Enduring legacy of Simon Bolivar and the Latin American struggle for independence

Venezuela’s recent political upheavals can be understood within both the contemporary political developments and anti-colonial struggle. One of the key figures in this struggle is the Venezuelan revolutionary leader and statesman, Simon Bolivar. Also known as ‘El Libertador’, Bolivar played a crucial role in the South American freedom struggle against Spanish colonial rule during the early 19th century. 

Bolivar’s liberatory politics

Bolivar was born into a wealthy aristocratic family on July 24, 1783, in the part of the Spanish colony then known as New Granada (present-day Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, and Venezuela). His family belonged to the wealthy criollo/creole elite (Spanish American), who owned and controlled vast acres of plantation estates. Orphaned at the age of nine, Bolivar was sent to Europe to complete his education. 

The making of this revolutionary leader can be understood by tracing the political, social, military, and philosophical forces that shaped and anchored Bolivar’s liberatory politics. According to historian and biographer John Lynch, who wrote the first major English biography of Bolivar, he was neither merely a creation of his age nor just an imitator of French and North American political traditions. 

Bolivar developed his own idea of revolution that was unique and rooted in the social and political landscape of Latin America, and therefore did not merely replicate the Western models in the Americas. He is widely regarded as the “founding father” of six countries – Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Panama, and Peru.  

Independence struggle across Latin America 

For most Latin American countries, independence came between 1810 and 1825, not as a unified project but as a long-enduring struggle that erupted in different forms at different times across the region. 

The early signs of the independence struggle were seen in Mexico, when Catholic priest Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and his small group of rebels rang church bells in the small town of Dolores on September 16, 1810 – the act later known as the “Cry of Dolores” – calling for freedom struggle against 300 years of Spanish rule. However, the movement didn’t last long, as Hidalgo was captured and killed by the Spanish colonial forces. 

The anti-colonial struggle in Latin America became stronger after Napoleon’s invasion of Spain in 1808, and the subsequent removal of king Ferdinand VII. It encouraged many revolutionary leaders in different parts of Latin America to challenge Spanish colonial rule. 

Following the struggle led by Simon Bolivar and Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela became the first country to declare independence from Spain in 1811. After the signing of the ‘Declaration of Independence for Venezuela’, the First Republic of Venezuela was established. 

However, the republic collapsed in 1812 under pressure from royalist forces and internal divisions. Bolivar was sent into exile and later led the independence movement in New Granada (present-day Colombia). In 1813, he returned to Venezuela with his new forces to fight against the remaining royalist forces. On August 7 in the same year, he defeated the Spanish forces and led the victorious march in Caracas, which came to be known as the “Admirable Campaign”.

El Liberator and Gran Colombia 

In 1819, Bolivar marched across the Andes mountains with a small army, battling through harsh weather conditions and hostile topography to reach present-day Colombia. This heroic march culminated in the Battle of Boyacá, which brought independence to New Granada (Colombia).

Bolivar’s march across the Andes etched Bolivar’s revolutionary image as El Liberator, or the liberator, and he became a driving force in the creation of the Republic of Colombia, also known to historians as Gran Colombia, which initially encompassed the territories of present-day Colombia, Panama, Venezuela, and Ecuador. He served as president of Gran Colombia from 1819 to 1830.  

But Bolivar didn’t confine himself to administrative leadership. He was actively involved in the liberation of Ecuador in 1822, and led the liberation movement in Peru, along with Jose de San Martin (the liberator of Argentina, Chile, and Peru). After a series of military conflicts, Peru was liberated in 1824. In 1825, Bolivar and Venezuelan general and politician Antonio Jose De Sucre moved to Upper Peru and liberated it from the royalist forces. The newly independent Upper Peru was named the Republic of Bolívar (later renamed Bolivia) in honour of Bolivar, who also became its first President. 

But by the late 1820s, the Republic of Gran Colombia was disintegrating due to regional leaders consolidating power during Bolivar’s brief absence. This forced Bolivar to adopt authoritarian rule, which met with resistance. Bolivar failed to keep the Republic of Gran Colombia together, which disintegrated following his death in 1830.

Legacy of Bolivar 

Despite the disintegration of Gran Colombia and the subsequent conflict and crises that Latin America experienced, many in the region believe that Bolivar’s dream of a united South America that values justice, liberty, and independence remains a utopia. Chilean poet and Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda writes:

Our Father thou art in Heaven,

in water, in air

in all our silent and broad latitude

everything bears your name, Father in our dwelling:

your name raises sweetness in sugar cane

Bolivar tin has a Bolivar gleam

the Bolívar bird flies over the Bolivar volcano

the potato, the saltpeter, the special shadows,

the brooks, the phosphorous stone veins

everything comes from your extinguished life

your legacy was rivers, plains, bell towers

your legacy is our daily bread, oh Father.

The poem echoes the Lord’s Prayer sung by Christians, where Neruda addresses Bolivar as “Our Father.” In doing so, the poem juxtaposes political aspirations with faith that resurrects Bolivar as the saviour of Latin America. Despite the fragility that Gran Colombia experienced, Bolívar’s dream of a unified Latin America is a political utopia that continued to influence political leadership in Venezuela. 

For many Latin American countries, struggle for freedom continues

As mentioned earlier, the independence struggle in Latin American countries was not a single political event and stretched over centuries. The 19th century military struggle against Spanish colonialism was reinterpreted during the second independence struggle in the 20th century, most notably the Bolivarian Revolution launched by Hugo Chávez after he came to power in 1998. 

Chávez presented a new form of Venezuelan government based on the ideologies of the country’s founding fathers, Simon Bolivar and Simon Rodriguez. The Bolivarian revolution attempted to blend populist and authoritarian elements of governance, while also integrating the military into parliamentary politics – a strategy through which Chávez aspired to serve the impoverished.

The revolution produced a new Constitution and led to the reorganisation of political institutions (like legislature, Supreme Court, and electoral authorities), and the nationalisation of the oil industry to channel revenues towards developing healthcare, housing, and education. 

Chávez also cofounded the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) as an alternative to US-led trade agreements. From a decolonial perspective, the Bolivarian revolution was intended to position Venezuela as a sovereign leader in Latin America. It was critical of the US’s hegemonic influence and neoliberal policies, as the revolution was rooted in the social and economic empowerment of the poor. But Chávez’s attempts at reforming the state also consolidated his power, which generated opposition and dissent. 

To sum up, for many countries in Latin America, the struggle for freedom remains a continuing project due to shifting power dynamics in a multipolar world. In Venezuela and in the broader Latin American region, Bolivar remains a key figure in understanding and theorising revolution. The Bolivarian revolution initiated by Chávez and continued under Nicolas Maduro is often presented as a resistance to neo-colonialism, international sanctions, and foreign interventions. 

Post read questions

For most Latin American countries, independence came not as a unified project but as a long-enduring struggle that erupted in different forms at different times across the region. Discuss this with reference to the role of Simón Bolívar.

Discuss the role of Simón Bolívar in the liberation of Latin American countries. How far did his vision of political unity succeed?

The Bolivarian Revolution is also presented as an attempt to construct an alternative to US hegemony in Latin America. Do you agree? Illustrate your answer.

From a decolonial perspective, evaluate the Bolivarian Revolution’s attempt to redefine sovereignty and development in Venezuela.

(Dr. Grace Mariam Raju teaches at Kalindi College, University of Delhi.)

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