Aftershocks of the French Revolution

European Revolts• French Revolutions sparked other European

Revolutions– 1831, Belgium broke away from the

Netherlands– 1830, Poles tried (and failed) to reunite

Poland– 1848, failed uprisings in Vienna

(Austrian capital), Budapest (Hungarian capital controlled by Austrian Empire), and Prague (Czech capital controlled by Austrian Empire)

– 1848, Italians revolted and even threw the Pope out of Rome, but French and Austrian armies intervened, putting down the revolts and restoring the Pope

– 1848, revolutionaries pressed for a united Germany but the idea was squashed by the Prussians

Rebellion in Haiti• The French sugar colony of

Saint Domingue in the central Caribbean produced 40% of world’s sugar and tremendous wealth for France

• Sugar production relied on heavy use of slave labor

• By 1791, black slaves outnumbered whites by a factor of 10 to 1

• Slavery here was especially brutal, with little care provided to the slaves

Rebellion in Haiti• August 22, 1791• Taking advantage of the

ongoing French Revolution, the slaves coordinated an uprising which led to the deaths of over 2000 whites and the destruction of 280 sugar plantations

• Surviving white colonists fled the island

• Revolution would involve nearly continuous fighting from 1791 to 1804

François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture

• 1743 – 1803• Born a slave, but freed as an adult• Quickly became a leader of the

rebellion, although he worked hard to restore peace with French Revolutionary government in exchange for a ban on slavery

• Wanted whites to return to the island because they possessed wealth and valuable skills

• When Napoleon took power in France, fighting broke out again in Haiti over fears that Napoleon would restore slavery

• Arrested by a French force sent by Napoleon and sent to trial in France, but died in prison before trial could begin

Jean-Jacques Dessalines• 1758 – 1806• After France tried to reestablish

slavery and eliminated Louverture, Dessalines assumed leadership of the revolt and finally drove the French out

• 1/1/1804: the former colony was renamed Haiti (or “home”) and Dessalines named himself emperor-for-life

• Whites were not allowed to own land or property and were discouraged from even living in or visiting Haiti

• Assassinated in 1806

How was the Haitian Revolution different from other revolutions?

• It was the first successful slave rebellion in the Americas

• It was the first “black republic,” or nation in the Western Hemisphere to be governed by non-whites (mostly blacks & interracial mulattos)

Latin American Revolts• When Napoleon

invaded and conquered Spain in 1808, Latin Americans used it as an opportunity to gain their freedom from the Spanish Empire

Mexican Independence• A series of rebel leaders

fought for independence between 1810 – 1820

• Finally, in 1821, Agustin de Iturbide led an overthrow and was briefly the Emperor of Mexico before being overthrown (and eventually executed) by pro-republican revolutionaries

Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna• 1794 – 1876• President of Mexico 11

different times in a 22 year period (1833 -55)

• Helped oust the Spanish from Mexico under Iturbide, fought off French and American threats to Mexican sovereignty (although he lost the war with the US and, as a result, had to surrender California)

• Repeated attempts at naming himself dictator-for-life led to his eventual exile

Benito Juárez• 1806 – 1872• 5 time President of Mexico• Inaugurated “La Reforma,” a

series of reforms which aimed at limiting the power of the military and the Catholic Church in favor of more democratic and capitalist ideals

• Forced to fight a civil war and to fend off a French take-over in 1863 – 67

• Died in office in 1872

Maximilian Habsburg• 1832 – 1867• Younger brother of the Austrian

Emperor• Offered the position of Emperor

of Mexico by French emperor Napoleon III, so long as he understood that he needed to protect French interests in Mexico

• Never had full control of Mexico, and once French troops left, he was quickly captured and shot by order of Benito Juárez

Central America• Guatemala, Nicaragua,

Honduras, El Salvador, and Costa Rica also broke away from Spain in the 1820s, but then were forced to resist Mexican attempts to make them part of the new Mexican republic

Bolívar & San Martín• In 1810, Simón Bolívar led

an uprising which freed Venezuela from Spanish rule; over the next 11 years he also freed Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia

• In 1816, José de San Martín freed Argentina and Chile

• Bolívar and San Martín tried to unite South America into a single nation called Gran Colombia, but failed

Portuguese Brazil• When Napoleon conquered

Portugal, the royal family fled to Brazil

• The king enacted a number of economic reforms which helped Brazil greatly

• When the king returned to Portugal after Napoleon’s defeat, he left his son Dom Pedro behind and granted Brazil its independence as a reward for loyal service

• Dom Pedro became emperor of the independent state of Brazil

Dom Pedro I• 1798 - 1834• Pedro de Alcântara Francisco

Antônio João Carlos Xavier de Paula Miguel Rafael Joaquim José Gonzaga Pascoal Cipriano Serafim de Bragança e Bourbon

• Moved to Brazil at 9• When his father returned to

Portugal in 1821, Pedro remained behind as Emperor of Brazil

• Died of tuberculosis

“Failed” Revolutions?• Despite winning

independence, Latin America generally remained economically and politically unstable and very socially conservative, so the poor saw little change to no change in their daily quality of life