The United States and Latin America
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Title: The United States and Latin America
Author: John Holladay Latané
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THE UNITED STATES AND LATIN AMERICA
by
JOHN HOLLADAY LATANÉ
PH. D., LL. D.
Professor of American History and Dean of the
College Faculty in the Johns Hopkins University
Author of "From Isolation to Leadership,"
"America as a World Power," etc.
[Illustration]
Garden City New York
Doubleday, Page & Company
1920
Copyright, 1920, by
Doubleday, Page & Company
All Rights Reserved, Including That of Translation
into Foreign Languages, Including the Scandinavian
[Illustration: SOUTH AMERICA]
TO THE MEMORY OF
MY FATHER
WHOSE DAILY COMMENTS ON PUBLIC QUESTIONS
WERE MY FIRST LESSONS IN THE STUDY
OF POLITICS
AND TO
MY MOTHER
WHO IMPARTED TO ME A LOVE OF HISTORY
AND WHOSE APPROVAL IS STILL THE RICHEST
REWARD OF MY EFFORTS
PREFACE
This book is based on a smaller volume issued by the Johns Hopkins Press
in 1900 under the title "The Diplomatic Relations of the United States
and Spanish America," which contained the first series of Albert Shaw
Lectures on Diplomatic History. That volume has been out of print for
several years, but calls for it are still coming in, with increasing
frequency of late. In response to this demand and in view of the
widespread interest in our relations with our Southern neighbors I have
revised and enlarged the original volume, omitting much that was of
special interest at the time it was written, and adding a large amount
of new matter relating to the events of the past twenty years.
Chapters I, II and V are reprinted with only minor changes; III, IV and
VI have been rewritten and brought down to date; VII, VIII and IX are
wholly new.
J. H. L.
BALTIMORE,
May 7, 1920.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I THE REVOLT OF THE SPANISH COLONIES 3
II THE RECOGNITION OF THE SPANISH-AMERICAN
REPUBLICS 48
III THE DIPLOMACY OF THE UNITED STATES IN
REGARD TO CUBA 83
IV THE DIPLOMATIC HISTORY OF THE PANAMA
CANAL 144
V FRENCH INTERVENTION IN MEXICO 193
VI THE TWO VENEZUELAN EPISODES 238
VII THE ADVANCE OF THE UNITED STATES IN
THE CARIBBEAN 261
VIII PAN AMERICANISM 292
IX THE MONROE DOCTRINE 320
INDEX 335
MAPS
SOUTH AMERICA _Frontispiece_
THE CARIBBEAN _Facing page 262_
THE UNITED STATES
AND
LATIN AMERICA
THE UNITED STATES AND LATIN AMERICA
CHAPTER I
THE REVOLT OF THE SPANISH COLONIES
The English colonies of North America renounced allegiance to their
sovereign more through fear of future oppression than on account of
burdens actually imposed. The colonies of Spain in the southern
hemisphere, on the other hand, labored for generations under the burden
of one of the most irrational and oppressive economic systems to which
any portion of the human race has ever been subjected, and remained
without serious attempt at revolution until the dethronement of their
sovereign by Napoleon left them to drift gradually, _in spite of
themselves_, as Chateaubriand expressed it, into the republican form of
government. To carry the contrast a step further, when the conditions
were ripe for independence, the English colonies offered a united
resistance, while the action of the Spanish colonies was spasmodic and
disconcerted. The North American revolution gave birth to a federal
republic, that of the South to a number of separate and independent
republics, whose relations with one another have at times been far from
amicable. The causes for these striking differences are to be explained
not alone by race psychology, but by a comparison of the English and
Spanish colonial systems and of the two revolutions as well. The history
of the English colonies and of their revolt has been pretty well
exploited, but information in regard to the Spanish-American revolution
and its causes, although the sources are abundant, is not easily
accessible to English-speaking people.
By virtue of the celebrated Bull of Pope Alexander VI, the
Spanish-American colonies were looked upon as possessions of the crown,
and not as colonies of Spain. Their affairs were regulated by the king,
with the assistance of a board called the Council of the Indies. This
council, which was on a footing of equality with the Council of Castile,
was established by Ferdinand as early as 1511, and was modified by
Charles V in 1524. It was to take cognizance of all ecclesiastical,
civil, military, and commercial affairs relating to the colonies. From
it proceeded the so-called Laws of the Indies, and all colonial offices
in the gift of the crown were conferred by it. In the course of time,
however, the personnel of this council became merged with that of
Castile, and for all practical purposes the colonies became dependencies
of the Spanish nation.
There were from the first establishment of Spanish rule in America, two
viceroyalties on the continent. The viceroy of New Spain ruled over
Mexico and Central America, whilst all South America subject to Spanish
control was for about two centuries under the viceroy of Peru. In
regions too remote to be under his immediate control, _audiencias_, or
courts of justice, were established, the president of the _audiencia_
being known by the title of captain-general. Thus _audiencias_ were
established at Quito in 1542, at Charcas (in modern Bolivia) in 1559, in
New Granada in 1564, in Chile in 1568, and later at Caracas and at
Buenos Aires. In 1740, New Granada was raised to the rank of a
viceroyalty, with its capital at Bogota; and in 1776 the same dignity
was conferred on Buenos Aires. There were thus on the southern continent
three viceroyalties widely separated: one on the Main, one on the
Atlantic, and one on the Pacific.
The powers of the viceroy, or captain-general, as the case might be,
were limited only by the _audiencia_, consisting of from three to five
members, always of Spanish birth, whose functions were largely advisory,
but who had the privilege of corresponding directly with the Council of
the Indies, and who in case of emergency sometimes went so far as to
depose the viceroy.
It should be borne in mind that in Spanish America the native Indian
races were not driven beyond the frontier of civilization, as they were
by the English settlers, but became, and remain to this day, an integral
part of the population. There was thus in the Spanish colonies an
unusual admixture of races. There were (1) European Spaniards; (2)
Creoles, or children born in America of Spanish parents; (3) Indians,
the indigenous race; (4) Negroes of African race; (5) Mestizos, children
of whites and Indians; (6) Mulattoes, children of whites and negroes;
and (7) Zambos, children of Indians and negroes.
The maladministration of Spain's colonies may be summarized under two
heads: (1) acts of oppression against the native Indian race, and (2)
regulations of a commercial and political character, which acted in
restraint of the economic and social development of her own offspring in
America.
Under the first head may be mentioned the _mita_, or forced labor in
mines, farms, and factories, and the _repartimiento_, or _encomienda_,
which was an allotment to Spaniards of territory including the native
inhabitants as peons or vassals. In spite of humane restrictions placed
by law upon them, these institutions degenerated into systems of fearful
oppression, which led, in 1781, to the heroic but unsuccessful efforts
of Tupac Amaru, the last of the Incas, to free the land of his fathers
from the cruel rule of the Spaniard. So deep-seated was the
dissatisfaction and so formidable the revolt, that it was not suppressed
for more than two years. The unfortunate Inca and most of his family
were cruelly put to death.
The economic and commercial restrictions imposed upon the colonies
require fuller notice. The whole object of Spain's colonial policy was
to extract gold and silver from America and to force Spanish
manufactures and products upon that country. Commerce was confined to
Spain and to Spanish vessels.
No South American could own a ship, nor could a cargo be
consigned to him; no foreigner was allowed to reside in the
country unless born in Spain; and no capital, not Spanish,
was permitted in any shape to be employed in the colonies.
Orders were given that no foreign vessel, on any pretence
whatever, should touch at a South American port. Even ships
in distress were not to be received with common hospitality,
but were ordered to be seized as prizes, and the crews
imprisoned.[1]
As late as 1816, when the United States protested against the blockade
established by General Morillo, as contrary to international law, M.
Onis, the Spanish minister, replied that the object of the blockade was
to maintain the laws of the Indies, which during the Napoleonic wars had
been somewhat relaxed, adding:
You are aware that, agreeably to those laws, no foreign
vessel was allowed to trade with the dominions of his
majesty on that continent without a special license, and
that vessels found near or evidently shaping a course
towards them were liable to confiscation as interlopers.
When, later in the year, a United States commissioner was sent to
Cartagena to reclaim American vessels so seized, the Spanish viceroy
gave him to understand that he did not pretend to be acquainted with the
law of nations.[2]
Not only were the colonists prohibited from engaging in manufactures
which interfered with those of Spain, but restrictions were even placed
on agriculture in the interests of the Spanish producer. Thus the
cultivation of flax, hemp, and saffron was forbidden under severe
penalty; the cultivation of tobacco was not allowed; and grapes and
olives could be raised only for table use, so that oil and wine had to
be imported from Spain. Upon one occasion (in 1803) orders were sent "to
root up all the vines in certain provinces, because the Cadiz merchants
complained of a diminution in the consumption of Spanish wines."[3]
The carrying out of this commercial system in all its details was
entrusted to the _Casa de Contratacion_, or House of Trade, which
was located at Seville until 1717, when it was transferred to
Cadiz. The India House, as it was called, was established by warrant
of Queen Joanna in 1503.[4] To this house were to be brought all
merchandise for the colonies and all products from them of whatever
character. The colonial trade was thus limited to one Spanish port. The
affairs of the house were in charge of three commissioners or judges,
who had jurisdiction, civil and criminal, over all cases arising out of
the trade with America. Their authority was subordinated to no other
court or council but that of the Indies.
Not only were no foreigners allowed to go to the Spanish colonies, but
careful restrictions were placed on the movement of Spaniards to and
from America. In 1511 King Ferdinand had by a special order permitted
all subjects of Spain without distinction to go over to the Indies upon
entering their names at the India House; but in the years 1518, 1522,
1530, and 1539 several orders were passed "that no person reconciled, or
newly converted to our holy Catholic faith, from Judaism or
Mahometanism, nor the children of such, nor the children or grandsons of
any that had worn the St. Andrew's Cross of the Inquisition, or been
burnt or condemned as heretics, or for any heretical crime, either by
male or female line, might go over to the Indies, upon pain of
forfeiting all their goods, of an hundred lashes, perpetual banishment
from the Indies, and their bodies to be at the king's disposition."[5]
The commissioners might "grant passes to merchants to go over, or return
if they came from thence, including married merchants, provided they
have leave from their wives, and give 1,000 ducats security to return
within three years."[6]
There were also strict rules about passing from one province in America
to another. This could not be done without special leave from the
king.[7] "The inhabitants of the Indies may not come to Spain without
leave from the viceroys, presidents or governors of the places of their
habitation, in which they are to express the causes of their coming, and
whether it is to stay here or return."[8] "In the Indies, the
magistrates are directed to apprehend any persons they find are gone
over without leave, to imprison them till they can send them back into
Spain, upon pain of losing their employments."[9] In 1594 and 1602 it
was decreed that persons going over without leave should be sent to the
galleys for four years. In 1622 King Philip IV decreed that a person
simply going aboard a ship bound for the Indies without leave should be
immediately sent to the galleys for eight years.[10] Other decrees
equally severe were issued from time to time.
In order to keep the trade strictly under control and to properly
protect it, intercourse with the colonies was held only once a year. Two
squadrons, consisting of merchant ships and convoys under command of an
admiral and vice-admiral, made the trip each year. The fleet for New
Spain (Mexico) sailed in the spring, and that for the mainland in the
early fall. The first touched at some of the islands and then went to
Vera Cruz; the latter touched first at Cartagena and passed on thence to
Porto Bello, where the fair was held about the middle of March. This
fair was the great event of the year, and lasted forty days from the
time of the arrival of the fleet. From this point goods were distributed
by way of Panama to Peru, Chile, and even across the continent to Buenos
Aires. The gold bullion was sent in turn to this point by the viceroy of
Peru. It came in fifteen days from Potosi to Arica, thence by sea in
eight days to Callao, and in twenty days from Callao to Panama. The
viceroy of Peru was to take care to have the plate at Panama by the
middle of March. At Porto Bello it was taken aboard the galleons. About
the middle of June the galleons met the fleet from New Spain at Havana,
and from that point the two fleets with their convoys proceeded in
greater safety to Spain. Thus for two centuries all intercourse between
Spain and her colonies at one end of the line was limited at first to
Seville, and then to Cadiz; and at the other to Vera Cruz and Porto
Bello.[11] At a later period this arrangement was modified to some
extent, and Buenos Aires was made a port of entry. The reason for not
permitting trade with Buenos Aires during the earlier period was the
fear that the British and Dutch would smuggle through that port.
While the relations of the colonies with Spain were kept under the
strictest control, intercourse with foreign nations, although
absolutely prohibited under the severest penalties, could not be
entirely prevented. In speaking of Spain's restrictive policy, a British
naval officer, who was on the South American station during the
revolution, says:
Unfortunately, however, for that system, the South
Americans, notwithstanding the network of chains by which
they were enveloped, had still some sparks of humanity left,
and, in spite of all their degradation, longed earnestly for
the enjoyments suitable to their nature; and finding that
the Spaniards neither could nor would furnish them with an
adequate supply, they invited the assistance of other
nations. To this call the other nations were not slow to
listen; and, in process of time, there was established one
of the most extraordinary systems of organized smuggling
which the world ever saw. This was known under the name of
the contraband or forced trade, and was carried on in armed
vessels, well manned, and prepared to fight their way to the
coast, and to resist, as they often did with effect, the
_guarda costas_, or coast blockades of Spain. This singular
system of warlike commerce was conducted by the Dutch,
Portuguese, French, English, and latterly by the North
Americans. In this way goods to an immense value were
distributed over South America; and although the prices were
necessarily high, and the supply precarious, that taste for
the comforts and luxuries of European invention was first
encouraged, which afterwards operated so powerfully in
giving a steady and intelligible motive to the efforts of
the Patriots in their struggle with the mother-country.
Along with the goods which the contraband trade forced into
the colonies, no small portion of knowledge found entrance,
in spite of the increased exertions of the Inquisition and
church influence, aided by the redoubled vigilance of
government, who enforced every penalty with the utmost
rigor. Many foreigners, too, by means of bribes and other
arts, succeeded in getting into the country, so that the
progress of intelligence was gradually encouraged, to the
utter despair of the Spaniards, who knew no other method of
governing the colonies but that of mere brute force,
unsupported by the least shadow of opinion, or of good
will.[12]
The trade carried on by foreign interlopers grew to such alarming
proportions that before the middle of the eighteenth century Spain found
it necessary to relax the restrictions upon the private trade of her own
subjects. This led, about 1748, to the discontinuance of the annual
fleets or galleon trade.
The political administration of the country was absolutely in the hands
of Spaniards, who as a rule were not allowed to marry, acquire property,
or form any permanent ties in America. In the summary of charges against
Spain appearing in the Argentine Manifesto of 1817, one of the
specifications is, that of one hundred and sixty viceroys who had
governed in America, four natives of the country alone were numbered;
and of six hundred and two captains-general, all but fourteen had been
Spaniards.
The monopoly of Spanish trade in South America was partially surrendered
by the treaty of Utrecht, signed in 1713, at the close of the War of the
Spanish Succession. By this treaty England agreed to recognize Philip V
as king of Spain and the Indies, and in turn was granted the _assiento_,
or contract for supplying the Spanish colonies with African slaves.[13]
The importation of negroes into the Spanish possessions had been carried
on under contract from the very first. The _assiento_, which had been
previously granted to Spanish subjects, was, in 1696, granted to the
Portuguese Company of Guinea, and in 1702 to the Royal Guinea Company
of France; but in 1713 England secured this lucrative monopoly and
became the great slave-trading power of the world.
The _assiento_ of 1713, which was very carefully drawn up in 42
articles, granted to an English company the sole right of supplying
slaves to the Spanish West Indies and to South America for the period of
thirty years from May 1, 1713. By it the Queen of England undertook to
see that the company chartered by her should introduce into the Spanish
West Indies, including South America, 144,000 negroes of both sexes and
all ages within thirty years, at the rate of 4,800 a year. The company
was to pay a duty of 33-1/3 pieces of eight (dollars) for each negro
imported. In addition to the 4,800 a year, other negroes might be
imported at a duty of 16-2/3 dollars each, thus encouraging larger
importations. The negroes could be brought in either Spanish or English
vessels, manned with English or Spanish sailors, provided only no cause
of offense be given to the Catholic religion. The majority of the
negroes were to be taken to Cuba and Porto Rico, and to the ports on the
Main; but of the 4,800, the company had the right to take 1,200 to
Buenos Aires, 800 to be sold there and 400 to be carried to the
provinces up the Plata and to the kingdom of Chile. They were also
allowed to carry negroes across the isthmus from Porto Bello to Panama,
and there re-ship them to Peru. Either Englishmen or Spaniards could be
employed in the business, provided that there were not more than four or
six Englishmen in any port, and that these should be amenable to the
laws in all respects as Spanish subjects. By no means the least
remarkable provision of this treaty was that their British and Catholic
majesties were each to receive one-fourth of the profits of this
traffic.
Ships engaged in this trade were to be searched on arrival at port, and
all merchandise found on board was to be confiscated and heavy penalties
inflicted. On condition, however, that the company should not attempt
any unlawful trade, his Catholic Majesty granted them the privilege,
during thirty years, of sending annually a ship of 500 tons to the fair
at Porto Bello. The Spanish king was to be concerned one-fourth in the
profits.[14] It seems that the company stretched this privilege to the
utmost. The ship always stopped at Jamaica, took on all the goods she
could, and carried along with her five or six smaller vessels laden with
goods. When she got near Porto Bello, all her provisions were put in the
tenders and the goods these bore taken aboard. She then entered the
harbor laden down to the water's edge. Thus this single ship was made to
carry more than five or six of the largest galleons.[15]
Thirty years before the Spanish colonies began their war of
independence, the British government had entertained the idea of
revolutionizing and separating them from Spain. This idea seems to have
arisen in 1779, during the administration of Lord North, when Spain
joined France in the alliance with the American colonies against Great
Britain.[16] It was suggested at first, no doubt, as a measure of
retaliation, but was frequently agitated in later years with the avowed
object of opening up South America to British commerce. The same idea
was the basis of Miranda's scheme for the liberation of his native
land.
Francisco de Miranda[17] (1754-1816), a native of Caracas, Venezuela,
was the first Spanish-American patriot. He was with the American army
for a time during the Revolutionary War, but in what capacity is not
quite settled. It is stated by some writers that he held a commission
under LaFayette. The success of our war inspired him with the hope of
freeing his own country from Spanish control. He confided his views to
his friends in the United States, particularly to Alexander Hamilton,
"upon whom he fixed his eyes as a coadjutor in the great purpose of his
life." Shortly after Miranda had returned to his native land his schemes
were discovered. He fled to the United States, and later to England,
where he had repeated conferences with Pitt. Finding no help for his
revolutionary schemes in England, he went to the continent and traveled
through France, Germany, Turkey, and Russia. At the Russian court he was
warmly received, but was soon dismissed at the demand of the Spanish
minister. At news of the dispute between England and Spain about Nootka
Sound in 1790, he hastened to England and communicated his scheme to the
British ministry. Pitt lent a ready ear to his views as long as the
dispute lasted, with the intention of making use of him in the event of
a rupture with Spain. But when the dispute was peaceably settled,
Miranda's hopes fell to the ground and he left England. His scheme was
only temporarily abandoned, however. He considered himself to have been
ill-used by Pitt on this occasion, as he subsequently stated to Rufus
King, the American minister to England.
