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{{Short description|Type of personalist leader wielding political power}}
{{For|the documentary film|Caudillo (film){{!}}''Caudillo'' (film)}}
{{Italic title}}
[[Image:Spanish peseta coin with Franco 1963.gif|thumb|A 1963 [[Spanish peseta]] coin with the image of ''[[Generalissimo]]'' [[Francisco Franco]], and inscription ''Caudillo de España, por la Gracia de Dios'' (Spanish: "''Caudillo'' of Spain, [[by the Grace of God]]")]]
[[Image:Juan Manuel de Rosas.jpg|thumb|[[Juan Manuel de Rosas]], c. 1841 by [[Cayetano Descalzi]], the ''caudillo'' paradigm]]
A '''''caudillo''''' ({{IPAc-en|k|ɔː|ˈ|d|iː|(|l|)|j|oʊ|,_|k|aʊ|ˈ|-}} {{respell|kaw|DEE(L)|yoh|,_|kow|-}}, {{IPA|es|kawˈðiʎo|lang}}; {{langx|osp|cabdillo}}, from [[Latin language|Latin]] {{lang|la|capitellum}}, diminutive of ''caput'' "head") is a type of [[Personalist dictatorship|personalist leader wielding military and political power]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=caudillo {{!}} Definición |url=https://dle.rae.es/caudillo?m=form |access-date=12 June 2022 |website=[[Diccionario de la Lengua Española]] |language=es}}</ref> There is no precise English translation for the term, though it is often used interchangeably with "[[Military dictatorship|military dictator]],"<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-07-06 |title=Definition of CAUDILLO |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/caudillo |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Dictionary.com {{!}} Meanings & Definitions of English Words |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/caudillo |access-date=2024-08-01 |website=Dictionary.com |language=en}}</ref> "[[warlord]]" and "[[Political strongman|strongman]]". The term is historically associated with [[Spain]] and [[Hispanic America]], after virtually all of the regions in the latter won independence in the early nineteenth century.

The roots of ''caudillismo'' may be tied to the framework of rule in medieval and early modern Spain during the [[Reconquista]] from the [[Moors]].<ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.2307/2707650 |jstor=2707650|title=Toward a Theory of Spanish American Government|journal=Journal of the History of Ideas|volume=15|issue=1|pages=71–93|year=1954|last1=Morse|first1=Richard M}}, reprinted in [[#Hamil|Hamil]], pp. 72–86.</ref> Spanish [[conquistadors]] such as [[Hernán Cortés]] and [[Francisco Pizarro]] exhibit characteristics of the ''caudillo'', being successful military leaders, having mutual reliance on the leader and their supporters, and rewarding them for their loyalty.<ref name=h38>Hamill, Hugh M. (1996) "Caudillismo, Caudillo" in ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture''. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Vol. 2, pp. 38–39.</ref> An important characteristic of the ''caudillo'' is their charisma, which drew in followers who could be utilized to change the political climate and shape state-formation in the post colonial era. The followers of ''caudillos'', called ''gauchos'', were common people whom the ''caudillos'' could charm and persuade into joining their cause.  Often the caudillo would take on the role of the provider as a substitute for the shortcomings of those in the government.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=De la Fuente |first=Ariel |title=Children of Facundo: Caudillo and Gaucho Insurgency during the Argentine State-Formation Process (La Rioja, 1853-1870) |date=2000 |publisher=Duke University Press |isbn=978-0-8223-8019-1 |location=Durham}}</ref> It created a type of father-child bond between the ''caudillo''  and ''gaucho'' that strengthened loyalties and made the ''caudillos'' powerful.<ref>{{Cite book |last=De la Fuente |first=Ariel |title=Children of Facundo: caudillo and gaucho insurgency during the Argentine state-formation process (La Rioja, 1853 - 1870) |date=2004 |publisher=Duke University Press |isbn=978-0-8223-2596-3 |edition=2. print |location=Durham}}</ref> However, the paternalist view towards the relationship between the caudillo and the gaucho assumes that the caudillo has all of the power in the relationship and ignores that much of that power comes from the gaucho's decision to follow a particular caudillo.<ref name=":2" />

During the [[Spanish colonization of the Americas|colonial era]], the Spanish crown asserted its power and established a plethora of bureaucratic institutions that prevented personalist rule. Historian [[John Lynch (historian)|John Lynch]] argues that the rise of ''caudillos'' in Spanish America is rooted not in the distant Spanish past but in the immediate context of the [[Spanish American wars of independence]]. The wars overthrew colonial rule and left a power vacuum in the early nineteenth century. ''Caudillos'' were very influential in the history of Spanish America and left a legacy that has influenced political movements in the modern era.<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], p. 437.</ref>[[File:AguinaldoMP.jpg|thumb|337x337px|[[Emilio Aguinaldo]], first president of the Philippines. "El Caudillo" ''in The Struggle for Freedom and Total Independence of His People''. Also in Hispano-Asia ([[Philippines]]) Emilio Aguinaldo was invested by popular acclamation as ''the Caudillo Libertador'' of the "Philippine Revolutionary War", he is the leader of a national liberation against the Spanish Empire and an anti-imperialist resistance against the [[US]].]] However, the term is also used for the authoritarian regimes of [[Francisco Franco]] in Spain and [[Antonio Salazar]] in Portugal. The term is often used pejoratively by critics of a regime. However, Spain's General [[Francisco Franco]] (1936–1975) proudly took the title as his own<ref>"Introduction", pp. 5–6 in [[#Hamil|Hamil]].</ref> during and after his military overthrow of the [[Second Spanish Republic]] in the [[Spanish Civil War]] (1936–1939). Spanish censors during his rule attacked publishers who applied the term to Hispanic American strongmen.<ref>Payne, Stanley G. (1987) ''The Franco Regime, 1936–1975''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, p. 625. {{ISBN|0299110702}}</ref> Scholars have applied the term to a variety of Hispanic-American leaders.<ref>"Hidalgo and Calleja: The Colonial Bases of Caudillismo", pp. 99–114 in [[#Hamil|Hamil]].</ref><ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.1111/j.1478-0542.2004.00113.x|title=Juan Manuel de Rosas: Authoritarian Caudillo and Primitive Populist|journal=History Compass|volume=2|pages=**|year=2004|last1=Shumway|first1=Jeffrey M}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.2307/2511708|jstor=2511708|title=The Creation and Control of a Caudillo|journal=The Hispanic American Historical Review|volume=44|issue=4|pages=481–490|year=1964|last1=Haigh|first1=Roger M}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|doi=10.2307/1006928|jstor=1006928|title=The Taming of a Colombian Caudillo: Juan Nepomuceno Moreno of Casanare|journal=The Americas|volume=42|issue=3|pages=275–288|year=2015|last1=Rausch|first1=Jane M|s2cid=147633176 }}</ref><ref>Grieb, Kenneth J. (1979). ''Guatemalan Caudillo: The Regime of Jorge Ubico, Guatemala 1931–1944''. Athens OH: Ohio University Press.</ref>

