Lecture 27: 1824 Ayacucho—South American Independence
a unit called the Army of the
Andes and, with it, crossed
the supposedly impassable
mountains and invaded Chile.
After a series of battles,
Chilean independence was
achieved in 1818, winning San
Martin considerable renown.
Having helped Argentina
and Chile gain freedom, San
Martin now focused his efforts
on attempting to extend the
liberation movement to Peru.x The two great liberators of
the north and the south met at
Guayaquil in July 1822 to plan
a joint assault against Peru,
but they clashed in terms of
personality, preferred methods
of operation, and, most
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them would be nearly impossible and fearing that even to attempt
it might destroy what they had accomplished, the aging San Martin
decided to remove himself from the scene. He retired permanently
to Europe, where he died in 1850, leaving Bolivar effectively in
charge of the South American revolutionary movement.The Battle
x By 1824, with Columbia, Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, and Chile
liberated, the primary bastion of colonial Spanish rule in South
America was Peru. The conquest of Peru would not be easy because
it still contained a strong army of 12,000 royalist troops loyal to the
Spanish king, and the highland area of the country was a natural
fortress surrounded by the Andes.%ULWLVKIRUFHVVSHFL¿FDOO\WKH
Albion Legion, played a key role
in the battle for South American
independence; Bolivar himself
once attributed at least part of his
success to the recruiting agent in
London.© Sourabh Jain/iStock/Thinkstock.