The French Revolution was now well under way, and the wars upon which
the republic was entering offered an attractive field for a soldier of
republican ideas. In April, 1792, Miranda went to Paris with
introductions to Pétion and the leading Girondists, hoping that the
revolutionary party might help him in his plans. He was given a
commission as brigadier-general in the French army, and served in
responsible posts under Dumouriez on the eastern frontier. He conducted
the siege of Maestricht and commanded the left wing of the French army
at the disastrous battle of Neerwinden, March, 1793, in which Belgium
was reconquered by the Austrians. Dumouriez now declared against the
Convention, but his troops having refused to follow him, he went over to
the Austrians in company with the Duke of Chartres, Louis Philippe.
Miranda fell under suspicion of treason and was forced to undergo a
court-martial, but was acquitted. For some unexplained reason he was
shortly after thrown into prison. He soon secured his release, but for
several years disappears from public view. His services in behalf of the
republic received in time due recognition. His name appears on the Arc
de Triomphe in Paris in the list of the heroes of the Revolution.
In January, 1798, Miranda returned to England. As Spain was now the
close ally of France, he hoped to secure the coöperation of Great
Britain in his scheme. He also hoped to secure aid from the United
States. The people of Kentucky and Tennessee were far from satisfied
with the provisions of the Spanish treaty of 1795 in regard to the
navigation of the Mississippi River. Then, too, just at this time, war
between the United States and France seemed inevitable, on account of
the resentment by France of the Jay treaty and her treatment of the
American representatives. Washington had been called from his retirement
at Mt. Vernon to assume the post of commander-in-chief of the army,
while the active command was to be given to Hamilton. Hamilton had
expressed great interest in Miranda's projects and was a man of known
ambition. His appointment, therefore, as the virtual commander-in-chief
of the American army made Miranda hopeful of his coöperation.
Mr. King, the American minister at London, entered heartily into the
plans of General Miranda, and his correspondence on that subject, during
the year 1798, with his government and with Hamilton is quite
voluminous.[18] For a time it seemed as if Great Britain and the United
States would coöperate for the purpose of revolutionizing Spanish
America. The plan, as entertained by Miranda and Hamilton, was for
England to supply the naval force and the United States the land forces.
Miranda believed that six or eight vessels of the line and four or five
thousand troops would be sufficient,[19] though Hamilton thought it
would require ten thousand troops. England's participation in the scheme
depended upon the relations between France and Spain. Mr. King wrote to
his government, February 26, 1798:
Two points have within a fortnight been settled in the
English cabinet respecting South America. If Spain is able
to prevent the overthrow of her present government and to
escape being brought under the entire control of France,
England (between whom and Spain, notwithstanding the war, a
certain understanding appears to exist) will at present
engage in no scheme to deprive Spain of her possessions in
South America. But if, as appears probable, the army
destined against Portugal, and which will march through
Spain, or any other means which may be employed by France,
shall overthrow the Spanish government, and thereby place
the resources of Spain and of her colonies at the disposal
of France, England will immediately commence the execution
of a plan long since digested and prepared for the complete
independence of South America. If England engages in this
plan, she will at Philadelphia propose to the United States
to coöperate in its execution, Miranda will be detained
here, under one pretense or another, until events shall
decide the conduct of England.[20]
England's policy in regard to South America for the next twenty years
substantially confirmed the interpretation of her motives here given by
Mr. King.
During the summer of 1798 Mr. King had several conferences with the
British ministry in regard to the Spanish-American question, but it was
always understood that they were personal and wholly unauthorized. What
occurred at these interviews was, of course, always communicated to the
American government, but as they were unofficial and communicated merely
in the nature of information, the State Department preferred to keep the
matter on the same basis and did not refer to the matter in its
dispatches to Mr. King. This caused him no little annoyance.[21] In the
same way no notice was taken of General Miranda's letter to President
Adams.
Hamilton, however, was very frank in the expression of his views both to
General Miranda and to Mr. King. Under date of August 22, 1798, he wrote
to the latter:
I have received several letters from General Miranda. I have
written answers to some of them, which I send you to deliver
or not, according to your estimate of what is passing in the
scenes where you are. Should you deem it expedient to
suppress my letter, you may do it and say as much as you
think fit on my part in the nature of a communication
through you. With regard to the enterprise in question, I
wish it much to be undertaken, but I should be glad that the
principal agency was in the United States--they to furnish
the whole land force necessary. The command in this case
would very naturally fall upon me, and I hope I should
disappoint no favorable anticipation.
The United States, however, succeeded in coming to an understanding with
France, while England was unwilling to deal such a serious blow to Spain
as long as there was a chance of arraying her against Napoleon. The
communication of the views of the British government at Philadelphia, to
which Mr. King referred as a preliminary, was never made. Miranda's
hopes finally fell through at the reëstablishment of peace in Europe by
the treaty of Amiens, which lasted until 1803. He lingered in Europe
some time longer, until, wearied out by years of fruitless negotiation
with the British government, he, for the time being, gave up all hope
of success in that quarter and returned once more to the United States.
Arriving in New York from England in November, 1805, Miranda proceeded
to lay his cause once more before Mr. King, who had so warmly befriended
him in London, and to solicit his coöperation in fitting out an
expedition for South America. While expressing his full sympathy with
the cause, Mr. King stated emphatically that he could render him no
assistance, nor could any individuals safely do so, without the
countenance of the government. He, therefore, advised Miranda to go to
Washington and lay his plans before the administration. This Miranda
did. He was admitted to informal conferences both with President
Jefferson and Secretary of State Madison. Upon his return to New York he
represented to those interested in his schemes that he had secured from
the government a secret sanction of his project, and that the
administration, though unwilling to take the initiative, would support
the undertaking so soon as the standard of revolution should once have
been raised on the Spanish Main. Miranda's chief supporter was Colonel
Smith, surveyor of the port of New York, whose influence as a public
official in close touch with the administration was decisive in
persuading many adventurous spirits to join the expedition with the
belief that it was really secretly backed by the government of the
United States.
Miranda left New York in the early part of February, 1806, in the
_Leander_, with an imperfectly equipped force of about 200 men, most of
whom were commissioned as officers and promised commands in the South
American army, which was expected to spring from the soil at the magic
touch of Miranda's step upon the shores of his native land. The ship
proceeded to Jacquemel, San Domingo, where Miranda expected to get the
necessary supplies and reinforcements. Here disappointments awaited him,
disputes with the ship's captain ensued, and over a month was
fruitlessly spent, while the Spanish authorities on the Main had time to
put themselves on the alert. It was not until the last of April that the
expedition, reinforced by two schooners, appeared off the coast of
Venezuela near Porto Cabello. They were attacked by two Spanish vessels,
which captured the schooners with about sixty men and large stores,
while the _Leander_ ignominiously took to flight.
Miranda then sailed for Barbados, where he solicited aid from the
British admiral, Lord Cochrane, in command on the West Indian station.
Lord Cochrane, without definite instructions from his government, but
acquainted with its general policy in regard to South America, and
knowing of the close relations in which Miranda had stood for years with
the British ministry, decided to assist him in landing. With this
understanding he signed with Miranda an agreement to the effect that in
the event of the success of the expedition, Great Britain should always
be held on a footing with the most favored nation, and that British
ships should receive a deduction of ten per cent. upon duties paid by
all other nations, except the United States.[22] On the twentieth of
June, the expedition left Barbados under convoy of a part of Admiral
Cochrane's squadron, and on August 2, 1806, effected a landing near
Coro, Venezuela. They easily took possession of the town, the unarmed
inhabitants fleeing before them. Here Miranda remained about ten days,
issuing proclamations and vainly waiting for the natives to join him.
His position, meanwhile, was becoming unsafe, so he abandoned it and
took possession of the little island of Aruba off the coast. Lord
Cochrane, seeing that the expedition was a failure, and not wishing
further to compromise his government, sent no reinforcements and finally
ordered the withdrawal of the ships that had accompanied the expedition.
Miranda was offered a convoy back to Trinidad, which he accepted,
leaving Aruba, September 27, 1806. At Trinidad the members of the
expedition dispersed.[23]
The Americans who had taken part in the expedition and survived were
prosecuted in the United States courts for violation of the neutrality
laws. They claimed that they had enlisted in the undertaking with the
connivance of the government at Washington. Jefferson's enemies made
great political capital of the affair. Members of the cabinet were
summoned as witnesses, but refused to appear. Privately Jefferson and
Madison both denied most emphatically having in any way committed the
government to Miranda's undertaking, or having acted in any way in
disregard of our obligations to Spain.[24]
Aside from accomplishing nothing, the expedition of 1806 was a great
injury to Miranda's cause. He himself lost prestige as a military leader
and brought his character into question as having misrepresented his
connection both with the British and United States governments.
However, upon the occupation of Spain by Napoleon in 1808, Miranda again
hastened to England and urged upon the ministry the claims of his
country, in whose interests he had now been laboring incessantly as an
exile for more than twenty years. We cannot but admire his tenacity of
purpose in the face of the most disheartening failures.
Not only did the British government lend its encouragement, through Lord
Cochrane, to the filibustering expedition from the United States with
which Miranda hoped to revolutionize Venezuela, but about the same time
it sent an expedition against the provinces of the Plate. This attack,
like the assistance given to Miranda, was ill-timed and not properly
followed up. The policy seems to have been outlined by Pitt, but was put
into execution after his death by the short-lived ministry of Grenville
and Fox. The government of the Duke of Portland, which succeeded after a
few months, and in which Castlereagh and Canning were the most
conspicuous figures, did not deem it expedient to follow up the
undertaking.[25] In fact, the fate of the expedition was already sealed
when Portland came into power.
The victory of Trafalgar had given the English control of the Atlantic.
A force of some 6,000 men was dispatched to the South Atlantic without
its destination being known. It proceeded to Rio Janeiro, Portugal then
being in alliance with England. The viceroy of the Plate became alarmed
and prepared to defend Montevideo, which he thought would be the first
point of attack. The expedition, however, passed by and proceeded to the
Cape of Good Hope, which it wrested from the Dutch. In 1806 a dash was
made from the Cape for the river Plate. Sir Home Popham commanded the
fleet, and General Beresford the land force, which amounted to 1,635
men. On June 6 the squadron arrived at the mouth of the Plate. The ships
had some difficulty in ascending the river, but on the 25th they came to
anchor at a point fifteen miles below Buenos Aires. The city was
captured with little or no resistance, the inhabitants having been led
to believe that the British had come to liberate them. The contents of
the public treasury were handed over to the invaders. The inhabitants
were required to swear allegiance to George III, private property was
respected, the free exercise of their religion was allowed, and all
officials who took the oath were continued in office. When Beresford
refused to proclaim the independence of the province, or to give any
assurance for their future independence, the inhabitants, who had now
learned how insignificant the invading force really was, began to
prepare for resistance. A leader was readily found in the person of
Jacques Liniers, a Frenchman, who had been for thirty years in the
service of Spain. He and Juan Martin de Puyrredon began an organized
movement for the expulsion of the English. On the 12th of August,
Beresford, who had remained all this time without reinforcements, was
compelled to surrender. Troops ordered to his support from the Cape did
not arrive until later.
Sobremonte, the viceroy, had deserted Buenos Aires and established
himself at Montevideo. The people of Buenos Aires, therefore, deposed
him and chose Liniers in his place.
During the fall other English reinforcements arrived, and in January,
1807, Montevideo was taken by assault. As soon as the defeat of
Beresford was known, General Whitelocke was sent to take command of the
united English forces of the Plate, now some twelve thousand in number.
He arrived in the spring. The reconquest of Buenos Aires now seemed an
easy matter. It had been taken in the first instance by sixteen hundred
men; there were now ten thousand available. On June 28 the British
landed at the small port of Enseñada, forty-eight miles below Buenos
Aires. The fighting continued on the outskirts of the city in a
desultory manner and without any decisive action for several days. But
finally, owing to the bad generalship and incompetency of Whitelocke,
his troops got into such a muddle that half the force was captured or
disabled. On July 6, Liniers decided to send a flag of truce with the
proposal to surrender all the English prisoners, including those taken
with Beresford, provided Whitelocke would evacuate the territory of
Buenos Aires. One of Liniers' associates, Alzaga, insisted that the
terms of surrender should include Montevideo. This demand seemed
preposterous, but the clause was finally inserted, and to their surprise
agreed to, so complete was the demoralization of the English. On July 7
the terms of capitulation were signed.[26] Thus through a lack of
decision in the cabinet and a display of incapacity in the field,
without parallel in British annals, the empire of the Plate was
lost.[27]
With Napoleon's invasion of Spain in 1808, the Spanish-American
question came to the front once more. Miranda returned to London and was
detained there by the cabinet, as before by Pitt, with a view to using
him if occasion should require. At the same time Castlereagh, now
Foreign Secretary, had other solutions of the question in view. It was
proposed, and the matter seriously discussed in the cabinet, to alienate
the colonies from Spain, if possible, without revolution; and, instead
of establishing republics according to Miranda's plans, to unite them
all under a prince of the House of Bourbon. Louis Philippe, Duke of
Orleans, was suggested as the most suitable person for the new crown.
Some thirty years prior to this, immediately upon the recognition by
Spain of the independence of the United States, Count de Aranda had
advised Charles III to forestall the movement for independence, which
must inevitably come in his own provinces, by establishing among them
three great empires--one in Mexico, one in Peru, and one on the
Main--each to be ruled by a prince of the royal family of Spain.[28]
Chateaubriand brought forward a similar plan several years later at the
Congress of Verona. The present scheme was suggested by General
Dumouriez in the interests of his friend, the Duke of Orleans. Several
memorials on the subject, both by Dumouriez and the duke, were presented
to the British government in 1807 and 1808.[29]
Napoleon's invasion of Spain constitutes at once the most contemptible
and the most disastrous chapter in his career. In 1807, under the terms
of an agreement with Godoy, the unworthy favorite of the queen and the
virtual ruler of Spain, a French army was introduced into the kingdom
for the nominal purpose of punishing Portugal for her refusal to join
the continental system. The Portuguese royal family, fully appreciating
the danger in which they stood, fled to America and founded the empire
of Brazil, which in 1815 was declared independent of Portugal. The
Spanish rulers attempted to follow their example, but their intended
flight became known and they were prevented by the populace from leaving
the capital. In the meantime a disgraceful quarrel having arisen between
the old king, Charles IV, and Prince Ferdinand, Napoleon, whose troops
were now firmly established in Spain, stepped in as arbiter between
father and son and summoned them both to meet him on the northern
frontier. Having purposely lingered in France beyond the appointed time,
he succeeded in enticing them over the border to Bayonne, where he
compelled both to renounce forever the crown of Spain and the Indies,
which he forthwith bestowed upon his brother Joseph. When the truth
dawned upon them, the Spanish nation rose to a man. Napoleon had
unwittingly aroused the latent principle of nationality; he had put into
action a force which was new and one which the statesmen of Europe had
hitherto left out of account, but which was to prove the most potent
factor in the new epoch of political history introduced by the French
Revolution.
Provisional juntas were rapidly organized in the various provinces of
the kingdom of Spain and affairs administered in the name of Ferdinand
VII. The Junta, or as it is better known, the Regency of Cadiz, rapidly
gained a position of national importance and became the chief executive
body of the Spanish nation. The American provinces, which had long been
restive under Spanish rule, now claimed the same right of
self-government that the provinces of the Peninsula had assumed, and
began to depose the Spanish governors and to set up juntas of their own,
still acting in the name of Ferdinand VII. The Americans claimed that
they were not politically a part of Spain, but connected only through
the sovereign, and that with the removal of the sovereign the connection
ceased. The Regency of Cadiz, on the other hand, maintained that the
colonies were integral parts of Spain, and claimed, therefore, the right
to govern them in the absence of the sovereign.
The first throes of revolution were felt in 1809, almost simultaneously
in Upper Peru, Quito, and Mexico. These movements were quickly
suppressed with great cruelty. In the year 1810 the revolution opened
upon a vast scale. All the Spanish colonies on the mainland, with the
exception of Lower Peru, revolted at the same time and proclaimed their
independence of Spain, although still professing allegiance to Ferdinand
VII, the dethroned king.
The colonial authorities were deposed in most cases by force of public
opinion and without violence. The revolution was municipal in character,
that is to say, the _cabildos_, or town councils, the only popularly
constituted political bodies in the colonies, assumed the initiative in
the work of revolution and named the juntas. The junta of the capital
city in each province was usually recognized as the chief executive body
for that province, and assumed for the time being all the functions of
government. National conventions were then called in many cases to
decide upon the form of government. These in most cases entrusted the
executive power to regencies or triumvirates, almost all of which
rapidly gave way to military dictatorships.
The Regency of Cadiz had anticipated trouble from the colonies and had
recognized their rights as freemen by inviting them to send deputies to
the national Cortes, but at the same time had abridged those rights by
allowing them only a very limited representation, absurdly out of
proportion to their population and commercial importance. Upon the
establishment of the provisional governments or juntas in the colonies,
the Regency refused them the freedom of trade that had been promised,
declined the proffered mediation of England, and proceeded to stigmatize
the Americans as rebels and to declare them guilty of high treason,
although they had been guilty only of the same conduct that the
Spaniards themselves were pursuing at home.
Venezuela then (1811) declared herself independent of both the Spanish
nation and of the Spanish monarch, and adopted a republican
constitution. The promulgation of the Spanish constitution of 1812
further encouraged the spirit of independence in the colonies, but when
Ferdinand was restored in 1814, the colonies were still governed in his
name, for the revolution of Venezuela, which alone had declared for
independence, had been crushed out. Had Ferdinand acted with any
moderation or judgment, his American possessions would have been saved
to his crown. But the refusal of the colonies, which had now enjoyed
practical self-government for several years, to take upon them without
conditions the yoke of absolute authority, was met with the proclamation
of a war of reconquest. Reconciliation was thereafter no longer
possible, and independence only a question of time. By the close of 1815
the revolution had been put down in all the provinces except La Plata.
There it was never suppressed. For this reason we shall first trace
rapidly the course of the revolution in the south, of which San Martin
was the directing power.
José de San Martin was born in 1778 in Paraguay, his father being the
governor of Misiones. When eight years of age, his family went to Spain
and he was entered as a pupil in the Seminary of Nobles at Madrid. At
the age of twelve, he joined a regiment as cadet and saw his first
service in Africa. He served in the Spanish army for more than twenty
years, and won promotion as well as special distinction for bravery. In
the battle of Baylen, where a detachment of Napoleon's disciplined
troops was beaten by an army of recruits inspired by patriotism, San
Martin, then a captain, won a gold medal and a commission as
lieutenant-colonel for his conduct. Hearing of the struggle for liberty
in his native land, he resigned his commission and returned to America.
He was almost unknown personally, but his reputation as a brave soldier
and a skilful tactician procured for him immediate employment. At this
time the Argentine Republic had two armies in the field, the one
operating near at home against the Portuguese in Uruguay and the Spanish
in Montevideo, and the other in Upper Peru (Bolivia) against the forces
sent by the viceroy of Peru to suppress the Argentine revolution. San
Martin was soon given the command of this army in the north, succeeding
General Belgrano. He soon placed his army in an excellent state of
discipline and put a check to the advances of the Peruvian army.[30]
On May 16, 1814, the Argentine naval force, under command of an Irishman
named Brown, defeated and almost entirely destroyed the Spanish squadron
stationed at Montevideo, and that city soon after surrendered to the
besieging army of Alvear, San Martin's old comrade in the Spanish army.
