Some of the early Spanish conquistadors that explored Peru made the first attempts for independence from the Spanish crown. They tried to liberate themselves from the Viceroyalty, who governed for the king of Castile. Throughout the eighteenth century, there were several indigenous uprisings against colonial rule and their treatment by the colonial authorities. Some of these uprisings became true rebellions. The Bourbon Reforms increased the unease, and the dissent had its outbreak in the Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II which was repressed, but the root cause of the discontent of the indigenous people remained dormant. It is debated whether these movements should be considered as precedents of the emancipation that was led by chiefs (caudillos), Peruvian towns (pueblos), and other countries in the American continent.

The independence of Peru was an important chapter in the Hispano-American wars of independence. The campaign of Sucre in Upper Peru concluded in April 1825, and in November of the same year Mexico obtained the surrender of the Spanish bastion of San Juan de Ulúa in North America. The Spanish strongholds in Callao and Chiloé in South America fell in January 1826. Spain renounced all their continental American territories ten years later in 1836 leaving very little of its vast empire intact.

Political dependence on Spain had been severed, but Peru was still economically dependent on Europe. Despite the separation from Spain, the plunder of lands from indigenous people was exacerbated in this new republican era. Indigenous domestic servants were treated inhumanely all the way into the 20th century. During the birth of the republic, the indigenous people obtained open citizenship in Peru, August 27, 1821. Still amid the 21st century, a truly democratic society is still being constructed where the full guarantee and respect for human rights is possible.

Content in this edit is translated from the existing Spanish Wikipedia article at es:Independencia del Perú; see its history for attribution.

References

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  • Fisher, John R.; Kuethe, Allan J.; McFarlane, Anthony, eds. (1990). Reform and Insurrection in Bourbon New Granada and Peru. Baton Rouge and London: Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 080711569X.
  • Anna, Timothy E. (1979). The Fall of the Royal Government in Peru. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0803210043.
  • Walker, Charles F. (1999). Smoldering Ashes: Cuzco and the Creation of Republican Peru, 1780-1840. Durham and London: Duke University Press. ISBN 0822322935.