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145-647: Backed by the Catholic Church, conservatives of the Aycinena clan led by Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol , and mestizo and indigenous peasants, he dominated politics in the first three decades of Guatemala's independence more than any other individual. He led the revolt against the liberal state government of Mariano Gálvez in Guatemala, and then was instrumental in breaking up the Federal Republic of Central America that

290-426: A royal decree freeing all slaves who fled to Spanish Florida and accepted Catholic conversion and baptism (since 1690), most went to the area around St. Augustine , but escaped slaves also reached Pensacola and Cuba . Also, a substantial number of blacks from Haiti (a French colony) arrived as refugees to Spanish Louisiana because of these greater freedoms. The Spanish Santa Teresa de Mose (Florida) became

435-412: A swineherd . By 1837, rural masses were voicing numerous grievances against the liberal government of Guatemala. Inexperienced in republican politics, the liberal leaders did not foresee the power of popular resistance and refused to change course. A cholera epidemic added to the frustration over grievances, led to panic, and helped Carrera rally the peasants into armed resistance. Strongly supported by

580-602: A "Declaration guarantees" which was very similar to the declaration of human rights statements made during the French Revolution ; unfortunately, the results of his work were practically nil. Juan José Aycinena managed to get himself elected as a representative in the Interim Advisory Board, was a member of the Central Federal Congress in 1838 by the province of Totonicapán , and was chief minister during

725-516: A "little king". Carrera was born on 24 October 1814 in the Candelaria barrio of Guatemala City towards the end of the Spanish colonial period. He was of humble origin, a mestizo and illiterate. He first worked as a farmhand. He enlisted in the army during the civil war, which lasted from 1826 to 1829. In 1835, he left the army and moved to Mataquescuintla where he married Petrona García and worked as

870-567: A 500-man contingent entered through Piñuelas, Agua Blanca and Jutiapa , led by General Vicente Baquero, but the majority of the invading force marched from Metapán. The Allied army was composed of 4,500 men led by Vasconcelos, as Commander in Chief. Other commanders were the generals José Santos Guardiola , Ramón Belloso , José Trinidad Cabañas and Gerardo Barrios . Guatemala was able to recruit 2,000 men, led by Lieutenant General Carrera as Commander in Chief, with several colonels. Carrera's strategy

1015-578: A Portuguese term, however, differs in that it refers to Brazilians of African ancestry . Spaniards born in the Spanish East Indies were called insulares . Whites born in colonial Brazil, with both parents born in the Iberian Peninsula, were known as mazombos . Europeans began arriving in Latin America during the Spanish conquest; and during the colonial period most European immigration

1160-551: A cause for this turmoil. It was only "under the rule of non criollos such as the Indian Benito Juárez and the Mestizo Porfiro Díaz " that Mexico "experienced relative [periods of] calm." By the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the criollo identity "began to disappear," with the institution of mestizaje and Indigenismo policies by the national government, which stressed a uniform homogenization of

1305-530: A commercial site and on August 6, 1832, then State of Guatemala Governor, Dr. Mariano Gálvez , issued a decree to build a theater in the Old Central Square site. However, political climate was very tense in the country and when the civil war between liberal and conservative parties escalated, Gálvez was overthrown and the theater could not be built. The project was revisited in 1852, when Juan Matheu and Manuel Francisco Pavón Aycinena presented Carrera with

1450-599: A dangerous jungle infested with jaguars to meet his former friend. When they met, Zavala not only did not capture him, but agreed to serve under his orders, thus sending a strong message to both liberal and conservatives in Guatemala City that they would have to negotiate with Carrera or battle on two fronts – Quetzaltenango and Jalapa. Carrera went back to the Quetzaltenango area, while Zavala remained in Suchitepéquez as

1595-524: A decade, he was content being a military commander and enjoyed the respect of his followers. Even though they distrusted and despised him, the conservative criollos from the Aycinena Clan, decided to support Carrera in the hope of regaining the power and privileges that they had lost in 1829 after Morazán's invasion of Guatemala. Under the leadership of Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol the conservatives aimed to regain their place as Guatemala's elite from which

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1740-517: A detachment in Jutiapa and managed to get a small amount of booty which he handed to the volunteers who accompanied him and prepared to attack Petapa – near Guatemala City – where he was victorious, though with heavy casualties. In September of that year, he attempted an assault on the capital of Guatemala, but the liberal general Carlos Salazar Castro defeated him in the fields of Villa Nueva and Carrera had to retreat. After an unsuccessful attempt to take

1885-569: A disorderly retreat. Soon, all of the Allied troops started retreating. The 500 men of the rearguard pursued what was left of the Allied army, which desperately fled for the borders of their respective countries. The final count of the Allied losses were 528 dead, 200 prisoners, 1,000 rifles, 13,000 rounds of ammunition, many pack animals and baggage, 11 drums and seven artillery pieces. Vasconcelos sought refuge in El Salvador , while two Generals mounted on

2030-594: A friend: Now he is the King of the Indians, indeed! Guzmán then left for Jalapa, where he struck a deal with the rebels, while Luis Batres Juarros convinced president Paredes to deal with Carrera. Back in Guatemala City within a few months, Carrera was commander-in-chief, backed by military and political support of the Indian communities from the densely populated western highlands. During the first presidency from 1844 to 1848, he brought

2175-578: A fully-fledged independence movement. At the conspiración de los machetes , soldiers and criollo traders attacked colonial properties "in the name of Mexico and the Virgen de Guadalupe." As news of Napoleon I 's armies occupying Spain reached Mexico, Spanish-born peninsulares such as Gabriel de Yermo strongly opposed criollo proposals of governance, deposed the viceroy, and assumed power. However, even though Spaniards maintained power in Mexico City, revolts in

2320-537: A large force of armed natives and supplies had gathered at the Culumpich, a property owned by Jacinto Pat, the Maya batab (leader), near Valladolid. Fearing revolt, Mendez arrested Manuel Antonio Ay , the principal Maya leader of Chichimilá, accused of planning a revolt, and executed him at the town square of Valladolid. Furthermore, Méndez searching for other insurgents burned the town of Tepich and repressed its residents. In

2465-402: A large scale; not long after the henequen boom, a boom in sugar production led to more wealth. The sugar and henequén plantations encroached on native communal land, and native workers recruited to work on the plantations were mistreated and underpaid. However, rebel leaders in their correspondence with British Honduras (Belize) were more often inclined to cite taxation as the immediate cause of

2610-566: A letter to the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Relations, in which he demanded that the Guatemalan president relinquish power, so that the alliance could designate a new head of state loyal to the liberals and that Carrera be exiled, escorted to any of the Guatemalan southern ports by a Salvadorean regiment. The Guatemalan government did not accept the terms and the Allied army entered Guatemalan territory at three different places. On 29 January,