Alvear, whose political influence was much greater than San Martin's,
now aspired to the conquest of Peru, and therefore desired the command
in the north. This San Martin willingly relinquished to him. He had
other plans in mind, and the state of his health demanded rest. Upper
Peru had been the high-road from Peru to Buenos Aires in times of peace,
and was, therefore, naturally looked upon as the line of advance for the
liberating army. San Martin, however, after a careful study of the
question, had become convinced that this was not the strategic line of
approach, that the Argentine Republic would never succeed in conquering
Peru from this quarter. His idea was to carry the war to the west, to
cross the Andes, occupy Chile, and, having secured a naval base there,
to attack Peru from the coast, continuing military operations in the
north merely as a diversion. The success of this plan depended upon the
performance of two apparently impossible tasks--the passage of the Andes
and the creation of a navy on the Pacific. San Martin was by far too
shrewd a man to advocate such an undertaking before maturing his plans.
He, therefore, confided it only to a few of his intimate friends, and,
taking advantage of his ill health, asked, as a favor for himself, the
government of the obscure province of Cuyo, where from its capital of
Mendoza he could place himself in communication with the Chilean
patriots.
On August 10, 1814, San Martin was appointed governor of Cuyo, and at
once devoted himself to the development of the plans which led to the
emancipation of half a continent and gave him his place in the world's
history. The revolutionary movement in Chile had just been crushed out.
It was begun in 1810 and the general course of events had been somewhat
similar to the Argentine movement, but it had fallen a victim first to
disputes between the Patriot leaders and finally to the troops of the
viceroy of Peru. It would require more space than we can give to trace
the varying fortunes of the cause in Chile through the stirring events
that marked the leadership of Dr. Rosas, of the Carrera brothers, and of
Bernardo O'Higgins. After the final collapse, O'Higgins, with a number
of other Patriots, fled over the Andes to Mendoza and readily entered
into the plans of San Martin. It took the latter two years to organize
and equip an army and to convince the government of Buenos Aires of the
practicability of his plan.
At length, on January 17, 1817, he began the passage of the Andes with
about 5,000 men, 1,600 horses, and 9,000 mules, the latter carrying the
field artillery, ammunition, and provisions. The summit of the Uspallata
Pass is 12,700 feet above the sea-level, 5,000 feet higher than the
Great St. Bernard, by which Napoleon led his army over the Alps. In many
other respects San Martin's achievement was more remarkable. Each piece
of artillery had to be carried suspended on a pole between two mules,
or, where the road was particularly dangerous, dragged by ropes. There
were chasms that could be crossed only by cable bridges. The march over
the Andes occupied three weeks. Both men and animals suffered greatly
from _soroche_, the illness caused by rarefied atmosphere.
At the foot of the mountain, at Chacabuco, the vanguard of San Martin's
army defeated a body of 4,000 Royalists, and thus opened the road to
Santiago, which San Martin entered February 14, 1817. The Chileans chose
him Supreme Director of their government, but he declined the office,
and O'Higgins was chosen.
San Martin's great object was to crush the colonial power of Spain in
its stronghold, Peru. Having by the successful passage of the Andes and
the victory of Chacabuco in a measure justified his plan of campaign, he
returned to Buenos Aires for reinforcements. The Royalists meanwhile
retreated to the south. On February 18, 1818, the independence of Chile
was proclaimed. A month later the Patriots were surprised at
Cancha-Rayada and almost routed, but within two weeks the army was again
ready for action, and on April 5, 1818, encountered the Royalists at
Maipo. This battle was a complete victory for the Patriots and decided
the fate of Chile. Only one or two fortresses in the south were now held
for Spain. Five days after the battle of Maipo, San Martin returned once
more to Buenos Aires and began organizing an expedition for the
liberation of Peru. Puyrredon, now Supreme Director, supported his
undertaking.
While San Martin was soliciting aid from the Argentine Republic, the
Chileans were not idle. They saw that the only way of insuring their
independence was by the creation of a navy. Through its agent in London,
the Chilean government secured the services of Lord Cochrane, an English
naval officer of great distinction and remarkable talents, who by a
curious turn of fortune had been brought into unmerited disgrace and
dismissed from the British service.[31] He reached Valparaiso in
November and hoisted his flag on board the _O'Higgins_, December 22,
1818. During the course of the next year, Cochrane made two attempts to
take Callao, the seaport of Peru, but without success beyond harassing
the enemy in some of the smaller coast towns. In February, 1820, by a
brilliant move, he captured Valdivia, a strongly fortified town still
held by the Spaniards in southern Chile.
San Martin returned to Chile in January, 1820, and began to assemble at
Valparaiso the army destined for the invasion of Peru. Of the 5,000 men,
two-thirds were from Buenos Aires, while nearly all of the officers were
Argentine or European volunteers. Of 65 foreign officers, 37 were
British and 3 were from the United States. There were, besides, 30
English officers in the Chilean navy. The expedition sailed on August
21, 1820, on board the fleet commanded by Cochrane. San Martin landed
his army at Pisco, to the south of Lima, and sent an expedition into the
interior under General Arenales, who had served the Patriots for years
in Upper Peru. In October, San Martin reëmbarked his troops and landed
them again at Huacho, a point seventy miles north of Lima. Meanwhile the
Spanish squadron, completely demoralized by the appearance on the
Pacific of Lord Cochrane, whose daring exploits were well known, was
lying under the guns of Callao Castle. On the night of November 5, 1820,
Lord Cochrane led a force of volunteers, consisting of 180 seamen and
100 marines, in open boats right under the batteries of Callao,
surprised and overpowered the crew of the _Esmeralda_, the largest
Spanish frigate, and, cutting her loose, carried her off to his own
squadron.
After Cochrane's exploit at Callao, the moral effect of which was very
great, he urged upon San Martin an immediate advance upon Lima, but San
Martin had two campaigns before him, the one military, the other
political. On first landing at Pisco he had issued an order to his army
in which he said, "Remember that you are come not to conquer, but to
liberate a people; the Peruvians are our brothers." And in spite of the
impatience and restlessness of his officers, he steadily adhered to his
plan, to the no small loss of his military prestige and ultimately to
his retirement from the scene of activity. His purpose was by the
presence of the liberating army to give the people of Peru a chance to
rise and throw off the yoke of Spain. To this end he scattered
proclamations and addresses of a revolutionary character broadcast
through the land and quietly awaited results. The contest in Peru, he
said, was not a war of conquest and glory, but entirely of opinion; it
was a war of new and liberal principles against prejudice, bigotry, and
tyranny.
People ask why I don't march to Lima at once; so I might,
and instantly would, were it suitable to my views, which it
is not. I do not want military renown; I have no ambition to
be the conqueror of Peru; I want solely to liberate the
country from oppression. Of what use would Lima be to me if
the inhabitants were hostile in political sentiment? How
could the cause of independence be advanced by my holding
Lima, or even the whole country, in military possession? Far
different are my views. I wish to have all men thinking with
me, and do not choose to advance a step beyond the gradual
march of public opinion. The capital is now ripe for
declaring its sentiments, and I shall give them the
opportunity to do so in safety. It was in sure expectation
of this movement that I have hitherto deferred advancing;
and to those who know the full extent of the means which
have been put in action, a sufficient explanation is
afforded of all the delays that have taken place. I have
been gaining, indeed, day by day, fresh allies in the hearts
of the people, the only certain allies in such a war. In the
secondary point of military strength, I have been, from the
same causes, equally successful in augmenting and improving
the liberating army; while that of the Spaniards has been
wasted by want and desertion. The country has now become
sensible of its true interests, and it is right the
inhabitants should have the means of expressing what they
think. Public opinion is an engine newly introduced into
this country; the Spaniards, who are utterly incapable of
directing it, have prohibited its use; but they shall now
experience its strength and importance.[32]
The campaign of Arenales in the interior was successful. In the presence
of the liberating army, the people everywhere rose in revolt. San
Martin's method of conducting the campaign was the correct one. Public
opinion was soon aroused in the capital itself, and the Royalists
finally decided to evacuate Lima. The viceroy retired with his forces to
Cuzco in the highlands. In response to an invitation from the city
authorities, the Patriots entered Lima July 6, 1821. San Martin himself
entered without ceremony after dark a few days later. The independence
of Peru was proclaimed July 28 with imposing ceremonies in the great
square of Lima. San Martin was proclaimed Protector of Peru. He
proceeded to organize a civil government, and established the celebrated
_Order of the Sun_, distinctively aristocratic in character.
San Martin had played a great part thus far, but he had reached the
zenith of his influence and power. Dissensions soon arose. The task he
had undertaken was difficult in the extreme. It was much easier to
acquire power than to use it. At the time of the evacuation of Lima by
the Spaniards, he said to Captain Hall:
For the last ten years I have been unremittingly employed
against the Spaniards; or rather in favor of this country,
for I am not against any one who is not hostile to the cause
of independence. All I wish is that this country should be
managed by itself, and by itself alone. As to the manner in
which it is to be governed, that belongs not at all to me. I
propose simply to give the people the means of declaring
themselves independent, and of establishing a suitable form
of government; after which I shall consider I have done
enough and leave them.[33]
When the time came he kept his word.
While San Martin was leading the army of liberation from the Argentine
Republic to Chile, and from Chile to Peru, Simon Bolivar, the liberator
of the north, was pursuing his chequered career in Venezuela and
Colombia, unfurling the standard of revolution wherever he could get a
foothold. He was a man, in every respect, the opposite of San Martin,
fiery, impetuous, wholly given over to personal ambition, neither a
statesman nor a soldier, but one of the greatest revolutionary leaders
of any age or country. His ignorance of military affairs led him into
undertakings from which an experienced soldier would have held back, but
his indomitable pluck carried him safely through all calamities, and his
wonderful enthusiasm fired his followers even in the midst of disaster.
This remarkable man, whose reputation in the new world stands second to
that of Washington alone, was, like Miranda, a native of Caracas. Sprung
from a family of wealth and influence he had, like most young South
Americans of his class, received his education abroad, and had for
several years led a dissipated life in Paris. At first he held himself
aloof from the revolutionary leaders, but after the accomplishment of
the revolution of Caracas, April 19, 1810, he was persuaded to join the
Patriot cause, and was sent to London to solicit assistance from Great
Britain.[34]
The junta of Caracas, like those subsequently formed in the south,
professed to act in the name of Ferdinand VII, and fearing the influence
of Miranda, then in London, whose advocacy of absolute independence had
been open and avowed, they instructed Bolivar and their other agents not
to allow him to come to Venezuela. Miranda came in spite of them,
however, under an assumed name, and was everywhere received with
enthusiasm. Under his influence a congress was elected which, on July 5,
1811, declared Venezuela a republic, free and independent of all foreign
dominion. Miranda was appointed Director. This was the first South
American declaration of independence. The formal independence of the
Argentine Republic was not declared until July 9, 1816, although the
country had been self-governing for several years.
The Patriot cause was ruined, however, by the earthquake of March 25,
1812, which almost destroyed the city of Caracas and several towns of
importance. Twenty thousand people are supposed to have perished. As the
disaster occurred on Holy Thursday, the clergy were not slow to turn it
to political account and to persuade the people that it was a direct
chastisement of Heaven upon them for their rebellion against Spain. The
cause of the Patriots steadily lost ground until the fall of Porto
Cabello, through the inefficiency of Bolivar, caused its complete
collapse. Miranda was forced to sign with Monteverde the treaty of
Vittoria, July 26, 1812, on the basis of complete submission and a
general amnesty. It is hardly necessary to add that the Spanish general
did not abide by the terms of the capitulation. Miranda himself was
detained by Bolivar, as he was on the point of embarking for England,
accused of having received bribes from the Spaniards and of being
unwilling to share the fate of his followers, and treacherously handed
over to the Spaniards. He was sent to Spain and after languishing for
three years in a dungeon at Cadiz, died July 14, 1816. His fate was a
sad blot upon the reputation of Bolivar.
The revolution in New Granada, which had been inaugurated July 20, 1810,
was still holding out and thither Bolivar proceeded to offer his
services to the Patriots of that province. As soon as he had firmly
established himself in influence and power, he persuaded the government
that their only safety lay in the reconquest of Venezuela. He was
provided with troops, and in May, 1813 crossed the frontier and took
several important cities. He now assumed a new attitude and became a
self-appointed dictator. He proclaimed a war of extermination against
Spaniards and adopted a new system of dates: "3d year of Independence
and 1st of the War to the Death." He entered Caracas in triumph August
6, 1813. He proclaimed himself dictator with the title of Liberator.
Meanwhile Marino, another Patriot leader, had landed in the eastern part
of Venezuela near Cumana and declared himself dictator. There were thus
two dictators and no cordiality between them. Before they could come to
an agreement the enemy had recovered their position. In December, 1814,
the last Patriot force was defeated.
Bolivar and Marino retired once more to New Granada. Bolivar was made
captain-general of the forces of New Granada, his title of Liberator was
recognized, and another, that of Illustrious Pacificator, bestowed upon
him. A second time he undertook the conquest of Venezuela from the west.
Dissensions soon arose between Bolivar and the other leaders. He was
refused reinforcements and foolishly marched against the Patriot
garrison of Cartagena. He was now forced to give up his command, and
embarked for Jamaica, May, 1815.
Meanwhile Ferdinand had been restored to the throne of Spain, and an
army of 10,000 men, commanded by Marshal Morillo, the ablest Spanish
general of the time, had been sent to reduce the provinces on the Main.
This expedition reached Cumana in April, 1815, and before the end of the
year all the colonies, with the exception of the provinces of the River
Plate, were reduced to submission.
Far from giving up hope, however, Bolivar proceeded to Haiti, and from
that island, in May, 1816, made a descent upon the eastern part of
Venezuela, but was routed by the Spaniards in July, and soon returned to
Haiti. A few of the Patriots still kept the field, and towards the close
of the year Bolivar's partisans secured his recall. On December 21 he
left Haiti with a second expedition for the relief of his native land.
He determined now to direct all his efforts, not as hitherto, to the
support of the Patriot cause in the capital, but to the holding of the
great plains of the Orinoco. With this territory as a base, he carried
on, during the year 1817, in conjunction with the Llanero horsemen of
General Paez, a desperate struggle with the Spaniards. When the rainy
season of 1818 began, Bolivar's army had been cut almost to pieces, he
had lost prestige as a general, and his civil authority amounted to
nothing. Only the cavalry of Paez maintained the Patriot cause. Still
the position of the Spaniards was not much better. Morillo had 12,000
men scattered about, but neither money, arms, nor supplies. He reported
to the viceroy of Peru: "Twelve pitched battles, in which the best
officers and troops of the enemy have fallen, have not lowered their
pride or lessened the vigor of their attacks upon us."
In February, 1819, the second Congress of Venezuela convened at
Angostura. The Dictator resigned, but was unanimously elected President
and given absolute power in all provinces which were the actual theater
of war. The army was reorganized by the accession of foreign troops, in
particular the British legion, consisting of 2,000 well equipped men,
which achieved much of the success of the next year. Bolivar now
conceived the idea of crossing the Cordillera and reconquering New
Granada. General Paez was to attract the attention of Morillo on the
plains in front, and a demonstration was to be made on the coast near
Caracas, while Bolivar marched to the west. This movement changed the
whole face of affairs and had a similar effect to the passage of the
Andes by San Martin. New Granada was won by the battle of Boyaca, August
7, 1819. Morillo was now isolated in Venezuela. In December, 1819, a
congress of delegates from Venezuela and New Granada met and decreed the
union of the two provinces in the Republic of Colombia. Bolivar was
named provisional President. An armistice was signed by Bolivar and
Morillo in November, 1820, which gave the Patriots breathing time. The
Spanish troops remaining in Venezuela were defeated by Bolivar in the
battle of Carabobo, June 23, 1821. Only a few fortresses on the coast
were still held by the Spaniards.
Bolivar entered Caracas once more in triumph and tendered his
resignation, an act always considered by him necessary for giving the
proper dramatic setting to such occasions. Congress took no notice of
it, but drew up a constitution providing for a limited presidential term
of four years. The Liberator, "as he feared," was elected President. He
repeated his resignation, but added that he would yield if Congress
persisted. Congress did persist.
After the battle of Boyaca, Bolivar had sent General Sucre by sea to
Guayaquil, nominally to aid the new state against the Royalists, but in
reality to induce it to join the Republic of Colombia. Sucre met with
reverses, and had to call on San Martin for assistance from Peru.
Meanwhile Bolivar was advancing by land. On July 11, 1822, he entered
Guayaquil in triumph, and two days later, on his own responsibility,
announced its incorporation with Colombia. The junta resigned and took
refuge on board the Peruvian squadron in the harbor. On the 25th San
Martin arrived by sea, and Bolivar sent two of his aides to welcome him
"on Colombian soil." On the following day San Martin went ashore and he
and Bolivar met for the first and last time. They had two private
interviews, after which San Martin sent his baggage aboard his ship and
announced that he would sail after attending the ball to be given that
night in his honor. At the public banquet that evening Bolivar rose and
proposed a toast: "To the two greatest men of South America--General San
Martin and myself." San Martin also proposed a toast: "To the speedy
conclusion of the war; to the organization of the different republics of
the continent; and to the health of the Liberator of Colombia"--words
which well contrasted the personal and political aims of the two men.
San Martin and Bolivar had been unable to agree upon any plan for the
expulsion of the Spaniards from the highlands of Peru. The self-denying
patriot gave way before the man of ambition. To O'Higgins he wrote: "The
Liberator is not the man we took him to be."
Upon his return to Peru, San Martin wrote to Bolivar: "My decision is
irrevocable. I have convened the first Congress of Peru; the day after
its installation I shall leave for Chile, convinced that my presence is
the only obstacle which keeps you from coming to Peru with your army."
On the 20th of September, 1822, he laid his resignation before the
Congress, and issued an address to the nation. "The presence of a
fortunate soldier," he said, "however disinterested he may be, is
dangerous to a newly founded state. I have proclaimed the independence
of Peru. I have ceased to be a public man." These words, whether
intentionally so or not, were prophetic of Bolivar's subsequent career.
San Martin wrote to O'Higgins: "I am tired of hearing them call me
tyrant, that I wish to make myself king, emperor, the devil. On the
other hand, my health is broken, this climate is killing me. My youth
was sacrificed to the service of Spain; my manhood to my own country. I
think I have now the right to dispose of my old age."
Bolivar's jealousy of San Martin prolonged the war, which might have
been brought to a close in a few months, for nearly three years. After
the withdrawal of San Martin, Bolivar became Dictator of Peru. On
December 9, 1824, was fought the last battle for South American
independence. On the little plain of Ayacucho, 11,600 feet above the
sea, General Sucre defeated and captured the forces of the viceroy.
Upper Peru was organized as a separate republic, with the name of
Bolivia.
Bolivar had been proclaimed President of Peru for life, but the
unpopularity of this measure led him to leave the country in 1826, never
to return. That same year he summoned the Congress of Panama, but his
plans for the union of South America in one republic failed. San
Martin's idea finally triumphed. In 1829 Venezuela separated itself from
Colombia and passed a decree of perpetual banishment against Bolivar.
In April, 1830, through pressure of public opinion, Bolivar resigned the
presidency of Colombia and retired into private life. Congress voted him
an annual pension of $30,000. A month later Quito and Guayaquil
separated from Colombia and formed the independent state of Ecuador.
Even the name Colombia was dropped by the remaining state, and the old
name of New Granada adopted. In 1857 the name Colombia was assumed once
more.
