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The list of countries obtaining independence from Spain is a list of countries that broke away from Spain for independence, or occasionally incorporation into another country, as depicted in the map below. These processes came about at different periods and world regions starting in the 17th century (Portugal).
Since its beginnings in the 16th century, the Spanish empire conquered new areas starting out from its Castilian core kingdom. In 1597, the Spanish (Castilian) crown lost the Netherlands (Holland). In 1640, Portugal split away after Philip II had incorporated it to its domains in 1581. A second independence tide came about following the Independence of the Thirteen Colonies in North America and the Battle of Trafalgar that heralded the end of the Spanish Atlantic hegemony. Venezuela (1811), under the influence of the Basque Enlightenment, sparked the independence movements of Central and Southern America, spearheaded by Simon Bolivar. [1] [2]
During the Spanish Restoration in the late 19th century, the last major colonies Cuba, Puerto Rico and Philippines detached from the metropolis with the support of the United States. Since the 1950s, Spain lost the last continental lands in Africa, Spanish protectorate in Morocco, Ifni, Equatorial Guinea and Western Sahara. [2] [1]
| No | Country | Modern state | Pre-independence name (if different) | Date | year | note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Dutch Republic |  Netherlands |  Spanish Netherlands part of  Holy Roman Empire | 30 January | 1648 | Peace of Münster [3] |
| 2 |  Kingdom of Portugal and the Algarves |  Portugal | Iberian Union | 1 December | 1640 | Treaty of Lisbon |
| 3 |  Dutch Formosa |  Taiwan | Spanish Formosa | ? | 1642 | It was ceded to the Dutch Republic during the Eighty Years' War. |
| 4 |  Sardinia |  Sardinia part of  Italy | Kingdom of Sardinia part of Spanish Empire | 8 August | 1720 | Philip V's viceroy handed Sardinia over to an Austrian representative, who in turn transferred it to the viceroy of Victor Amadeus |
| 5 |  Austrian Netherlands part of Holy Roman Empire |  Luxembourg | Spanish Netherlands part of Holy Roman Empire | 7 March | 1714 | Treaty of Rastatt |
| 6 | Austrian Netherlands part of Holy Roman Empire |  Belgium | Spanish Netherlands part of Holy Roman Empire | 7 March | 1714 | Treaty of Rastatt |
| 7 | Kingdom of Naples (Ruled by the Austrian monarchy) |  Kingdom of Naples
| 7 March | 1714 | Treaty of Rastatt | |
| 8 |  Saint-Domingue |  Haiti | Captaincy General of Santo Domingo | ? | 1795 | Peace of Basel, ceded eastern portion to France |
| 9 | 21 March | 1801 | Treaty of Aranjuez | |||
| 10 |  Republic of West Florida | 26 September | 1810 | officially the State of Florida, was a short-lived republic in the western region of Spanish West Florida in 1810. It was annexed and occupied by the United States later in 1810 | ||
| 11 |  First Republic of Paraguay | Paraguay |  Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata | 14 May | 1811 | May Revolution part of Spanish American wars of independence |
| 12 |  First Republic of Venezuela |  Venezuela | Captaincy General of Venezuela | 5 July | 1811 | Venezuelan wars of independence |
| 13 |  Uruguay | Uruguay | Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata | ? | 1811 | Uruguay gained independence from Spain, was annexed by the Empire of Brazil, then regained independence in 1825. |
| 14 |  United Provinces of the Río de la Plata |  Argentina | Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata | 9 July | 1816 | Argentine wars of independence |
| 15 |  State of Chile |  Chile | Captaincy General of Chile | 12 February | 1818 | Chilean wars of independence |
| 16 |  Gran Colombia |  Colombia | Viceroyalty of New Granada | 17 December | 1819 | Bolívar's campaign to liberate New Granada |
| 17 |  Protectorate of Peru |  Peru | Viceroyalty of Peru | 28 July | 1821 | Peruvian War of Independence |
| 18 |  First Mexican Empire |  Mexico | New Spain | 15 September | 1821 | Mexican War of Independence |
| 19 |
|  Costa Rica | 15 September | 1821 | Costa Rica part of 1st Mexican Empire. Then later got independence and creation of Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. Then later dissolved in 1841 creation of Costra Rica. | |
| 20 |
|  El Salvador | 15 September | 1821 | El Salvador part of 1st Mexican Empire. Then later got independence and creation of Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. Then later dissolved in 1841 creation of El Salvador. | |
| 21 |
|  Guatemala | 15 September | 1821 | Guatemala part of 1st Mexican Empire. Then later got independence and creation of Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. Then later dissolved in 1841 creation of Guatemala. late British annexed north-east Guatemala and made colony of British Honduras | |
| 22 |
|  Honduras | 15 September | 1821 | Honduras part of 1st Mexican Empire. Then later got independence and creation of Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. Then later dissolved in 1841 creation of Honduras. | |
| 23 |
|  Nicaragua | 15 September | 1821 | Nicaragua part of 1st Mexican Empire. Then later got independence and creation of Federal Republic of Central America in 1823. Then later dissolved in 1841 creation of Nicaragua. | |
| 24 |  Panama | Panama | Viceroyalty of New Granada | 28 November | 1821 | Independence of Panama (Bloodless revolution) |
