Revolt of The Comuneros (New Granada) - Causes

Causes

Many causes contributed to the revolt of 1781. Some causes were long-standing, related to the viceroyalty in New Granada in 1717. There is a debate among historians over what the main factor was that contributed to the start of the rebellion of 1781, but what is clear is the fact that the need for economic and political reform and the idea of self-government were all contributors.

A series of reforms to the economy and government of the colonies, now called the Bourbon Reforms, are believed to be a factor in the beginning of the revolt. As the growth of the population and development of the New World began to outgrow that of Spain, Spain began to look for ways to make the colonies more profitable. The Spanish government sought to eliminate tax evasion to reduce benefits of the colonies and created new laws and taxes to establish greater support and a larger revenue for the home country. Spain also created trading companies, allowed for agricultural and industrial “royal monopolies” and encouraged a greater amount of imports to the colonies to decrease the manufacturing capability of the colonies. These economic and social reforms increased the limitations for colonists to produce crops and changed their economy. Another factor considered by scholars is the major political reforms that the Spanish government forced on the colonies. In order for Spain to benefit economically from the colonies, it needed stricter control over their government. These political changes were also part of the Bourbon Reforms. Some historians such as Brian Hamnett believe that it was the age-long battle between “absolutism versus the unwritten constitution” of New Granada that spurred on the colonists. He believes that the imperialism of the Spanish home country and its dependence upon the colonies contributed for the need of the colonies’ “decentralization.” He states that the revolt was started, not with the goal of an independence movement, political freedom and self-government, but only with the hope of reversing the reforms.