Bolivar died in a small house near Santa Martha, December 17, 1831,
having witnessed the failure of his most cherished plans. San Martin had
retired to Europe in 1823 with his only child, a daughter named
Mercedes. They lived a retired life in Brussels. Once only, in 1828, he
returned to his native land, but was received with such denunciation by
the press of Buenos Aires that he quickly turned his face towards Europe
again. He died at Boulogne, August 17, 1850. Thirty years later the
Argentine people had his remains brought back to his native land. In
May, 1880, with imposing ceremonies, they were laid to rest in the
Cathedral of Buenos Aires.
Mexico was twice revolutionized. The first struggle began in 1809 and
1810, and was carried on spasmodically until 1817. The second revolution
broke out in 1820 on receipt of the news from Spain of the revolution of
March, 1820, and the re-adoption of the constitution of 1812. The old
revolutionists demanded the proclamation of this constitution in Mexico,
but the Viceroy Apodaca opposed them. Augustin de Iturbide, a native
Mexican, who in the first revolution had steadfastly adhered to the
cause of the king, now defected to the popular side with a large body
of troops which the viceroy had entrusted to his command. On February
24, 1821, he issued the celebrated document known as the Plan of Iguala,
from the town of that name. In it he proposed the maintenance of the
Roman Catholic religion to the exclusion of all others, the independence
of Mexico from Spain, and the establishment of a limited monarchy. The
Imperial Crown of Mexico was to be offered first to Ferdinand VII; in
the event of his declining, to the younger princes of his house; and in
the event of their refusal, the duty of naming an emperor was to fall to
the representative assembly of Mexico. The personal and property rights
of Spaniards in Mexico were carefully guaranteed. In securing the
interests of Spaniards and of the clergy, those who had most to lose,
this plan differed essentially from the revolutionary policy of the
other Spanish colonies. On the other hand, the Creole element was
satisfied with the promise of independence and a representative
government. The revolutionary army became known as "the Army of the
Three Guarantees," these being (1) the maintenance of the religious
establishment in its present form, (2) independence, and (3) the union
of Americans and Spaniards.[35] This ingenious document received
immediately the widest approval.
The Viceroy Apodaca had practically abdicated when his successor,
General O'Donaju, arrived from Spain. As the latter had come without
troops, there was nothing left but for him to recognize the revolution
as an accomplished fact and make the best terms for his country he
could. Accordingly he met Iturbide in conference at Cordova, and after
a brief discussion signed the treaty bearing that name, August 24, 1821.
It was agreed that a provisional junta should be appointed, that
O'Donaju should be a member, and that the junta should proceed to carry
into effect the plan of Iguala. O'Donaju then persuaded the Royalists to
open the gates of the capital, and on September 27, 1821, Iturbide
entered. Shortly thereafter O'Donaju died from the yellow fever, thus
leaving Iturbide free to carry out his plans. The Spanish government, of
course, repudiated the treaty of Cordova.
The Congress, which assembled in pursuance of the program of Iguala, was
divided between Imperialists and Republicans. In spite of the opposition
of the latter, Iturbide had himself proclaimed emperor and his family
ennobled. Congress soon fell into disputes with the emperor, who
finally, in October, 1822, dissolved it by force. A few months later
Santa Anna inaugurated a counter-revolution from Vera Cruz, which
resulted in the abdication of the emperor. Iturbide was allowed to leave
the country. He retired to Italy, where he resided until toward the
close of 1823, when he went to London. In May, 1824, at the solicitation
of certain of his partisans, he sailed again for Mexico,[36] ignorant of
the decree of perpetual banishment passed against him by the Congress a
few weeks before. He landed at Tampico July 12, but was seized and
executed a few days later. The new assembly then in session adopted a
constitution, and the Republic of Mexico was launched upon what was to
prove, for years to come, a career of turbulence and anarchy.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Hall's "Journal on Chili, Peru, and Mexico," 2 Vols. Edinburgh,
1824, Vol. I, p. 249.
[2] Am. St. Pap., For. Rel., Vol. IV, pp. 156-159.
[3] Hall's "Journal," Vol. I, p. 296. See also Rodney's report on South
America, in Vol. IV, Am. St. Pap., For. Rel.
[4] A full history of the India House and an account of its regulations
is given by Veitia Linage in his "Norte de la Contratacion," Seville,
1672; translated into English by Captain John Stevens under the title,
"Spanish Rule of Trade to the West Indies," London, 1702. Linage was for
a number of years Treasurer and Comptroller of the India House. A good
summary of the history and regulations of the House is given by Prof.
Bernard Moses in his "Casa de Contratacion" in the Papers of the Am.
Hist. Ass. for 1894, and in the third chapter of his "Establishment of
Spanish Rule in America."
[5] Linage, "Norte de la Contratacion," p. 107.
[6] _Ibid._, p. 110.
[7] _Ibid._, p. 113.
[8] _Ibid._, p. 114.
[9] _Ibid._, p. 109.
[10] _Ibid._, p. 109.
[11] Linage, "Norte de la Contratacion," pp. 191-193.
[12] Hall's "Journal," Vol. I, pp. 253-254.
[13] "The Assiento; or Contract for Allowing to the Subjects of Great
Britain the Liberty of Importing Negroes into the Spanish America."
Printed by John Baskett, London, 1713.
[14] "The Assiento; or Contract for Allowing to the Subjects of Great
Britain the Liberty of Importing Negroes into the Spanish America."
London, 1713.
[15] Ulloa, "Voyage to South America." English translation, London,
1806, Vol. I, p. 105.
[16] "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. VII, p. 266 ff. This
volume is rich in information in regard to England's Spanish-American
policy.
[17] W. S. Robertson, "Francisco de Miranda and the Revolutionizing of
Spanish America" (1909).
[18] "Life and Correspondence of Rufus King," New York, 1894, Vol. II,
App. 5. For further information regarding his relations with Miranda,
see extracts from his Memorandum Book, in Vol. III, App. 3.
[19] See Miranda's letter to President Adams, March 24, 1798. "Life and
Corresp. of King," Vol. II, p. 654.
[20] "Life and Corresp. of King," Vol. II, p. 650.
[21] See King's letter to Hamilton, March 4, 1799. "Life and Corresp.,"
p. 662.
[22] "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. VII.
[23] See Sherman, "General Account of Miranda's Expedition," N. Y.,
1808.
[24] H. A. Washington, "Writings of Thomas Jefferson," Vol. V, p. 474;
"Madison's Writings," Vol. II, pp. 220, 225.
[25] "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. VII, p. 314 ff.
[26] See Watson, "Spanish and Portuguese South America." 2 Vols. London,
1884, Vol. II, p. 271 ff.
[27] See "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. VII, p. 316 ff.
[28] Romero, "Mexico and the United States," Putnam, 1898, p. 287.
[29] "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. VII.
[30] Mitre, "The Emancipation of South America." Translated by Pilling.
London, 1893.
[31] See Cochrane (Earl Dundonald), "Service in Chili." 2 Vols. London,
1859.
[32] Hall's "Journal," Vol. I, p. 181. Report of Conversation with San
Martin in Callao Roads.
[33] Hall's "Journal," Vol. I, p. 194.
[34] Holstein, "Life of Bolivar." Boston, 1829.
[35] Hall's "Journal," Vol. II, p. 188.
[36] See the statement of Iturbide in regard to his political life
published in the _Pamphleteer_, London, 1827.
CHAPTER II
THE RECOGNITION OF THE SPANISH-AMERICAN REPUBLICS
The struggle of the South American peoples for independence was viewed
from the first with feelings of profound satisfaction and sympathy in
the United States. From the commencement of the revolution South
American vessels were admitted into the ports of the United States under
whatever flag they bore. It does not appear that any formal declaration
according belligerent rights to the said provinces was ever made, though
a resolution to that effect was introduced into the House by committee
as early as December 10, 1811.[37] Such formal action was apparently not
deemed necessary and, as there was no Spanish minister resident in the
United States at that time to protest, our ports were probably thrown
open, as a matter of course.[38] The fact that they were accorded full
belligerent rights from the first was afterwards stated by President
Monroe in his annual messages of 1817 and 1818 and in his special
message of March 8, 1822.[39]
At an early date of the revolution commissioners arrived in Washington
seeking recognition of independence, and agents were forthwith
dispatched to South America to obtain information in regard to the
state of the revolutionary governments and to watch the movements of
England and other European powers. Joel R. Poinsett was sent to Buenos
Aires in 1811, and the following year Alexander Scott was sent to
Venezuela.[40] In 1817 Cæsar A. Rodney, Theodorick Bland, and John
Graham were dispatched as special commissioners to South America. They
proceeded to Buenos Aires, where they arrived in February, 1818, and
remained until the last of April. Rodney and Graham then returned to the
United States while Bland proceeded across the continent to Chile. Their
reports were transmitted to Congress November 17, 1818.[41] In 1820
Messrs. J. B. Prevost and John M. Forbes were sent as commercial agents
to Chile and Buenos Aires. Reports from them on the state of the
revolutions were transmitted to Congress, March 8 and April 26,
1822.[42]
In the meantime a strong sentiment in favor of the recognition of South
American independence had arisen in the United States. The struggling
colonies found a ready champion in Henry Clay, who, for a period of ten
years labored almost incessantly in their behalf, pleading for their
recognition first with his own countrymen and then, as secretary of
state under the Adams administration, with the governments of Europe.
His name became a household word in South America and his speeches were
translated and read before the patriot armies.
In spite of the fact that our own political interests were so closely
identified with the struggling republics, the President realized the
necessity of following a neutral course, and in view of the aid the
colonies were receiving from citizens of the United States, called upon
Congress for the enactment of a more stringent neutrality law. Clay
delivered a vigorous speech in opposition to this measure in January,
1817. His greatest effort in behalf of South America, however, was his
speech of March 25, 1818, on the general appropriation bill. He moved an
amendment appropriating $18,000 for the outfit and year's salary of a
minister to the United Provinces of the Plate. Without waiting to hear
the report of the three commissioners who had been sent to inquire into
the state of the revolutionary governments, he urged that a minister be
regularly accredited to Buenos Aires at once. In a speech, three hours
in length, he concluded the arguments he had begun the day before.
Painting with even more than his usual fire and enthusiasm the beauties
and resources of the Southern continent, he said:
Within this vast region, we behold the most sublime and
interesting objects of creation; the loftiest mountains, the
most majestic rivers in the world; the richest mines of the
precious metals; and the choicest productions of the earth.
We behold there a spectacle still more interesting and
sublime--the glorious spectacle of eighteen millions of
people struggling to burst their chains and be free.[43]
He went on to say that in the establishment of the independence of the
South American states the United States had the deepest interest. He had
no hesitation in asserting his firm belief that there was no question in
the foreign policy of this country, which had ever arisen, or which he
could conceive as ever occurring, in the decision of which we had so
much at stake. This interest concerned our politics, our commerce, our
navigation. There could be no doubt that Spanish America, once
independent, whatever might be the form of the governments established
in its several parts, those governments would be animated by an American
feeling and guided by an American policy. They would obey the laws of
the system of the new world, of which they would compose a part, in
contradistinction to that of Europe.[44] The House turned a deaf ear to
his brilliant rhetoric. The motion was defeated by a vote of 115 to 45,
but Clay did not abandon the cause of South America.
Two years later he reopened the question in a direct attack on the
policy of the administration, which greatly disturbed President Monroe.
On May 20, 1820, he again introduced a resolution declaring it expedient
to send ministers to the "governments in South America which have
established and are maintaining their independence of Spain." His
arraignment of the administration became more violent than ever:
If Lord Castlereagh says we may recognize, we do; if not, we
do not. A single expression of the British minister to the
present secretary of state, then our minister abroad, I am
ashamed to say, has molded the policy of our government
toward South America.
A charge of dependence upon Great Britain in affairs of diplomacy was as
effective a weapon then as it has been since in matters financial.
Clay's resolution passed the House by a vote of 80 to 75, but still the
executive arm of the government did not move. In 1817 and 1818 the
question of South American independence was continually before the
cabinet for discussion. President Monroe seemed strongly inclined toward
recognition, but in this he was opposed by Adams and Calhoun, who were
unwilling to act in the matter without some understanding with England,
and if possible with France. Our relations with Spain in regard to the
Indian troubles in Florida were in a very strained condition and any
action taken at that time in recognition of South America would have
involved us in war with Spain and almost inevitably with other European
powers. The President, therefore, as a matter of expediency postponed
the action which his sympathy prompted, and, in his annual message of
November 16, 1818, expressed his satisfaction at the course the
government had hitherto pursued and his intention of adhering to it for
the time being.[45] Under the President's direction, however, efforts
were made to secure the coöperation of Great Britain and France in
promoting the independence of South America.[46]
In 1819 an amicable adjustment of our differences with Spain seemed to
have been reached by the negotiation of a treaty providing for the
cession of the Floridas to the United States and the settlement of
long-standing claims of American citizens against Spain. An unforeseen
difficulty arose, however, which proved embarrassing to the
administration. The Spanish monarch very shrewdly delayed ratifying the
treaty for two years and thus practically tied the hands of the
administration during that time as far as the South American question
was concerned.
In spite of the awkward position in which the administration found
itself, Clay, who was opposed to the treaty on account of its
unwarranted surrender of our claims to Texas, continued to plead the
cause of South America. Early in the year, 1821, a declaration of
interest in the South American struggle, introduced by him, was carried
by an overwhelming majority (134 to 12), but the administration held
back another year until the _de facto_ independence of the colonies no
longer admitted of reasonable doubt. Meanwhile the Florida treaty had
been ratified. On March 8, 1822, President Monroe, in a special message
to Congress, expressed the opinion that the time had come for
recognition and asked for the appropriations necessary for carrying it
into effect. The President's recommendation was received with approval,
and in due course the sum of $100,000 was appropriated for "such
missions to the independent nations on the American continent as the
President of the United States may deem proper." In accordance with this
act Mr. R. C. Anderson of Kentucky was appointed minister to Colombia,
Mr. C. A. Rodney of New Jersey to the Argentine Republic, and Mr. H.
Allen of Vermont to Chile, in 1824, and Mr. Joel R. Poinsett of South
Carolina to Mexico in 1826.
While the United States government was concerning itself with the
political interests of the Spanish provinces, Great Britain was quietly
reaping all the commercial advantages to be derived from the situation
and was apparently well satisfied to let things follow the drift they
had taken. By the destruction of the combined fleets of France and
Spain at Trafalgar, in 1805, Nelson had won for Great Britain undisputed
control of the Atlantic and laid open the route to South America. Ever
since the _assiento_ of 1713 had placed the slave trade in her hands,
Great Britain had realized the possibilities of South American commerce,
and the intercourse, which had been kept up with that country after the
termination of the slave monopoly by smugglers, now that the danger was
removed, became more regular and profitable. During the changes of
ministry that followed the death of Pitt, the policy of England in
regard to South America was weak and vacillating. We have already called
attention to the political indecision that marked the attack upon the
provinces of the Plate. With Napoleon's invasion of Spain and the
national uprising it occasioned, British policy became once more
intelligible. It was wisely deemed of more importance to spare the
colonies and to win Spain over to the European alliance against
Napoleon, than to take her colonies at the cost of driving her
permanently into the arms of France. Meanwhile British commerce with the
South American states was steadily growing and that too with the
connivance of Spain.
At the close of the Napoleonic wars, Spain, fearing that England,
through her desire to keep this trade, would secretly furnish aid to the
colonies in their struggle for independence, proposed to the British
government to bind itself to a strict neutrality. This England agreed
to, and when the treaty was signed, there was, according to Canning, "a
distinct understanding with Spain that our commercial intercourse with
the colonies was not to be deemed a breach of its stipulations."[47]
Notwithstanding this tacit compact, British commerce suffered greatly at
the hands of Spanish privateers and even Spanish war vessels. Numbers of
British merchantmen were captured by Spanish ships, carried into the few
ports left to Spain on the Main, and condemned as prizes for trading
with the insurgent colonies. Thus at the time of the acknowledgment of
South American independence by the United States, a long list of
grievances had accumulated in the hands of the British ambassador at
Madrid, and in spite of urgent and repeated remonstrances, remained
unredressed.
Canning was deterred from making final demands upon the government of
Madrid by the consideration that he did not wish to hamper the
constitutional government of Spain, which had come into being by the
revolution of March, 1820, and against which the other powers of Europe
were preparing to act. The condition of affairs on the Spanish Main was,
however, critical and demanded instant redress. He decided, therefore,
to take matters into his own hands without harassing the government of
Spain, and to dispatch a squadron to the West Indies to make reprisals.
In a memorandum to the cabinet on this subject, November 15, 1822, in
which he outlines his policy, he commends the course of the United
States in recognizing the _de facto_ independence of the colonies,
claiming a right to trade with them and avenging the attempted
interruption of that right by making reprisals, as a more
straightforward and intelligible course than that of Great Britain,
forbearing for the sake of Spain to recognize the colonies, trading with
them in faith of the connivance of Spain and suffering depredations
without taking redress. It was not necessary, he thought, to declare war
against Spain, for "she has perhaps as little direct and available power
over the colonies which she nominally retains as she has over those
which have thrown off her yoke. Let us apply, therefore, a local remedy
to a local grievance, and make the ships and harbors of Cuba, Porto
Rico, and Porto Cabello answerable for the injuries which have been
inflicted by those ships, and the perpetrators of which have found
shelter in those harbors." In conclusion, he says that the tacit
compact, which subsisted for years, by which Spain was to forbear from
interrupting British trade with the South American colonies having been
renounced by Spain, and the old colonial system having been revived in
as full vigor as if she had still a practical hold over her colonies and
a navy to enforce her pretensions, "no man will say that under such
circumstances our recognition of those states can be indefinitely
postponed."[48]
While Great Britain was thus considering the expediency of following the
example of the United States in the recognition of Spain's revolted
colonies, the powers of central Europe had taken upon them the task of
solving the difficulties of that unfortunate country both at home and in
America. The restored rule of the Bourbons in Spain had been far from
satisfactory to the great mass of the people. In March, 1820, the army
which Ferdinand had assembled at Cadiz to be sent against the rebellious
colonies, suddenly turned against the government, refused to embark, and
demanded the restoration of the constitution of 1812. The action of the
army was everywhere approved and sustained by the mass of the people,
and the king was forced to proclaim the constitution and to swear to
uphold it. The March revolution in Spain was followed in July by a
constitutional movement in Naples, and in August of the same year by a
similar movement in Portugal; while the next year saw the outbreak of
the Greek struggle for independence. Thus in all three of the peninsulas
of Southern Europe the people were struggling for the right of
self-government. The movement in Greece was, it is true, of an
altogether different character from the others, but it was a revolt
against constituted authority and therefore incurred the ill-will of the
so-called legitimists. The powers of Europe at once took alarm at the
rapid spread of revolutionary ideas and proceeded to adopt measures for
the suppression of the movements to which these ideas gave rise. The
principle of joint intervention on the part of allied governments in the
internal affairs of European states had been developed in the years
immediately following the overthrow of Napoleon and was the outcome of
the wholly anomalous condition in which he had left the politics of
Europe. In the hands of Prince Metternich, the genius of reaction
against French revolutionary ideas, this principle had become the most
powerful weapon of absolutism and now threatened the subversion of
popular institutions throughout Europe.