==Spanish American ''caudillos''==
{{see also|List of Hispanic American caudillos}}

[[File:Oleo Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.PNG|thumb|[[Antonio López de Santa Anna]], who dominated Mexican politics in the first half of the nineteenth century]]
Since Spanish American independence in the early nineteenth century, the region has been noted for its number of ''caudillos'' and the duration of their rule.<ref>[https://read.dukeupress.edu/hahr/article/63/1/3/148308/Bolivar-and-the-Caudillos Bolívar and the Caudillos]. John Lynch; Hispanic American Historical Review 1 February 1983; 63 (1): 3–35. Duke University Press doi: https://doi.org/10.1215/00182168-63.1.3</ref> The early nineteenth century is sometimes called "The Age of Caudillos",<ref name=h38 /> with [[Juan Manuel de Rosas]], dictator of Argentina,<ref>Lynch, John (1981) ''Argentine Dictator: Juan Manuel de Rosas, 1829–1852''.</ref> and his contemporary in Mexico, [[Antonio López de Santa Anna]],<ref>Fowler, Will (2007) ''Santa Anna of Mexico'', esp. Part 2, "The Making of a Caudillo". Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.</ref> dominating national politics. Weak nation-states in Spanish America fostered the continuation of ''caudillismo'' from the late nineteenth century into the twentieth century. The lack of government attention to the needs of the people allowed for there to be space for caudillos to fill those roles to give aid to peasants.<ref name=":2" /> 

The formation of Mexico's [[Institutional Revolutionary Party]] in 1929 effectively ended ''caudillismo''. Men characterized as ''caudillos'' have ruled in Cuba ([[Gerardo Machado]], [[Fulgencio Batista]], [[Fidel Castro]]), Panama ([[Omar Torrijos]], [[Manuel Noriega]]), the Dominican Republic ([[Desiderio Arias]], Cipriano Bencosme), Paraguay ([[Alfredo Stroessner]]), Argentina ([[Juan Perón]] and other military strongmen), and Chile ([[Augusto Pinochet]]).<ref name=h38 /> ''Caudillos'' have been the subject of literature in Spanish America.<ref name=brush>Brushwood, John S. (1980) ''The Spanish American Novel: A Twentieth-Century Survey''. Austin: University of Texas Press.</ref><ref name=dict>{{cite journal|jstor=2503126|last1=Castellanos|first1= Jorge|last2= Martínez|first2= Miguel A. |title=El Dictador hispanoamericano como personaje literario|journal=Latin American Research Review|volume=16|issue=2|year=1981|pages=79–105|doi=10.1017/S0023879100028326 |s2cid=253152375 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Hispanic America is not unique in having strong leaders emerge during times of turmoil. The cause of their emergence in Spanish America is generally seen to be in the destruction of the Spanish colonial state structure after the wars of independence, and in the importance of leaders from the independence struggles for providing government in the post-independence period, when nation-states came into being.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} Historian [[John Lynch (historian)|John Lynch]] states that "Before 1810 the caudillo was unknown. … The caudillo entered history as a local hero whom larger events promoted to a military chieftain."<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], pp. 402–03.</ref> 

In a rural area that lacked any institutions of the state, and where the environment was one of violence and anarchy, a ''caudillo'' could impose order, often by using violence himself to achieve it. His local control as a strongman needed to be maintained by assuring the loyalty of his followers, so his bestowing of material rewards reinforced his own position.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} ''Caudillos'' could also maintain their position by protecting the interests of regional elites.<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], p. 405.</ref> A local strongman who built a regional base could aspire to become a national ''caudillo'', taking control of the state.<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], p. 406.</ref> 

''Caudillos'' could bestow [[patronage]] on a large retinue of clients, who in turn gave him their loyalty. In general, ''caudillos''{{'}} power benefited elites.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} But these strongmen were also mediators between elites and the popular classes, recruiting them into the power base, but also restraining them from achieving power themselves.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} For example, Federalist ''caudillos'' in the Argentinian provinces were able to build relationships with the rural poor; namely the ''gauchos'' and ''monteneros''. As the war of the Triple Alliance spread, ideological language shifts occurred in Buenos Aires by the ruling Unitarians, who began referring to rural caudillos as barbarians and enemies of civilization. Unitarians tried to criminalize the federalists, Illegitimizing their political position.{{vague|date=November 2025}}<ref name=":1" />

''Caudillos'' were not leading partisan bands, according to the Unitarians, but rather war lords leading bandits. The resulting placement of national guard troops being stationed in the provinces, who would be tasked with law enforcement and specifically separation from the ''caudillos''.{{clarify|date=November 2025}}{{relevance inline|date=November 2025}} As a next step political strategy, the Unitarians would also construct schools, providing compulsory education, emphasizing pro-unitarian political thought.{{relevance inline|date=November 2025}} Caudillos were effectively estranged by the effort and soon became a historical footnote in the process.<ref name=":1" />

