The Latin American wars of independence were notably conducive to the decline of the Spanish Empire however, the decline can not be attributed singularly to the Latin American wars of Independence as there were other subsidiary factors involved. The Latin American wars of independence were a series of revolutions within South America causing Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Peru, Mexico, Haiti and Columbia to become independent countries. These wars drained the Spanish Empire’s resources, enforcing its decline in the early 19th century. Prior to the wars of independence, poor economic conditions, the destruction of the Spanish Armada, as well as an imperialistic overstretch between territories, resulted in contributing to the downfall of the Spanish Empire. Colonial mismanagement in the Spanish Empire acted as a precluding catalyst in causing the Latin American wars of Independence, thus contributing to the fall of the Spanish Empire. The Latin American wars of Independence, whilst an influential factor in the decline of the Spanish Empire, were not the sole determinant in causing the downfall of the Spanish Empire. The Latin American wars of independence contributed to the fall of the Spanish Empire to a considerable extent, being the final element amongst other collective factors which ultimately resulted in the collapse of the Spanish Empire.
During the 17th century, there were many indications of Spain’s erosion of power; the collapse of the empire itself was one that occurred over many years, as a direct result of the Latin American wars of independence amongst other reasons. According to historian John Huxtable Elliot, by 1640, ‘The Empire Which Had Dominated The world scene for the best part of the century seemed at last…on the verge of collapse.’ Prior to the Wars of Independence, as Elliot states, in the mid-17th century, monetary mismanagement and domestic economic stagnation within the Spanish empire was evident as a cause of decline. The Spanish crown, inundated with gold and silver from the New World had flooded Europe with the precious metals lowering their commodity value. The Spanish economy never innovated on the scale necessary to keep up with the industrial economies of the UK, France, the US, and Germany. As a result of the uninformed export of gold and silver from the New World, inflation within the Spanish Empire caused a status of economic underdevelopment, ensuring dependence of foreign sources of raw materials and manufactured goods. Inflation is defined as a sustained increase in the general level of prices for goods and services. As inflation rises, every dollar buys a smaller percentage of a good or service. The Spanish Empire did not possess the foresight to set tax rates when accounting the inflation of silver, a direct result of this being the weakened economy which was a contributing factor to the downfall of the Spanish Empire. Spain did not become a productive bourgeoisie, but rather part of an economically inefficient aristocracy, as demonstrated through lack of middle-class society due to heavy taxation on peasants. The weakened state of economy left the Spanish Empire indebted during the Latin American wars of Independence, which amongst other factors, substantially contributed to the decline of the Spanish Empire.
Moreover, the Latin American wars of Independence were prevalent in the downfall of the Spanish Empire, amidst supplementary factors, including the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588. The destruction of the Spanish Armada devastated the maritime power and prestige of Spain, as well as laying the foundation for British naval supremacy, resulting in the advancement of Britain as a global power and the regression of Spanish influence and authority. The demolition of the Spanish Armada eliminated the possibility of Spanish invasion within Europe and terminated the Spanish crusade for the extirpation of Protestantism. Furthermore, the defeat demonstrated the Spanish Empires inability to defend its own territory, thus implying the concept of imperialistic overstretch; a notion suggesting that an empire can extend itself beyond its ability to maintain or expand its military and economic commitments. Historian, Paul Kennedy stresses the religious dimensions of psychosomatic hubris and palpable overstretch. Kennedy states; ‘Great Power ascendency correlates strongly to available resources and economic durability; military overstretch and concomitant relative declines are the consistent threat facing powers whose ambitions and security requirements are greater than their resource base can provide for.’ The Spanish Empire validates Kennedy’s statement as evident within its economic and military weaknesses prior to its downfall. In the first half of the 16th century, a major ideological consideration was defence and proliferation of the Catholic faith. The last quarter of the century portrays a militarily centred approach; the Armada being an example of this focus. The destruction of the Spanish Armada was a pertinent influence on the downfall of the Spanish Empire, occurring prior to the Latin American wars of Independence which extensively correlated to cause the decline of the Spanish Empire.