The rapid development of this doctrine of intervention in the seven
years immediately following the second fall of Napoleon not only
seriously menaced the liberties of Europe, but also threatened to
control the destiny of the new world. At the Congress of Vienna
Austria, France, Great Britain, Prussia, and Russia had formed a close
union and had signed the treaty upon which the peace of Europe rested
for the next half century. The agreement made at Vienna was reaffirmed
with some minor changes, after the second overthrow of Napoleon, at
Paris, November 20, 1815. France was now practically excluded from the
alliance. This treaty undertook especially to guard against any further
disturbance of the peace of Europe by Napoleon or France. One of the
most significant features of the treaty, or what was to prove so, was
the agreement definitely laid down in the sixth article, providing for
meetings of the powers at fixed periods.
The first conference held in accordance with this understanding was that
at Aix-la-Chapelle in October, 1818. France was readmitted as a member
of the alliance and her territory evacuated by the allied armies. The
quintuple alliance thus formed declared that it had no other object than
the maintenance of peace; that the repose of the world was its motive
and its end. The language of the declaration had been in a large measure
neutralized to suit the views of the British government. Lord Liverpool
had said to Castlereagh before the meeting of the conference: "The
Russian must be made to feel that we have a parliament and a public, to
which we are responsible, and that we cannot permit ourselves to be
drawn into views of policy which are wholly incompatible with the spirit
of our government." The members of the British cabinet, except Canning,
did not object seriously to the system of congresses at fixed intervals,
but to the declarations publicly set forth by them. Canning, on the
other hand, objected to the declarations and to the conferences
themselves, "meetings for the government of the world," as he somewhat
contemptuously termed them.
It had been generally supposed that the question of the Spanish colonies
would come up for discussion at Aix-la-Chapelle. Castlereagh assured the
United States, through Bagot, the British minister at Washington, that
while England would act with the allied powers at Aix-la-Chapelle in
mediation between Spain and her colonies, her mediation would be limited
entirely to the employment of her influence and good offices and that
she would not take any measures that might assume a character of
force.[49]
The revolutions that took place in Spain, Naples, and Portugal in 1820
presented an occasion for another meeting of the allies. In November the
representatives of Austria, Russia, and Prussia met in conference at
Troppau, and issued a circular setting forth what they had already done
for Europe in overthrowing the military tyranny of Napoleon and
expressing the determination "to put a curb on a force no less
tyrannical and no less detestable, that of revolt and crime." The
conference then adjourned to Laybach, where they could, with greater
dispatch, order the movements they had decided to take against the
revolutionists of Naples. Austria, being more intimately concerned with
the political condition of the Italian peninsula than either of the
other two powers, was entrusted with the task of suppressing the
Neapolitan revolution. The Austrian army entered Naples March 23, 1821,
overthrew the constitutional government that had been inaugurated, and
restored Ferdinand II to absolute power. The revolution which had broken
out in Piedmont was also suppressed by a detachment of the Austrian
army.
England held aloof from all participation in the proceedings at Troppau
and Laybach--though Sir Charles Stuart was present to watch the
proceedings. In a circular dispatch of January 21, 1821, the British
government expressed its dissent from the principles set forth in the
Troppau circular.
The next meeting of the allied powers was arranged for October, 1822, at
Verona. Here the affairs of Greece, Italy, and, in particular, Spain
came up for consideration. At this Congress all five powers of the
alliance were represented. France was uneasy about the condition of
Spain, and England had to send a delegate out of self-defense, as her
interests were largely involved. Castlereagh was preparing to depart for
the congress, when his mind gave way under the stress of work and more
remotely of dissipation, and he committed suicide. Canning then became
secretary for foreign affairs, and Wellington was sent to Verona.
The congress which now assembled at Verona was devoted largely to a
discussion of Spanish affairs. Wellington had been instructed to use all
his influence against the adoption of measures of intervention in Spain.
When he found that the other powers were bent upon this step and that
his protest would be unheeded, he withdrew from the congress. The four
remaining powers signed the secret treaty of Verona, November 22, 1822,
as a revision, so they declared in the preamble, of the "Treaty of the
Holy Alliance." This treaty of the Holy Alliance, signed at Paris,
September 26, 1815, by Austria, Russia, and Prussia, is one of the most
remarkable political documents extant. It sprang from the erratic brain
of the Czar Alexander under the influence of Madame Crudner, who was
both an adventuress and a religious enthusiast. Its object was to uphold
the divine right of kings and to counteract the spirit of French
revolutionary ideas by introducing "the precepts of justice, of charity,
and of peace" into the internal affairs of states and into their
relations with one another. No one had taken it seriously except the
Czar himself and it had been without influence upon the politics of
Europe. The agreement reached at Verona gave retrospective importance to
the Holy Alliance, and revived the name, so that it became the usual
designation of the combined powers. The following alleged text of the
secret treaty of Verona soon became current in the press of Europe and
America. Although it has never been officially acknowledged and its
authenticity has been called in question, it states pretty accurately
the motives and aims of the powers. The first four articles are as
follows:
The undersigned, specially authorized to make some additions
to the Treaty of the Holy Alliance, after having exchanged
their respective credentials, have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE I. The high contracting parties being
convinced that the system of representative government is
equally incompatible with the monarchical principles as the
maxim of the sovereignty of the people with the divine
right, engage mutually, and in the most solemn manner, to
use all their efforts to _put an end_ to the system of
_representative_ _governments_, in whatever country it may
exist in Europe, and to prevent its being introduced in
those countries where it is not yet known.
ART. II. As it cannot be doubted that the _liberty
of the press_ is the most powerful means used by the
pretended supporters of the rights of nations, to the
detriment of those of Princes, the high contracting parties
promise reciprocally to adopt all proper measures to
suppress it not only in their own states, but also, in the
rest of Europe.
ART. III. Convinced that the principles of religion
contribute most powerfully to keep nations in the state of
passive obedience which they owe to their Princes, the high
contracting parties declare it to be their intention to
sustain, in their respective states, those measures which
the clergy may adopt, with the aim of ameliorating their own
interests, so intimately connected with the preservation of
the authority of Princes; and the contracting powers join in
offering their thanks to the Pope, for what he has already
done for them, and solicit his constant coöperation in their
views of submitting the nations.
ART. IV. The situation of Spain and Portugal unites
unhappily all the circumstances to which this treaty has
particular reference. The high contracting parties, in
confiding to France the care of putting an end to them,
engage to assist her in the manner which may the least
compromise them with their own people and the people of
France, by means of a subsidy on the part of the two
empires, of twenty millions of francs every year, from the
date of the signature of this treaty to the end of the war.
Signed by Metternich for Austria, Chateaubriand for France,
Bernstet for Prussia, and Nesselrode for Russia.[50]
Such was the code of absolutism against which England protested and
against which President Monroe delivered his declaration.
The Congress broke up about the middle of December, and the following
April, the Duc d'Angoulême led a French army across the Pyrenees. By
October the constitutional party had been overthrown and absolutism
reigned supreme once more in western Europe. In England alone was there
still any semblance of constitutional government.
The Congress of Verona was the last of the joint-meetings of the powers
for the discussion of the internal affairs of states. It marked the
final withdrawal of England from the European alliance. Henceforth she
took up a position distinctly hostile to the principles advocated by her
former allies and her policy in relation to Spanish America practically
coincided with that of the United States.
The great majority of the English people sympathized deeply with the
constitutional movement in Spain and were ready to take up arms in
support of the Spanish people. The protest of England having been
disregarded by the powers at Verona, it became necessary for the
cabinet, in view of the preparations going on in France for the invasion
of the Peninsula, to say what they contemplated doing. In February,
1823, Lord Liverpool circulated among his colleagues a minute prepared
by Canning, which gave at length the reasons, military and other, why it
would be unwise for England to undertake the defense of Spain. In the
first place, the war against Spain was unpopular in France, and if Great
Britain should take part in the war, the French government would avail
itself of the fact to convert it into an English war and thus render it
popular. Second, England would have to undertake the defense of Spain
against invasion by land, and her naval superiority would not
materially aid the Spaniards or baffle the French. Third, the
continental powers were committed to the support of France. Fourth,
there was a possibility that the invasion of Spain would be
unsuccessful. Fifth, on the other hand, it might meet with success, in
which event France might assist Spain to recover her American colonies.
Here, he says, England's naval superiority would tell, "and I should
have no difficulty in deciding that we ought to prevent, by every means
in our power, perhaps Spain from sending a single Spanish regiment to
South America, after the supposed termination of the war in Spain, but
certainly France from affording to Spain any aid or assistance for that
purpose." Sixth, in case of the invasion of Portugal by France and
Spain, he thought England would be in honor bound to defend her, in case
she asked for aid. The military defense of Portugal would not be so
difficult as a land war in Spain.[51]
In accordance with this determination Canning dispatched a letter to Sir
Charles Stuart, British ambassador at Paris, March 31, 1823, in which he
spoke of recognition of the colonies as a matter to be determined by
time and circumstances, and, disclaiming all designs on the part of the
British government on the late Spanish provinces, intimated that
England, although abstaining from interference in Spain, would not allow
France to acquire any of the colonies by conquest or cession. To this
note the French government made no reply and England took this silence
as a tacit agreement not to interfere with the colonies. The British
government continued, however, to watch closely the movements of
France.[52]
As the invasion of Spain drew near to a successful termination, the
British government had reason to suspect that the allied powers would
next direct their attention to the Spanish colonies with a view to
forcing them back to their allegiance or of otherwise disposing of them,
that is, by cession to some other European power. It was already in
contemplation to call another European congress for the discussion and
settlement of this question. As this was a subject of vital interest to
the United States, Canning invited the American minister, Mr. Rush, to a
conference, August 16, 1823, in which he suggested the expediency of an
understanding on this question between England and the United States. He
communicated to Mr. Rush the substance of his dispatch of March 31 to
Sir Charles Stuart. Mr. Rush said he understood the import of this note
to be that England would not remain passive to any attempt on the part
of France to acquire territory in Spanish America. Mr. Canning then
asked what the United States would say to going hand in hand with
England in such a policy. Mr. Rush replied that his instructions did not
authorize him to give an answer, but that he would communicate the
suggestion informally to his government. At the same time he requested
to be enlightened as to England's policy in the matter of recognizing
the independence of the colonies. Mr. Canning replied that England had
taken no steps in the matter of recognition whatever, but was
considering the question of sending commissioners to the colonies to
inquire into the condition of affairs. For the present these
commissioners would be sent to Mexico alone.[53]
Mr. Stapleton in his "Life of Canning" simply says that as Mr. Rush was
not authorized to enter into any formal agreement, Canning thought the
delay of communicating with Washington would render such proceeding of
no effect, and so the matter was dropped.[54] This, however, we learn
from Mr. Rush's dispatches, is not the whole truth. Several
communications passed between them after the conversation above given,
which throw a totally different light upon the affair.
In an unofficial and confidential letter to Mr. Rush, dated August 20,
1823, Canning asked again if the moment had not arrived when the two
governments might come to an understanding in regard to the
Spanish-American colonies. He stated the views of England as follows:
(1) That the recovery of the colonies by Spain was hopeless; (2) That
the question of their recognition as independent states was one of time
and circumstances; (3) That England was not disposed, however, to throw
any obstacle in the way of an arrangement between the colonies and the
mother-country by amicable negotiation; (4) That she aimed at the
possession of no portion of the colonies for herself; and (5) That she
could not see the transfer of any portion of them to any other power
with indifference. He added "that if the United States acceded to such
views, a declaration to that effect on their part, concurrently with
England, would be the most effectual and least offensive mode of making
known their joint disapprobation of contrary projects; that it would at
the same time put an end to all jealousies of Spain as to her remaining
colonies, and to the agitation prevailing in the colonies themselves by
showing that England and the United States were determined not to profit
by encouraging it."[55]
Prior to the formal recognition of South America, the United States had
repeatedly expressed the wish to proceed in the matter hand in hand with
Great Britain,[56] but that act placed the United States on an
altogether different footing from England. Canning seemed to forget in
the wording of his proposal that the United States had already, in the
most formal manner, acknowledged the independence of the Spanish
colonies. In reply Mr. Rush reminded him of this fact and of the desire
of the United States to see the colonies recognized by England. In other
respects, he believed that the views unfolded by Mr. Canning in his note
were shared by the United States, but he added that he had no authority
to avow these principles publicly in the manner suggested.
As soon as Rush's first dispatch was received President Monroe realized
fully the magnitude of the issue presented by the proposal of an
Anglo-American alliance. Before submitting the matter to his cabinet he
transmitted copies of the dispatch to ex-Presidents Jefferson and
Madison and the following interesting correspondence took place. In his
letter to Jefferson of October 17th, the President said:
I transmit to you two despatches which were receiv'd from
Mr. Rush, while I was lately in Washington, which involve
interests of the highest importance. They contain two
letters from Mr. Canning, suggesting designs of the holy
alliance, against the Independence of So. America, &
proposing a co-operation, between G. Britain & the U States,
in support of it, against the members of that alliance. The
project aims, in the first instance, at a mere expression of
opinion, somewhat in the abstract, but which, it is expected
by Mr. Canning, will have a great political effect, by
defeating the combination. By Mr. Rush's answers, which are
also enclosed, you will see the light in which he views the
subject, & the extent to which he may have gone. Many
important considerations are involved in this proposition.
1st Shall we entangle ourselves, at all, in European
politicks, & wars, on the side of any power, against others,
presuming that a concert, by agreement, of the kind
proposed, may lead to that result? 2d If a case can exist
in which a sound maxim may, & ought to be departed from, is
not the present instance, precisely that case? 3d Has not
the epoch arriv'd when G. Britain must take her stand,
either on the side of the monarchs of Europe, or of the U
States, & in consequence, either in favor of Despotism or of
liberty & may it not be presum'd that, aware of that
necessity, her government has seiz'd on the present
occurrence, as that, which it deems, the most suitable, to
announce & mark the commenc'ment of that career.
My own impression is that we ought to meet the proposal of
the British govt. & to make it known, that we would view an
interference on the part of the European powers, and
especially an attack on the Colonies, by them, as an attack
on ourselves, presuming that, if they succeeded with them,
they would extend it to us. I am sensible however of the
extent & difficulty of the question, & shall be happy to
have yours, & Mr. Madison's opinions on it.[57]
Jefferson's reply dated Monticello, October 24th, displays not only a
profound insight into the international situation, but a wide vision of
the possibilities involved. He said:
The question presented by the letters you have sent me, is
the most momentous which has ever been offered to my
contemplation since that of Independence. That made us a
nation, this sets our compass and points the course which we
are to steer through the ocean of time opening on us. And
never could we embark on it under circumstances more
auspicious. Our first and fundamental maxim should be, never
to entangle ourselves in the broils of Europe. Our second,
never to suffer Europe to intermeddle with cis-Atlantic
affairs. America, North and South, has a set of interests
distinct from those of Europe, and peculiarly her own. She
should therefore have a system of her own, separate and
apart from that of Europe. While the last is laboring to
become the domicil of despotism, our endeavor should surely
be, to make our hemisphere that of freedom. One nation, most
of all, could disturb us in this pursuit; she now offers to
lead, aid, and accompany us in it. By acceding to her
proposition, we detach her from the bands, bring her mighty
weight into the scale of free government, and emancipate a
continent at one stroke, which might otherwise linger long
in doubt and difficulty. Great Britain is the nation which
can do us the most harm of any one, or all on earth; and
with her on our side we need not fear the whole world. With
her then, we should most sedulously cherish a cordial
friendship; and nothing would tend more to knit our
affections than to be fighting once more, side by side, in
the same cause. Not that I would purchase even her amity at
the price of taking part in her wars. But the war in which
the present proposition might engage us, should that be its
consequence, is not her war, but ours. Its object is to
introduce and establish the American system, of keeping out
of our land all foreign powers, of never permitting those of
Europe to intermeddle with the affairs of our nations. It is
to maintain our own principle, not to depart from it. And
if, to facilitate this, we can effect a division in the body
of the European powers, and draw over to our side its most
powerful member, surely we should do it. But I am clearly of
Mr. Canning's opinion, that it will prevent instead of
provoking war. With Great Britain withdrawn from their scale
and shifted into that of our two continents, all Europe
combined would not undertake such a war. For how would they
propose to get at either enemy without superior fleets? Nor
is the occasion to be slighted which this proposition
offers, of declaring our protest against the atrocious
violations of the rights of nations, by the interference of
any one in the internal affairs of another, so flagitiously
begun by Bonaparte, and now continued by the equally lawless
Alliance, calling itself Holy.[58]
Madison not only agreed with Jefferson as to the wisdom of accepting the
British proposal of some form of joint action, but he went even further
and suggested that the declaration should not be limited to the American
republics, but that it should express disapproval of the late invasion
of Spain and of any interference with the Greeks, who were then
struggling for independence from Turkey.[59] Monroe, it appears, was
strongly inclined to act on Madison's suggestion, but his cabinet took a
different view of the situation. From the diary of John Quincy Adams,
Monroe's secretary of state, it appears that almost the whole of
November was taken up by cabinet discussions on Canning's proposals and
on Russia's aggressions in the northwest. Adams stoutly opposed any
alliance or joint declaration with Great Britain. The composition of the
President's message remained in doubt until the 21st, when the more
conservative views of Adams were, according to his own statement of the
case, adopted. He advocated an independent course of action on the part
of the United States, without direct reference to Canning's proposals,
though substantially in accord with them. Adams defined his position as
follows: "The ground that I wish to take is that of earnest remonstrance
against the interference of the European powers by force with South
America, but to disclaim all interference on our part with Europe; to
make an American cause and adhere inflexibly to that."[60] Adams's
dissent from Monroe's position was, it is claimed, due partly to the
influence of Clay, who advocated a Pan American system, partly to the
fact that the proposed coöperation with Great Britain would bind the
United States not to acquire some of the coveted parts of the Spanish
possessions, and partly to the fear that the United States as the ally
of Great Britain would be compelled to play a secondary part. He
probably carried his point by showing that the same ends could be
accomplished by an independent declaration, since it was evident that
the sea power of Great Britain would be used to prevent the reconquest
of South America by the European powers. Monroe, as we have seen,
thought that the exigencies of the situation justified a departure from
the sound maxim of political isolation, and in this opinion he was
supported by his two predecessors in the presidency.
The opinions of Monroe, Jefferson, and Madison in favor of an alliance
with Great Britain and a broad declaration against the intervention of
the great powers in the affairs of weaker states in any part of the
world, have been severely criticised by some historians and ridiculed by
others, but time and circumstances often bring about a complete change
in our point of view. Since our entrance into the great world conflict
several writers have raised the question as to whether the three elder
statesmen were not right and Adams and Clay wrong.[61] If the United
States and England had come out in favor of a general declaration
against intervention in the concerns of small states and established it
as a world-wide principle, the course of human history during the next
century might have been very different, but Adams's diary does not tell
the whole story. On his own statement of the case he might be justly
censured by posterity for persuading the President to take a narrow
American view of a question which was world-wide in its bearing. An
important element in the situation, however, was Canning's change of
attitude between the time of his conference with Rush in August and the
formulation of the President's message. Two days after the delivery of
his now famous message Monroe wrote to Jefferson in explanation of the
form the declaration had taken: "Mr. Canning's zeal has much abated of
late." It appears from Rush's correspondence that the only thing which
stood in the way of joint action by the two powers was Canning's
unwillingness to extend immediate recognition to the South American
republics. On August 27th, Rush stated to Canning that it would greatly
facilitate joint action if England would acknowledge at once the full
independence of the South American colonies. In communicating the
account of this interview to his government Mr. Rush concluded:
Should I be asked by Mr. Canning, whether, in case the
recognition be made by Great Britain without more delay, I
am on my part prepared to make a declaration, in the name of
my government, that it will not remain inactive under an
attack upon the independence of those states by the Holy
Alliance, the present determination of my judgment is that I
will make such a declaration explicitly, and avow it before
the world.[62]
About three weeks later Canning, who was growing restless at the delay
in hearing from Washington, again urged Rush to act without waiting for
specific instructions from his government. He tried to show that the
proposed joint declaration would not conflict with the American policy
of avoiding entangling alliances, for the question at issue was American
as much as European, if not more. Rush then indicated his willingness to
act provided England would "immediately and unequivocally acknowledge
the independence of the new states." Canning did not care to extend full
recognition to the South American states until he could do so without
giving unnecessary offense to Spain and the allies, and he asked if Mr.