There were a few strongmen who either rose from a humble background to protect the interests of indigenous groups or other rural marginalized groups, or strongly identified with those groups. Historian E. Bradford Burns referred to them as "folk ''caudillos''". In his analysis, they contrasted with Europeanized elites who viewed the lower orders with contempt. He gives examples of [[Juan Facundo Quiroga]], Martín Güemes, and other Argentine ''caudillos'', most importantly Juan Manuel de Rosas, who were popular and [[populist]] ''caudillos''. Burns attributes the urban elites' bafflement and their contempt for followers of these folk ''caudillos'' for much of the negative role assigned to ''caudillos''.<ref>"Folk Caudillos", pp. 115–30 in [[#Hamil|Hamil]], excerpts from E. Bradford Burns, ''Poverty of Progress: Latin America in the Nineteenth Century''. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press 1980, pp. 86–94, 96–103, 105–06.</ref>

National ''caudillos'' often sought to legitimize their rule by holding titles of authority such as "President of the Republic". If the constitution put formal limits on presidential power and term limits, ''caudillos'' could bend or break the rules to maintain power, a practice dubbed {{lang|es|[[continuismo]]}}.<ref>"Continuismo: The Search for Political Longevity" in [[#Hamil|Hamil]], republished from {{cite journal|title='Continuismo' in Central America and the Caribbean|journal=The Inter-American Quarterly|volume=2 |year=1940|pages=56–74}}</ref>

Caudillo politics were not monolithic, tending to follow the politics that would serve them best by keeping them in power and allowing them to retain their following.<ref name=":2" /> Ideologically, ''caudillos'' could be either [[Liberalism and conservatism in Latin America|liberal or conservative]]. Liberalism had an advantage in the post-independence period, drawing on the ideas of the liberators and creating the institutional frameworks of the new nation-states via written constitutions. Free trade as an economic policy created market-oriented economies. The model that these nation-states often adopted was [[federalism]], keeping power in the component regions. Federalism, however, tended toward centrifugalism{{Clarify|reason=Some explanation as to what centrifugalism is appreciated as there doesn't seem to be an article on it|date=May 2024}} and fragmentation and was characterized by weak central governments.<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], pp. 409–10.</ref> Conservative ''caudillos'' also emerged around 1830. New nation-states often rejected the institutions of the colonial era as legacies to be rejected, but the [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]] and traditional values remained strong in many regions, supported by elites seeking to maintain their power in the new order. Conservative ''caudillos'', supported by the Church and elites, moved to the creation of strong, central governments.<ref>[[#Lynch|Lynch]], pp. 410–11.</ref>

==Independence era==
Although there was the hope of some Spanish American leaders of independence that the political contours of regions would reconstitute the former [[viceroyalty|viceroyalties]], but with local autonomy. The [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]] as an institution remained strong and the militaries won victories against royalist forces. The state as an institution in most areas was weak. Conflicts over the form the new governments should take were rampant, and veterans of the wars of independence saw themselves as the leaders of the nation-states they had helped bring into being.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], p. 110.</ref> 

These ''caudillos'' were able to maintain their power through their connection with their ''gauchos''. Unlike their traditional elite counterparts, ''caudillos'' sought to keep the relationships with their supporters strong. They often lived near or amongst the "common people", so they were able to develop personal connections and experience problems first hand that otherwise might have been ignored by the elites. ''Gauchos'' would influence the political opinion of the common people, or peasants, through oral culture. They would tell stories and write songs and poems that shed their ''caudillos'' and the ''caudillos''<nowiki/>' ideals in a positive light. Their influence on the political climate allowed the common people to be a driving force of nation-building rather than just elite leaders.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=De la Fuente |first=Ariel |title=Children of Facundo: caudillo and gaucho insurgency during the Argentine state-formation process (La Rioja, 1853 - 1870) |date=2004 |publisher=Duke University Press |isbn=978-0-8223-2596-3 |edition=2. print |location=Durham}}</ref>

In the wake of the violence and political disruption, new nations were faced with widespread property destruction, the disappearance of trade, and states that lacked political authority. The first few decades after independence saw the rise of strongmen with roots in the military. Spanish America had known no other type of regime than monarchy, and Mexico established one under a royalist general-turned-insurgent [[Agustín de Iturbide]]. In Spanish America, new sovereign states grappled with the question of balancing a central authority, usually in the hands of the traditional elites, with some kind of representation of the new "citizenry" of the republics. Constitutions were written laying out the division of powers, but the rule of personalist strongmen, ''caudillos,'' dominated. Dictatorial powers were granted to some ''caudillos'', nominally ruling as presidents under a constitution, as "constitutional dictators".<ref name=s20>Smith, Peter H. (2005) ''Democracy in Latin America: Political Change in Comparative Perspective''. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 20–22. {{ISBN|0195157591}}</ref>

===Major leaders of the independence era===
<gallery>
File:Portrait of Simón Bolívar by Arturo Michelena.jpg|[[Simón Bolívar]]
File:Retrato más canónico de José de San Martín.jpg|[[José de San Martín]]
File:Martin Tovar y Tovar 12.JPG|[[Antonio José de Sucre]]
File:Francisco de Miranda by Tovar y Tovar.jpg|[[Francisco de Miranda]]
File:Miguel Hidalgo con estandarte.jpg|[[Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla]]
File:Emperor Agustin I kroningsportret.JPG|[[Agustín de Iturbide]]
File:Juan Manuel Blanes - Artigas en la Ciudadela.jpg|[[José Gervasio Artigas]]
</gallery>

==Early nineteenth-century ''caudillos''==
There were a number of strongmen who went beyond raw struggles for power and its spoils and established "integrative dictatorships". These regimes attempted to curtail centrifugal forces, often termed "federalism", where regions or states of a nation-state had more autonomy and instead established the hegemony of the central government. According to political scientist [[Peter H. Smith]], these include [[Juan Manuel de Rosas]] in Argentina; [[Diego Portales]] of Chile, whose system lasted nearly a century; and [[Porfirio Díaz]] of Mexico. Rosas and Díaz were military men, who continued to rely on armed forces to maintain themselves in power.<ref name=s20/>

=== Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean ===
[[File:Santaanna1.JPG|thumb|[[Antonio López de Santa Anna|Santa Anna]] in a Mexican military uniform]]
This region was vulnerable to stronger powers, particularly the United States and the United Kingdom. Cuba remained in the hands of the Spanish crown until 1898. The United States seized a huge part of  Mexico. Britain attempted to set up a protectorate on the Mosquito Coast of Central America. The two strongmen of this early century were [[Antonio López de Santa Anna]] in Mexico and [[Rafael Carrera]] in Guatemala.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], p. 113.</ref>
[[File:FMorazan.jpg|thumb|[[Francisco Morazán]], president of the [[Federal Republic of Central America]], 1829–1839]]

[[Mexico]] began its revolt against Spain in 1810, gaining independence in 1821. Political divisions in the post-independence period were labeled federalist, seeking a weak central government and often associated with [[Liberalism in Mexico|liberalism]], and centralist, who sought a strong central state and defense of traditional institutional structures, particularly the Mexican Army and the Roman Catholic Church. Many regional strongmen were in the Federalist-Liberal camp, which supported local control and the continuation of their power.<ref>"The Roots of Caudillismo", p. 33 in [[#Hamil|Hamill]].</ref>

The quintessential Mexican ''caudillo'', who gained national power for decades, was Santa Anna, who was initially a Liberal but became a Conservative and sought strengthening of the central government. Following the [[Mexican–American War]], regional caudillos such as [[Juan Álvarez]] of the state of Guerrero and [[Santiago Vidaurri]] of [[Nuevo León]]-[[Coahuila]] ousted Santa Anna in the [[Plan of Ayutla|Revolution of Ayutla]], bringing Liberals to power. Álvarez follows the pattern of the "folk ''caudillo''", whom historian [[François Chevalier (historian)|François Chevalier]] calls a "good ''cacique'', [who] protected the mainly indigenous and mestizo peasants of Guerrero, who in turn gave him their loyalty".<ref>"The Roots of Caudillismo", p. 33 in [[#Hamil|Hamill]].</ref> Álvarez briefly served as President of Mexico, returning to his home state, leaving ideological liberals to institute the era of [[La Reforma]].<ref>Laurens Ballard Perry, ''Juárez and Díaz: Machine Politics in Mexico''. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press 1978, pp. 5–6.</ref> 

During the era of the Mexican Reform and the [[Second French intervention in Mexico|French intervention in Mexico]], there were a number of generals who had regional personal followings. Important figures whose local power had consequences nationally included [[Mariano Escobedo]] in [[San Luis Potosí]]; [[Ramón Corona]] in [[Jalisco]] and [[Durango]]; and [[Porfirio Díaz]] in parts of Veracruz, Puebla, and Oaxaca. There were other ''caudillos'' whose power was more local but still important, including Gerónimo Treviño and Francisco Narajo in Nuevo León, Servando Canales and [[Juan Cortina]] in [[Tamaulipas]], [[Florencio Antillón]] in Guanajuato, Ignacio Pesqueira in [[Sonora]], [[Luis Terrazas]] in [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]], and [[Manuel Lozada]] in [[Tepic]].<ref>Laurens Ballard Perry, ''Juárez and Díaz: Machine Politics in Mexico''. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press 1978, pp. 5–6.</ref> 

Following the defeat of the French in 1867, the government of [[Benito Juárez]] and his successor following his death, [[Sebastián Lerdo de Tejada]], faced opponents who objected to their increasingly Centralist administrations. Those opponents gravitated to supporting Díaz, a military hero of the French intervention, who challenged Juárez and Lerdo by attempting rebellions, the second of which, the [[Plan of Tuxtepec]], was successful in 1876. Juárez and Lerdo removed some ''caudillos'' from office, but this prompted them to rebel. These included Trinidad García de la Cadena in [[Zacatecas]], Luis Mier y Terán in [[Veracruz]], Juan Haro in [[Tampico]], [[Juan N. Méndez]] in Puebla, Vicente Jiménez in Guerrero, and [[Juan Cortina]] in [[Matamoros, Tamaulipas|Matamoros]]. "That they slowly gathered around Porfirio Díaz is the story of the rise of Porfirian Mexico."<ref>Perry, ''Juárez and Díaz'', p. 32.</ref>

=== Bolivarian republics: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela ===
[[Simón Bolívar]], the foremost leader of independence in Spanish America, attempted to recreate the [[Viceroyalty of New Granada]] in the nation of [[Gran Colombia]]. As with other areas of Spanish America, centrifugal forces caused the country to fragment into separate nation-states. Bolivar saw the need for political stability, which could be put into effect with a [[President for life|president-for-life]] and the power to name his successor.<ref>David Bushnell, "Simón Bolívar" in ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture'', vol. 1, pp. 360–62.</ref> 

In 1828, his supporters called on him to assume dictatorial powers and "save the republic". The political turmoil continued and Bolívar stepped down in 1830, going into self-imposed exile and dying shortly thereafter. "He is revered as the one person who made the greatest contribution to Spanish American independence"{{who|date=November 2025}} and admired by both the political left for opposing slavery and distrust of the U.S. and the right, which admires his [[authoritarianism]].{{vague|date=November 2025}}<ref>David Bushnell, "Simón Bolívar" in ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture'', vol. 1, pp. 360–62.</ref>

Veterans of the wars of independence assumed the leadership of the newly created nation-states, each with a new constitution. Despite constitutions and ideological labels of liberals and conservatives, personalist and opportunistic leaders dominated the early nineteenth century. As with Mexico and Central America, the political turmoil and penury of the governments of the Bolivarian republics prevented foreign investors from risking their capital there.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], p. 119.</ref>

One caudillo who was progressive for his time was [[Bolivia]]'s [[Manuel Isidoro Belzu]], who served as the fourteenth president from 1848 until 1855. The former president, [[José Miguel de Velasco Franco|Jose Miguel de Velasco]], executed a coup for the presidency in 1848, promising the position of Minister of War to Belzu. Belzu seized power for himself once the coup was completed and cemented his position as president by quashing a counter-coup by Velasco. During his presidency, Belzu instituted several reforms to the country's economy in an effort to redistribute wealth more equitably. He rewarded the work of the poor and dispossessed. Like [[Paraguay]]'s [[José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia|Jose Gaspar Rodriguez de Francia]], Belzu chose to enact the aforementioned welfare programs because the idea of communalism was more in tune with the traditional values of native populations than the emphasis on private property that other caudillos embraced.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A history of modern Latin America: 1800 to the present|last=Meade|first=Teresa A.|author-link=Teresa Meade |isbn=978-1118772485|edition= Second|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|location=Chichester, West Sussex|oclc=915135785|date = 2016-01-19}}</ref>

