THE REPUBLIC, 1811-1911
Local character of revolution—Declaration of a
Constitution—Centralised government—Troubles of the young
republic—The Church and the patriots—Miranda—Dictatorship
and downfall—Drastic measures of Monteverde—Youth and
parentage of Simon Bolivar—The _guerra a muerte_—Dictatorship
of Bolivar—Monteverde murders four prisoners—The
_Mestizos_—Massacre of Spaniards—Murmurings—Retirement of
Bolivar—Royalist victories and reinforcements—Morillo’s
barbarities—Return of Bolivar to Venezuela—Indecisive
campaign—Renewed discontent—Bolivar withdraws to Haiti,
but returns—Mariño’s insubordination—Massacre of
Barcelona—Campaign in the Llanos—Arrival of the British
Legion—Congress of Angostura—The march to Bogotá—The
republic of Great Colombia—Change of allegiance of the
_Mestizos_—Armistice of Trujillo—Negotiations with
Spain—Recommencement of hostilities—Battle of Carabobo—End
of Spanish power in Venezuela—Position of Venezuela in
Colombia—Separatist movement—Death of Bolivar—Páez first
President of Venezuela—Vargas—Folly of Mariño—Progress
of the country—Public honours to Bolivar—Recognition of
republic by France and Spain—Commerce and prosperity of the
country—Tyranny of Tadeo Monágas—Gregorio Monágas—Abolition of
slavery—Revolution of Julian Castro—Capital temporarily removed
to Valencia—Federalists and Centralists—Falcón—_Convenio de
Coche_—Federal Constitution—Guzman Blanco—Development under
his government—Revolution of Crespo—British Guiana boundary
dispute—Cipriano Castro—The Matos revolution—_Coup d’état_ of
General Gomez—Centenary celebrations—Present prospects.
Even though subsequent events proved that the Declaration of July 5,
1811, marked in reality the beginning of the independence of Venezuela,
that end was far from being attained as yet. The revolution itself had
begun, not amongst the people but with a few of the more intelligent
and patriotic members of the aristocracy of the country; and even the
open breach with Spain found popular feeling about equally divided, or,
if anything, on the side of Spain and the royalists. While the movement
had thus little staying power within the colony, there were many foreign
sympathisers, notable amongst whom was William Burke, an Irish Catholic.
The Declaration of Independence was followed almost immediately by
disturbances in Los Teques and Valencia, instigated mainly by colonists
from the Canary Islands; but though the provinces of Coro, Maracaibo,
and Guayana held aloof, the leaders of the Revolution were sufficiently
strong to declare a Constitution on December 21, 1811.
One of the main features of this first Constitution was the power
given to the Central Government to revise the Constitutions of the
provinces. The national power was divided under three heads—Legislative,
Executive, and Judicial. The Legislature was to consist of two
Chambers—one of Representatives, the other of Senators, the first to
be elected by popular vote, the second by the Provincial Governments;
the qualifications for membership of the Lower Chamber were: to be over
twenty-one years of age, five years a citizen, and a property-owner; the
Senators were to be over thirty years of age, ten years citizens, and to
possess 6,000 pesos. A National Guard was provided, to be controlled by
the Legislature. The Executive was vested in a Junta of three persons,
who were to have been in Venezuela on July 5th or to be natives of the
“Colombian Continent” (_i.e._, South America); they held office for four
years. Judicial power was exercised by a Supreme Court, subaltern Courts,
and inferior tribunals, under control of Congress. The royalists who had
been responsible for the risings in Valencia were pardoned and released.
In 1812 the troubles of the young republic began. Early in the year
Don Domingo de Monteverde landed in Coro and marched inland, capturing
Siquisique and Carora, finally directing his steps towards Carácas
via Barquisimeto and San Carlos. On Holy Thursday (March 26th), while
thousands were gathered in the churches, a terrible earthquake destroyed
Carácas, La Guaira, San Felipe, Barquisimeto, Tocuyo, and Mérida; in
Carácas alone 10,000 people were killed. The ecclesiastics, recognising
their interests to be largely bound up with the royalist cause,
attributed these disasters to the wrath of Heaven at the revolution,
and one who preached in this strain in Carácas is said to have been
threatened with death by Bolivar, who exclaimed, “If Nature opposes
us we will fight her and make her obey us!” For his antagonism to the
new régime the Archbishop of Carácas was expelled and Madariaga put in
charge in his place. An expedition to Guayana had been planned, but
was abandoned after the earthquake, when Miranda was made Dictator by
Congress. The royalist leader Monteverde reached La Victoria in June,
and some four weeks later, for obscure and, it was widely suggested,
discreditable pecuniary reasons, Miranda, with 4,000 men, capitulated to
the Spanish force of 3,000 on July 25th. Monteverde sent him to Puerto
Rico, but for which Bolivar and others would have shot him as a traitor
at the first opportunity. He finally died in prison in Spain in 1816.