Rush could not give his assent to the proposal on a promise of future
recognition. Mr. Rush refused to accede to anything but immediate
acknowledgment of independence and so the matter ended.[63] As Canning
could not come to a formal understanding with the United States, he
determined to make a frank avowal of the views of the British cabinet to
France and to this end he had an interview with Prince Polignac, the
French ambassador at London, October 9, 1823, in which he declared that
Great Britain had no desire to hasten recognition, but that any foreign
interference, by force, or by menace, would be a motive for immediate
recognition; that England "could not go into a joint deliberation upon
the subject of Spanish America upon an equal footing with other powers,
whose opinions were less formed upon that question." This declaration
drew from Polignac the admission that he considered the reduction of the
colonies by Spain as hopeless and that France "abjured in any case, any
design of acting against the colonies by force of arms."[64] This
admission was a distinct victory for Canning, in that it prepared the
way for ultimate recognition by England, and an account of the interview
was communicated without delay to the allied courts. The interview was
not communicated to Rush until the latter part of November, and
therefore had no influence upon the formation of Monroe's message of
December 2.[65]
Before the close of the year the British government appointed consuls to
the South American states, and about the time of their departure, an
invitation was sent to the courts of St. Petersburg, Paris, and Vienna
to a conference to be held at Paris to "aid Spain in adjusting the
affairs of the revolted colonies." A copy of this invitation was also
handed to the British ambassador at Madrid, but in such a form as to
leave him in doubt as to whether his government was invited to the
conference or not.[66] While the discussion as to the proposed
conference was going on and before Canning had announced what action his
government would take in the matter, President Monroe's message arrived
in Europe.
Spanish America was not the only part of the western continent
threatened at this time by European aggression. On the 4th of
September, 1821, the emperor of Russia had issued an ukase, in which he
claimed the northwestern coast of North America down to the 51st degree.
This claim was incompatible with the pretensions of both England and the
United States, and was stoutly opposed by them. This was a part of the
territory known as the Oregon country, which continued in dispute
between England and the United States until 1846. In July, 1823, Adams
declared to Baron Tuyll, the Russian minister to the United States,
"that we should contest the right of Russia to any territorial
establishment on this continent, and that we should assume distinctly
the principle that the American continents are no longer subjects for
any new European colonial establishments." This language was
incorporated substantially in the President's message.
The Monroe Doctrine is comprised in two widely separated paragraphs that
occur in the message of December 2, 1823. The first, relating to
Russia's encroachments on the northwest coast, and occurring near the
beginning of the message, was an assertion to the effect that the
American continents had assumed an independent condition and were no
longer open to European colonization. This may be regarded as a
statement of fact. No part of the continent at that time remained
unclaimed. The second paragraph relating to Spanish America and
occurring near the close of the message, was a declaration against the
extension to the American continents of the system of intervention
adopted by the Holy Alliance for the suppression of popular government
in Europe.
The language used by President Monroe is as follows:
1. At the proposal of the Russian Imperial Government, made
through the minister of the emperor residing here, a full
power and instructions have been transmitted to the minister
of the United States at St. Petersburg to arrange by
amicable negotiation the respective rights and interests of
the two nations on the northwest coast of this continent. A
similar proposal had been made by His Imperial Majesty to
the government of Great Britain, which has likewise been
acceded to. The government of the United States has been
desirous by this friendly proceeding of manifesting the
great value which they have invariably attached to the
friendship of the emperor and their solicitude to cultivate
the best understanding with his government. In the
discussions to which this interest has given rise and in the
arrangements by which they may terminate, the occasion has
been judged proper for asserting, as a principle in which
the rights and interests of the United States are involved,
that the American continents, by the free and independent
condition which they have assumed and maintain, are
henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future
colonization by any European powers.[67]
2. In the wars of the European powers in matters relating to
themselves we have never taken any part, nor does it comport
with our policy so to do. It is only when our rights are
invaded or seriously menaced that we resent injuries or make
preparation for our defense. With the movements in this
hemisphere we are of necessity more immediately connected,
and by causes which must be obvious to all enlightened and
impartial observers. The political system of the allied
powers is essentially different in this respect from that of
America. This difference proceeds from that which exists in
their respective governments; and to the defense of our own,
which has been achieved by the loss of so much blood and
treasure, and matured by the wisdom of their most
enlightened citizens, and under which we have enjoyed
unexampled felicity, this whole nation is devoted. We owe
it, therefore, to candor and to the amicable relations
existing between the United States and those powers to
declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to
extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as
dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing
colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not
interfered and shall not interfere. But with the governments
who have declared their independence and maintained it, and
whose independence we have, on great consideration and on
just principles, acknowledged, we could not view any
interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or
controlling in any other manner their destiny, by any
European power in any other light than as the manifestation
of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States. In
the war between those new governments and Spain we declared
our neutrality at the time of their recognition, and to this
we have adhered, and shall continue to adhere, provided no
change shall occur which, in the judgment of the competent
authorities of this government, shall make a corresponding
change on the part of the United States indispensable to
their security.[68]
The President's message reached England while the discussion in regard
to the proposed congress at Paris was still going on. It was received
with enthusiasm by the liberal members of Parliament. Lord Brougham
said:
The question with regard to South America is now, I believe,
disposed of, or nearly so; for an event has recently
happened than which none has ever dispersed greater joy,
exultation, and gratitude over all the free men of Europe;
that event, which is decisive on the subject, is the
language held with respect to Spanish America in the message
of the President of the United States.
Sir James Mackintosh said:
This coincidence of the two great English commonwealths (for
so I delight to call them; and I heartily pray that they may
be forever united in the cause of justice and liberty)
cannot be contemplated without the utmost pleasure by every
enlightened citizen of the earth.[69]
They evidently had reference to the second clause alone, the one
relating to Spanish America. The other clause, the one against European
colonization in America, seems not to have attracted much attention.
Canning, however, saw the bearing of it and objected to the principle it
set forth, which was directed against England as much as against the
allies. He was evidently a little taken aback at the turn his proposal
had taken. The President's message really settled the question before
Canning had announced what action his government would take. Some little
chagrin is apparent in the tone of his letter to Sir William à Court,
British minister at Madrid, December 21, 1823.
While I was yet hesitating [he says], what shape to give to
the declaration and protest which ultimately was conveyed in
my conference with P. de Polignac, and while I was more
doubtful as to the effect of that protest and declaration, I
sounded Mr. Rush (the American minister here) as to his
powers and disposition to join in any step which we might
take to prevent a hostile enterprise on the part of the
European powers against Spanish America. He had no powers;
but he would have taken upon himself to join with us if we
would have begun by recognizing the Spanish-American states.
This we could not do, and so we went on without. But I have
no doubt that his report to his government of this
_sounding_, which he probably represented as an overture,
had a great share in producing the explicit declaration of
the President.[70]
The conference with Prince Polignac here referred to was that of October
9th quoted above. It was not until after the receipt of President
Monroe's message in Europe that Canning framed his answer to the Spanish
communication informing him of the proposed meeting in Paris for the
discussion of the South American question. In that reply he stated to
the Spanish government very fully his views upon the question at issue.
He said that while England did not wish to precede Spain in the matter
of recognition, yet she reserved to herself the privilege of recognizing
the colonies when she deemed it best for her interests and right to
them. He said that these views had been communicated fully from time to
time to the powers invited to the congress and he concluded with the
statement: "It does not appear to the British cabinet at all necessary
to declare that opinion anew, even if it were perfectly clear (from the
tenor of M. Ofalia's instruction) that Great Britain was in fact
included in the invitation to the conference at Paris."[71]
While Canning and Monroe acted independently of each other, the
expression that each gave to the views of his government was rendered
more emphatic and of more effect by the knowledge of the other's
attitude in the matter. Another point to be noted is that Monroe's
message was made public, while Canning's answer was for some time known
only to the diplomatic corps.
The determination of both England and the United States to oppose the
intervention of the allies in South America had the desired effect.
Conferences in answer to the invitation of Spain were held in Paris, but
they were participated in only by the ordinary representatives of the
powers invited, resident in that capital, and their only result was to
advise Spain not to listen to the counsels of England.
All further discussion that took place between England and Spain in
reference to recognition of the colonies by Great Britain was confined
to the status of the revolutionary governments, and upon this point
their views were so divergent that Canning finally announced to the
Spanish government that, "His Majesty would, at his own time, take such
steps as he might think proper in respect to the several states of
Spanish America without further reference to the court of Madrid; but at
the same time without any feeling of alienation towards that court, or
of hostility towards the real interests of Spain."[72]
The French troops continuing to occupy Spain after the time stipulated
by treaty, Canning sought an explanation from France, but without
satisfactory results. He therefore determined at a cabinet meeting held
December 14, 1824, to recognize Mexico and Colombia forthwith. On
January 1, 1825, after the ministers had left England with instructions
and full powers, the fact of recognition was communicated officially to
the diplomatic corps and two days later it was made public. That this
recognition was a retaliatory measure to compensate England for the
French occupation of Spain was understood at the time and was distinctly
avowed by Canning two years later.[73] In a speech delivered December
12, 1826, in defense of his position in not having arrested the French
invasion of Spain, he said:
I looked another way--I sought for compensation in another
hemisphere. Contemplating Spain, such as our ancestors had
known her, I resolved that, if France had Spain, it should
not be Spain _with the Indies_. I called the New World into
existence to redress the balance of the Old.
In spite of the great indebtedness of South America to Canning, this
boast falls somewhat flat when we remember that the Spanish colonies had
won their independence by their own valor and had been recognized as
independent governments by the United States two years before Great
Britain acted in the matter.
Mr. Stapleton, Canning's private secretary and biographer, says that the
recognition of Spanish-American independence was, perhaps, the most
important measure adopted by the British cabinet while Canning was at
the head of the foreign office. He sums up the reasons and results of
the act as follows:
First, it was a measure essentially advantageous to British
interests; being especially calculated to benefit our
commerce. Next, it enabled this country to remain at peace,
since it compensated us for the continued occupation of
Spain by a French force, a disparagement to which,
otherwise, it would not have become us to submit. Lastly, it
maintained the balance between conflicting principles; since
it gave just so much of a triumph to popular rights and
privileges, as was sufficient to soothe the irritation felt
by their advocates at the victory, which absolute principles
had obtained by the overthrow of the constitutions of
Spain, Portugal, and Naples; and it dealt a death-blow to
the Holy Alliance, by disabusing its members of the strange
fancy, with which they were prepossessed, that the
differences between them and the British ministers (where
they did differ) were merely feints on the part of the
latter to avoid a conflict with public opinion.[74]
The United States government did not relax its efforts in behalf of the
South American states with the recognition of England, but continued to
exert itself in order to secure the acknowledgment of their independence
by the other powers of Europe, particularly Spain.[75] Mr. Clay tried to
get the other members of the alliance, especially the emperor of Russia,
to use their good offices with Spain for the purpose of inducing her to
recognize her late colonies, but the emperor of Russia, the head of the
alliance, continued to preach to Spain "not only no recognition of their
independence, but active war for their subjugation." To the request of
the United States he replied that, out of respect for "the indisputable
titles of sovereignty," he could not prejudge or anticipate the
determination of the king of Spain.[76] It was some ten years before
Spain could be persuaded to renounce her ancient claims.
FOOTNOTES:
[37] Am. St. Papers, For. Rel., Vol. III, p. 538.
[38] Wharton's Digest, Sec. 69, and Moore's Digest of Int. Law, Vol. I,
p. 177.
[39] "Messages and Papers of the Presidents," Vol. II, pp. 13, 58, and
116.
[40] Lyman, "Diplomacy of the United States." 2 Vols. Boston, 1828, Vol.
II, p. 432. Romero, "Mexico and the United States."
[41] Given in full in Am. St. Papers, For. Rel., Vol. IV, pp. 217-270.
[42] Am. St. Papers, For. Rel., Vol. IV, pp. 818-851.
[43] Benton's "Abridgment," Vol. VI, p. 139.
[44] Benton's "Abridgment," Vol. VI, p. 142.
[45] "Messages and Papers of the Presidents," Vol. II, p. 44.
[46] "Adams's Diary," September, 1817, to December, 1818. "Letters and
Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. XI, pp. 404 and 458.
[47] Stapleton, "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 10.
[48] Stapleton, "Official Correspondence of Canning," Vol. I, p. 48 ff.
[49] Bagot to Castlereagh, October 31, 1818. Mem. of a Conversation with
Adams. "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. XII, p. 66.
[50] For the Congresses of Aix-la-Chapelle, Troppau, Laybach, and
Verona, see "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. XII; "Life of
Lord Liverpool," Vol. III; "Political Life and Official Correspondence
of Canning"; Chateaubriand's "Congrès de Verone," and W. A. Phillips,
"The Confederation of Europe. 1813-1823." The text of the treaty of
Verona is published in Niles' Register, August 2, 1823, Vol. 24, p. 347,
and in Elliot's "American Diplomatic Code," Vol. II, p. 179.
[51] "Life of Lord Liverpool," Vol. III, p. 231. "Official
Correspondence of Canning," Vol. I, p. 85.
[52] Stapleton, "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 18.
[53] Rush's "Residence at the Court of London," p. 406.
[54] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 24.
[55] Rush's "Residence at the Court of London," p. 412.
[56] "Letters and Despatches of Castlereagh," Vol. XI, p. 458. Bagot's
reports of interviews with Adams.
[57] Hamilton, "Writings of James Monroe," Vol. VI, pp. 323-325.
[58] Ford, "Writings of Thomas Jefferson," Vol. X, pp. 277-278.
[59] Hamilton, "Writings of James Madison," Vol. IX, pp. 161-162.
[60] W. C. Ford, "Genesis of the Monroe Doctrine," in Mass. Hist. Soc.
_Proceedings_, second series, Vol. XV, p. 392.
[61] See especially G. L. Beer, "The English-Speaking Peoples," p. 79.
[62] Rush's "Residence at the Court of London," p. 419.
[63] _Ibid._, pp. 429, 443.
[64] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 26.
[65] Rush's "Residence at the Court of London," p. 448.
[66] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 33.
[67] "Messages and Papers of the Presidents," Vol. II, p. 209.
[68] "Messages and Papers of the Presidents," Vol. II, p. 218.
[69] "Wharton's Digest," Sec. 57, Vol. I, p. 276.
[70] "Wharton's Digest," Sec. 57, Vol. I, p. 272.
[71] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 42.
[72] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 54.
[73] "Official Corresp. of Canning," Vol. II, p. 242. Letter to
Granville. On the general question of recognition, see "Life of Lord
Liverpool," Vol. III, pp. 297-304.
[74] "Political Life of Canning," Vol. II, p. 1.
[75] Am. St. Papers, For. Rel., Vol. V, pp. 794-796, and Vol. VI, pp.
1006-1014.
[76] Am. St. Papers, For. Rel., Vol. V, p. 850 ff.
CHAPTER III
THE DIPLOMACY OF THE UNITED STATES IN REGARD TO CUBA
The Cuban question had its origin in the series of events that have been
narrated in the two preceding chapters--the Napoleonic invasion of Spain
and the resulting paralysis of Spanish power in America. The declaration
of President Monroe, enforced by the well-known attitude of England,
dealt the death-blow to Spanish hopes of recovering the Southern
continent. Hence the islands of Cuba and Porto Rico, which had remained
loyal to the king, were clung to with all the greater tenacity as the
sole remains of the imperial possessions over which the successors of
Ferdinand and Isabella had ruled for three centuries. The "Ever-faithful
Island of Cuba" was rewarded for her loyalty by the concession of
certain liberties of trade and invited to send representatives to the
Spanish Cortes--a privilege which was subsequently withdrawn. Spain was
now too weak to protect her two West Indian dependencies--the remains of
her former glory, but her very weakness secured their possession to her.
The naval and commercial importance of Cuba, "the pearl of the
Antilles," made it a prize too valuable to be acquired by any one of the
great maritime powers without exciting the jealousy and opposition of
the others. Henceforth, to borrow the figure of a contemporary
journalist, Cuba was to be the trans-Atlantic Turkey, trembling to its
fall, but sustained by the jealousies of those who were eager to share
the spoils.
The strategic importance of Cuba, commanding to a large extent the
commerce of the West Indies and of the Central American states, and,
what was of vital interest to us, the traffic of the Mississippi valley,
attracted at an early period the attention of American as well as of
European statesmen. In a letter to President Madison in 1809, Jefferson,
in speaking of Napoleon's policy in regard to the Spanish-American
colonies, said:
That he would give up the Floridas to withhold intercourse
with the residue of those colonies cannot be doubted. But
that is no price; because they are ours in the first moment
of the first war; and until a war they are of no particular
necessity to us. But, although with difficulty, he will
consent to our receiving Cuba into our Union, to prevent our
aid to Mexico and the other provinces. That would be a
price, and I would immediately erect a column on the
southern-most limit of Cuba, and inscribe on it a _ne plus
ultra_ as to us in that direction.[77]
President Madison expressed his views on the Cuban question in a letter
to William Pinkney, October 30, 1810:
The position of Cuba gives the United States so deep an
interest in the destiny, even, of that island, that although
they might be an inactive, they could not be a satisfied
spectator at its falling under any European government,
which might make a fulcrum of that position against the
commerce and security of the United States.[78]
This was the first statement in the evolution of a Cuban policy
consistently adhered to by the United States until the successes of the
Mexican war super-induced larger ideas of the mission and destiny of the
Union.
As early as 1817 fears as to the fate of Cuba were raised in the minds
of the American public by newspaper reports to the effect that England
had proposed a relinquishment of her claim against Spain for the
maintenance of the British army during the Peninsular campaign,
amounting to £15,000,000, in return for the cession of the island.[79]
Reports of this nature were circulated for several months on both sides
of the Atlantic, but the question did not assume any very great
importance until 1819, when the treaty for the cession of the Floridas
to the United States was being negotiated with Spain. It was then
insisted by the British press that the acquisition of the Floridas would
give the United States such a preponderating influence in West Indian
affairs as to render necessary the occupation of Cuba by Great Britain
as the natural and only offset.[80] The Florida treaty was ratified
after some delay, which, however, does not appear to have been caused by
the British government, as was supposed at the time. The British papers,
nevertheless, continued to condemn in strong terms the treaty as well as
the inaction of their government in not making it a pretext for the
seizure of Cuba.