| 25 |  Ecuador |  Ecuador | Viceroyalty of New Granada | 24 May | 1822 | Ecuadorian War of Independence |
| 26 |  Bolivian Republic |  Bolivia | Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata | 6 August | 1825 | Bolivia war of independence |
| 27 |  Second Dominican Republic | Dominican Republic | Captaincy General of Santo Domingo | 15 July | 1865 | Spain ceded the island to France in the Peace of Basel. Spain recaptured the eastern portion of Santo Domingo 1809-1821 (the España Boba period). The Republic of Spanish Haiti gained independence from Spain in 1821, was occupied by Haiti, then gained independence as the First Dominican Republic; reoccupied by Spain 1861-1865, the Second Dominican Republic gained independence but was occupied by the United States 1916-1924. The Third Dominican Republic followed the U.S. occupation. |
| 28 |   Cuba |  Cuba | Captaincy General of Cuba | 10 October | 1898 | Prior to its independence from Spain, the United States occupied the island until the signing of the Treaty of Paris (1898), which ended the Spanish–American War). The U.S. Armed Forces left the island in 1902. |
| 29 |  First Philippine Republic |  Philippines | Captaincy General of Philippines | 12 June | 1898 | The Philippines gained its independence from Spain. But United States occupied Philippines (USA and Spain had signed the Treaty of Paris in 1898. Spain give the Philippines to USA to end the Spanish-American war). The Empire of Japan then occupied Philippines during the Second World War before surrendering, after which point the US took control of the Philippines. The Philippines gained independence from the US in 1946 and established the Third Republic of the Philippines |
| 30 |  German New Guinea | Spanish East Indies | 11 February | 1899 | Spain sold other smaller islands to Germany in the German–Spanish Treaty | |
| 30 | 11 April | 1899 | Treaty of Paris (1898) | |||
| 31 |  Morocco |  Spanish protectorate in Morocco | 7 April | 1956 | Decolonisation of Africa | |
| 32 |  Equatorial Guinea |  Spanish Guinea | 12 October | 1968 | Decolonisation of Africa | |
| 33 | Ifni | 30 June | 1969 | Decolonisation of Africa | ||
| 34 |  Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic | Spanish Sahara | 26 February | 1976 | Decolonisation of Africa | |
The history of Spain dates to contact between the pre-Roman peoples of the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula with the Greeks and Phoenicians. During Classical Antiquity, the peninsula was the site of multiple successive colonizations of Greeks, Carthaginians, and Romans. Native peoples of the peninsula, such as the Tartessos, intermingled with the colonizers to create a uniquely Iberian culture. The Romans referred to the entire peninsula as Hispania, from which the name "Spain" originates. As was the rest of the Western Roman Empire, Spain was subject to numerous invasions of Germanic tribes during the 4th and 5th centuries AD, resulting in the end of Roman rule and the establishment of Germanic kingdoms, marking the beginning of the Middle Ages in Spain.
The influence and imperialism of Western Europe and associated states peaked in Asian territories from the colonial period beginning in the 16th century and substantially reducing with 20th century decolonization. It originated in the 15th-century search for alternative trade routes to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia as a response to Ottoman control of the Silk Road that led directly to the Age of Discovery, and additionally the introduction of early modern warfare into what Europeans first called the East Indies and later the Far East. By the early 16th century, the Age of Sail greatly expanded Western European influence and development of the spice trade under colonialism. European-style colonial empires and imperialism operated in Asia throughout six centuries of colonialism, formally ending with the independence of the Portuguese Empire's last colony Macau in 1999. The empires introduced Western concepts of nation and the multinational state. This article attempts to outline the consequent development of the Western concept of the nation state.
The 1820s was a decade of the Gregorian calendar that began on January 1, 1820, and ended on December 31, 1829.
The peso is the monetary unit of several Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, as well as the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word peso translates to "weight". In most countries of the Americas, the symbol commonly known as dollar sign, "$", was originally used as an abbreviation of "pesos" and later adopted by the dollar. The dollar itself actually originated from the peso or Spanish dollar in the late 18th century. The sign "₱" is used in the Philippines.
Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on independence movements in the colonies and the collapse of global colonial empires.
The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered in the European Age of Discovery. It achieved a global scale, controlling vast portions of the Americas, Africa, various islands in Asia and Oceania, as well as territory in other parts of Europe. It was one of the most powerful empires of the early modern period, becoming known as "the empire on which the sun never sets". At its greatest extent in the late 1700s and early 1800s, the Spanish Empire covered over 13 million square kilometres, making it one of the largest empires in history.
