La guerra de la independencia

¿Qué supuso el Tratado de Fontainebleau de 1807?
     El tratado de Fontainebleau fue firmado entre Francia y españa, acordando dejar paso a las tropas españolas a través de España para entrar en Portugal. Pero las tropas francesas también invadieron España rompiendo el tratado.


¿Qué bandos se enfrentaron en la Guerra de la Independencia (1808-1814)?
     Se enfrentaron el bando de los patriotas (españoles) contra el bando de los invasores (franceses).

¿Qué dos grupos integraban el bando "patriota"? ¿Qué los caracteriza?
     Dentro del bando patriota había varios grupos: Absolutistas, liberales y afrancesados o carloterceristas. Aunque todos lucharon juntos contra los invasores, los primeros apoyaban la continuidad de la monarqía absoluta mientras que los seguntos deseaban acabar con ella. Y por último el tercer grupo que, enamorados de las nuevas políticas ilustradas, buscaban una transición entre la monquía absoluta y liberalismo siguiendo el modelo del despotismo ilustrado.


¿Qué significa la expresión "Viva Fernando y vamos robando"?
     Por un lado el "Viva al rey" denota esa posición patriótica apoyando el regreso de Felipe VII. Mientras que "vamos robando" muestra esa vida de bandido y vandoleros que tenían que llevar para sobrevivir ya que no recibían paga y vivían de todo o que robaban en las reyertas.

¿Qué eran las guerrillas?
     Las guerrillas eran grupos armados irregulares que atacaban por sorpresa al enemigo y se retiraban amparándose en el control del territorio.


¿Cuál fue el coste de la ayuda de Gran Bretaña?
     Los ingleses intervinieron en la guerra de la independencia española por varias razones; por derrotar a Francia (su principal enemigo en ese momento), y por un interés económico. Mientras ayudaban en la lucha contra los franceses, iban destrozando la débil industria española, que si acaso prosperaba podría hacer peligrar el futuro de las exportaciones de paños y algodones británicas, que tenían en España un futuro prometedor. Además de la gran importancia de poderse beneficiar de las colonias españolas.


¿Qué medidas fueron aprobadas por las Cortes de Cádiz de 1810?
Las cortes de Cádiz acabaron con elabsolutismo y establecieron la división de poderes. Aprobaron también la abolición del régimen señorial y la suspensión de la Inquisición asentando las bases de un Estado Liberal influidas por las ideas ilustradas.


¿Qué batallas provocaron el final de la ocupación francesa en España?
     Napoleón mandó 700.000 hombres a Rusia para intentar invadirla, lo que provocó una disminución del ejército frances en España. situacion que aprovechó el bando patriota junto con las ayudas inglesas y portuguesas para terminar con lainvasión Francesa en España.

     La victoria de la batalla de Arapiles (Salamanca), en Julio, marcó el fin de Napoleón en España. Más tarde, tras las derrotas francesas en las batallas de Vitoria y de San Marcial (Irún) los franceses quedaron acorralados hasta los Pirineos. Entonces, para acabar con la presión bélica peninsular, Napoleón liberó a Fernando VII por el tratado de Valençay, poniendo fin a la ocupación francesa en España.


¿Qué consecuencias tuvo la guerra para España?
     La contienda comportó grandes pérdidas: dejó un país debastado con una hacienda quebrada. Un gobierno inestable y una gran pérdida demográfica.

    Además fue el principio del fin del Antiguo Régimen, del absolutismo y del señorialismo (un sistema económico que limitaba el desarrollo capitalista).

     Y respecto al plano internacional, supuso el inicio de la pérdida del imperio de América y las colonias de ultramar y supuso el ocaso de España como protagonista del primer orden de Europa.

Goya

Essay of the Declaration of Independence

     The Declaration of Independence is the statement adopted by the Second Continental Congress, on July 4th, 1776, which declared the Colonies of America to be free and independent from England. It was written following the concepts of both God and the enlightened idea of "Natural Law".

      I agree with Howard Zinn's interpretation of the Declaration of Independence. He explains that the upper-class colonists spread revolution against England using an inspiring and patriotic language that persuaded the lower classes. This document was used to bring together people from the cononies to protect the economic interests of the privileged Bourgeoisie. In adition, he mentions that this document was written to "unite large number of colonists" but some Americans were "omitted" like indians, slaves and women.