As the preparations of France for the invasion of Spain in 1823
progressed the fate of Cuba became a question of absorbing interest in
America. There was little hope that the island would continue a
dependency of Spain. It was rumored that Great Britain had engaged to
supply the constitutional government of Spain with money in her struggle
with France and would occupy Cuba as a pledge for its repayment. Both
Spanish and French journals spoke of British occupation of Cuba as a
matter no longer to be doubted, and the presence in the West Indies of a
large British squadron, sent nominally for the purpose of suppressing
piracy, seemed to lend color to the reports.[81] The British press was
clamoring for the acquisition of Cuba. The _Packet_ declared: "The
question then comes to this, shall England occupy Cuba, or by permitting
its acquisition by the United States (which they have long desired)
sacrifice her whole West India trade? There can be no hesitation as to
the answer."
The British government, however, officially disclaimed all designs upon
Cuba, but this disclaimer did not fully reassure the American
government, and our representatives abroad were instructed to exercise a
close scrutiny upon all negotiations between Spain and England. In the
spring of 1823 Mr. Forsyth was succeeded by Mr. Nelson at the court of
Madrid. In his instructions to the new minister, which went much beyond
the usual length and were occupied almost exclusively with a discussion
of the Cuban question, John Quincy Adams used the following remarkable
words:
"In looking forward to the probable course of events for the short
period of half a century, it seems scarcely possible to resist the
conviction that the annexation of Cuba to our Federal Republic will be
indispensable to the continuance and integrity of the Union itself." We
were not then prepared for annexation, he continued, "but there are laws
of political as well as physical gravitation; and if an apple, severed
by the tempest from its native tree, cannot choose but fall to the
ground, Cuba, forcibly disjoined from its own unnatural connection with
Spain, and incapable of self-support, can gravitate only towards the
North American Union, which, by the same law of nature, cannot cast her
off from its bosom."[82]
President Monroe consulted Jefferson on the subject of Spanish-American
affairs and the entanglements with European powers likely to arise
therefrom. Jefferson replied, June 11, 1823:
Cuba alone seems at present to hold up a speck of war to us.
Its possession by Great Britain would indeed be a great
calamity to us. Could we induce her to join us in
guaranteeing its independence against all the world, except
Spain, it would be nearly as valuable as if it were our own.
But should she take it, I would not immediately go to war
for it; because the first war on other accounts will give it
to us, or the island will give itself to us when able to do
so.[83]
During the summer of 1825 a large French squadron visited the West
Indies and hovered for several weeks about the coasts of Cuba. This
action on the part of the French government, without explanation,
excited the alarm of both England and the United States and drew forth
strong protests from Mr. Canning and from Mr. Clay. Canning wrote to
Granville, the British minister at Paris, that he could not consent to
the occupation of Havana by France, even as a measure of protection
against possible attacks from Mexico and Colombia.[84] Again some two
months later he wrote:
As to Cuba you cannot too soon nor too amicably, of course,
represent to Villèle the impossibility of our allowing
France (or France us, I presume) to meddle in the internal
affairs of that colony. We sincerely wish it to remain with
the mother-country. Next to that I wish it independent,
either singly or in connection with Mexico. But what cannot
or must not be, is that any great maritime power should get
possession of it. The Americans (Yankees, I mean) think of
this matter just as I do.[85]
The expressions of the United States, as to the designs of France, were
as emphatic as those of England. Mr. Clay declared "that we could not
consent to the occupation of those islands by any other European power
than Spain under any contingency whatever."[86]
In this connection Canning wished to bring about the signature, by
England, France, and the United States, of "ministerial notes, one
between France and the United States, and one between France and Great
Britain, or one tripartite note signed by all, disclaiming each for
themselves, any intention to occupy Cuba, and protesting against such
occupation by either of the others."[87] The government of the United
States held this proposal under advisement, but on France declining, it
was dropped.[88] In 1826 when an attack upon Portugal was feared
Canning advised, in case of such an attack, the immediate seizure of
Cuba by Great Britain as more effective than half a dozen Peninsular
campaigns.[89]
The Cuban question was involved in the long debate on the proposal of
the executive of the United States to send delegates to the congress of
Spanish-American republics assembled at Panama in 1826. This debate
occupied the attention of Congress during the winter and spring of 1826,
and was engaged in with great earnestness. One of the chief objections
to the proposed mission was the fact that the question of Cuba and Porto
Rico would come up and that the United States government had already
committed itself to the foreign powers on that subject. The report of
the Senate committee on foreign relations declared that,
The very situation of Cuba and Porto Rico furnishes the
strongest inducement to the United States not to take a
place at the contemplated congress, since, by so doing, they
must be considered as changing the attitude in which they
hitherto have stood as impartial spectators of the passing
scenes, and identifying themselves with the new
republics.[90]
The Southern members were united in their opposition to the Panama
mission, and in fact to any closer alliance with the new republics, for
the reason that the latter had adopted the principle of emancipation and
any further extension of their influence would jeopardize the
institution of slavery in the United States. For the same reason they
were opposed to the transfer of Cuba to any other European power. If a
change from its connection with Spain were necessary they favored
annexation by the United States, and meantime they were strongly opposed
to the government entering into any engagement with foreign powers or in
any way committing itself on the Cuban question.[91]
The declaration of Mr. Clay against the interference of England and
France in the affairs of Cuba was consistently adhered to under the
administrations of Jackson and Van Buren.
In 1838-39, the British government dispatched special commissioners to
Cuba and Porto Rico to report on the condition of the slave trade. The
presence of these agents in Cuba gave rise to reports that Great Britain
contemplated revolutionizing the island, or at least occupying it for
the purpose of suppressing the slave trade. The United States gave Spain
to understand that we would not consent to British control in whatever
way it might be brought about. Mr. Forsyth wrote to Mr. Vail, our
representative at Madrid, July 15, 1840:
You are authorized to assure the Spanish government, that in
case of any attempt, from whatever quarter, to wrest from
her this portion of her territory, she may securely depend
upon the military and naval resources of the United States
to aid her in preserving or recovering it.[92]
Again, Mr. Webster in January, 1843, wrote to Mr. Campbell, United
States consul at Havana:
The Spanish government has long been in possession of the
policy and wishes of this government in regard to Cuba,
which have never changed, and has repeatedly been told that
the United States never would permit the occupation of that
island by British agents or forces upon any pretext
whatever; and that in the event of any attempt to wrest it
from her, she might securely rely upon the whole naval and
military resources of this country to aid her in preserving
or recovering it.[93]
A copy of this letter was also sent to Washington Irving, our
representative at Madrid to make such use of as circumstances might
require.[94]
During the first period of our Cuban diplomacy the efforts of this
government were directed toward preventing the acquisition of the
island, or the establishment of a protectorate over it, by Great Britain
or France. With the Mexican war, however, and the growing conviction of
"manifest destiny," our foreign policy assumed a much bolder and more
aggressive character, and during the next fifteen years all manner of
schemes for the southward extension of our territory were suggested and
many of them actually undertaken. Cuba became an object of desire, not
only in the eyes of the slave-holding population of the South as an
acquisition to slave territory, but of a large part of the nation,
because of its strategic importance in relation to the inter-oceanic
transit routes of Central America, which seemed the only feasible line
of communication with our rapidly developing interests in California.
Consequently various attempts were made to annex the island to the
United States, both by purchase from Spain and forcibly by filibustering
expeditions.
In June, 1848, under the administration of President Polk, Mr. Buchanan,
secretary of state, wrote to our minister at Madrid, directing him to
open negotiations with the Spanish government for the purchase of Cuba.
After referring to the dangers of British occupation and to the
advantages of annexation, he said: "Desirable, however, as this island
may be to the United States, we would not acquire it except by the free
will of Spain. Any acquisition not sanctioned by justice and honor would
be too dearly purchased." He stated that the President would stipulate
for the payment of $100,000,000, as a maximum price.[95] This offer was
rejected by the Spanish government. The minister of state after several
months' delay finally replied "that it was more than any minister dare
to entertain any such proposition; that he believed such to be the
feeling of the country, that sooner than see the island transferred to
any power, they would prefer seeing it sunk in the ocean."
Under the Whig administration of Taylor and Fillmore no effort was made
for the purchase of Cuba. On August 2, 1849, Mr. Clayton wrote to Mr.
Barringer that the government did not desire to renew the negotiation
for the purchase of Cuba made by the late administration, since the
proposition had been considered by the Spanish government as a national
indignity; that should Spain desire to part with Cuba, the proposal must
come from her.
About this time active preparations were going on for the invasion of
Cuba by an armed expedition under the Cuban patriot Narciso Lopez. On
August 11, 1849, President Taylor issued a proclamation warning all
citizens of the United States against taking part in such expedition and
saying, "No such persons must expect the interference of this government
in any form on their behalf, no matter to what extremities they may be
reduced in consequence of their conduct."[96] A few days later the
entire force of Lopez was arrested by the United States marshal just as
it was on the point of leaving New York.
Nothing daunted, Lopez traveled through the southern and southwestern
states secretly enlisting men and making arrangements for their
transportation to Cuba. Many men of prominence at the South were in open
and avowed sympathy with the enterprise. In the spring of 1850, Lopez
called upon Gen. John A. Quitman, governor of Mississippi, who had
served with great distinction in the Mexican war, and offered him, in
the name of his compatriots, the leadership of the revolution and the
supreme command of the army. Quitman's sympathies were thoroughly
enlisted in the movement, but he declined the honor on account of the
serious aspect of political affairs, particularly what he considered the
encroachments of the federal government upon the rights of the states.
He made liberal contributions of money, however, and gave Lopez sound
advice about his undertaking, insisting that he must have an advance
column of at least 2,000 men to maintain a footing on the island until
reinforcements could go to their aid.[97]
Unfortunately for Lopez he did not follow the advice of Quitman. A
company of volunteers altogether inadequate for the successful
accomplishment of the enterprise was collected at New Orleans. There
Lopez chartered a steamer, the _Creole_, and two barks, the _Georgiana_
and the _Susan Loud_. Three-fourths of the volunteers had served in the
Mexican war. The first detachment comprising 250 men left New Orleans in
the bark _Georgiana_, April 25, 1850, under the command of Col. Theodore
O'Hara. They proceeded to the island of Contoy off the coast of Yucatan
in the territory of Mexico. There they were joined three weeks later by
Lopez and 450 followers in the _Creole_. The entire command, with the
exception of the crews of the two barks and a few others to guard the
stores, embarked in the _Creole_ and effected a landing at Cardenas, but
the natives did not come to the aid of Lopez and after holding the town
for twelve hours he reluctantly reëmbarked and headed for Key West. The
_Creole_ was pursued by the _Pizarro_, a Spanish war vessel, which
steamed into the harbor just as she cast anchor. For a few moments the
Spaniards seemed to be on the point of preparing to open fire on the
_Creole_, but when they saw the United States custom-house officers
take possession of her they changed their minds and left the harbor.
The two barks, which had been left with a small guard at the island of
Contoy, were captured by Spanish warships, taken to Havana, condemned as
prizes and the men put on trial for participation in the Lopez
expedition. As these men had committed no act of hostility against
Spain, and had, moreover, been seized on neutral territory, the United
States government at once issued its protest and demanded their release.
The Spanish government replied that these men had been described as
pirates by the President of the United States in his proclamation
warning citizens against joining the expedition and were, therefore,
beyond the pale of the protection of the United States. After heated
negotiations which lasted several months and seriously threatened the
peace of the two countries, the prisoners were released, but it was
declared to be an act of grace on the part of the Queen and not a
concession to the demands of the United States.[98]
Lopez was prosecuted by the United States government for violation of
the neutrality laws, but escaped conviction and at once set about
organizing another expedition. On August 3, 1851, the third and last
expedition of Lopez, consisting of over 400 men, left New Orleans. After
touching at Key West the steamer proceeded to the coast of Cuba and
landed the expedition at Bahia Honda. The main body under Lopez
proceeded into the country where they had been led to expect a general
uprising of the Cubans. Col. W. S. Crittenden, who had served with
bravery in the Mexican war, was left in command of a smaller body to
bring up the baggage. This detachment was attacked on the 13th and
forced to retreat to the place where they had landed, where about fifty
of them obtained boats and tried to escape. They were, however,
intercepted off the coast, taken to Havana, sentenced before a military
court, and executed on the 16th.
The main body under Lopez was overcome and dispersed by Spanish troops
on the 24th. Lopez was taken prisoner, tried, and executed. Many of his
followers were killed or died of hunger and fatigue and the rest made
prisoners. Upon receipt of this news Commodore Parker was at once
ordered to proceed in a frigate to Havana to inquire into the charges
against the prisoners executed, and the circumstances of their capture,
trial, and sentence. To these inquiries the captain-general replied that
he considered those executed as pirates, that they had been so denounced
by the President of the United States in his proclamation, that he was
not at liberty to furnish a copy of the court records, but would send
them to Madrid and to the Spanish minister at Washington.[99]
When the news of the executions at Havana reached New Orleans the
excitement was intense. The office of the Spanish consul was broken
into, portraits of the Queen and Captain-General of Cuba defaced, the
Spanish flag torn in pieces, and the consul burned in effigy in
LaFayette Square. The consul had to flee from the city for safety and
the property of certain Spaniards residing in New Orleans was destroyed.
A long correspondence ensued between the two governments. The United
States agreed to pay an indemnity for injuries to the public property
of Spain, but not for the destruction of property belonging to Spanish
residents, who were entitled only to the same protection afforded our
own citizens.[100]
A few weeks after the last Lopez expedition the British and French
representatives at Washington notified our government that orders had
been issued to their squadrons in the West Indies to repel by force any
attempts at the invasion of Cuba from any quarter. Our government
replied that such action on the part of England and France could "not
but be regarded by the United States with grave disapproval, as
involving on the part of European sovereigns combined action of
protectorship over American waters."[101]
In order to allay the uneasiness caused by the attempts of filibusters,
supposed to be encouraged or at least connived at by the government of
the United States, the Spanish government requested Great Britain and
France, in January, 1852, to secure the signature by the American
government in conjunction with them of an abnegatory declaration with
respect to Cuba.[102] Accordingly in April, 1852, the British and French
ministers at Washington brought the subject to the attention of this
government in notes of the same date, suggesting a tripartite convention
for the guarantee of Cuba to Spain.[103]
To this proposal Mr. Webster replied in part as follows:
It has been stated and often repeated to the government of
Spain by this government, under various administrations, not
only that the United States have no design upon Cuba
themselves, but that, if Spain should refrain from a
voluntary cession of the island to any other European power,
she might rely on the countenance and friendship of the
United States to assist her in the defense and preservation
of that island. At the same time it has always been declared
to Spain that the government of the United States could not
be expected to acquiesce in the cession of Cuba to an
European power.
He reminded them, furthermore, that "the policy of the United States has
uniformly been to avoid, as far as possible, alliances or agreements
with other states, and to keep itself free from national obligations,
except such as affect directly the interests of the United States
themselves."[104]
The matter was again urged upon the United States by the British and
French governments in notes to Mr. Webster, dated July 9, 1852, in which
the indefensibility of the Spanish title to the island and its bearings
upon the neutrality of the proposed Central American canals were dwelt
upon. The death of Mr. Webster postponed for some time the answer of the
United States, but the proposal was finally rejected in a notable
dispatch prepared by Webster's successor, Edward Everett.
With the growth of the slavery conflict, which had now become paramount
to all other questions, the annexation of Cuba had become a party issue,
and the return of the Democratic party to power, in 1853, was hailed by
the southern extremists as a signal for the acquisition of the long
coveted prize. This expectation was further heightened by the
declaration of President Pierce, in his inaugural address, that the
policy of his administration would "not be controlled by any timid
forebodings of evil from expansion," and that the acquisition of certain
possessions not within our jurisdiction was "eminently important for our
protection, if not in the future essential for the preservation of the
rights of commerce and the peace of the world."
William L. Marcy, of New York, was appointed secretary of state and for
the mission to Spain the President selected Pierre Soulé of Louisiana, a
Frenchman by birth and education, who had been exiled for political
reasons. His appointment under the circumstances created unfavorable
comment both in this country and in Europe, and his sojourn of several
days at Paris on the way to his post at Madrid caused the French
government some annoyance. Louis Napoleon advised the court of Madrid
not to receive him, as his views on the Cuban question were well known
to be of a radical character.
In his instructions to Mr. Soulé, July 23, 1853, Mr. Marcy emphasized
the importance of our relations with Spain in view of the rumors of
contemplated changes in the internal affairs of Cuba and of the recent
interposition of England and France. He directed him to try to negotiate
a commercial treaty with Spain favorable to our trade with Cuba, and
pointed out the urgent necessity of allowing a "qualified diplomatic
intercourse between the captain-general of that island and our consul at
Havana, in order to prevent difficulties and preserve a good
understanding between the two countries."[105] The difficulty of
settling disputes arising in Cuba had been the subject of frequent
remonstrances on the part of the United States. The captain-general was
clothed with almost "unlimited powers for aggression, but with none for
reparation." He exercised no diplomatic functions and was in no way
subject to the authority of the Spanish minister at Washington.
Upon the arrival of Mr. Soulé in Spain, he found that Mr. Calderon, the
head of the cabinet, was strongly opposed to any commercial treaty or
agreement which would promote intercourse between the United States and
the dependencies of Spain, and equally averse to allowing the
captain-general any diplomatic powers.[106] Mr. Soulé was by nature
hot-headed and impetuous and could suffer anything sooner than enforced
inactivity. Whatever may have been the intentions of the executive in
sending him, he had come to Madrid for the purpose of consummating the
long cherished scheme of acquiring Cuba. Accordingly, on February 23,
1854, he wrote to Mr. Marcy that the affairs of the Spanish government
were about to reach a crisis, that a change of ministry was imminent,
and that contingencies involving the fate of Cuba were likely to arise
which might be of great interest to the United States. He, therefore,
asked for definite instructions. Relying upon these representations and
upon Mr. Soulé's judgment, Mr. Marcy transmitted in due time the
necessary powers, authorizing him to negotiate with Spain for the
purchase of Cuba, or for its independence, if such an arrangement would
be more agreeable to Spanish pride, in which event the United States
would be willing to contribute substantial aid to the result.
In the meantime, however, the _Black Warrior_ affair had strained the
relations of the two countries almost to the point of rupture. This
case, involving the seizure of an American steamer by Spanish officials
at Havana for an unintentional violation or neglect of custom-house
regulations, was of an unusually exasperating character.
As soon as the department at Washington was fully informed of this
outrage, Mr. Marcy forwarded all the documents in the case to Mr. Soulé
and directed him to demand of the Spanish government a prompt disavowal
of the act and the payment of an indemnity to the owners of the vessel
and of the cargo, the extent of the injury being estimated at $300,000.
On April 8 Mr. Soulé presented a formal demand on the part of his
government. No answer to this note having been received, on the 11th he
repeated his demands much more emphatically, calling for an indemnity of
$300,000, insisting that all persons, whatever their rank or importance,
who were concerned in the perpetration of the wrong, be dismissed from
her majesty's service, and finally declaring that non-compliance with
these demands within forty-eight hours would be considered by the
government of the United States as equivalent to a declaration that her
majesty's government was determined to uphold the conduct of its
officers.
Mr. Calderon replied, on the 12th, that whenever her majesty's
government should have before it the authentic and complete data, which
it then lacked, a reply would be given to the demand of the United
States conformable to justice and right; that the peremptory tone of Mr.
