Today, 16th of July, we celebrate the Anniversary of the La Paz Revolution against the Spanish! This 2016 the 207th Anniversary is celebrated. We tell you a little bit of Bolivia’s and South America’s history.

This revolution set an antecedent to the Spanish American Wars of Independence (and raised the feeling for independence across the continent). That 16th of July of 1809, Pedro Domingo de Murillo made the first cry of freedom of South America. He and other revolutionary group of people had been planning a mutiny against the Spanish, and that afternoon, while the traditional procession of Virgen de la Carmen (Virgin of the Carmen) was held, they took the Veterans headquarters and disposed the governor Tadeo Dàvila, the bishop Remigio de la Santa y Ortega, and organized a Protective Council (Junta Tuitiva) with Pedro Domingo de Murillo as the leader.

On the 27th of July, the Council made their famous proclamation: “Brave people from La Paz and all the Empire of Peru, reveal your projects for the execution, take advantage from the circumstances in which we are, don’t look with disdain the happiness of our land nor ever lose from sight the bond that must reign between all of us, to be in advance as happy or miserable until the present.” (“Valerosos habitantes de. La Paz y de todo el Imperio del Perú, revelad vuestros proyectos para la ejecución, aprovechaos de las circunstancias en que estamos, no miréis con desdén la felicidad de nuestro suelo ni perdáis jamás de vista la unión que debe reinar entre todos, para ser en adelante tan felices, como desgraciados hasta el presente").

They expected enemy forces to arrive, and with help of 800 men, they defended mountain Chacaltaya against the troops of brigadier Josè Manuel de Goyeneche, who came from Cusco under the command of Josè de Abascal, viceroy of Peru. Their 5000 men crashed the defenses of Murillo and entered the city of La Paz, where they carried out a merciless repression.

The movement, without the support from other cities for the cause, fell under the force of Goyeneche, who sent to the gallows to the main revolutionary leaders. The 29th of january they proceeded to their execution, but not before Pedro Domingo de Murillo famously claimed: “Compatriots, I die, but nobody will be able to extinguish the torch I ignited” (“Compatriotas, yo muero, pero la tea que dejo encendida ya nadie la podrá apagar").

You can discover the Plaza Murillo (Murillo Square), named after him, and other charming La Paz locations joining one of our La Paz Walking Tours.