American democracy is not only built on a particular form of government and its institutions, but also on the cultural foundations of Americans (Tocqueville 2004). Latin America in the World Arena, 1800s-1980s, Moments and Events in U.S.-Latin American Relations (1800s-1980s), A History of United States Policy Towards Haiti, Document #46: Human Rights in Latin America: An Interview with Paulo Srgio Pinherio, Luis Muoz Martin: Founding Father of Modern Puerto Rico, Document #37: Monroe Doctrine, James Monroe (1823), Document #38 Abraham Lincoln on the Mexican-American War (1846-48), Document #39: Roosevelt Corollary, Theodore Roosevelt (1904), Document #40: Brazil, the United States and Pan Americanism, Document #35: United Fruit Co., Pablo Neruda (1950), Document #41: Address at a White House Reception for Members of Congress and for the Diplomatic Corps of the Latin American Republics, John F. 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