Soulé's note suggested to the government of her majesty "a suspicion
that it was not so much the manifestation of a lively interest in the
defense of pretended injuries, as an incomprehensible pretext for
exciting estrangement, if not a quarrel between two friendly powers." To
this note Mr. Soulé replied that the suggestion made as to the motives
of the United States in seeking redress was "but little creditable to
the candor of her Catholic majesty's government, and comes in very bad
grace from one who, like your excellency, cannot but be aware that the
records of this legation, as well as those of her Catholic majesty's
department of state, are loaded with reclamations bearing on grievances
most flagrant, which have never been earnestly attended to and were met
at their inception with precisely the same dilatory excuses through
which the present one is sought to be evaded."
Meanwhile the aspects of the case were altogether changed by a private
agreement between the Havana officials and the owners of the _Black
Warrior_, by which the ship and her cargo were released. Mr. Soulé
continued, however, according to instructions from Washington, to demand
compensation for the damages sustained by the owners and passengers not
compensated for by the return of the ship and cargo, and also reparation
for the insult to the United States flag. The Spanish government,
however, refused to recognize any ground for reparation after the
restitution of the ship and cargo, and persisted in contradicting,
without the support of any evidence whatever, the facts as presented by
the United States, although they were all certified to in proper legal
form.
On June 24 Mr. Marcy wrote that the President was far from satisfied
with the manner in which our demands were treated by the Spanish
government, but that before resorting to extreme measures he was
determined to make a final appeal to Spain for the adjustment of past
difficulties and for the guarantee of more friendly relations in the
future. Although satisfied with the spirited manner in which Mr. Soulé
had performed the duties of his mission, the President was considering
the expediency of reinforcing the demands of the United States by the
appointment of an extraordinary commission of two distinguished citizens
to act in conjunction with him. He instructed him, therefore, not to
press the affair of the _Black Warrior_, but to wait until the question
of the special commission could be laid before Congress.
During the summer there was a change of ministry in the Spanish
government, which, as was not infrequently the case, was attended with
more or less serious disorders. In August Mr. Marcy wrote that in view
of the unsettled condition of affairs in Spain and for other reasons not
stated, the purpose of sending a special mission had, for the present at
least, been abandoned. Without pressing matters Mr. Soulé was,
nevertheless, to avail himself of any opportunity which might be
presented, of settling the affairs in dispute and of negotiating for the
purchase of Cuba.
Under the same date he proposed to Mr. Soulé the plan of consulting with
Mr. Mason and Mr. Buchanan, our ministers at Paris and London, for the
purpose of overcoming any obstacles that England and France might
interpose. This suggestion led to the celebrated meeting at Ostend and
the so-called manifesto.
In accordance with the instructions of the President, Messrs. Soulé,
Mason, and Buchanan proceeded to make arrangements for the proposed
conference, which was held at Ostend, in Belgium, October 9, 10, 11,
1854. They then adjourned to Aix-la-Chapelle for a week, where the
reports of their proceedings were prepared.
The greater part of the report is taken up with an enumeration of the
advantages that would accrue to the United States from the acquisition
of Cuba, and an elaborate exposition of the ways in which the interests
of Spain would be promoted by the sale. The only specific recommendation
of the report was that a proposal should be made through the proper
diplomatic channel to the Supreme Constituent Cortes about to assemble,
to purchase Cuba from Spain, the maximum price to be $120,000,000. The
report then proceeds to discuss the question, what ought to be the
course of the American government should Spain refuse to sell Cuba? The
ministers declared:
After we shall have offered Spain a price for Cuba far
beyond its present value, and this shall have been refused,
it will then be time to consider the question, does Cuba, in
the possession of Spain, seriously endanger our internal
peace and the existence of our cherished Union?
Should this question be answered in the affirmative, then,
by every law, human and divine, we shall be justified in
wresting it from Spain if we possess the power; and this
upon the very same principle that would justify an
individual in tearing down the burning house of his neighbor
if there were no other means of preventing the flames from
destroying his own home.
The report also recommended that all proceedings in reference to the
negotiations with Spain "ought to be open, frank, and public." This
recommendation, together with the general character of the report,
indicates that its authors were rather bent on making political capital
of the affair at home than on seriously furthering negotiations at
Madrid. As a matter of fact the Ostend Manifesto made Buchanan an
acceptable presidential candidate to the southern wing of the Democratic
party and played no small part in securing for him the nomination in
1856.[107]
The objectionable features of the report were politely but firmly
repudiated by the administration in Marcy's reply to Soulé and Soulé
promptly resigned his mission. This fact was generally overlooked at the
time, while the unfortunate publicity given to the proceedings at Ostend
brought endless censure upon President Pierce and Secretary Marcy.
In spite of the "jingo" policy attributed to the Pierce administration,
the complications arising out of the seizure of the _Black Warrior_ were
not made a _casus belli_, as might easily have been done. After Mr.
Soulé's return to the United States the negotiations were continued by
his successor. The conduct of the officials concerned in the seizure was
disavowed, and the indemnity claimed by the American citizens concerned
was paid. The administration closed on terms of comparative friendship
with Spain, although there were numbers of claims still unadjusted. The
Cuban question figured conspicuously in the campaign of 1856. The
platform of the Democratic party was strongly in favor of acquisition,
while the new Republican platform stigmatized the Ostend manifesto as
the highwayman's plea.
Until the Buchanan administration all negotiations for the purchase of
Cuba had been undertaken on the authority of the executive alone. An
effort was now made to get the two houses of Congress to concur in an
appropriation for this purpose. It was thought that united action on the
part of the legislative and executive branches of the government would
produce some impression on Spain. Accordingly, in his second, third and
fourth annual messages, President Buchanan brought the matter to the
attention of Congress, but his appeal met with little encouragement. In
January, 1859, Senator Slidell, the chairman of the Senate Committee on
Foreign Relations, reported a bill carrying $30,000,000, to be placed at
the disposal of the President as a preliminary sum for the purchase of
Cuba.[108]
This report created violent opposition, and in February the bill was
withdrawn by Mr. Slidell at the urgent request of his friends.
The annexationist and filibustering schemes of the decade immediately
preceding the War of Secession were prompted by two motives. The one was
the extension of slave territory, or at least the thwarting of the
schemes of emancipation for Cuba which Great Britain was urging upon the
Spanish government. The other was to secure, by the occupation of this
strong strategic position, undisputed control over the proposed
interoceanic canal routes of Central America and communication by this
means with the new states on the Pacific coast. These motives for
annexation were removed, the one by the abolition of slavery in the
United States, and the other by the construction of the great
transcontinental railroads which established direct overland
communication with the Pacific states. During the period following the
civil war, therefore, our policy was mainly concerned in urging upon the
Spanish government the abolition of slavery in Cuba, the establishment
of a more liberal form of government through independence or autonomy,
and the promotion of more untrammelled commercial intercourse with the
United States.
The abolition of slavery in the southern states left the Spanish
Antilles in the enjoyment of a monopoly of slave labor, which in the
production of sugar, especially, gave them advantages which overcame all
competition. This led to the formation of a strong Spanish party, for
whom the cause of slavery and that of Spanish dominion were identical.
These were known as Peninsulars or Spanish immigrants. They were the
official class, the wealthy planters and slave-owners and the real
rulers of Cuba. On the other hand there was a party composed of Creoles,
or native Cubans, whose cry was "Cuba for the Cubans!" and who hoped to
effect the complete separation of the island from Spain, either through
their own efforts or through the assistance of the United States. Not
infrequently in the same family, the father, born and brought up in the
Peninsula, was an ardent loyalist, while the son, born in Cuba, was an
insurgent at heart, if not actually enlisted in the ranks.
The Spanish revolution of September, 1868, was the signal for an
uprising of the native or Creole party in the eastern part of the
island. This movement was not at first ostensibly for independence, but
for the revolution in Spain, the cries being "Hurrah for Prim!" "Hurrah
for the Revolution!" Its real character was, however, apparent from the
first and its supporters continued for a period of ten years, without
regard to the numerous vicissitudes through which the Spanish government
passed--the provisional government, the regency, the elective monarchy,
the republic, and the restored Bourbon dynasty--to wage a dogged, though
desultory warfare against the constituted authorities of the island.
This struggle was almost coterminous with President Grant's
administration of eight years.
At an early stage of the contest the Spanish authorities conceived it to
be necessary to issue certain decrees which were contrary to public law
and, in so far as they affected citizens of the United States, in
violation of treaty obligations. On March 24, 1869, the captain-general
issued a decree authorizing the capture on the high seas of vessels
carrying men, arms, munitions, or effects in aid of the insurgents, and
declaring that "all persons captured in such vessels without regard to
their number will be immediately executed."[109] By another decree the
estates of American citizens suspected of sympathy with the insurgents
were confiscated.[110] Secretary Hamilton Fish protested against these
decrees so far as they affected citizens of the United States, as they
were in violation of the provisions of the treaty of 1795.
On July 7, 1869, the captain-general issued another decree closing
certain ports, declaring voyages with arms, ammunition, or crew for the
insurgents illegal, and directing cruisers on the high seas to bring
into port all vessels found to be enemies. On July 16 Mr. Fish called
the attention of the Spanish minister to this decree, saying that it
assumed powers over the commerce of the United States that could be
permitted only in time of war; that the United States would not yield
the right to carry contraband of war in time of peace, and would not
permit their vessels to be interfered with on the high seas except in
time of war; that if Spain was at war she should give notice to the
United States to that effect, and that a continuance of the decree or
any attempt to enforce it would be regarded as a recognition by Spain of
a state of war in Cuba. This declaration produced a prompt modification
of the decree so far as it concerned the search of vessels on the high
seas.
As our commercial interests at large, as well as the interests of
individual citizens, were deeply affected by the condition of the
island, President Grant determined at the beginning of his
administration to offer to mediate between Spain and the insurgents.
General Daniel E. Sickles was appointed minister to Spain and his
instructions, under date of June 29, 1869, directed him to offer to the
cabinet at Madrid the good offices of the United States for the purpose
of bringing to a close the civil war then ravaging the island and
establishing the independence of Cuba. Mr. Fish instructed General
Sickles to explain to the Spanish government that he used the term civil
war advisedly, not as implying any public recognition of belligerent
rights, but a condition of affairs that might not justify withholding
much longer those rights from the insurgents.[111] In reply Spain
agreed to accept the good offices of the United States, but on
conditions that were impracticable and unsatisfactory. At the same time
the Spanish government allowed the purport of General Sickles's note
tendering the good offices of the United States to get out, and it was
accepted by the press as indicating the purpose of the United States to
recognize the Cubans as belligerents if its offer of mediation were
refused. No Spanish cabinet could possibly endure the odium of having
made a concession to the Cubans under a threat from an outside power.
The Spanish government therefore requested the withdrawal of the
American note.
After the rejection of the offer of mediation President Grant decided to
recognize the Cuban insurgents and in August, 1869, while on his way
from New York to New England on the Fall River boat he signed a
proclamation of Cuban belligerency which he forwarded to Washington with
a note to Secretary Fish, requesting him to sign, seal, and issue it.
Mr. Fish disapproved of this step, and while he affixed the seal and
signed the document, he did not issue it, but kept it in a safe place to
await further developments. Grant's attention was diverted by Wall
Street speculations in gold and the crisis that followed on "Black
Friday." He failed to notice at the time that the secretary of state did
not carry out his instructions, and later he thanked Mr. Fish for having
saved him from a serious mistake.[112]
For some time the United States had been urging upon Spain the
importance of abolishing slavery in Cuba as a necessary condition to
the complete pacification of the island. During the fall of 1869 Spain
gave repeated assurances to the United States of her readiness to effect
emancipation in Cuba as soon as hostilities should cease, but the
Spanish government could never be brought to enter into any definite
engagement on the subject. In fact as regarded the slavery question the
cabinet of Madrid found itself unable to choose between the horns of the
dilemma. The United States and Great Britain were urging the immediate
abolition of slavery, while the most influential upholders of Spanish
rule in Porto Rico as well as in Cuba were the slaveholders themselves.
The insurgents on the other hand had abolished slavery by a decree of
the assembly of February 26, 1869, promising indemnity to the owners in
due time and providing for the enrolment of liberated slaves in the
army.[113] On January 26, 1870, Mr. Fish wrote to General Sickles:
It becomes more apparent every day that this contest cannot
terminate without the abolition of slavery. This government
regards the government at Madrid as committed to that
result.... You will, therefore, if it shall appear that the
insurrection is regarded as suppressed, frankly state that
this government, relying upon the assurances so often given,
will expect steps to be taken for the emancipation of the
slaves in the Spanish colonies.
The British representative at Madrid, Mr. Layard, was instructed to
second the suggestions of the United States minister in regard to the
abolition of slavery in the Spanish colonies.
From the outbreak of the insurrection the Cuban patriots had the
sympathy of the great mass of the American people, and that of the
administration, although the latter was kept within the bounds of public
law and treaty obligation, so as to avoid giving offense to Spain. The
government did all that treaty obligations demanded of it to prevent the
violation of the neutrality laws. Numbers of filibustering expeditions
did, however, escape from American ports, and those that were arrested
at the instance of the Spanish government through its representatives in
this country usually escaped conviction in our courts for want of
evidence.
In June, 1870, the question of granting belligerent rights to the Cubans
was brought before Congress in the form of a joint resolution introduced
into the House. Personally General Grant sympathized with the Cubans and
was disposed to grant them the rights of belligerents, but his judgment
was again overruled by the counsels of Mr. Fish. On June 13, during the
heat of the debate on the question of belligerency, the President sent
to Congress a message embodying the views of the executive. At Mr.
Fish's instance the message took the ground that the facts did not
justify the recognition of a state of war, although Mr. Fish himself had
made use of the term civil war in his instructions to General Sickles.
The Secretary had almost to force the President to sign this message,
though General Grant was afterwards satisfied as to the wisdom of the
measure.[114] The message said in part:
The question of belligerency is one of fact not to be
decided by sympathies with or prejudices against either
party. The relations between the parent state and the
insurgents must amount, in fact, to war in the sense of
international law. Fighting, though fierce and protracted,
does not alone constitute war; there must be military forces
acting in accordance with the rules and customs of
war--flags of truce, cartels, exchange of prisoners,
etc.,--and to justify belligerency there must be, above all,
a _de facto_ political organization of the insurgents
sufficient in character and resources to constitute it, if
left to itself, a state among nations capable of discharging
the duties of a state, and of meeting the just
responsibilities it may incur as such toward other powers in
the discharge of its international duties.
This message provoked a long and animated discussion in the House next
day and sharp criticism on the part of the Cuban sympathizers of the
President's conduct in thus "intruding himself into the House for the
purpose of controlling their deliberations." The debate continued until
June 16, when the resolution passed the House by a vote of 80 to
68.[115] It was taken up by the Senate, discussed and amended, but
finally lost.
The conclusion of an agreement on February 12, 1871, for the submission
to a mixed commission of claims of American citizens arising in
Cuba,[116] took away all our pressing grievances against Spain and for
more than two years our diplomatic relations were on a comparatively
friendly basis. Good feeling between the two countries was further
promoted by the proclamation of the Spanish republic in 1873 and by the
prompt action of General Sickles in extending to it the recognition of
the United States. After striving in vain for more than two years to
reconcile and unite the contending factions of Spain, King Amadeus on
February 11, 1873, abdicated the royal authority and returned to the
nation the powers with which he had been intrusted. The Cortes at once
proclaimed a republic. General Sickles had on January 30 telegraphed to
Washington for instructions in case the republicans should succeed in
their efforts. On the day after the abdication, he received directions
to recognize the republican government when it was fully established and
in possession of the power of the nation. Three days later, in the
uniform of a major-general of the United States army he was given an
audience by the president of the assembly and formally recognized the
republic.
On March 6, Congress by joint resolution, in behalf of the American
people, tendered its congratulations to the people of Spain. It seemed
at last as if our relations with Spain were on a good footing. General
Sickles urged upon the new republican government the abolition of
slavery and the concession of self-government to Cuba.
But such cordial relations did not long continue. On October 31, 1873,
the steamer _Virginius_, sailing under American colors and carrying a
United States registry, was captured on the high seas by the _Tornado_,
a Spanish war vessel, and on the afternoon of the first of November
taken into the port of Santiago de Cuba. The men and supplies she bore
were bound for the insurgents, but the capture did not occur in Cuban
waters. General Burriel, the commandant of the city, summoned a
court-martial, and in spite of the protests of the American consul,
condemned to death at the first sitting four of the passengers, General
W. A. C. Ryan, an Irish patriot and three Cubans. They were shot on the
morning of November 4. On the 7th twelve other passengers were executed
and on the 8th, Captain Fry and his entire crew, numbering thirty-six,
making the total number of executions fifty-three. As soon as news of
the capture reached Madrid, General Sickles called upon President
Castelar and represented to him the difficulties that might arise in
case the ship had been taken on the high seas bearing United States
colors. Upon General Sickles's suggestion the President of the Spanish
republic at once telegraphed to the captain-general to await orders
before taking any steps in regard to the captured vessel and crew.
In accordance with instructions from Mr. Fish, General Sickles on
November 14 protested by note against the executions as brutal and
barbarous and stated that ample reparation would be demanded. The next
day he received from the minister of state an ill-tempered reply,
rejecting the protest as inadmissible when neither the cabinet at
Washington nor that of Madrid had sufficient data upon which to ground a
complaint. On the day this reply was received General Sickles, following
out telegraphic instructions from Washington, made a formal demand by
note for the restoration of the _Virginius_, the surrender of the
survivors, a salute to the United States flag, and the punishment of the
guilty officials. In case of a refusal of satisfactory reparation within
twelve days, General Sickles was instructed by his government, at the
expiration of that period, to close the legation and leave Madrid.
The formal reply to General Sickles's demand for reparation was received
November 18. The Spanish government declared that it would make no
reparation until satisfied that an offense had been committed against
the flag of the United States, and that when so convinced through her
own sources of information or by the showing of the United States, due
reparation would be made.
The representations made at Washington by the Spanish minister were of a
much more satisfactory character than those made to General Sickles at
Madrid. Mr. Fish, therefore, instructed General Sickles to remain at his
post until the 26th, and if no accommodation were reached by that time
he could demand his passports. By the time this dispatch reached Madrid
General Sickles had already asked for his passports, but had not
received the reply of the Spanish government. On the 26th he received a
note from the Spanish minister asking for a postponement to December 25
and promising that if by that time Spain could not show that she had the
right on her side--i.e., that the _Virginius_ was not entitled to sail
under the United States flag--she would comply with the demands of the
United States. General Sickles replied that he could not accept such a
proposal, but that he would inform his government of it and take the
responsibility of deferring his departure.
Meanwhile the Spanish minister at Washington had proposed arbitration,
but Mr. Fish declined to submit to arbitration the question of an
indignity to the United States flag. The minister then asked for a
delay, but Mr. Fish told him that delay was impossible in view of the
approaching meeting of Congress. Unless settled beforehand the question
would have to be referred to Congress. This firm stand brought the
Spanish minister to time and on November 27 a proposition was submitted
and accepted by Mr. Fish, by the terms of which Spain stipulated to
restore the vessel forthwith, to surrender the survivors of her
passengers and crew, and on the 25th of December to salute the flag of
the United States. If, however, before that date Spain should prove to
the satisfaction of the United States that the _Virginius_ was not
entitled to carry the flag of the United States, the salute should be
dispensed with, but in such case the United States would expect a
disclaimer of intent of indignity to its flag.
The Spanish envoy submi
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