2755-469: A liberal newspaper established with that specific goal; Vasconcelos gave support during a whole year to a rebel faction "La Montaña", in eastern Guatemala, providing and distributing money and weapons. By late 1850, Vasconcelos was getting impatient at the slow progress of the war with Guatemala and decided to plan an open attack. Under that circumstance, the Salvadorean head of state started a campaign against

2900-512: A military approach that combined alternately guerrilla and conventional warfare enabled him to reconstitute his forces while keeping some degree of pressure on the government. Without any permanent means of financing the struggle, Carrera was able to bring together large forces for significant operations, and then send his soldiers back to their farms after engagement. The government, on the other hand, had to spend precious resources fielding permanent forces. After recovering to some extent, he attacked

3045-540: A native revolt, much like that of 1840; their only request from Carrera was to keep the natives under control. The altenses did not comply, and led by Guzmán and his forces, they started chasing Carrera; the caudillo hid helped by his native allies and remained under their protection when the forces of Miguel Garcia Granados – who arrived from Guatemala City were looking for him. On learning that officer José Víctor Zavala had been appointed as Corregidor in Suchitepéquez, Carrera and his hundred jacalteco bodyguards crossed

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3190-644: A new Indian identity under Carrera's leadership. In the meantime, in the eastern part of Guatemala, the Jalapa region became increasingly dangerous; former president Mariano Rivera Paz and rebel leader Vicente Cruz were both murdered there after trying to take over the Corregidor office in 1849. When Carrera arrived to Chiantla in Huehuetenango , he received two altenses emissaries who told him that their soldiers were not going to fight his forces because that would lead to

3335-506: A new plan. Once approved, Carrera commissioned Matheu himself and Miguel Ruiz de Santisteban to build the theater. Initially it was in charge of engineer Miguel Rivera Maestre, but he quit after a few months and was replaced by German expert José Beckers, who built the Greek façades and added a lobby. This was the first monumental building ever built in the Republican era of Guatemala, a sign that in

3480-530: A number of cities," his forces failed to capture Mexico City. In the summer of 1811, Hidalgo was captured by the Spanish and executed. Despite being led by a criollo, many criollos did not initially join the Mexican independence movement, and it was reported that "fewer than one hundred criollos fought with Hidalgo," despite their shared caste status. While many criollos in the period resented their "second-class status" compared to peninsulares , they were "afraid that

3625-617: A peaceful solution, but altenses, protected by the recognition of the Central American Federation Congress, did not accept; Guatemala's government then resorted to force, sending Carrera as commanding general of the Army to subdue Los Altos. Carrera defeated General Agustin Guzman when the former Mexican officer tried to ambush him and then went on to Quetzaltenango , where he imposed a harsh and hostile conservative regime instead of

3770-656: A period of severe economic decline," internal political turmoil, and substantial loss of territory. Leadership "changed hands 48 times between 1825 and 1855" alone, "and the period witnessed both the Mexican-American War and the loss of Mexico's northern territories to the United States in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase ." Some credit the " criollos ' inexperience in government" and leadership as

3915-562: A pike as a warning to all followers of the Guatemalan caudillo. On learning this, Carrera and his wife Petrona – who had come to confront Morazán as soon as they learned of the invasion and were in Mataquescuintla – swore they would never forgive Morazán even in his grave; they felt it impossible to respect anyone who would not avenge family members. After sending several envoys, whom Carrera would not receive – especially Barrundia whom Carrera did not want to murder in cold blood – Morazán began

4060-592: A priest was pastor of the Cathedral of Guatemala for four years, and became archbishop of attorney court. Obtained the Sagrario Parish in 1822 and, even though he had been prosecutor in the ecclesiastical curia for some years, took over as synodal judge Guatemala during the years 1824 to 1859. He participated in the independence events in Central America in 1821, along with his uncle Mariano de Aycinena y Piñol , who

4205-493: A privileged economic situation, they faced limitations in accessing the high administrative positions that the Spanish empire reserved for the peninsular. This is how, after the independence of the United States and the French Revolution , among the enlightened Criollo elite, the spirit of independence from the Spanish Empire arose from the general captaincy of Guatemala. This would be consolidated by 1821 although time later

4350-401: A scorched earth offensive, destroying villages in his path and stripping them of their few assets. The Carrera forces had to hide in the mountains . Believing that Carrera was totally defeated, Morazán and Barrundia marched on to Guatemala City , where they were welcomed as saviors by the state governor Pedro Valenzuela and members of the conservative Aycinena Clan, who proposed to sponsor one of

4495-472: A small fort in Mita, and without any weapons. Knowing that Morazán was going to attack El Salvador, Francisco Ferrera gave arms and ammunition to Carrera and convinced him to attack Guatemala City. Meanwhile, despite insistent advice to definitely crush Carrera and his forces, Salazar tried to negotiate with him diplomatically; he even went as far as to show that he neither feared nor distrusted Carrera by removing

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4640-520: A small powerful elite. However, Spaniards were often the most numerous ethnic group in the colonial cities, and there were menial workers and people in poverty who were of Spanish origin throughout all of Latin America. The criollos allowed a syncretism in their culture and gastronomy, and they, in general, felt more identified with the territory where they were born than with the Iberian peninsula. Evidence

4785-488: A tactical maneuver. Carrera received a visit from a Cabinet member of Paredes and told him that he had control of the native population and that he assured Paredes that he would keep them appeased. When the emissary returned to Guatemala City, he told the president everything Carrera said, and added that the native forces were formidable. Guzmán went to Antigua Guatemala to meet with another group of Paredes emissaries; they agreed that Los Altos would rejoin Guatemala, and that

4930-457: A war started between the natives and the mestizo and criollo populations; this war seemed rooted in the defense of communal lands against the expansion of private ownership, which was accentuated by the boom in the production of henequén , which was an important industrial fiber used to make rope. After discovering the value of the plant, the wealthier Yucateco criollos (local-born Spaniards) started plantations, beginning in 1833, to cultivate it on

5075-691: A wider musical scale than the indigenous pentatonic , and a melodic and poetic repertoire, transmitted by writings such as songbooks, common of it is the sung voice, common in the European baroque music, the mixed aesthetics are the fruit of diverse contributions indigenous, African and especially, Spanish and European. Instruments introduced by the Spanish are the chirimías , sackbuts , dulcians , orlos, bugles , violas , guitars , violins , harps , organs , etc., along with percussions (that can be indigenous or African), everything converges on music heard by everyone. The Dominican Diego Durán in 1570 writes, "All

5220-676: Is a term used originally to describe people of full Spanish descent born in the viceroyalties . In different Latin American countries, the word has come to have different meanings, mostly referring to the local-born majority. Historically, they have been misportrayed as a social class in the hierarchy of the overseas colonies established by Spain beginning in the 16th century, especially in Hispanic America . They were locally-born people–almost always of Spanish ancestry, but also sometimes of other European ethnic backgrounds. Their identity

