The South American Republics (Vol. 1&2)

The aim of this book is to offer a comprehensive approach to the history of the South American republics since the South American histories written before were mostly treating of special periods, and few authorities existed for post-revolution times. One of the main questions he tried to answer was why there were so many revolutions in South American countries. Constitutional traditions, inherited from Spain and Portugal, implanted a tendency toward disintegration; Spanish and Portuguese tyranny bred in the people a distrust of all rulers and governments; the war of independence brought to the front military adventurers; civil disorders were inevitable, and the search for forms of government that should be final and stable has been very painful. On the other hand, the generous impulse that prompted the movement toward independence has grown into an earnest desire for ordered liberty, which was steadily spreading among all classes, resulting in a slow evolution toward republicanism.

Volume 1:

Argentina:

The Argentine Land

The Spanish Colonial System

Completion of the War of Independence

The Era of Civil Wars

The Modern Argentine

Paraguay:

Paraguay Until 1632

The Jesuit Republic and Colonial Paraguay

The War

Uruguay:

Portuguese Aggressions and the Settlement of the Country

The Revolution

Independence and Civil War

Brazil:

Discovery

Early Colonization

Independence

Events of 1849 to 1864

Republicanism and Emancipation

Volume 2:

Peru:

The Inca Empire

The Spanish Conquest

The Wars of Independence

Chile:

The Spanish Conquest

The Colonial Period

The War of Independence

The Formative Period

Bolivia:

The Conquest and the Mines

The War of Independence

Bolivia Independent

Ecuador:

The Spanish Conquest

The War of Independence

The Formation of Ecuador

Modern Ecuador

Venezuela:

Conquest, Settlement, and Colonial Days

The Revolt

Modern Venezuela

Colombia:

Conquest and Settlement

Colonial Times

The War against Spain

Modern Colombia

Panama:

The Events Leading to Independence