Subsequently, the Latin American wars of Independence majorly facilitated the failure of the Spanish Empire, preceding these wars, colonial mismanagement laid down the foundations for the wars of independence by mistreatment and enslaving of the Native Americans. Huamán Poma, a Peruvian Native American, wrote about unfair treatment of Native Americans: ‘It is their [the Spanish] practice to collect Indians into groups and send them to forced labour without wages, while they themselves receive the payment.’An example of forced labour were grants of Native American labour given to Spanish colonists, these grants were known as encomienda’s. The Spanish also created large estates called haciendas, Native Americans were slaves on these estates and worked to produce crops such as coffee and cotton. The encomienda and hacienda systems ensured that the Spaniards held authority within the Americas. Spanish born colonists made up the top layer of colonial society followed by Creoles, people of Spanish descent born in the colonies. The last layer within the social hierarchy consisted of Native Americans, these people had the least power and fewest rights. In addition to slavery, forced religious assimilation was also imposed; the Spanish anticipated that conversion to Catholicism would ensure that the Native Americans remained loyal to the Spanish colonial government by being taught the Christian virtue of obedience. The Spanish converted the Native Americans through destruction of traditional Native American temples and idols, replacing them with missionary churches. Zumarraga, the first Bishop of Mexico, destroyed over 500 temples and 20 000 idols by 1531. The dictated integration of Spanish religion into Native American culture, in conjunction with the incessant reign of slavery and mistreatment instigated the mentality of liberation and independence amongst the Native Latin American people. Thus triggering the Latin American wars of Independence, which substantially expedited the degeneration of the Spanish Empire.
The Latin American wars of Independence were one of the combined elements that caused the deterioration of the Spanish Empire. Wars of independence led to fragmentation of political power, militarisation of society, and mobilisation for war of resources and men, which triggered the decline of the already crumbling Spanish Empire. In the early 19th century, Spain had accumulated a massive invasion force, which was supposedly going to put an end to the rebellion, but before the invasion force left, a conspiracy of mid-ranking officers in the expedition at Cadiz mutinied before they were shipped to the Americas. Led by Rafael del Riego, the conspirators seized their commander and led their army around Andalusia hoping to gather support; garrisons across Spain declared their support for the would-be revolutionaries. This gave the Latin American leaders the time they needed to swing the tide against Spanish loyalists in America. By the mid 1820s virtually all of the Spanish colonies had slipped from Spain’s grasp. The nearly decade and a half of wars greatly weakened the Spanish economy and political institutions, which hindered the region's potential economic development for most of the nineteenth century and resulted in the enduring instability the region experienced. Whilst other global powers expanded their empires and advanced industrially, Spanish territories were reduced dramatically due to Latin American wars of Independence. Historian Mark Eric Williams, states: ‘By 1898, Spain was profoundly weak.’ Cuba and the Philippines launched similar struggles of independence in the 1890’s leaving the Spanish Empire further indebted with the costs of war. The costs of war being: Training, equipment, supplies, veterans benefits, interest on past war debts, effects of rising national debt, military force salaries, facilities, transport of soldiers etc. The Spanish Empire’e economy was already in poor condition, thus the Latin American wars of Independence acted as a catalyst, causing further disintegration of the Empire itself.
Irrevocably, whilst the Latin American wars of Independence played a preponderant role in the decline of the Spanish Empire, the downfall occurred due to a number of collaborative elements. Inflation causing the Empire to become impecunious, causing deficient economic conditions and demoting economic growth. The defeat of the Spanish Armada, depreciating Spain’s global prestige amongst advancing foreign powers. Colonial mismanagement and mistreatment of native South Americans, stimulating the Latin American wars of Independence, which in turn led to a depletion of resources and land within the Spanish Empire. The Latin American wars of Independence contributed to the decline of the Spanish Empire to a considerable extent, however it was effectively the cumulative influences which consequently resulted in the downfall of the Spanish Empire.