Had Monteverde shown more discretion and mercy this reverse of the
patriots would probably have had far more lasting results, but he
speedily showed himself treacherous, and, in direct violation of the
terms agreed upon with Miranda, he sent eight of the revolutionary
leaders, including Madariaga, to Spain. He imprisoned 1,500 more, and,
refusing to apply any part of the new Spanish Constitution to Venezuela,
proclaimed martial law; as a result, war to the death was declared by the
patriots in the following year.
The Simon Bolivar who has been referred to above was the direct
descendant, six generations removed, from Simon de Bolivar, a Biscayan of
noble rank who reached Venezuela in 1588. This man entered the service
of his adopted land immediately upon his arrival, for he was the special
commissioner dispatched in 1589 by the then Governor to Spain to urge the
need of reforms and to obtain permission for the initiation of projects
calculated to open up and settle the country. The Simon Bolivar of the
revolution was born on July 24, 1783, in Carácas; he went to the Court of
Madrid as a youth, and there acquitted himself well, but, shortly after
his return to his native country in 1802, lost his young wife. Possibly
this bereavement helped to harden his character, and so to acquire for
him that reputation for cruelty and obstinacy which marred the early
history of his work as liberator of his native country and of half of
South America.
The young soldier found himself in Cúcuta (southward of the Lake of
Maracaibo) early in 1813, and was instructed by the revolutionary
Government in Santa Fé de Bogotá to proceed with the conflict, but to
wage war against armed Spaniards only. On June 8th he declared a war of
vengeance to the death against Spain in Mérida, and marching northwards,
won victories at Niquitao, Los Horcones, and Taguanes, finally reaching
and taking Carácas. Meanwhile, Juan Bautista Arismendi had taken the
Island of Margarita; and Mariño, Bermudez, Piar and Sucre took Maturín
and Cumaná in August, leaving only Coro, Maracaibo, Guayana, part of
Barinas, and the plaza of Puerto Cabello in the hands of the royalists.
Following these successes, Bolivar was made Dictator, with legislative
and executive powers, and arrangements were made for the formation
of a Congress similar to that of New Granada. Later in the year the
Dictator marched on Puerto Cabello, where his proposal for an exchange
of prisoners met with an offer of two Spaniards for one Venezuelan, with
the exception of one Jalon, whom Monteverde refused to release; at the
same time the Spanish leader killed four of the prisoners. Reinforcements
reached him from Cadiz about this time, but they were defeated by the
patriots, who later in the year gained other victories over Ceballos.
Early in 1814 Monteverde was compelled by his officers to give up his
command and retire to the Antilles; but to counterbalance this, just
after the meeting of the popular assembly in Carácas came the rising
of the _Mestizos_, or half-breeds of the Llanos, under Tomas Boves, on
behalf of the royalists, a new factor which delayed the settlement of
the struggle for years. After Boves’s victory over the patriots at La
Puerta, when another force was advancing on Ocumare, Bolivar was guilty
of the barbarity of massacring all the Spaniards in Puerto Cabello.
After several battles, the total results of which were indecisive, Boves
finally defeated Bolivar and Mariño by sheer force of numbers in the
Aragua valley and forced them to fly to Carácas. On July 6th Bolivar
evacuated the town, and with its inhabitants retreated to Barcelona
overland, where upon the royalists and llaneros entered it two days
later and Boves claimed the supreme power in Venezuela, although this
had been vested by the Spanish Government in Cajil. Murmurings against
Bolivar now made themselves heard, and Ribas and others of his generals
wished to assassinate him in revenge for their defeats; he was, however,
permitted to retire in safety to the Antilles. Later Boves occupied
Cumaná with massacre and defeated the patriot leaders in Urica, sending
his lieutenant, Morales, to Maturín. Meanwhile, after the restoration of
Ferdinand VII., an expedition of 15,000 men was sent from Spain under
Morillo; with the capitulation to him of Margarita early in 1815 the
outlook for the republic was black indeed.