Belzu was also known for his nationalization of the country's profitable mining industry – he enacted protectionist policies to reserve Bolivian resources for Bolivian use, provoking the ire of British, Peruvian, and Chilean shipping and mining interests. Many of Belzu's policies won him favor among the long-downtrodden indigenous peoples of Bolivia, but came at the cost of enraging wealthy Creole Bolivians as well as foreign countries like Britain that sought to use resources from Bolivian mines. Belzu took steps to legitimize his leadership, and was at one point democratically elected. Despite his popularity in many sectors, Belzu had many powerful enemies and he survived 40 assassination attempts. His enemies wanted to destroy the state-run projects that helped nationalist program but likewise improved the public sphere on which the country's poor were reliant.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A history of modern Latin America: 1800 to the present|last=Meade|first=Teresa A.|author-link=Teresa Meade |isbn=978-1118772485|edition= Second|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|location=Chichester, West Sussex|oclc=915135785|date = 2016-01-19}}</ref> 

The despotism that is so rife among the caudillos also found a home with Belzu – from the early 1850s until his abdication of power in 1855, he is said to have ruled despotically,{{who|date=November 2025}} making himself very wealthy in the process.{{Citation needed|date=November 2025}} Belzu considered returning to the presidency in 1861, but he was gunned down by one of his rivals by the time he tried to run for presidency again. He was unable to leave a legacy and his populist programs died with him. After Bolivia's independence, Bolivia lost half of its territory to neighboring countries including Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Brazil through the war and agreements reached under the threat of invasion.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A history of modern Latin America: 1800 to the present|last=Meade|first=Teresa A.|author-link=Teresa Meade |isbn=978-1118772485|edition= Second|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|location=Chichester, West Sussex|oclc=915135785|date = 2016-01-19}}</ref>

===Southern Cone: Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay===
In contrast to most of Spanish America, post-independence Chile experienced political stability under the authoritarian rule of conservatives, backed by the landowning class. Although he never sought the presidency, cabinet minister [[Diego Portales]] (1793–1837) is credited with creating a strong, centralized regime that lasted 30 years. In general, Chile prospered with an export-oriented economy based on agriculture and mining, an exception to most of the Spanish-American regimes.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], pp. 125, 522.</ref>

In the former [[Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata]], political instability and violence were more typical of the era. In Argentina, [[Juan Manuel de Rosas]] (r. 1829–1852) dominated the Argentine confederation. He came from a wealthy landowning family, but also acquired large tracts of land in [[Buenos Aires Province]]. Rosas despised "the principles of political democracy and liberty [and] provided order in a region that had known near-anarchy since independence".<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], p. 530.</ref>

During his two-decade reign, Rosas rose to power and created an empire. He used his military experience to gain support from [[gaucho]]s and estancias to create an army that would challenge the leadership of Argentina. After his rise to power using the rural workers, he changed his system in favor of using the military. He attempted to impose a ban on imported goods to help and win the support of the artisans in Argentina, but failed. He was forced to lift the ban on certain imports, like textiles, which opened a trade with Great Britain. Through his power over the imports and exports, the military, the police, and even the legislative branch of government, Rosas created a monopoly that would ensure his remaining in power for over two decades. By the 1850s, Rosas was under attack by the very people who had helped him gain power. He was driven out of power and eventually ended up in Great Britain, where he died in 1877.<ref>Meade, Teresa A. (2016) “Argentina and the Tyrants.” History of Modern Latin America: 1800 to the Present, 2nd ed., Wiley Blackwell. pp. 92–93. {{ISBN|1118772504}}</ref>

Uruguay attained independence from Brazil and Argentina and was ruled by [[Fructuoso Rivera]]. In Paraguay, [[José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia]] (r. 1814–1840) was Supreme Dictator of the Republic, maintaining the landlocked country's independence from Argentina and other foreign powers. Sealed off from outside trade, Paraguay developed economic self-sufficiency under Francia. He based society on communal properties, rather than centralized authoritarianism, attempting to revert to the methods of the communal Indian society that existed previously in Paraguay.<ref name=m93>Meade, Teresa A. (2016) “Populist Caudillismo: Paraguay and Bolivia.” History of Modern Latin America: 1800 to the Present, Wiley Blackwell, p. 93. {{ISBN|1118772504}}</ref> 

After independence, the state gained control of the land which was once under control of the Church and the Spanish state. Francia created state ranches and rented out land for the use of citizens who were able to pay a fee. Francia's repressive measures included crushing the power of the elite American-born Spaniards and curbing the power of the Roman Catholic Church. Francia allowed for religious freedom and abolished the tithe. He actively encouraged miscegenation.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], pp. 465–66.</ref>

He has been a controversial figure in Hispanic American history: many modern historians credit him with bringing stability to Paraguay, preserving independence, and "bequeathing to his successors an egalitarian, homogeneous nation".{{Cn|date=May 2024}} However, because of his crackdown on the wealthy elite and the subsequent weakening of their power, he was accused of anti-clericalism. Nevertheless, Paraguay prospered under Francia in terms of economics and trade through a trade route with Buenos Aires, which was opposed by the wealthy Argentinian elites.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], pp. 465–66.</ref> "Sometimes counted among the dictators of the era, contemporary history has viewed Francia as an honest, populist leader who promoted sovereign economic prosperity in a war-torn Paraguay."<ref name=m93/>

