Guayaquil Conference (1822)

Guayaquil Conference (1822), a meeting between the two revolutionaries José de San Martín and Simón Bolívar. As an independent republic, the port city and province of Guayaquil in present-day Ecuador was of great interest both to San Martín in Peru and Bolívar in Colombia. After annexing Quito following the Battle of Pichincha (24 May 1822), Bolívar rushed down to Guayaquil with a large contingent of Colombian troops to ensure that the port also "joined" the Colombian republic. He entered the city on 11 July 1822. Two days later he abolished the government, annexing Guayaquil on 31 July.

General José de San Martín landed in Guayaquil on 26 July to discuss the status of the port and the province as well as the future of the struggle for independence. Although the province had not as yet been formally annexed to Colombia, it was totally in the control of that nation's troops. Thus, it was evident that the "question" of Guayaquil had been resolved in favor of Colombia. Although the two great liberators met several times during the next two days, the details of their conversations remain obscure. Apparently realizing that he could not complete the liberation of Peru without Colombian help, San Martín suggested that the two leaders collaborate. That proved impossible. San Martín then returned to Lima and resigned, leaving the field open for Bolívar, to whom ultimately fell the honor of completing the liberation of South America.

Subsequently, the nature of the Guayaquil meeting has generated much heat and little light as historians of Venezuela and Argentina have taken up their pens in support of national paladins.

See alsoWars of Independence, South America .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

William H. Gray, "Bolívar's Conquest of Guayaquil," in Hispanic American Historical Review 27, pt. 4 (November 1947): 603-622.

Gerhard Masur, "The Conference of Guayaquil," in Hispanic American Historical Review 31, pt. 2 (May 1951): 189-229.

Julio Estrada Ycaza, La lucha de Guayaquil por el Estado de Quito, vol. 2 (1984), esp. pp. 513-575.

Additional Bibliography

Archer, Christon I., ed. The Wars of Independence in Spanish America. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 2000.

Rodríguez O., Jaime E. The Independence of Spanish America. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998.

Terán, Marta, and José Antonio Serrano Ortega. Las guerras de independencia en la América española. Zamora, Michoacán: Colegio de Michoacán, 2002.

                                  Jaime E. RodrÍguez O.