American Revolution: Causes and Key Events
The Road to American Independence
By July 1776, enough Americans were “patriots” that members of the Second Continental Congress formed a five-man committee to draft a Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson of Virginia was the principal author. The Declaration stated that all men are born with “natural rights” of life, liberty, and property. It was based on the ideas of John Locke, who believed that the state of nature for man is freedom, and explained why the colonists were rebelling.
Turning
Read MoreAndean Community, Iraq Conflict, Maquiladoras, OPEC
The Andean Community
The Andean Community, originating in 1969, comprises Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Venezuela. Its objectives are the expansion of transport infrastructure (roads and railways), power supply, and the formation of a customs union. In 1993, it was constituted as a free-trade zone, establishing a Common External Tariff (CET) in 1995. The presidents of the member countries decided to establish the Common Market in 2005. To that end, it requires eliminating all forms of barriers
Read More19th Century Spain: Instability, Restoration, and Decline
19th Century Liberal Revolution in Spain
The 19th-century liberal revolution was an unstable process in Spain. The Spanish liberal character was marked by the army’s significant power in politics, with figures like Espartero and Serrano. Political parties frequently used the army for military uprisings and revolts to gain power. The Moderates and Progressives were exclusivist, ensuring power for a new liberal social elite whose primary concern was property rather than liberty. Land laborers and workers
Read MoreCatalan Language: Origins and Linguistic Evolution
Pre-Roman and Roman Influences
- Substrate: Pre-Roman linguistic elements that influenced Latin and were conserved in Catalan.
- Superstrate: Linguistic elements incorporated into the Catalan language after the Roman period.
- Adstrate: Influence of two or more languages due to border contact.
Indo-European Peoples
Indo-European peoples who spoke different languages:
- Sorotaptes: Words like “sostre” (ceiling), “clenxa” (hair parting), “galta” (cheek).
- Celts: “Balma” (cave), “banya” (horn), “blat” (wheat), “camÔ
Ferdinand VII’s Reign and the Revolutionary Six Years in Spain
The Reign of Ferdinand VII
The Absolutist Six Years (1814-1820)
A group of deputies delivered to the king a document called the Manifesto of the Persians, which defended absolutism and attacked the legislation of the Cortes of Cadiz. Shortly after, the king overrode the Constitution and laws of the Court of Cadiz and threatened anyone who tried to restore them. The liberal revolution had been stopped.
The Liberal Triennium and the Intervention of the Holy Alliance (1820-1823)
The poor state of public
Read MoreSpanish Political Evolution: 19th Century Constitutions & Ideologies
Constitution of 1812
- National sovereignty
- Separation of powers
- Constitutional monarchy
- Leading rights recognized
- Official recognition of the Catholic religion
Constitution of 1837
- National sovereignty
- *Consagrates* the division of powers: executive, legislative, and judiciary
- Catholicism
- Censitary suffrage
- The National Militia
Constitution of 1869
- Constitutional monarchy
- National sovereignty
- Universal male suffrage
- Broad recognition of rights
- Separation of powers
- Freedom of religion
Constitution of 1845
- The tendency