===Gallery===
<gallery>
File:Facundo Quiroga por García del Molino.jpg|[[Facundo Quiroga]], Argentina
File:Manuel Isidoro Belzu. Villavicencio, Antonio. c. 1848, Museo de Charcas, Sucre.png|[[Manuel Isidoro Belzu]], Bolivia
File:DPortales.JPG|[[Diego Portales]], Chile
File:Tomas Cipriano de Mosquera.jpg|[[Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera]], Colombia
File:Mora Porras, Juan Rafael -pteCR por Povedano MHJS f2.jpg|[[Juan Rafael Mora Porras]], Costa Rica
File:Tuto Báez - Retrato del General Pedro Santana.jpg|[[Pedro Santana]], Dominican Republic
File:Juan Jose Flores.jpg|[[Juan José Flores]], Ecuador
File:Manuel José Arce 1.jpg|[[Manuel José Arce]], El Salvador
File:Carrerayturcios 2014-06-22 09-46.jpg|[[Rafael Carrera]], Guatemala
File:Morelos 1811.jpg|[[José María Morelos]], Mexico
File:Cleto Ordóñez.png|[[José Anacleto Ordóñez]], Nicaragua
File:Dr. José Gaspar de Francia.jpg|[[Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia]], Paraguay
File:Agustin Gamarra.jpg|[[Agustín Gamarra]], Peru
File:Juan Manuel Blanes - Retrato del General Fructuoso Rivera.png|[[Fructuoso Rivera]], Uruguay
File:José Antonio Páez by Tovar y Tovar.jpg|[[José Antonio Páez]], Venezuela
</gallery>

==''Caudillos'' in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries==
In the late nineteenth century, regimes in Spanish America were more stable and often less dominated by military men. Foreign investors, particularly the British, began building infrastructure in countries of greatest interest to the UK's economic needs. Such projects included railways, telegraph lines, and port facilities, which cut transportation time and costs and sped up communications. Stable political regimes that could ensure the security of foreign investments, facilitate extraction of resources, and production of agricultural crops and animals were the necessary structures. Industrialization also took hold in a few countries (Mexico, Argentina, Colombia) to produce consumer goods locally.<ref>Roland H. Ebel, "Continuismo" in ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture'', vol. 2, p. 257. Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.</ref>

In general, foreign governments and entrepreneurs had no interest in directly administering countries of Hispanic America in a formal [[Colonialism|colonial]] arrangement so long as their interests could be nurtured by modernizing national governments, often seen as [[neocolonialism]]. There are a number of examples of {{lang|es|[[continuismo]]}} in Hispanic America whereby presidents continue in office beyond the legal term limits, with constitutional revision, plebiscites, and the creation of family dynasties, such as the [[Somoza family]] in Nicaragua.<ref>Roland H. Ebel, "Continuismo" in ''Encyclopedia of Latin American History and Culture'', vol. 2, p. 257. Charles Scribner's Sons 1996.</ref>

===Mexico===
[[File:Porfirio Diaz.jpg|thumb|General [[Porfirio Díaz]], president of Mexico 1876–1911]]
A major example of a modernizing caudillo of the late nineteenth century is Díaz (r. 1876–1911), whose period of control is known as the [[Porfiriato]]. His slogan was "order and progress", which was enforced by armed men controlled by the president, the ''[[Rurales]]''. Díaz was averse to being dependent on the Mexican army, since as a general and leader of a coup d'état himself, he knew their potential for intervening in national politics. Díaz coopted or crushed regional opposition to his regime, creating a political machine to forward his vision of modern Mexico.<ref name=":0" />

Desirous of economic development that necessitated foreign investment, Díaz sought capital and expertise from European powers (Britain, France, and Germany) to offset the closer power of the United States. Although elections were held in Mexico at regular intervals, they were by nature not democratic. The huge rural, illiterate, and mostly indigenous populations were more to be feared by the government than as a source for regime support. When Díaz failed to find a political solution to his succession, the [[Mexican Revolution]] erupted after the fraudulent [[1910 Mexican general election|1910 general election]].<ref name=":0" />

Diaz came to power by a coup under the [[Plan of Tuxtepec]] and became president of Mexico 1876–1880. He was succeeded by his military and political ''compadre'' [[Manuel González Flores|Manuel González]] (1880–1884) and returned to the presidency until he was overthrown in 1911 in the Mexican Revolution.<ref name=":0">Paul Garner (2001). ''Porfirio Díaz''. Pearson.</ref>

During the decade-long civil war, a number of regional caudillos arose. [[Pascual Orozco]] helped oust Díaz at the early stage of the Revolution, but then turned against [[Francisco I. Madero]], who had been elected to the presidency in 1911. [[Pancho Villa]] also helped oust Díaz, supported Madero, and following his murder in 1913, became a general in the [[Constitutionalist Army]] commanded by civilian [[Venustiano Carranza]]. [[Emiliano Zapata]], peasant leader from the state of Morelos, opposed Díaz and every subsequent Mexican government until his murder in 1919 by Carranza's agents.<ref name=h38/><ref>Julia C. Girouard, "Caudillismo" in ''Encyclopedia of Mexico'', vol. 1, p. 229. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.</ref> 

[[Álvaro Obregón]] emerged as another brilliant general from northern Mexico, defeating Villa's Division of the North in 1915 after Villa had broken with Carranza. Obregón and fellow Sonoran generals [[Plutarco Elías Calles]] and [[Adolfo de la Huerta]] overthrew Carranza in 1920 under the [[Plan of Agua Prieta]], with the presidency in the 1920s going in turn from de la Huerta, to Obregón, to Calles, and back to Obregón. During Calles's presidency (1924–1928), he stringently enforced the [[anticlericalism|anticlerical]] laws of the Mexican [[Constitution of 1917]], leading to the [[Cristero War]], a failed major uprising under the leadership of some regional caudillos, including [[Saturnino Cedillo]] of [[San Luis Potosí]].<ref name=h38/><ref>Julia C. Girouard, "Caudillismo" in ''Encyclopedia of Mexico'', vol. 1, p. 229. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.</ref>

