Empire: World History 356. Liberator of Latin America: Descent Into Tyranny (Part 3)
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May 4, 2026 A gripping retelling of a daring Andes crossing that birthed Gran Colombia. Tales of foreign mercenaries who crossed oceans to fight the Spanish. Haiti’s abolitionist influence on Bolívar and shifting views on slavery. Forgotten women fighters, spies, and funders who shaped the wars. The rise of central power, constitutional clashes, and the slide toward lifelong rule.
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Jamaica Letter Condemns Slavery Without A Plan
- Simón Bolívar's Jamaica Letter mixed Enlightenment rhetoric with vague plans on slavery and governance.
- He condemned slavery as a crime but offered no concrete timing or policies for emancipation, focusing mainly on Creole interests.
Haiti Shifts Bolívar Toward Abolitionist Rhetoric
- Bolívar's exile in Haiti transformed his rhetoric to embrace racial equality and abolition as part of his republican project.
- Alexandre Pétion supported Bolívar with weapons and soldiers and urged unity of free men of all colours.
Mercenaries From Waterloo Join Bolívar
- After Waterloo unemployed veterans became mercenaries in South America, swelling Bolívar's forces with British, Irish, Germans and some Bengalis.
- These battle-hardened troops nearly doubled his army and brought Napoleonic experience to the wars.