5365-425: Is their authorship of works demonstrating an attachment to and pride in the natives and their history. They sometimes criticized the crimes of the conquistadores , often denouncing and defending natives from abuse. In the colony's last two centuries criollos rebelled in response to the harsh suppression of Indigenous uprisings. They allowed the natives and the mestizos (indigenous/European mixed) to be schooled in

5510-563: The criollos ." Despite being descendants of Spanish colonizers, many criollos in the period peculiarly "regarded the Aztecs as their ancestors and increasingly identified with the Indians out of a sense of shared suffering at the hands of the Spanish." Many felt that the story of the Virgin of Guadalupe , published by criollo priest Miguel Sánchez in Imagen de la Virgen María (Appearance of

5655-542: The Law of Coartación or "slave law" was created since the 16th century, reaching its maximum peak in the 18th century, which made the black slaves to buy their freedom, through periodic payments to their owner, which eventually led to freedom. Others were freed and purchased by family members or allied whites. It was a consuetudinary act in Spanish America; it allowed the appearance of a large population of free blacks in all of

5800-588: The Order of St. Gregory the Great in 1854. One year after his death, coins were issued in his honor with his face and the title: “Founder of the Republic of Guatemala.” direct central rule, 1826–27 Juan Jos%C3%A9 de Aycinena y Pi%C3%B1ol Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol ( Guatemala City , 29 August 1792 – Guatemala City, 17 February 1865) was an ecclesiastical and intellectual conservative in Central America. He

5945-755: The Oruro Rebellion prosecuted in Buenos Aires, and also for the lawsuit filed against Dr. Juan José Segovia , born in Tacna , and Colonel Ignacio Flores , born in Quito , who had served as President of the Real Audiencia of Charcas and had been Governor Mayor of La Plata (Chuquisaca or Charcas, current Sucre ). Until 1760, the Spanish colonies were ruled under laws designed by the Spanish Habsburgs , which granted

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6090-529: The Spanish American Wars of Independence , criollos like Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla , Simón Bolívar and José de San Martín became the main supporters of independence from Spanish rule in their respective countries. The word is used today in some countries as an adjective defining something local or very typical of a particular Latin American country. The word criollo and its Portuguese cognate crioulo are believed by some scholars, including

6235-579: The War of 1863 . At Coatepeque the Guatemalans suffered a severe defeat , which was followed by a truce. Honduras joined with El Salvador, and Nicaragua and Costa Rica with Guatemala. The contest was finally settled in favor of Carrera, who besieged and occupied San Salvador, and dominated Honduras and Nicaragua. He continued to act in concert with the Clerical Party, and tried to maintain friendly relations with

6380-538: The spanish caste system of central america they had greater access to higher education. Many of them could receive a formal education, both in local schools and in universities in the colonial metropolis, Spain , or in other parts of America. This allowed them to have knowledge in law, administration and philosophy. In the Catholic church , many Criollos functioned as general officials of the church in America, such as bishops. Although many Central Americans who were part of

6525-503: The universities and art schools, and many natives and mestizos were actually notable painters and architects, mostly in the Andes, but also in Mexico. The mixed religious or secular music appears since the 16th century in Spanish and indigenous languages. Baroque music is imported from Spain but with European and African instruments (such as drums and congas ) appears. The Spanish also introduce

6670-466: The 1850s the country was finally enjoying some peace and prosperity. The Concordat of 1854 was an international treaty between Carrera and the Holy See , signed in 1852 and ratified by both parties in 1854. Through this, Guatemala gave the education of Guatemalan people to regular orders of the Catholic Church, committed to respect ecclesiastical property and monasteries, imposed mandatory tithing and allowed

6815-530: The American provinces broad autonomy. That situation changed by the Bourbon Reforms of 18th century during the reign of Charles III . Spain needed to extract increasing wealth from its colonies to support the European and global wars it needed to maintain the Spanish Empire . The Crown expanded the privileges of the peninsulares , who took over many administrative offices that had been filled by Criollos. At

6960-518: The Americas separated into a number of independent republics. The word criollo retains its original meaning in most Spanish-speaking countries in the Americas . In some countries, however, the word criollo has over time come to have additional meanings, such as "local" or "home-grown". For instance, comida criolla in Spanish-speaking countries refers to "local cuisine", not "cuisine of

7105-615: The Aycinena clan, although he did not return to that clan any property confiscated in 1829; in revenge, Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol voted for the dissolution of the Central American Federation in San Salvador a little later, forcing Morazán to return to El Salvador to fight to save his federal mandate. Along the way, Morazán increased repression in eastern Guatemala, as punishment for helping Carrera. Knowing that Morazán had gone to El Salvador, Carrera tried to take Salamá with

7250-570: The Central American nations. For the following centuries of Spanish domination, many Criollos in Central America owned large areas of land and agricultural businesses. There are several records of Spanish families in Central America with enormous fortunes who managed to obtain noble titles from the crown. Cities like Santiago de los Caballeros and Comayagua were political centers where many of them had properties and some of their economic activities were concentrated. Unlike other peoples of

7395-478: The Central American status quo, which in the following years began a civil war . Finally the Federation falls in 1841. In the middle of the 19th century the term "Criollos" would begin to disappear, this thanks to the fact that after the fall of the federation these republics would little by little begin to stop cataloging people by their origin or racial mix , thus the term Criollo would become only "White" although

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7540-591: The Chan Santa Cruz Maya as a "de facto" independent nation, in part because of the major trade between Chan Santa Cruz and British Honduras . During the first term as president, Carrera had brought the country back from extreme conservatism to a traditional moderation and kept a stable relationship among the natives, the criollos —who at the time were terrified of the Caste War in Yucatán—and himself; but in 1848,

7685-568: The Church, Carrera became de facto ruler of much of Guatemala and led a large uprising of Indians and poor peasants of mixed race in the east and south of the country, an area known as The Mountain. The movement was strongly pro-Catholic and eager to restore many of the colonial religious institutions and traditions that the liberals had abandoned. Francisco Morazán repeatedly drove Carrera's forces out of cities and towns, but Carrera's followers would retake places as soon as Morazán's army left. For almost

7830-466: The Conservative government of Rivera Paz; they had their own newspaper – El Popular , which contributed to the harsh criticism. Moreover, Los Altos was the region with the main production and economic activity of the former state of Guatemala; without Los Altos, conservatives lost much of the resources that had given Guatemala hegemony in Central America. Then, the government of Guatemala tried to reach to

7975-670: The Council of State (1855–1862) and was also behind the return of the Jesuits to Guatemala in 1851. Finally, was the inspiration for the first Concordat signed between an American National Government and the Holy See . At the request of President Rafael Carrera , in 1859 he was consecrated bishop in partibus of Trajanopolis . Died in February 1865, the same year as General Rafael Carrera. Criollo people In Hispanic America , criollo ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkɾjoʝo] )