      A clear evidence that supports his arguments is the tone, language and adjectives used in the list of grievances. A patriotic tone is used to unite colonists against England, giving examples about their brutality and destruction caused in America. However, some of these injustices would affect only the rich and powerful colonists, and that makes me think that the economic is the main reason why they would want to start a revolution.

      On the other hand, according to Bernard Bailyn, the Declaration of Independence was written because the Founding Fathers feared that England would crush liberty in America. Furthermore, they believed that America was chosen by God to “play a special role in history”. I agree with this argument too, but I don’t think that ideological principles of the Enlightment like liberty or happiness were the ones that moved the upper-class colonists to write this document and start a revolution.

      To sum up, I think the abusive taxes and economic problems were the main causes by which the upper-class colonists started a revolution against England. The Founding Fathers used an inspiring and patriotic language to unite large number of colonists only referring to “people” in a generic way and turn them against England, and this started the American Revolution.

La amistad

1. What is the movie about? Summarize the plot of the film mentioning the main characters.
      The movie talks about a group of black people that arrives at United States in a boat with terrible conditions were there has been a slaughter in the middle of the sea. The black people were captured in Africa illegaly and were made slaves. In United States were jailed and if they wanted to be free they needed to prove were they came from. For this option they were helped by lots of people like Mr Baldwin, John Quincy Adams, Theodore Joadson, a traductor and some more. The main character is Joseph Cinque, a black man who was separated from his family. When he is in jail and in court he was who spoke in representation of the rest of the slaves and who talked with all the defenders. Mr Baldwin was a young defender of the rights of the blacks and is the one who fighted for them in the court. John Quincy Adams was an expresident from America that in the last judgement made a speech that gave the slaves to be free by decision of the judges.

2. What was the Triangular Trade? What nations benefited from it?

      What was the Triangular Trade? What nations benefited from it?
It was a type of commerce that took place during the period of the colonialism. It is called "Triangular trade" indicating that shape of a triangle that creates the routes. From Europe, they were exported to Africa: shirts, furniture, manufactured goods. From Africa to America a large number of slaves and from America to Europe they exported raw materials. We can see that with these form of trade the principal benefited countries were; Spain, Great Britain, Portugal and North America while all the African and Central American colonies were heavily exploited.

3. Do some research and explain the conditions in which slaves were captured and transported from Africa to the Americas.

      During the trip from Africa to the Americas that lasted usually for 2 months or even longer a lot of heartless punishments were made to the slaves. They stayed below deck in rooms with hundreds of slaves all packed and without freedom of movement, they even had to be lying in the floor and they were tied with iron chains. They were fed 2 times a day and if they didn´t want to it they were force-fed. Usually 1 of 5 slaves died in the ship and when they died they were throwed overboard. Diseases were very usual things in this boats and for the safety of the crew some gobernments stablished laws for the treat of slaves.


4. What enlightened ideas appear in the movie?

      In the final speech of John Quincy Adams he gives some arguments against enslaving people. He followed some ideas of the ilustrated ideology like the one that says that humans deserve being in his state of nature, but this is not bad. The state of nature was considered by Thomas Hobbes like something negative and he says that people should renounce to some rights giving them to a gobernor to obtain others. John Locke says that people are totally free so they can decide on their possesions and actions, always inside the nature law, and this is what is representated in La Amistad movie.

5. Who was Joseph Cinqué? Did he really exist?

     Joseph Cinqué was a black man known as Sengbe Pieh who lived in a village called Mende in Africa. As in the movie, he was imprisoned along with more people from the village and put on a black boat bound for America.

     During the trip he was able to disengage from the chains and lead a revolt against the crew, taking the control of the ship.


6. What is the role of John Quincy Adams, former US President, in the movie?

     In 1840 Lewis Tappan and Ellis Gray Loring of the Amistad Committee approached the 72-year old Adams to defend the Amistad captives. Initially hesitant, he eventually took the case believing it would be his last great service to the country. In February 1841 he argued the Mende were free men illegally captured and sold into slavery, and as such should be returned to Africa. After the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the captives Adams wrote his co-counsel, Roger Sherman Baldwin, saying, “The decision of the Supreme Court in the case of the Amistad has this moment been delivered by Judge Story. The captives are free...Yours in great haste and great joy.”