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9 articles
After Pichincha (1822), the big question wasn’t only “Spain is leaving.” It was: What replaces the empire? For the Quito highlands, the answer became Gran Colombia—a giant, fast-built republic meant to keep the independence project alive, pay for armies, and prevent the region from fragmenting into weak mini-states.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 9
Read explainer →Introduction To understand why royalism lasted, it helps to drop the “movie version” where one side is purely heroic and the other is purely villain. For many people in the Audiencia of Quito (and across Spanish America), staying loyal to the Spanish monarchy felt like the safest path to order, jobs, religion, and basic predictability—especially when the alternative looked like uncertainty, civil conflict, or social…
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 8
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If Guayaquil 1820 was the revolution that started a new phase, Pichincha (24 May 1822) is the moment that made the new reality hard to reverse. It wasn’t just “a battle on a volcano.” It was the key move that let the independence coalition take Quito, end the last strong royalist hold in the region, and lock in a new political map—especially the link to Gran Colombia.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 7
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Independence-era war in Ecuador isn’t best understood as “armies clash, someone wins.” It’s better understood as: Can you move people, food, animals, and gunpowder across extreme geography without your force collapsing? The Coast is humidity, rivers, and corridors. The Sierra is altitude, cold nights, narrow passes, and trails that can vanish in rain.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 6
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After 9 October 1820, Guayaquil didn’t just gain a new flag—it gained a new daily question: What are we now? A city that lives by tides, customs stamps, and credit suddenly had to choose a future while still paying soldiers, keeping the port running, and not scaring families into panic. And the hardest part?
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 5
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If Quito’s revolution years felt like living inside uncertainty, Guayaquil in October 1820 feels like the opposite: a plan that actually lands. Not because everyone suddenly agreed—but because Guayaquil had three ingredients that matter in real-world revolutions: money (a port economy), organization (networks + timing), and control of the garrison before the city could be locked down.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 4
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Think of the Sierra in 1810–1812 as a place where politics stops being “a document” and becomes messy living: you still need bread, candles, and work—but now you also need to know which authority is real today.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 3
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Introduction In August 1809, Quito wasn’t just talking about politics—it was living inside it. News from Europe arrived late and in fragments, and people filled the gaps with rumors: the king is gone, Napoleon is in charge, soldiers are coming, someone has a list of names.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 2
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A story about money, rules, and everyday friction—how small changes in taxes and trade made big ideas start to feel possible.
Series: Short History of Independence · Part 1
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