US+and+the+Latin+American+Revolutions!+SJ

Causes of Independence: US Involvement
 * Spain was racist in their social ranking
 * Spain didn’t allow free trade
 * Other successful revolutions (like America’s) encouraged the Latin American Revolutions
 * A new monarch had started to rule Spain and he was not the most involved ruler Spain had had before
 * The Spanish colonies did not want to be called Spaniards because they still held nationalities to themselves
 * Napoleon invaded Spain in 1808, causing Spain to be much weaker allowing the colonies to revolt and actually have a chance

James Monroe decided that the Americas were not going to be further colonized. He issued a Monroe Doctrine which meant that if any European country tried to begin to colonize the Americas further, we would fight. This was a good move for the young United States because it showed the world that we were not just a group of fighting states; we had become a strong nation to be respected world wide.

Father Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Ten interesting facts about the famous priest who started the Mexican Revolution and gave the Cry of Dolores.(A speech to the poor people of Dolores. Father Miguel Hidalgo was outraged that the taxes that these people paid to their government were not even helping the people)
 * 1) He was already in his mid fifties as a revolutionary.
 * 2) He wasn’t much of a priest. He was never kicked out of priesthood but he never was an amazing one either.
 * 3) His family had been ruined by Spanish policy. The Hidalgo family was completely wiped out economically when the Spanish crown needed funds and issued a decree that said if anyone could not pay back their loans to the church, their properties would become the property of Spain. When the Hidalgo family couldn't pay back their loans, their property was seized.
 * 4) The “Cry of Dolores” came early. Every year, Mexicans celebrate September 16 as their Independence Day. That’s not the date Hidalgo had in mind, however. Hidalgo and his fellow conspirators had originally selected December as the best time for their uprising and were planning accordingly. Their plot was discovered by the Spanish, however, and Hidalgo had to act fast before they were all arrested. Hidalgo gave "the Cry of Dolores" the very next day and the rest is history.
 * 5) He didn’t get along with Ignacio Allende. Co-conspirators, they fought together, were captured together, and died together. Remembered as legendary comrades of arms, they really could not stand each others principles of war.
 * 6) He was not a military commander. He knew he was a thinker, not a soldier. Ultimately the revolution fell apart for issues like the organization of the army and whether or not to permit looting after the battles.
 * 7) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">He made a very big tactical mistake. In November of 1810, Hidalgo was very close to victory. Mexico City, home of the Viceroy and the seat of Spanish power in Mexico, was within his reach and virtually undefended. Strangely he decided to retreat.
 * 8) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">He was betrayed. After the disastrous Battle of Calderon Bridge, Hidalgo, Allende and other revolutionary leaders made a run for the border with the USA where they could regroup and rearm in safety. On the way there, however, they were betrayed, captured and handed over to the Spanish by Ignacio Elizondo, a leader of a local insurrection who was escorting them through his territory.
 * 9) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">He was excommunicated. Although the Catholic church did not renounce his priesthood, it was quick to not take any responsibility for his actions. In the end, he recanted his actions, but was executed anyway.
 * 10) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">He’s considered Mexico’s founding father. Although he did not actually free Mexico from Spanish rule, Father Miguel is considered the founding father of the nation. Mexicans believe that his noble ideals of freedom drove him into action.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; vertical-align: baseline;">__US and Isolationism__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> When James Monroe gave the Monroe Doctrine he basically shot out any idea for the United States to be isolated. When he decreed that if the European countries tried to touch the Americas we would attack and defend. This was a far from George Washington's ideas of isolationism for the young United States. Washington believed that we should not be involved with other nations problems. But with Europe in the midst of Napoleon’s invasions, it was easier for the United States to decree a law that would probably not have many consequences till later on although we did help Latin America.