[Illustration: STATUE IN PLAZA BOLIVAR: CARÁCAS.]
Once again the barbarities of the new Spanish leader acted as a goad
to the jaded spirits of the patriots, for after breaking his promises
of amnesty in Margarita he proceeded to show no mercy to any patriot
families met with in Carácas or on his way to New Granada, where also
his barbarous conduct brought him an unenviable notoriety. Bolivar had
recaptured Santa Fé with the remnant of the Venezuelan patriot army, but
the beginning of 1816 found him in Jamaica planning his great campaign,
with a view to forming fifteen independent republics in South America,
including the Great Colombia, which afterwards became for a short time a
reality.
With a view to the fulfilment of these dreams he secured help in Haiti,
and later in the year reached Margarita. His associates included
MacGregor and Ducoudray-Holstein, Crossing to Carúpano, he sent Mariño to
Guaira, Piar to Maturín, and with Anzoátegui and other leaders he himself
marched to Ocumare; here, however, he was cut off by royalist forces,
and, retreating, joined Zaraza and Monágas with their guerilla troops in
the Llanos, and finally with Piar defeated the royalists in the battle of
El Juncal, near Barcelona. The net result of the campaign in the earlier
part of the year was, however, adverse, and when, after joining Bermudez
in Bonaire, he crossed again to Paria, he was threatened with death by
the newly arrived leader and Mariño. As a result he returned to Haiti on
August 22nd, but came back later in the year at the request of Piar and
other generals.
Early in 1817 Mariño and Bermudez again came to an agreement with
Bolivar, but when he and Arismendi were defeated at Clarines, on their
way to Carácas, Mariño again became subordinate, and, to his lasting
disgrace, left General Freites without support in Barcelona, where he
and 300 refugees were massacred in the _Casa Fuerte_ on April 7th by
the royalists. Shortly after these events a Congress was formed in
Cariaco, by which Bolivar was made one of the Executive, but Mariño
Commander-in-Chief; the latter was at this time in Margarita, which was
now first named Nueva Esparta.
Meanwhile, Bolivar had moved southward to Guayana, and a fresh invasion
of royalists soon drove the other leaders in Cariaco to join him there.
After a victory at San Felix by Piar the prisoners and monks were
massacred, but by whose orders could not be definitely ascertained. The
city of Angostura was evacuated by the Spanish on July 17th, and Guayana
Vieja on August 3rd. During the succeeding months Páez was fighting
with Morillo in the plains of Barinas; Mariño, by the intervention of
Sucre, finally acknowledged Bolivar as commander-in-chief, and Piar, for
insubordination and ostensibly also for the massacre of San Felix, was
condemned by court-martial. On September 3rd an order was issued for the
sequestration of royalist property to pay for the war, and in November
Bolivar left Angostura for Calabozo. After one reverse he retired into
the province of Barinas, where Páez joined him; and finally, early in
1818, he defeated Morillo at Calabozo, though Páez was in April forced
back on San Fernando de Apure with a few men.
With insubordination and murmurings among his own generals, decreased
troops and depleted treasure, and without the encouragement of decisive
victories to make good these deficiencies, the outlook for Bolivar and
for the cause in which he was fighting might well have disheartened him
at this time. In March, however, Colonel Daniel O’Leary had arrived with
the troops raised by Colonel Wilson in London, consisting largely of
veterans of the Napoleonic wars. These tried soldiers, afterwards known
as the British Legion, were destined to play an all-important part in
the liberation of Venezuela, and Bolivar soon recognised their value,
spending the time till December in distributing these new forces to the
best advantage.
Elections were arranged in the autumn, and on February 15, 1819, Congress
was installed in Angostura. Bolivar took the British Constitution as his
model, with the substitute of an elected president for an hereditary
king, and was himself proclaimed provisional holder of the office. The
hereditary form of the Senate was, however, soon given up.
The early part of the year was spent in local marchings and
counter-marchings, but in June Bolivar set out, accompanied by Colonel
James Rook and the British Legion, on his famous march to New Granada.
Pushing through swamps and forests and marching over interminable
plains, they met and defeated the advance guard of the enemy in the
defile of Paya. The first week in July found them crossing the Páramo
of Pisva on the road to Bogotá, where many men perished from the cold.