8120-636: The Criollos ' Viracocha '; also, he says that Criollos are born in the middle of the Indigenous, are respected, and also loved by many, that they speak the language of the natives (in addition to Spanish) and used to Indigenous customs. After suppressing the Túpac Amaru II Uprising of 1780 in the viceroyalty of Peru , evidence began against the criollos ill will from the Spanish Crown, especially for

8265-550: The European governments. Before his death, Carrera nominated his friend and loyal soldier, Army Marshall Vicente Cerna y Cerna, as his successor. The Belize region in the Yucatán Peninsula was long occupied by the Maya peoples but neglected by Spain and Guatemala, even though Spain made some exploratory expeditions in the 16th century that serve as her basis to claim the area as hers; Guatemala simply inherited that argument to claim

8410-527: The Mexican population under the Mestizo identity. As a result, "although some Mexicans are closer to the ethnicity of criollos than others" in contemporary Mexico, "the distinction is rarely made." During the Chicano movement , when leaders promoted the ideology of the "ancient homeland of Aztlán as a symbol of unity for Mexican Americans , leaders of the 1960s Chicano movement argued that virtually all modern Mexicans are Mestizos." The first great wave of Spanish settlers to Central American lands occurred after

8555-428: The Quetzaltenango, Carrera was surrounded and wounded, and he had to capitulate to the Mexican General Agustin Guzman, who had been in Quetzaltenango since the time of Vicente Filísola 's arrival in 1823. Morazán had the opportunity to shoot Carrera, but did not because he needed the support of the Guatemalan peasants to counter the attacks of Francisco Ferrera in El Salvador ; instead, Morazán left Carrera in charge of

8700-434: The Spanish peninsulares , "they felt they were unjustly treated and their relationship with their mother country was unstable and ambiguous: Spain was, and was not, their homeland," as noted by Mexican writer Octavio Paz . They [ criollos ] felt the same ambiguity in regard to their native land. It was difficult to consider themselves compatriots of the Indians and impossible to share their pre-Hispanic past. Even so,

8845-413: The Spanish monarchy, which suppressed expressions of open resentment from the criollos towards peninsulares for a short period. By 1623, criollos were involved in open demonstrations and riots in Mexico in defiance of their second-class status. In response, a visiting Spaniard by the name of Martín Carrillo noted, "the hatred of the mother country's domination is deeply rooted, especially among

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8990-435: The United Kingdom) and the United States, but none of these foreign powers would intervene, although the matter was taken seriously enough in the United States to be debated in Congress. Subsequently, therefore, he turned to Mexico, and accepted a return to Mexican authority. Yucatán was officially reunited with Mexico on 17 August 1848. Yucateco forces rallied, aided by fresh guns, money, and troops from Mexico, and pushed back

9135-477: The Virgin Mary) in 1648, "meant that God had blessed both Mexico and particularly criollos , as "God's new chosen people." By the eighteenth century, although restricted from holding elite posts in the colonial government, the criollos notably formed the "wealthy and influential" class of major agriculturalists, "miners, businessmen, physicians, lawyers, university professors, clerics, and military officers." Because criollos were not perceived as equals by

9280-450: The archdiocese. On 4 January 1851, Doroteo Vasconcelos and Juan Lindo met in Ocotepeque , Honduras, where they signed an alliance against Guatemala. The Salvadorean army had 4,000 men, properly trained and armed and supported by artillery; the Honduran army numbered 2,000 men. The coalition army was stationed in Metapán , El Salvador, due to its proximity with both the Guatemalan and Honduran borders. On 28 January 1851, Vasconcelos sent

9425-487: The area, whom he respected and protected. In 1840, Belgium began to act as an external source of support for Carrera's independence movement, in an effort to exert influence in Central America. The Compagnie belge de colonisation (Belgian Colonization Company), commissioned by Belgian King Leopold I , became the administrator of Santo Tomas de Castilla in Izabal replacing the failed British Eastern Coast of Central America Commercial and Agricultural Company . Even though

9570-441: The beginning of criollo rule in Mexico as they became "firmly in control of the newly independent state." Although direct Spanish rule was now gone, "by and large, Mexicans of primarily European descent governed the nation." The period was also marked by the expulsion of the peninsulares from Mexico, of which a substantial source of " criollo pro-expulsionist sentiment was mercantile rivalry between Mexicans and Spaniards during

9715-484: The best among them, if rather hazily, admired the past, even idealized it. It seemed to them that the ghost of the Roman empire had at times been embodied in the Aztec empire . The criollo dream was the creation of a Mexican empire, and its archetypes were Rome and Tenochtitlán . The criollos were aware of the bizarre nature of their situation, but, as happens in such cases, they were unable to transcend it — they were enmeshed in nets of their own weaving. Their situation

9860-420: The bishops to censor what was published in the country; in return, Guatemala received dispensations for the members of the army, allowed those who had acquired the properties that the liberals had expropriated from the Church in 1829 to keep those properties, received the taxes generated by the properties of the Church, and had the right to judge certain crimes committed by clergy under Guatemalan law. The concordat

10005-423: The book Toro Amarillo -Yellow Bull-, with which harshly criticized the liberal government of the Federation of United Provinces of Central America, directed by Morazán. He probably conceived in the US the possibility of creating a confessional republic. Aycinena y Piñol returned to Guatemala in 1837. On his return he worked with the languishing Liberal government to restore order in the country. To that end drafted

10150-494: The border disguised as a peasant. With Salazar gone, Carrera reinstated Rivera Paz as Head of State of Guatemala. On April 2, 1838, in the city of Quetzaltenango , a secessionist group founded the independent State of Los Altos which sought independence from Guatemala . The most important members of the Liberal Party of Guatemala and liberal enemies of the conservative regime moved to Los Altos, leaving their exile in El Salvador. The liberals in Los Altos began severely criticizing

10295-442: The capital, he took it easily and freed Guzman, who immediately left for Quetzaltenango to give the news that Carrera was defeated; Carrera then, taking advantage of what his enemies believed, applied a strategy of concentrating fire on the Central Park of the city and also employed surprise attack tactics which caused heavy casualties to the army of Morazán, finally forcing the survivors to fight for their lives. Morazán's soldiers lost

10440-498: The case of Guzman, shackled, still with bleeding wounds, and riding a mule. On March 18, 1840, liberal caudillo Morazán invaded Guatemala with 1500 soldiers to avenge the insult done in Los Altos. Fearing that such action would end with liberal efforts to hold together the Central American Federation, Guatemala had a cordon of guards from the border with El Salvador; without a telegraph service, men ran carrying last-minute messages. With

