The Bolivian War of Independence was fought from 1809 to 1825 when Bolivian patriots and the United Provinces of the Rio de la Plata fought for the independence of "Upper Peru" (Bolivia) from the Spanish Empire. The conflict lasted for almost the entire South American independence process.
History[]
The region of Bolivia fell under Spanish rule during the sixteenth century, and it was known as "Charcas", which was autonomously governed by an Audiencia. In 1776, Charcas was placed under the authority of the new Viceroy of Buenos Aires, and the Spanish-born Peninsulares were the highest caste in the colony. During the Peninsular War in 1808, the French emperor Napoleon I invaded Spain and forced King Fernando VII of Spain to abdicate in favor of his own brother Joseph Bonaparte, causing a power vacuum in the Spanish Empire's territories in the Americas. In 1809, government juntas were established in Sucre and La Paz following the revolutions of Chuquisaca and La Paz, but the juntas were defeated shortly after and the cities again fell under Spanish control. In 1810, the May Revolution ousted the Viceroy in Buenos Aires, which established its own junta. Buenos Aires sent three military campaigns to the Charcas, led by Juan Jose Castelli, Manuel Belgrano, and Jose Rondeau, but the Spanish Royalists ultimately triumphed over each one. The conflict turned into a guerrilla war by the patriot Republiquetas against the Royalists, and, after Simon Bolivar and Antonio Jose de Sucre defeated the Royalists in northern South America, Sucre led an army into Charcas to defeat the Royalists for good. The last Royalist general, Pedro Antonio Olaneta, suffered death and defeat at the hands of his own defected forces at the Battle of Tumusla, and, on 6 August 1825, Sucre proclaimed the independence of Charcas as "Bolivia", named for his close friend and ally Simon Bolivar.