The rest of the month saw them victorious in many battles, in which the
British Legion and the llaneros made themselves conspicuous. With 2,000
patriots Bolivar defeated 3,000 royalists in the battle of Boyacá on
August 7th, taking many prisoners. On reaching Bogotá he made Santander
vice-president of New Granada and left the prisoners in his charge, a
confidence which the latter abused by shooting the most prominent, on
pretext of an attempted escape. In the meantime there was the normal
disaffection in the east, where Arismendi had been made vice-president,
in the place of Zea, in Angostura. On hearing of Bolivar’s successes, he
immediately wanted to resign; Bolivar, however, ignored his attempted
insubordination, and made him commander-in-chief in the east.
On December 17, 1819, Bolivar formally inaugurated the Great Colombian
republic, consisting of the three Departments of Venezuela, Cundinamarca,
and Quito. A new capital with the name of Bolivar was to be built near
the boundary of Cundinamarca and Venezuela, and the first united Congress
was to assemble in Rosario de Cúcuta. Although this Declaration was not
formally ratified for two years in Quito, 1820 marks the close of the
first period of Venezuela’s independence, from the Declaration of July 5,
1811, to its inclusion in the Great Colombia, a part of which it remained
till 1830.
With the commencement of the second period we come to an entirely
new condition of affairs. While Spain was desirous of attempting a
reconciliation with the northern colony, she did not realise that the
Mestizos, and therefore the population of Venezuela generally, were now
in favour of independence, and after their period of successful fighting,
were not willing to accept less than a recognition of their freedom in
some part, at least, of the territory. While the attitude of the Spanish
authorities was thus foolishly lacking in appreciation of all that had
happened in the last ten years, their general in command in Venezuela,
Morillo, showed himself most conciliatory and even magnanimous. On
November 25th, owing to his efforts, the armistice of Trujillo was
declared. On the following day came the “regularisation” of the campaign,
by which it was determined that hostilities should not recommence till
April 28th of the next year, and on the 27th of the month the opposing
leaders met in the little village of Santa Ana, north of Trujillo.
By the beginning of 1821 Bolivar had returned to Bogotá, and there he
nominated a plenipotentiary to carry on negotiations with Spain, claiming
for his part recognition of the absolute independence, either of Colombia
with its three divisions or of the part of the territory which had now
been liberated. He authorised the republic’s representative, however,
to give up the recognition of Quito, if necessary, but either that or
Panama was to be included. Finally, the republic asserted its willingness
to enter into an alliance with Spain, but its unalterable opposition to
union or to the rule of any European sovereign.
Spain, in spite of this clear statement of the case of the republic,
persisted in regarding the revolution as a mere insurrection, and the
first negotiations broke down. Meanwhile, in January, the province of
Maracaibo had declared itself independent and part of Colombia. Later,
one of Bolivar’s generals occupied the town of Gibraltar, on the Lake of
Maracaibo, an act of zeal on his part which was nevertheless a violation
of the terms of the armistice of Trujillo. Bolivar wished to submit this
matter to arbitration, but before anything had been arranged the date for
resumption of hostilities came round, and the last stage of the struggle
began.
The royalists, at this time held the province of Cumaná, and Carácas
between the towns of Unare and Guanare, and at both ends of the region
they were attacked simultaneously. They succeeded in driving Bermudez out
of the capital, but Bolivar was in Tinaquillo, not far to the west, with
6,500 men, his generals being Páez, in command of the Bravos de Apure and
Británico battalions; Cedeño, with one brigade of the La Guardia, and the
Tiradores, Boyacá and Vargas battalions; Playa, with the other brigade
of the La Guardia, a regiment of English Rifles, the Granaderos, and
Vencedores de Boyacá; and Anzoátegui, with one cavalry regiment under a
Llanero leader. Mariño was Bolivar’s chief-of-staff.
On June 24, 1821, the Spanish leader, La Torre, occupied the plain of
Carabobo with 5,000 men (six columns of infantry and three of cavalry).