10585-658: The church, where children learn to play European instruments. In Quito (1609): "there were many dances of tall and small Indigenous, and there was no lack of Moscas Indigenous who danced in the manner of the New Kingdom [European] (...) and dances of Spaniards and blacks and other dances of the Indigenous must dance before the Blessed Sacrament and in front of the Virgin Mary and the saints at parties and Easter, if they don't do it then they are punished". The well-known Zambra mora

10730-444: The city after Corregidor general Mariano Paredes was called to Guatemala City to take over the presidential office. They declared on 26 August 1848 that Los Altos was an independent state once again. The new state had the support of Vasconcelos' regime in El Salvador and the rebel guerrilla army of Vicente and Serapio Cruz who were sworn enemies of Carrera. The interim government was led by Guzmán himself and had Florencio Molina and

10875-431: The colonial economy or who lost their property due to debt or conflict found themselves in situations of poverty. In the same way, a Spanish immigrant and his descendants had certain facilities in climbing the social ladder, since their condition of purity of blood meant that they had greater opportunities to prosper in America than many mestizos , indigenous people , and people of African descent . Although they enjoyed

11020-465: The colony eventually crumbled due to the endemic diseases that plagued the area, Belgium continued to support Carrera in the mid-19th century, although Britain continued to be the main business and political partner to Carrera's regime. Rafael Carrera was appointed president in 1844 and on March 21, 1847, by executive order declared Guatemala an independent republic, becoming its first president. In Yucatán, then an independent republic north of Guatemala,

11165-456: The conquest of Tenochtitlan when they began to reach the soil of what is today Guatemala and the coasts of Honduras . Creoles in metropolitan America would quickly begin to take advantage of local mining, agricultural, and livestock production. The latter was very good in regions such as Honduras and Nicaragua . The towns where this population was settled enjoyed the construcction of large colonial buildings that today continue to be heritage of

11310-529: The conservative Guatemalan regime, inviting Honduras and Nicaragua to participate in the alliance; only the Honduran government led by Juan Lindo accepted. Meanwhile, in Guatemala, where the invasion plans were perfectly well known, President Mariano Paredes started taking precautions to face the situation, while the Guatemalan Archbishop, Francisco de Paula García Peláez , ordered peace prayers in

11455-415: The conservative elites would vote to form part of the new Mexican empire , although this union would be ephemeral and by 1823 Central America would be an independent republic. At first it would be a conservative federal republic, although the liberal faction would come to take power under the command of General Francisco Morazan , who was a supporter of a liberal institution that challenged several aspects of

11600-446: The construction of a massive National Theater that was called «Carrera Theater» in his honor, and was located in the old Central Square. The Old Central Square was located to the northeast side of Guatemala City – then not larger than a village – and in 1776 was used to place the first block of the new Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción after the 1773 earthquakes destroy Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala . The place had been chosen as

11745-481: The country back from excessive conservatism to a moderate regime, and – with the advice of Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol and Pedro de Aycinena – restored relations with the Church in Rome with a Concordat ratified in 1854 . After Carrera returned from exile in 1849, Vasconcelos granted asylum to the Guatemalan liberals, who harassed the Guatemalan government in several different forms: José Francisco Barrundia did it through

11890-694: The countryside were quickly spreading. Ongoing resentment between criollos and peninsulares erupted after Napoleon I deposed Charles IV of Spain of power, which, "led a group of peninsulares to take charge in Mexico City and arrest several officials, including criollos." This, in turn, motivated criollo priest Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla to begin a campaign for Mexican independence from Spanish colonial rule. Launched in Hidalgo's home city of Dolores , Guanajuato , in 1810, Hidalgo's campaign gained support among many "Amerindians and Mestizos, but despite seizing

12035-496: The criollos". In Portuguese, crioulo is also a racist slang term referring to blacks. In some countries, the term was extended or changed over the years: As early as the sixteenth century in the colonial period in New Spain , criollos , or the "descendants of Spanish colonists," began to "distinguish themselves from the richer and more powerful peninsulares ," whom they referred to as gachupines , as an insult. At

12180-432: The elite or were respected landowners used to be Criollos, there were also those who were poor, since they were children of those Spaniards who migrated as laborers in the construction of churches and palaces in the general captaincy of Guatemala. It is also known that not all descendants of Spaniards in Central America had access to land, education or wealth. In some cases, Criollo families who were unable to prosper in

12325-542: The eminent Mexican anthropologist Gonzalo Aguirre Beltrán , to derive from the Spanish/Portuguese verb criar , meaning 'to breed' or 'to raise'; however, no evidence supports this derivation in early Spanish literature discussing the origin of the word. In Spanish colonies, an español criollo was an ethnic Spaniard who had been born in the colonies, as opposed to an español peninsular born in Spain. Crioulo as

12470-469: The first legally sanctioned free black town in the present-day United States. The popularity of the Law of coartación resulted in a large population of free black people in Spanish America. Also, Mexican historian Federico Navarrete comments: that "if they received the surname of the white father and incorporated them into their family, those children counted as American whites having the same rights, regardless of

12615-403: The following months, several Maya towns were sacked and many people arbitrarily killed. In his letter of 1849, Cecilio Chi noted that Santiago Mendez had come to "put every Indian, big and little, to death" but that the Maya had responded to some degree, in kind, writing "it has pleased God and good fortune that a much greater portion of them [whites] than of the Indians [have died]. Cecilio Chi,

12760-401: The fortifications of the Guatemalan capital, in place in since the battle of Villa Nueva. Taking advantage of Salazar's good faith and Ferrera's weapons, Carrera took Guatemala City by surprise on April 13, 1839; Castro Salazar, Mariano Gálvez and Barrundia fled before the arrival of Carrera's militia men. Salazar, in his nightshirt, vaulted roofs of neighboring houses and sought refuge; reaching

12905-454: The government has been assessed more objectively in research conducted between 1980 and 2010. He was heir in 1814 to the noble title of III Marquess of Aycinena, and bishop in partibus of Trajanopolis from 1859. He had a taste for law, oratorical talent and wrote over twenty works. Born in Guatemala, on 29 August 1792. From age 22 took over the House of Aycinena and then was ordained when he

13050-768: The hands of the criollo elite as well as the church under the authority of criollo Agustín de Iturbide who became Emperor Agustín I of the Mexican Empire . Iturbide was the son of a "wealthy Spanish landowner and a Mexican ( criolla ) mother" who ascended through the ranks of the Spanish colonial army to become a colonel . Iturbide reportedly fought against "all the major Mexican independence leaders since 1810, including Hidalgo, José María Morelos y Pavón , and Vicente Guerrero ," and according to some historians, his "reasons for supporting independence had more to do with personal ambition than radical notions of equality and freedom." Mexican independence from Spain in 1821 resulted in

