Page "History of Latin America" Paragraph 19

The endemic political instability and the nature of the economy resulted in the emergence of caudillos, military chiefs whose hold on power depended on their military skill and ability to dispense patronage.

The political regimes were at least in theory democratic and took the form of either presidential or parliamentary governments.

Both were prone to being taken over by a caudillo or an oligarchy.

The political landscape was occupied by conservatives, who believed that the preservation of the old social hierarchies served as the best guarantee of national stability and prosperity, and liberals, who sought to bring about progress by freeing up the economy and individual initiative.

Popular insurrections were often influential and repressed: 100, 000 were killed during the suppression of a Colombian revolt between 1899 and 1902 during the Thousand Days War.

Some states did manage to have some of democracy: Uruguay, and partially Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica and Colombia.

The others were clearly oligarchist or authoritarian, although these oligarchs and caudillos sometimes enjoyed support from a majority in the population.

All of these regimes sought to maintain Latin America's lucrative position in the world economy as a provider of raw materials.