The patriot army, in order to reach them, had to follow a narrow mountain
path over the Alto de Buenavista, under the fire of the royalists, and
Páez was dispatched on a flanking movement to the right. Meanwhile
Bolivar, having descended this exposed path, had to defile a second time
to cross a small stream between the two hills. The enemy descended to
dispute his passage, which was effected under cover of a hot fire from
the infantry on both sides. The Apure battalion crossed first and were
nearly driven back, but the British crossed just in time to allow them
to re-form, while the Tiradores speedily came over to their assistance,
the hollow square formed by our countrymen having held the ground at the
critical moment of the day. By this time the cavalry were across and the
field was won, for the Spanish troops were unable to withstand the attack
of the llaneros, once these were in their natural element in the open
plains. La Torre and Morales made good their escape, owing to the gallant
stand made by the first Valencey battalion, while of the patriots,
Bolivar wrote that only 200 were killed or wounded. La Torre fled to
Puerto Cabello, and Bolivar marched on to Carácas.
Casual fighting continued for two years more, but the power of Spain was
finally broken at Carabobo, and the last royalist adherents capitulated
in Puerto Cabello on October 8, 1823.
In the meantime the Constitution of Great Colombia had been adopted by
the Congress of Cúcuta in August, 1821, but before long Venezuela found
her position in the Union far from satisfactory. The discontent found
voice in the municipality of Valencia in 1826, Páez being one of the
leaders of the separatists. Bolivar arrived in Puerto Cabello from the
west in 1827, having previously written to Páez, whose loyalty to his old
chief made him bow to his opinion. This, however, would not suffice to
make up for the bad state of agricultural industries and of the country
generally, and the murmurings broke out afresh. In 1828 Bolivar was given
dictatorial power by the Congress of Colombia, while on the other hand
plots were formed by the malcontents to assassinate him. In the following
year, during Colombia’s squabbles with Peru, Carácas and Valencia
repudiated Bolivar, and on January 13, 1830, Páez declared Venezuela
independent of Colombia.
The last Colombian Congress met in the “conference of Cúcuta,” and
Bolivar finally retired from power on March 1st. Valencia even demanded
his expulsion. The sentimental attempt, carried through in spite of
practical opposition, to form so large a single State of three groups
of settlements, separated by wide areas without roads or other means of
communication, seems but another instance of the frequent inability of
a gallant soldier to play a worthy part in the politics of the land he
has served. It was, nevertheless, a melancholy period of the history of
Venezuela when the liberator of half of South America, as well as of
his own land, was left to retire broken-hearted to Santa Marta in New
Granada, where he died of phthisis on December 17, 1830, and was buried
in the little church of the town.
But though Bolivar was unhonoured in his death, the main object to which
he had devoted his life was attained, and, as we shall see, after twelve
years his services were duly recognised by the country and town which
gave him birth. The next period of Venezuelan history lasts to 1864,
during which the centralist Constitution was in force, to be changed
afterwards to the federal type which exists to-day.
One of his generals, Monágas, still remained loyal to Bolivar’s views,
and for some years continued his efforts to persuade the powers that were
in Venezuela to join themselves again with Colombia. In April, 1831,
however, the new Congress assembled and formally elected General José
Antonio Páez as President of the republic; an embassy was dispatched to
Bogotá, and Carácas was declared the capital on May 25th. Early in the
following year their independence was formally recognised by Colombia,
and measures were taken to provide for the efficient administration of
the country, which was divided into three districts, the Oriente, Centro,
and Occidente, the supreme courts of each being at Cumaná, Valencia, and
Maracaibo respectively.
The third Venezuelan Congress met in January, 1833, and proceeded to
incorporate the wandering soldiers of the revolution into a regular army,
and to arrange the division of the public debt and other agreements with
Colombia and Ecuador.
At the end of 1834 there were four candidates for the presidency, of
whom Doctor José Maria Vargas was elected in 1835; a good omen for the
country, inasmuch as Vargas was a scholar, not a soldier, and his claim
to the confidence of his country rested on more solid grounds than those
of his military opponents. He was only prevailed upon with difficulty to
stand, or to act when elected, but displayed a praiseworthy loftiness of
motive while in office. Mariño, however, showed his shallow and selfish
nature once more in raising discontent amongst those who considered
that might should triumph over right rather than the reverse; Vargas
resigned early in 1836, and for the rest of this presidential term the
vice-president carried out the duties of the office.