13195-407: The height of the battle when the Guatemalans faced an uncertain fate, Carrera ordered that sugar cane plantation around the meadow to be set on fire. The invading army was now surrounded: to the front, they faced the furious Guatemalan firepower, to the flanks, a huge blaze and to the rear, the river, all of which made retreat very difficult. The central division of the Allied force panicked and started

13340-429: The information from these messengers, Carrera hatched a plan of defense leaving his brother Sotero in charge of troops who presented only slight resistance in the city. Carrera pretended to flee and led his ragtag army to the heights of Aceituno, with few men, few rifles and two old cannons. The city was at the mercy of the army of Morazán, with bells of the twenty churches ringing for divine assistance. Once Morazán reached

13485-421: The initiative and their previous numerical superiority. Furthermore, in unfamiliar surroundings in the city, they had to fight, carry their dead and care for their wounded while resentful and tired from the long march from El Salvador to Guatemala. Carrera, by then an experienced military man, was able to defeat Morazán thoroughly. The disaster for the liberal general was complete: aided by Angel Molina who knew

13630-460: The invasion of Honduras. They also signed a treaty about with Guatemala about Belize borders, which has been called by Guatemalans as the worst mistake made by the unelected regime of Rafael Carrera-. Pedro de Aycinena y Piñol , as Foreign Secretary, had made an extra effort to keep good relations with the British crown. In 1859, William Walker's threat loomed again over Central America; in order to get

13775-538: The jurisdiction of the Jamaican British government. In the 18th century, Belize became the main smuggling center for Central America, even though the British accepted Spanish sovereignty over the region by means of treaties in 1783 and 1786, in exchange for a ceasefire and the authorization for the Britons to work with the precious woods from Belize. After the Central America independence from Spain in 1821, Belize became

13920-599: The latter consolidated his rule, Aycinena worked as deputy of the Constituent Assembly. In 1840 he was appointed again president of the Universidad Nacional . Ralph Woodward wrote of him: "During Rafael Carrera 's presidency Piñol and his familia – who had strong ties to the Catholic Church, had an enormous influence on Guatemala's politics and education." He worked as a public official in other positions, including Minister of Ecclesiastical Affairs and member of

14065-502: The latter would help Guzmán defeat his hated enemy and also build a port on the Pacific Ocean. Guzmán was sure of victory this time, but his plan evaporated when, in his absence, Carrera and his native allies had occupied Quetzaltenango; Carrera appointed Ignacio Yrigoyen as Corregidor and convinced him that he should work with the k'iche', mam, q'anjobal and mam leaders to keep the region under control. On his way out, Yrigoyen murmured to

14210-498: The leading edge of the commercial entrance of Britain in the isthmus; British commercial brokers established themselves there and began prosper commercial routes with the Caribbean harbors of Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. When Carrera came to power in 1840, stopped the complaints over Belize, and established a Guatemalan consulate in the region to oversee the Guatemalan interests in that important commercial location. Belize commerce

14355-408: The liberal battalions, while Valenzuela and Barrundia gave Morazán all the Guatemalan resources needed to solve any financial problem he had. The criollos of both parties celebrated until dawn that they finally had a criollo caudillo like Morazán, who was able to crush the peasant rebellion. Morazán used the proceeds to support Los Altos and then replaced Valenzuela by Mariano Rivera Paz , member of

14500-407: The liberals had expelled them. Even though Carrera is often portrayed as a "guerrilla" leader, an analysis of his military campaigns between 1837 and 1840 shows that he utilized a method of fighting that can be more accurately described as hybrid warfare , a combination of guerrilla tactics and logistics with conventional combat operations. While his soldiers were not well equipped, their training in

14645-460: The liberals wanted. As a result, once the liberals took over power in Guatemala in 1871, Carrera's character and regime were dismissed and demonized, making him look as an illiterate who could not even write his own name and was a puppet of the aristocrats. Over the years, even Marxist writers who wanted to show how the native Guatemalans have been exploited by the elites completely ignored Carrera's interest in them and accused him of racism and being

14790-417: The liberals were able to drive him from office, after the country had been in turmoil for several months. Carrera resigned of his own free will and left for México. The new liberal regime allied itself with the Aycinena family and swiftly passed a law ordering Carrera's execution if he dared to return to Guatemalan soil. The liberal criollos from Quetzaltenango were led by general Agustín Guzmán who occupied

14935-442: The liberals. Calling all council members, he told them flatly that he was behaving leniently towards them as it was the first time they had challenged him, but sternly warned them that there would be no mercy if there was a second time. Finally, Guzmán, and the head of state of Los Altos, Marcelo Molina, were sent to the capital of Guatemala, where they were displayed as trophies of war during a triumphant parade on February 17, 1840; in

15080-673: The life of rural Indians, but he delayed the destruction of their culture that characterized the liberals' capitalist developments. Carrera's regime established the foundations of all following government, including "economic control by unified elites, the military as the Latinos' means of social mobility, and even the alienation of Indian land and labor." His success was the result of his military brilliance, charisma, and his ability to quickly identify core issues and problems. His rule may have been arbitrary and severe, but not more so than that of other Latin American leaders. Pope Pius IX awarded Carrera

15225-438: The local militias, going back to colonial times and the civil war that followed independence from Spain, enabled them to successfully fight conventional battles against the numerically superior forces of the Guatemalan and Federal governments. In 1838 the liberal forces of Morazán and José Francisco Barrundia invaded Guatemala and reached San Sur, where they executed Pascual García, Carrera's father-in-law. They impaled his head on

15370-458: The native leader of Tepich, along with Jacinto Pat attacked Tepich on 30 July 1847, in reaction to the indiscriminate massacre of Mayas, ordered that all the non-Maya population be killed. By spring of 1848, the Maya forces had taken over most of the Yucatán, with the exception of the walled cities of Campeche and Mérida and the south-west coast, with Yucatecan troops holding the road from Mérida to

15515-596: The native risings in Central America. In the 1850s, the British showed their good will to settle the territorial differences with the Central American countries: they withdrew from the Mosquito Coast in Nicaragua and began talks that would end up in the restoration of the territory to Nicaragua in 1894: returned the Bay Islands to Honduras and even negotiated with the American filibuster William Walker in an effort to avoid

15660-468: The natives from more than half of the state. By 1850, the natives occupied two distinct regions in the southeast and they were inspired to continue the struggle by the apparition of the "Talking Cross". This apparition, believed to be a way in which God communicated with the Maya, dictated that the War continue. Chan Santa Cruz, or Small Holy Cross became the religious and political center of the Maya resistance and

15805-494: The new city Central Square, saving the surroundings for the new Cathedral, Palace and houses for the richest families of the time, the Aycinena family, given that the family leader, Fermín de Aycinena, contributed considerably to the move of the city from its old place. However, the design approved by the Spanish crown had the Central Square in a different location, and this one became the Old Central Square. Years later it became