Obregón was elected again in 1928, but was assassinated before he could again resume the presidency. In 1929, Plutarco Elías Calles founded a political party, then known as the Partido Nacional Revolucionario (PNR), and became the {{Langx|es|jefe máximo|label=none}} (''maximum chief''), the power behind the presidency in a period known as the Maximato (1928–1934); PNR's iteration as the [[Institutional Revolutionary Party]] dominated Mexican politics until 2000 and functioned as a brake on the personalist power of regional caudillos in Mexico.<ref name=h38/><ref>Julia C. Girouard, "Caudillismo" in ''Encyclopedia of Mexico'', vol. 1, p. 229. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn 1997.</ref>

===Central America===
With the improvement of transportation, tropical products such as coffee and bananas could be transported to a growing consumer market in the United States. In Guatemala [[Justo Rufino Barrios]] ruled as a Liberal autocrat and expanded coffee cultivation.<ref>[[#Henderson|Henderson]], p. 139</ref>

===Gallery===
<gallery>
File:Juan Perón 1946.jpg|[[Juan Perón]], Argentina
File:Germán Busch - 2.jpg|[[Germán Busch]], Bolivia
File:Augusto Pinochet.png|[[Augusto Pinochet]], Chile
File:Jorge Eliécer Gaitán (1936).jpg|[[Jorge Eliécer Gaitán]], Colombia
File:José Figueres Ferrer cropped.jpg|[[José Figueres Ferrer]], Costa Rica
File:Fidel Castro - MATS Terminal Washington 1959 (cropped).png|[[Fidel Castro]], Cuba
File:Trujillo 1952.jpg|[[Rafael Trujillo]], Dominican Republic
File:Eloy Alfaro asambleas (cropped).jpg|[[Eloy Alfaro]], Ecuador
File:Hernandez Martinez.jpg|[[Maximiliano Hernández Martínez]], El Salvador
File:Presidente Jorge Ubico Castañeda.png|[[Jorge Ubico]], Guatemala
File:Zapataandvilla.png|[[Pancho Villa]] (left) and [[Emiliano Zapata]], Mexico
File:Somoza 1952 (centrée).jpg|[[Anastasio Somoza García]], Nicaragua
File:Omar Torrijos 1978 (Black and White).jpg|[[Omar Torrijos]], Panama
File:Alfredo_Stroessner_at_desk_(cropped).jpg|[[Alfredo Stroessner]], Paraguay
File:Juan Velasco Alvarado 1971.jpg|[[Juan Velasco Alvarado]], Peru
File:F._Morales_Bermúdez.jpg|[[Francisco Morales Bermúdez]], Peru
File:RETRATO_DEL_GRAL._FRANCISCO_FRANCO_BAHAMONDE_(adjusted_levels).jpg|[[Francisco Franco y Bahamonde]], Spain
File:José Batlle y Ordóñez.jpg|[[José Batlle y Ordóñez]], Uruguay
File:Juan vicente GOMEZ.jpg|[[Juan Vicente Gómez]], Venezuela
</gallery>

==''Caudillos'' of former sovereign states==

[[File:Tomas Herrera.JPG|thumb|293x293px|An equestrian statue of [[Tomás de Herrera]]]]

===Gallery===
<gallery>
File:Francisco Ramirez 2 (cropped).JPG|[[Francisco Ramírez (governor)|Francisco Ramírez]], Entre Ríos
File:José Joaquín de Olmedo (por Manuel Salas Alzamora).jpg|[[José Joaquín de Olmedo]], Guayaquil
File:Tomas herrera.png|[[Tomás de Herrera]], Isthmus of Panama
File:Nunezcaceres.jpg|[[José Núñez de Cáceres]], Spanish Haiti
File:General Agustín Guzmán.jpg|[[Agustín Guzmán]], Los Altos
File:Manuel Rojas Luzardo 1.jpg|[[Manuel Rojas Luzardo]], Puerto Rico
</gallery>

==''Caudillos'' in literature==
Fictional Hispanic American ''caudillos'', sometimes based on real historical figures, are important in literature.<ref name=brush/><ref name=dict/> Colombian Nobel Prize winner [[Gabriel García Márquez]] published two works with strongmen as main characters: ''[[The Autumn of the Patriarch]]''<ref>Gabriel García Márquez, ''The Autumn of the Patriarch''. Translated by Gregory Rabassa. New York: Harper and Row 1976.</ref> and ''[[The General in his Labyrinth]]'', the latter a controversial novel about [[Simón Bolívar]].<ref>Gabriel García Márquez, ''The General in his Labyrinth''. Translated by [[Edith Grossman]]. New York: Knopf.</ref> In 1946, Nobel Prize laureate [[Miguel Ángel Asturias]] published ''[[El Señor Presidente]]'', based on the life of [[Manuel Estrada Cabrera]] (1898–1920), which was translated to English in 1975.<ref>Miguel Ángel Asturias, ''El Señor Presidente''. Translated by Frances Partridge. New York: Atheneum 1975.</ref> 

In 1974, [[Augusto Roa Bastos]] published ''[[I, the Supreme]]'' based on Francia's life.<ref>Augusto Roa Bastos, ''I, the Supreme''. Translated by Helen Lane. New York: Knopf 1986.</ref> In Mexico, two fictional ''caudillos'' are depicted by [[Mariano Azuela]]'s 1916 novel ''[[The Underdogs (novel)|The Underdogs]]''<ref>Mariano Azuela, ''The Underdogs [Los de Abajo]''. Translated by E. Mungía Jr. New York: New American Library 1963.</ref> and [[Carlos Fuentes]]'s novel ''[[The Death of Artemio Cruz]]''.<ref>Carlos Fuentes, ''The Death of Artemio Cruz''. Translated by Sam Hileman. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux 1964.</ref> In 1929, Mexican writer [[Martín Luis Guzmán]] published his novel ''La sombra del caudillo'', a powerful critic of such strongmen. An outlier in terms of subject matter is [[Rómulo Gallegos]]'s ''[[Doña Bárbara]]'', depicting a woman ''caudillo''.<ref>Rómulo Gallegos, ''Doña Bárbara''. New York: Appleton-Century Crofts 1961.</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of Hispanic American caudillos]]
* [[Caesarism]]
* [[Shogun]]
* [[Cult of personality]]
* [[Great man theory]]
* [[Leaderism]]
* [[Conducător]]
* [[Cacique#Caciquismo and caudillismo|Caciquismo and Caudillismo]]
* [[Personalismo]]

