Independence Day

First Cry for Independence Holiday

• Cry for Independence 2020
• Day: Monday, August 10 (non-recoverable day)
• Holiday August 10, 2019: Passed to Friday August 9 (Day not recoverable)

What is celebrated on August 10, 1809?

On August 10, 1809 the First Cry for Independence is remembered.

August 10, 1809, First Cry of Independence History

On August 10, 1809, part of Quito’s Creole society expressed its determination to form an independent mandate from the Spanish Crown. A series of previous events happened among them: the Alcabalas revolution, the tobacconists, the natives’ revolt against the Crown, these facts had already sown the hopeful idea of ​​colonies liberation.

The Napoleon invasion, which led to the resignation of King Charles IV to the protection of his son Ferdinand VII, and the endorsement of the latter to Napoleon I puzzled Spain in 1808. By this fact, rule boards of popular governments were formed throughout the Spanish to protect their king and his people. In America, which was under Spanish command, they were also conformed. The United States had already gained its independence and in the Creole circles there was talk about French Revolution. Among the intellectuals and other groups of Quito Creole elites there had already been some meetings to discuss the social and economic circumstances of the peoples, the events of Spain and France, among other issues. However, they denounced them and ended up in prison.

On the night of August 9, 1809, a group of people from the Creole society of Quito met at the house of Manuela Cañizares to define a strategy. It is said that dawn, before the demotivation of some of those present, Manuela rebuked them with a hard phrase: “Cowards ... men born for servitude, what are you afraid of ...? There is no time to lose...!".

That morning the Sovereign Government Board was formed, which had as principal authorities the Marquis of Selva Alegre, Juan Pío Montúfar, and Bishop José Cuero y Caicedo, as president and vice president respectively. Doctors Juan de Dios Morales, Manuel Rodríguez de Quiroga and Juan Larrea were appointed as Secretaries of State, offices of the Interior, of Grace, Justice and Finance.

Very early in the morning, Dr. Antonio Ante, general secretary of the Government Board, visited Don Manuel Urriez, Count Ruiz de Castilla and president of the Royal Audience of Quito, to inform him that the Government Board relieved him from his duties.

Meanwhile, Colonel Juan de Salinas, at the hands of the military forces, declared loyalty to the Governing Board and King Ferdinand VII.

Events of August 10 are considered Ecuador First Cry for Independence, as it was the flare that motivated other patriots to take the post.

Thirteen years later Ecuador's independence was definitively sealed.

But let's go back to what happened after August 10, 1809.

Once the Governing Board was formed, on August 16, an Open Town Hall was held at San Agustín Convent in which they ratified everything acted on August 10.

Those decisions were reported to Peru’s Viceroy, José Abascal; to Santa Fe, Antonio Amar y Borbón; to the Governor of Guayaquil, Bartolomé Cucalón and to Cuenca’s, Melchor de Aymerich. They learned about the existence of the new order in the old Royal Audience of Quito.

This was taken as a rebellion and the authorities sent military forces from Guayaquil, Popayán and Pasto to placate the air of independence.

Knowing this, the Government Board, in Quito, organized two divisions composed of three thousand men under the command of Juan Ascázubi and Manuel Zambrano and sent them northbound to stop the advance of the realistic forces of Popayán.

Quito´s revolution people met with the royalists in Pasto and were defeated. The same happened with Zambrano in Cumbal.

The news of the defeat sowed demotivation. Interests could more in the Sovereign Meeting of Quito and the president Juan Pío Montúfar was forced to resign. Juan José Guerrero y Mateu, count of Selva Florida, assumed the presidency and was in charge of negotiating the surrender with Count Ruiz de Castilla., Which took place on October 24, 1809. The condition was that no retaliation be taken against anyone, and so it was accepted.

But once troops from Quito and Guayaquil arrived, Count Ruiz de Castilla dissolved the Governing Board and ordered persecution and capture of those who made it up.

The patriots were waiting for a judicial process in which they even requested the death penalty against forty of them.

On August 2, 1810, Quito’s people wanted to take the barracks to free the patriots but the royalists’ reaction led to the heroes’ massacre.

August 10, 1809 Summary

On August 10, a Libertarian Board, made up of Quito Creoles, signed an act stating that Ecuador ceased to belong to the Spanish crown.

The Board, very close at that time, met on August 11 and five days later, on the 16th, solemnly proclaimed the actions in favor of independence. When the revolt began to grow in ideology, in practice the leaders of the Board began to remain alone and gradually were arrested and isolated.

A year later, exactly on August 2, 1810, soldiers and supporters of the said Board entered the military headquarters in search of intellectuals. This led to the killing of all "insurgents" who were deprived of their freedom. The so-called "massacre of August 10" served so that the citizen group began to react against oppression and to develop a political liberation processes in other cities of the country.

In Ecuador it is celebrated every year on August 10, 1809 First Cry for Independence

August 10 First Cry for Independence Characters

Grito de Independencia, on August 10, 1809 had massive popular support, since each of the capital's neighborhoods named nine deputies to the congress, which were mostly the Quito's nobles themselves, such as:

• The Marquises of Solanda
• Villa Orellana
• Miraflores, professionals illustrated as
• Manuel Zambrano
• Manuel de Larrea
• Jijón and Manuel Matheu

They were who first formed the Ecuadorian Legislative Power.

The deputies of the city gathered in this congress also appointed the prime ministers of the Executive Power of the Ecuadorian State:

• Juan de Dios Morales for Foreign and War Businesses
• Manuel Quiroga for Grace and Justice
• Juan de Larrea for the Treasury
• Vicente Álvarez for private secretary of the Board

Ecuador’s Ultimate Independence

On May 24, 1822, a confrontation occurs with the royal army and the army of General Sucre, composed of 3000 men, most of whom were native to the Kingdom of Quito, They defeated the realistic forces of General Melchor Aymerich in the foothills of Pichincha Mount, which rises above the city of Quito. After the ceremonies with which  the victory was celebrated, Sucre forced the city council of Quito to recognize, on behalf of the entire Kingdom of Quito, the “sovereignty” of Colombia. It was not an easy task, because according to Bolívar “Quito's lawyers wanted to form an independent state of Colombia. Today this fight is known as the Battle of Pichincha.