15950-523: The newly reinstated Mariano Rivera Paz heard the news, Carrera went back to Quetzaltenango with his volunteer army to regain control of the rebel liberal state once and for all. On April 2, 1840, after entering the city, Carrera told the citizens that he had already warned them after he defeated them earlier that year. Then, he ordered the majority of the liberal city hall officials from Los Altos to be shot. Carrera then forcibly annexed Quetzaltenango and much of Los Altos back into conservative Guatemala. After

16095-468: The overthrow of the Spanish might mean sharing power with Amerindians and Mestizos, whom they considered to be their inferiors." Additionally, due to their privileged social class position, "many criollos had prospered under Spanish rule and did not want to threaten their livelihoods." Criollos only undertook direct action in the Mexican independence movement when new Spanish colonial rulers threatened their property rights and church power, an act which

16240-473: The peoples have parties, and therefore it is unthinkable to remove them (because it is impossible and because it is not convenient either)", himself parade like the natives with a bouquet of flowers at a Christian party that coincides with the celebration of Tezcatlipoca in Mexico. The Jesuits develop with great success a "pedagogy of theatricality", with this the Society of Jesus attracts the natives and blacks to

16385-486: The port of Sisal . The Yucatecan governor Miguel Barbachano had prepared a decree for the evacuation of Mérida, but was apparently delayed in publishing it by the lack of suitable paper in the besieged capital. The decree became unnecessary when the republican troops suddenly broke the siege and took the offensive with major advances. Governor Barbachano sought allies anywhere he could find them, in Cuba (for Spain), Jamaica (for

16530-406: The power to choose his successor. He was in that position until he died on April 14, 1865. While he pursued some measures to set up a foundation for economic prosperity to please the conservative landowners, military challenges at home and in a three-year war with Honduras , El Salvador, and Nicaragua dominated his presidency. His rivalry with Gerardo Barrios , President of El Salvador, resulted in

16675-426: The priest Fernando Davila as his Cabinet members. On 5 September 1848, the criollos altenses chose a formal government led by Fernando Antonio Martínez. In the meantime, Carrera decided to return to Guatemala and did so entering by Huehuetenango , where he met with the native leaders and told them that they must remain united to prevail; the leaders agreed and slowly the segregated native communities started developing

16820-454: The priests of the parishes of San Martin Jilotepeque and San Lucas Tolimán . Larrazabal ordered the priests Fernando Antonio Dávila, Mariano Navarrete and Jose Ignacio Iturrioz to cover the parishes of Quetzaltenango, San Martin Jilotepeque and San Lucas Toliman, respectively. The liberal criollos' defeat and execution in Quetzaltenango enhanced Carrera's status with the native population of

16965-433: The race". Also, a fact is in every marriage, including the most mixed, they are characterized, portrayed and named the caste product that was according to their ancestry, and if this can not, according to their appearance and color. Several documents mention that indigenous people called Criollos with the same name as one of their gods. For example, Juan Pablo Viscardo relates (1797) that the Indigenous (from Peru) call to

17110-598: The rebellion came to be infused with religious significance. Chan Santa Cruz also became the name of the largest of the independent Maya states, as well as the name of the capital city which is now the city of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Quintana Roo . The followers of the Cross were known as the "Cruzob". The government of Yucatán first declared the war over in 1855, but hopes for peace were premature. There were regular skirmishes, and occasional deadly major assaults into each other's territory, by both sides. The United Kingdom recognized

17255-514: The regime of Mariano Rivera Paz , deputy of the Constituent Assembly of Guatemala on behalf of the university (1851–1856) and the Department of Verapaz (1856–1865). His ideas, his decisions, his writing, sketching, reflect a desire for social stability, and based on mainly Catholic values. Along with other intellectuals of the Aycinena family of Guatemala, as Pavón and Luis Batres Juarros, Aycinena y Piñol favored military leader Rafael Carrera . When

17400-627: The river, and boarding the meadow was a sugar cane plantation. Carrera divided his army in three sections: the left wing was led by Cerna and Solares; the right wing led by Bolaños. He personally led the central battalion, where he placed his artillery. Five hundred men stayed in Chiquimula to defend the city and to aid in a possible retreat, leaving only 1,500 Guatemalans against an enemy of 4,500. The battle began at 8:30 AM, when Allied troops initiated an attack at three different points, with an intense fire opened by both armies. The first Allied attack

17545-575: The same horse were seen crossing the Honduran border. Carrera regrouped his army and crossed the Salvadorean border, occupying Santa Ana , before he received orders from the Guatemalan President, Mariano Paredes, to return to Guatemala, since the Allies were requesting a cease-fire and a peace treaty. An enthusiastic fan of opera, and following the advice of his mistress – Josefa Silva's-, Carrera started

17690-506: The same time, Mexican-born Spaniards were referred to as criollos , initially as a term that was meant to insult. However, over time, "those insulted who were referred to as criollos began to reclaim the term as an identity for themselves. In 1563, the criollo sons of Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés , attempted to remove Mexico from Spanish-born rule and place Martín , their half-brother, in power. However, their plot failed. They, along with many others involved, were beheaded by

17835-571: The same time, reforms by the Catholic Church reduced the roles and privileges of the lower ranks of the clergy, who were mostly Criollos. By the 19th century, this discriminatory policy of the Spanish Crown and the examples of the American and French revolutions, led Criollo factions to rebel against the peninsulares . With increasing support of the other castes, they engaged Spain in a fight for independence (1809–1826). The former Spanish Empire in

17980-434: The small force that remained, but was defeated, losing his brother Laureano in the combat. With just a few men left, he managed to escape, badly wounded, to Sanarate. Under conventional warfare conditions, this defeat would have ended Carrera's military campaign. However, by this time the young commander had already become accustomed to disassemble and regroup, not just after defeats but also after victories. Carrera's pursuit of

18125-590: The status of Carrera and marked the decline of Morazán, and forced the conservative Aycinena clan criollos to negotiate with Carrera and his peasant revolutionary supporters. Guzmán, who was freed by Morazán when the latter had seemingly defeated Carrera in Guatemala City , had gone back to Quetzaltenango to bring the good news. The city liberal criollo leaders rapidly reinstated the Los Altos State and celebrated Morazán's victory. However, as soon as Carrera and

18270-460: The streets of the city, had to flee with his favorite men, disguised, shouting "Long live Carrera!" through the ravine of El Incienso to El Salvador. In his absence, Morazán had been supplanted as Head of State of his country, and had to embark for exile in Perú . In Guatemala, survivors from his troops were shot without mercy, while Carrera was out in unsuccessful pursuit of Morazan. This engagement sealed

18415-467: The term white in Central American countries can be broad since it includes populations that in other contexts are not classified as such. In the same way, it is known that there is still an important ethnic minority population descended from the Spanish in these countries. As the United States expanded westward , it annexed lands with a long-established population of Spanish-speaking settlers. This group became known as Hispanos . Prior to incorporation into