In 1839 Páez was again elected President, and in that year did much to
increase the prosperity of the country and to raise its position in South
America. The cart-road from La Guaira to Carácas was opened, and another
commenced between Puerto Cabello and Valencia. The liberty of the press
was so far increased that A. L. Guzman was able to start the journal _El
Venezolano_ in opposition to the existing Government, and in support of
the Federal ideal of the newly formed Liberal party, the Centralists
being known as the Oligarca. In the following year a colonisation scheme
was put forward, and a national college for girls opened, while an
attempt was made to found a national bank in 1841. This year also saw
authority given to the executive to take measures for the education and
civilisation of the aborigines, and to put in hand the standard works on
the geography and history of Venezuela by Codazzi and Baralt.
In 1842, the last year of Páez’s second presidency, the gradually
increasing appreciation of Bolivar’s services to his country culminated
on April 30th in a decree of public honours to the “Libertador,” as he
was now styled, and burial in state in Carácas. The Venezuelan boats
_Constitucion_ and _Carácas_, H.M.S. _Albatross_, the Dutch warship _La
Venus_, and the French frigate _Circe_, accordingly left La Guaira,
bearing a deputation of influential men, including Vargas, and reached
Santa Marta on November 16th. The people of Nueva Granada recognised
willingly the prior claims of Carácas, as Bolivar’s birthplace, and
his body was borne back on the _Constitucion_. A permanent triumphal
arch had been erected in his honour at the foot of El Calvario, and the
remains were laid to rest in the chapel of the Holy Trinity in Carácas
Cathedral, being transferred later to the Pantheon.
General Carlos Soublette was elected President in 1843, in which year
France formally recognised the republic, while Spain followed in March,
1845. A further honour was done to the Liberator by renaming Angostura
Ciudad Bolivar on May 31, 1845.
The foreign trade of Venezuela had tripled since 1830, the debt had
been reduced from 9,372,448.44 pesos to 2,085,595.72 pesos, and General
Urdaneta was in London, endeavouring to raise a loan to enable the
Government to free the slaves. The country was, therefore, in a fair way
of prosperity, but opposition to the centralist form of government was
not decreasing. It would seem, notwithstanding, that under wise rulers
this grievance could have been redressed without the first of that series
of revolutions which, beginning not many years later, made Venezuela a
byword in the latter half of the nineteenth century.
In 1847 General José Tadeo Monágas was elected President, and commenced
his period of office by sentencing Guzman, the editor of _El Venezolano_,
to death, subsequently commuting the penalty to banishment. For this
act of tyranny he was censured by Congress in the following year, and
retaliated by dissolving the Assembly with armed force, not without
bloodshed. As a not unnatural result, Páez attempted to start an
insurrection against him in Calabozo, but was forced to fly to Colombia,
and a similar rising in Maracaibo died out. The death penalty for
political offences was abolished by Congress, but Páez, on landing
in Coro in an attempt to continue his revolt, was overpowered and
capitulated; he broke his terms, however, and was imprisoned in the
fortress of Cumaná.
[Illustration: THE UNIVERSITY: CARÁCAS.]
By the end of 1850 Tadeo Monágas, having acquired power as a member of
the Oligarca, avowed himself a Liberal at the end of his presidency.
General José Gregorio Monágas was elected to succeed him, a man of whom
Tejera says that he was affable in temper, of a generous spirit, and
capable of noble actions. In 1854 he promulgated the decree abolishing
slavery within Venezuelan territory, March 24th.
The year 1855 saw J. T. Monágas re-elected. In this term the country was
divided into provinces identical with the States of to-day, though in
some cases the names differed. In 1857 it was reported that Guayana had
been sold by the President, and this rumour, with his repeated abuses of
power, led to the revolution of Valencia under General Julian Castro,
Governor of Carabobo, March 5, 1858.
This was the first serious internal dissension in Venezuela, but here we
have only the revolt of the people against a tyrant, not the attempt of
an individual to make himself master of the country on selfish grounds.
Taking as their motto _Union de los partidos, y olvido de lo pasado_, the
revolutionaries forced Monágas to take refuge in the French Legation,
Julian Castro being acclaimed Provisional President. Unfortunately,
despite the motto, one of his earliest acts was to imprison Monágas,
in direct violation of the promises given to the French and British
Legations, which led to an imbroglio with the two countries.