The Bolivian War of Independence began with the establishment of government juntas in Sucre and La Paz, after the Chuquisaca Revolution and La Paz revolution. These Juntas were defeated shortly after, and the cities fell again under Spanish control. The May Revolution of 1810 ousted the viceroy in Buenos Aires, which established its own junta. Buenos Aires sent three large military expeditions to Upper Peru, headed by Juan José Castelli, Manuel Belgrano and José Rondeau, but the royalists ultimately prevailed over each one. However, the conflict grew into a guerrilla war, the War of the Republiquetas, preventing the royalists from strengthening their presence. After Simón Bolívar and Antonio José de Sucre defeated the royalists in northern South America, Sucre led a campaign that was to defeat the royalists in Charcas for good when the last royalist general, Pedro Antonio Olañeta, suffered death and defeat at the hands of his own defected forces at the Battle of Tumusla. Bolivian independence was proclaimed on 6 August 1825.
The Venezuelan War of Independence was one of the Spanish American wars of independence of the early nineteenth century, when independence movements in South America fought a civil war for secession and against unity of the Spanish Empire, emboldened by Spain's troubles in the Napoleonic Wars.
Habsburg Spain refers to Spain and the Hispanic Monarchy, also known as the Catholic Monarchy, in the period from 1516 to 1700 when it was ruled by kings from the House of Habsburg. It had territories around the world, including modern-day Spain, a piece of south-eastern France, eventually Portugal and many other lands outside the Iberian Peninsula, including in the Americas and Asia. Habsburg Spain was a composite monarchy and a personal union. The Habsburg Spanish monarchs of this period are Charles I, Philip II, Philip III, Philip IV and Charles II. In this period the Spanish Empire was at the zenith of its influence and power. Spain, or "the Spains", referring to Spanish territories across different continents in this period, initially covered the entire Iberian Peninsula, including the crowns of Castile, Aragon and from 1580 Portugal. It then expanded to include territories over the five continents, consisting of much of the American continent and islands thereof, the West Indies in the Americas, the Low Countries, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italian territories and parts of France in Europe, Portuguese possessions such as small enclaves like Ceuta and Oran in North Africa, and the Philippines and other possessions in Southeast Asia. The period of Spanish history has also been referred to as the "Age of Expansion".
Hispanophone refers to anything related to the Spanish language.
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The decolonization of the Americas occurred over several centuries as most of the countries in the Americas gained their independence from European rule. The American Revolution was the first in the Americas, and the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) was a victory against a great power, aided by France and Spain, Britain's enemies. The French Revolution in Europe followed, and collectively these events had profound effects on the Spanish, Portuguese, and French colonies in the Americas. A revolutionary wave followed, resulting in the creation of several independent countries in Latin America. The Haitian Revolution lasted from 1791 to 1804 and resulted in the independence of the French slave colony. The Peninsular War with France, which resulted from the Napoleonic occupation of Spain, caused Spanish Creoles in Spanish America to question their allegiance to Spain, stoking independence movements that culminated in various Spanish American wars of independence (1808–33), which were primarily fought between opposing groups of colonists and only secondarily against Spanish forces. At the same time, the Portuguese monarchy fled to Brazil during the French invasion of Portugal. After the royal court returned to Lisbon, the prince regent, Pedro, remained in Brazil and in 1822 successfully declared himself emperor of a newly independent Brazilian Empire.
The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Turks, Han Chinese, and Arabs.
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The Spanish American wars of independence took place across the Spanish Empire in the early 19th century. The struggles in both hemispheres began shortly after the outbreak of the Peninsular War, forming part of the broader context of the Napoleonic Wars. The conflict unfolded between the royalists, who were defeated and favored a unitary monarchy, and the patriots, who won and promoted either plural monarchies or republics, separated from Spain and from each other. These struggles ultimately led to the independence and secession of continental Spanish America from metropolitan rule, which, beyond this conflict, resulted in a process of Balkanization in Latin America. Thus, the strict period of military campaigns ranges from the Battle of Chacaltaya (1809) in present-day Bolivia, to the Battle of Tampico (1829) in Mexico.
The decolonisation of Asia was the gradual growth of independence movements in Asia, leading ultimately to the retreat of foreign powers and the creation of several nation-states in the region.
This is a timeline of events related to the Spanish American wars of independence. Numerous wars against Spanish rule in Spanish America took place during the early 19th century, from 1808 until 1829, directly related to the Napoleonic French invasion of Spain. The conflict started with short-lived governing juntas established in Chuquisaca and Quito opposing the composition of the Supreme Central Junta of Seville. When the Central Junta fell to the French, numerous new Juntas appeared all across the Americas, eventually resulting in a chain of newly independent countries stretching from Argentina and Chile in the south, to Mexico in the north. After the death of the king Ferdinand VII, in 1833, only Cuba and Puerto Rico remained under Spanish rule, until the Spanish–American War in 1898.
The Spanish diaspora consists of Spanish people and their descendants who emigrated from Spain.
Latin America–United Kingdom relations are the diplomatic, economic and cultural relations between the United Kingdom and the countries of Latin America.
Britain's role in the Spanish American wars of independence combines the military, political and diplomatic routes adopted by them, as well as its merchants and private citizens during the conflict. Britain wanted to see an end to Spanish colonialism in the Americas but at the same time wanted to keep her as an ally in post-Napoleonic Europe. British support for the Spanish American revolutionaries was essentially a covert role with both private and state involvement.