==Cited sources==
* {{cite book|ref=Hamil|editor=Hamil, Hugh M. |title=Caudillos: Dictators in Spanish America|publisher =University of Oklahoma Press|year= 1992|isbn=0806124288}}
* {{cite book|ref=Henderson|author=Henderson, James D.|title=A Reference Guide to Latin American History|chapter=Caudillos and Conflict, 1826–1870|publisher=M. E. Sharpe|year=2000|isbn=1563247445|chapter-url-access=registration|chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/referenceguideto00hend|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/referenceguideto00hend}}
* {{cite book|ref=Lynch|author=Lynch, John |title=Caudillos in Spanish America, 1800–1850|place=Oxford|publisher= Clarendon Press |year=1992|isbn=019821135X}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
===Definitions, theories, and contexts===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
*Alexander, Robert J. "Caudillos, Coroneis, and Political Bosses in Latin America." In ''Presidential Power in Latin American Politics'', ed. Thomas V. DiBacco. New York: Prager 1977.
*Beezley, William H. "Caudillismo: An Interpretative Note." ''Journal of Inter-American Studies'' 11 (July 1969): 345–52.
*Collier, David, ed. ''The New Authoritarianism in Latin America''. Princeton: Princeton University Press 1979.
* Dealy, Glenn Cudill. ''The Public Man: An Interpretation of Latin America and other Catholic Countries''. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press 1977.
* {{cite journal|last=Diaz|first=Rodolfo|year=2010|title=Caudillos and Constitutions|journal=Harvard International Review|volume=32|issue=2|pages=24–27}}
*DiTella, Torcuato S. ''Latin American Politics: A Theoretical Framework''. Austin: University of Texas Press 1989.
*Hale, Charles A. "The Reconstruction of Nineteenth-Century Politics in Spanish America: A Case for the History of Ideas." ''Latin American Research Review'' 8 (Summer 1973), 53–73.
*Hamill, Hugh, ed. ''Caudillos: Dictators in Spanish America''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 1992.
*Humphreys, R.A. "The Caudillo Tradition." in ''Tradition and Revolt in Latin America, 216–28. New York: Columbia University Press 1969.
* Johnson, John J. "Foreign Factors in Dictatorship in Latin America". ''Pacific Historical Review'' 20 (1951)
*Kern, Robert, ed. ''The Caciques: Oligarchical Politics and the System of Caciquismo in the Luso-Hispanic World''. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press 1973.
* Loveman, Brian. ''The Constitution of Tyranny: Regimes of Exception in Spanish America''. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press 1993.
* Lynch, John, ''Caudillos in Spanish America, 1800–1850''. Oxford: Oxford University Press 1992.
*Pleasants, Edwin Hemingway, ''The Caudillo: a Study in Latin-American Dictatorships''. Monmouth, IL: Commercial Art Press 1959.
* Smith, Peter H. "Political Legitimacy in Spanish America" in ''New Approaches to Latin American History'', Richard Graham and Peter Smith, eds. 1974.
*Wolf, Eric R. and Edward C. Hanson, "''Caudillo'' Politics: A Structural Analysis." ''Comparative Studies in Society and History'' 9 (1966–67): 168–79.
{{div col end|2}}

===Regions and individuals===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* Balfour, Sebastian (1990). ''Castro''.
* [[David Brading|Brading, D.A.]], ed. ''Caudillo and Peasant in the Mexican Revolution''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 1980.
* Gilmore, Robert L. ''Caudillism and Militarism in Venezuela, 1810–1910''. 1994.
* Haigh, Roger M. ''Martin Güemes: Tyrant or Tool? A Study of the Sources of Power of an Argentine Caudillo''. 1968.
* Hamill, Hugh M., ed. ''Caudillos: Dictators in Spanish America''. Selections on Hidalgo, Quiroga, Moreno, Díaz, Trujillo, Perón, Castro, Pinochet, and Stroessner. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 1992.
* [[John Lynch (historian)|Lynch, John]]. "Bolívar and the Caudillos". ''Hispanic American Historical Review'' 63 No. 1 (1983), 3–35.
* Lynch, John. ''Argentine Dictator: Juan Manuel de Rosas, 1829–1852''. 1981.
* Lynch, John. ''Caudillos in Spanish America, 1800–1850''. Chapters on Rosas, Páez, Santa Anna, and Carrera. Oxford: Clarendon Press 1992.
* Page, Joseph A. ''Perón: A Biography''. 1983.
* Park, James William. ''Rafael Núñez and the Politics of Colombian Regionalism, 1863–1886''. (1985)
* Smith, Peter H. ''Democracy in Latin America: Political Change in Comparative Perspective''. New York: Oxford University Press 2005.
* Wiarda, Howard. ''Dictatorship and Development: The Methods of Control in Trujillo's Dominican Republic''. 1968.
* {{cite journal |last=Luhnow |first=David |date=11 July 2009 |title=The Cult of the caudillo |journal=Wall Street Journal |volume=254 |issue=9 |pages=1–2 |author2=José De Cordoba |author3=Nicholas Casey}}
* {{cite magazine |last=Shapiro |first=Samuel |date=4 December 1961 |title=Doing Good in Latin America |magazine=New Republic |volume=145 |issue=23 |pages=11–14}}
* Woodward, Ralph Lee. ''Rafael Carrera and the Emergence of the Republic of Guatemala, 1821–1871''. 1993.
{{div col end|2}}

{{Highest Military Ranks}}

[[Category:Argentine Civil War]]
[[Category:Coups d'état]]
[[Category:Dictatorship]]
[[Category:History of North America]]
[[Category:History of South America]]
[[Category:Military personnel]]
[[Category:Populism]]
[[Category:Spanish American wars of independence]]
[[Category:Spanish language]]
[[Category:Titles of national or ethnic leadership]]
[[Category:Francisco Franco]]
[[Category:Warlords]]