18560-530: The territory, even they never sent any expedition to the area after the Independence from Spain in 1821, due to the Central American civil war that ensued and lasted until 1860. On the other hand, slaves escaped from Caribbean island and pirates had set a small settlement there since middle of the 17th century, mainly as buccaneers quarters and then for fine wood production; the settlements were never recognized as British colonies, even though they were somewhat under

18705-481: The territory. Freedom could also be obtained through baptism , with the white recognizing his illegitimate children; his word was sufficient for the newborn child to be declared free. Legal freedom was more common in the cities and towns than in the countryside. Also, from the late 1600s to the 19th century, the Spanish encouraged slaves from the British colonies and the United States to come to Spanish Florida as refuge; King Charles II of Spain and his court issued

18850-416: The time. Rafael Carrera ratified the treaty on 1 May 1859, while Charles Lennox Wyke, British consul in Guatemala, travelled to Great Britain and got the royal approval on 26 September 1859. there were some protests coming from the American consul, Beverly Clarke, and some liberal representatives, but the issue was settled. Rafael Carrera died in office April 14, 1865. Carrera did not significantly enhance

18995-613: The violent and bloody reinstatement of the State of Los Altos by Carrera in April 1840, Luis Batres Juarros – conservative member of the Aycinena Clan, then secretary general of the Guatemalan government of recently reinstated Mariano Rivera Paz – obtained from the vicar Larrazabal authorization to dismantle the regionalist Church. Serving priests of Quetzaltenango – capital of the would-be-state of Los Altos, Urban Ugarte and his coadjutor, José Maria Aguilar, were removed from their parish and likewise

19140-485: The war; Jacinto Pat , for example, wrote in 1848 that "what we want is liberty and not oppression, because before we were subjugated with the many contributions and taxes that they imposed on us." Pac's companion, Cecilio Chi added in 1849, that promises made by the rebel Santiago Imán, that he was "liberating the Indians from the payment of contributions" as a reason for resisting the central government, but in fact he continued levying them. In June 1847, Méndez learned that

19285-572: The weapons needed to face the filibuster, Carrera's regime had to come to terms about Belize with the British Empire. On 30 April 1859, the Wyke-Aycinena treaty was signed, between the British and Guatemalan representatives. The controversial Wyke-Aycinena from 1859 had two parts: Among those who signed the treaty was José Milla y Vidaurre , who worked with Aycinena in the Foreign Ministry at

19430-467: Was "deplored by most criollos " and therefore brought many of them into the Mexican independence movement. Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821 under the coalitionary leadership of conservatives, former royalists, and criollos , who detested Emperor Ferdinand VII 's adoption of a liberal constitution that threatened their power. This coalition created the Plan de Iguala , which concentrated power in

19575-679: Was 26 years old. He may have received special education in the narrow circle of his family through preceptors, because he did not attend classes in the Tridentine Seminary, although frequently attended the benches of the university, and might have followed the courses taught by Luis de Escoto, OP . Then he studied at the Pontifical University of San Carlos of Guatemala, graduating from high school in Instituta and Law in 1811 and 1813 respectively. Later he received his doctorate in 1821. As

19720-585: Was President of the Pontifical University of San Carlos Borromeo from 1825 to 1829 and then of the Universidad Nacional from 1840 to 1865. He was a thinker criticized by liberal historians for his strong relationship with the conservative government of General Rafael Carrera and for eliminating the possibility of getting the Central American Union which the Liberals wanted. His participation in

19865-413: Was Spanish. In the 19th and 20th centuries millions of European and European-derived populations from North and South America did immigrate to the region. According to church and censal registers for Acatzingo in 1792, during colonial times , 73% of Spanish men married with Spanish women. Ideological narratives have often portrayed criollos as a "pure Spanish" people, mostly men, who were all part of

20010-881: Was booming in the region until 1855, when the Colombians built a transoceanic railway, which allowed commerce to flow more efficiently to the port at the Pacific; from then on, Belize commercial importance began a steep decline. When the Caste War of Yucatán began in the Yucatán Peninsula-native people raising that results in thousands of murdered European settlers- the Belize and Guatemala representatives were in high alert; Yucatan refugees fled into both Guatemala and Belize and even Belize superintendent came to fear that Carrera -given his strong alliance with Guatemalan natives- could be support

20155-405: Was cause for pride and for scorn, for celebration and humiliation. The criollos adored and abhorred themselves. [...] They saw themselves as extraordinary, unique beings and were unsure whether to rejoice or weep before that self-image. They were bewitched by their own uniqueness. As early as 1799, open riots against Spanish colonial rule were unfolding in Mexico City, foreshadowing the emergence of

20300-508: Was commonly danced by blacks, to the sound of castanets and drums. The Spanish Sarabande was danced by whites and blacks. Blacks also have their chiefs. In these local events, the brotherhoods of the Congos give rise to the Congadas (Brazil, Caribbean). Actually, there were no relevant black artists during the colony; also, one must consider the fact that many of the pure blacks were slaves , but

20445-406: Was designed by Juan José de Aycinena y Piñol and not only reestablished but reinforced the relationship between Church and State in Guatemala. It was in force until the fall of the conservative government of Field Marshal Vicente Cerna y Cerna . In 1854, by anti-democratic initiative of Manuel Francisco Pavón Aycinena, Carrera was declared "supreme and perpetual leader of the nation" for life, with

20590-478: Was named by Manuel José Arce as Governor of Guatemala in 1827. When the liberal Honduran General Francisco Morazán invaded Guatemala in 1829, he overthrew and expelled Mariano family, the families in connection with the Aycinenas and regular orders of the Catholic Church . Aycinena y Piñol went first to Panama and then to the United States. While in America, Aycinena y Piñol wrote a series of documents collected in

20735-406: Was repelled by the defenders of the foothill; during the second attack, the Allied troops were able to take the first line of trenches. They were subsequently expelled. During the third attack, the Allied force advanced to a point where it was impossible to distinguish between Guatemalan and Allied troops. Then, the fight became a melée, while the Guatemalan artillery severely punished the invaders. At

20880-495: Was strengthened as a result of the Bourbon reforms of 1700, which changed the Spanish Empire 's policies toward its colonies and led to tensions between criollos and peninsulares . The growth of local criollo political and economic strength in the separate colonies, coupled with their global geographic distribution, led them to each evolve separate (both from each other and Spain) organic national identities and viewpoints. During

21025-452: Was to feign a retreat, forcing the enemy forces to follow the "retreating" troops to a place he had previously chosen; on February 1, 1851, both armies were facing each other with only the San José river between them. Carrera had fortified the foothills of La Arada, its summit about 50 metres (160 ft) above the level of the river. A meadow 300 metres (980 ft) deep lay between the hill and

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