Meanwhile the seat of government was removed to Valencia, though
Carácas again became the capital after a few weeks, when, following
the success of Julian Castro’s rising, he being a Conservative, the
Liberals, with Zamora and Falcón as leaders, landed in Coro on July
24th. Castro was shortly afterwards captured and imprisoned, but the
Conservatives proclaimed Pedro Gual President, with Manuel Felipe Tovar
as Vice-President. Battles were fought between the Centralists and
Federalists in the streets of Carácas, and at Santa Ines and San Carlos,
but finally Falcón was defeated on March 17, 1860, and Tovar elected as
constitutional President. Throughout 1861, however, Páez was actively
working against him, and finally, in 1862, was declared dictator.
In 1863, after a conference between the dictator’s secretary and General
Guzman Blanco, leader of the Federals of the Centro, the “_convenio de
Coche_” allowed the National Assembly to nominate Falcón President and
Guzman Blanco Vice-President, while Páez left for the United States.
After the elections public works of some magnitude were authorised and
a £1,500,000 European loan. Finally, on March 28, 1864, the new Federal
Constitution was adopted, whereby the United States of Venezuela came
into being, consisting of twenty sovereign States, with a Federal
two-chamber Legislature, an Executive of President and six ministers, and
judicial power in the hands of a high Federal court holding jurisdiction
in international affairs. The death penalty was abolished, with
imprisonment for debt, the rights of meeting and of a free press were
established, and in other respects the Constitution took the general form
which it has to-day.
At the close of Falcón’s presidency the Centralists again attempted
forcibly to gain power under the leadership of the changeable J. T.
Monágas, by whom Carácas was occupied in June. He died in November, and
J. R. Monágas was chosen provisional President in 1869. The Federalists
meanwhile were endeavouring to regain their position by force of arms,
with the result that Monágas was never elected, and on April 27, 1870,
Guzman Blanco was able to call together a Congress which nominated him
provisional President. Owing to continued disturbances he was only
formally elected towards the end of 1872. In 1874 an Act was passed
reducing the presidential period from four years to two, and Francisco
Linares Alcantara was elected in 1877, but the fatal series of individual
revolutions now begins with Gregorio Cedeño, by whom Carácas was occupied
in February, 1879.
Guzman Blanco was immediately recalled from Europe and hailed as
_Director Supremo de la Revindicacion Nacional_, being made provisional
President by the new Congress, and formally elected in 1880, and again in
1882, doing much to advance the reputation of his country during these
years. General Joaquin Crespo, a llanero, who had been Minister of War
since 1870, succeeded him for the period 1884-6, but in the latter year
Guzman Blanco, again President, was dispatched by Congress to Europe
as plenipotentiary. Doctor Rojas Paul and R. A. Palacio successively
occupied the presidential chair till 1892, by which time Venezuela’s
trade had reached an amount never touched before or since, and the
country was generally in a prosperous condition.
Despite the advance made by Venezuela during the period from 1880 to
1892, throughout which Guzman Blanco was either actually or virtually
President, his rule was at times unduly autocratic, and his affection for
statues of himself and for high-sounding titles, such as “_El Ilustre
Americano_,” seems strange in a man with so great business ability both
on behalf of his country and himself. In time he might have raised
Venezuela to a position comparable to that of Mexico under Diaz, but as
it was the less attractive and dignified side of his character began, for
the time being, to undermine the affection and esteem in which he had
been held by his countrymen, and a desire for a change of control became
general. It is hardly necessary to add that the Venezuelans of to-day
remember only the beneficent aspects of his periods of office.
Unfortunately, the example of Cedeño, and the successful internal
revolutions of earlier days, had not been forgotten, and now Crespo
secured his re-election by force, his first act being to restore the
presidential period to four years. In 1898 he was succeeded by José
Andrade, formerly Venezuelan Minister at Washington, and though his
period of office was short it was important as marking the settlement
of a dispute which, after lasting for over sixty years, nearly led to a
rupture between this country and the United States.
From the early days of the independence of Venezuela continual protests
had been made by the representatives of the republic against the alleged
encroachments of residents and officials from British Guiana. Briefly,
the contentions raised by the two parties were: on the part of Venezuela,
that the Dutch, to whom we were successors, had only claimed jurisdiction
on the east side of the Essequibo River; on the part of Great Britain,
that the Dutch had in 1759 and 1769 put forward the claim that their
territory included, not merely the Essequibo River but the whole of the
basin drained by that river and its tributaries. This claim was never
rebutted by the authorities in Madrid.
So the dispute dragged on, the British Government refusing to consent to
arbitration of the boundary unless it was previously agreed by Venezuela
that such parts of the Essequibo Valley as had been effectively occupied
by British colonists were recognised as their territory. In April,
1895, the arrest by the Venezuelan authorities of two inspectors of the
British Guiana Police on the Cuyuni River brought matters to a crisis.
The inspectors were soon released, but Crespo appealed to Washington
for protection against any claim for indemnity. President Cleveland
took up the cause of Venezuela on the ground that any action by Great
Britain would constitute an infringement of the Monroe Doctrine, and
in December, 1895, sent his two famous messages to Congress, in which
he declared that any forcible action by this country would constitute
a _casus belli_ with the United States. For a time great excitement
prevailed in Carácas, associations being formed for the boycott of
British goods and for national defence. Fortunately, wiser counsels
prevailed on both sides and diplomatic relations were resumed in 1897,
the matter being submitted to arbitration, and finally settled by the
award of the tribunal of Paris on October 3, 1899.
Hardly had this long-standing and vexatious external dispute been
cleared up when the prosperity of Venezuela was once again threatened by
internal dissension. Cipriano Castro, a Tachiran, had in May declared
his intention of avenging a real or intended slight received from the
Government, and, after marching through the Andes at the head of the
so-called _Ejercito Restaurador_, fighting several successful battles on
the way, he entered Carácas late in October. The executive power, which
he immediately assumed, was only confirmed by an _Asamblea Constituyente_
in February, 1901.
In March of that year a new Constitution was decreed, whereby the
presidential period was extended to six years, and Castro was duly
elected to the office. In 1902 the “Matos” revolution broke out, under
the general of that name; this appears to have been a genuine popular
revolt, and almost proved successful when in the autumn of the year a
tactical mistake on the part of the revolutionists left Castro master of
the country.
No attempt was made to compensate foreigners for the damage to property
suffered by them during these various revolutions, and in view of the
accumulation of claims the powers chiefly concerned—Great Britain,
Germany, and Italy—declared a blockade of the ports of Venezuela in
January, 1903, which had the desired effect of persuading Castro’s
Government to agree to the arbitration of the various claims by third
parties. Though the allied Powers demanded that their claims should be
settled first, the counter-demand of Venezuela, that all the Powers,
peaceful and otherwise, should be treated alike, was upheld by the Hague
Tribunal, and protocols with all the countries were signed within a few
months.
A second change of the Constitution was decreed in April, 1904, whereby
it was made possible for Castro to be again declared provisional
President, and in June of the following year he was elected for the term
1905-11, with General Gomez again as one of the Vice-Presidents, the
other being José Antonio Velutini.
Once securely possessed of the presidency, Castro’s rule became that of a
Dictator, and though his strength of purpose might well have made him a
national hero had he been animated by love of country, his selfish abuse
of power rendered his period of office a time of retrogression throughout
the republic. Vicious reprisals for real or fancied slights and equally
capricious distribution of rewards to those who obeyed his behests, while
they produced as much satisfaction as discontent amongst individuals,
left the thoughtful man with a feeling of insecurity which was fatal
to any real advance in commercial or general prosperity. An equally
whimsical expenditure of money on public works of questionable utility
tended only to aggravate the dissatisfaction amongst the wiser heads of
the community.
When, after nearly five years of despotism, he started for Europe in
1909, leaving, it was said, secret instructions to assassinate General
Gomez, of whose popularity he was jealous, the discontent found vent in
a general acclamation of the latter’s _coup d’état_, whereby he secured
his safety, the admiration of the soldiery, and the presidential power,
without deliberately shedding Venezuelan blood, A new Constitution was
promulgated in November, 1909, reverting in general to the form of 1864,
and in April, 1910, the elections established General Juan Vicente Gomez
as Constitutional President for the current term.
Since that time the centenary of the independence of the republic has
been celebrated in Carácas, at which period the ex-Dictator’s carefully
planned attempt to occupy the country was frustrated by the seizure of
his ships as piratical vessels in Haiti. The new President has shown
himself eager to promote the welfare of the country and to encourage
commerce, Consuls have been appointed to stations where, since the time
of Guzman Blanco, there have been none; the application of foreign
capital to the development of the resources of the country has been
encouraged, with due regard to the rights of the inhabitants; and, more
than all, the spirit of the country at large, wearied with the fifty
revolutions of the last eighty years, is opposed to further civil strife,
and inclined to maintain that internal peace the benefits of which are
already being enjoyed.