Revolt of the Comuneros (Paraguay)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Revolt of the Comuneros (Spanish: Revolución Comunera) is a series of uprisings by settlers in Paraguay against the Spanish authorities lasting from 1721 to 1732. Underlying causes were economic, but also issues of freedom and self-government. It is one of the first uprisings against Spanish colonial rule.

Its leader was José de Antequera y Castro (1690-1731), a Peruvian lawyer, who was sent to Asunción to examine charges against Diego de los Reyes Balmaceda, who had been named governor by the Spanish viceroy at the request of the Jesuits. Antequera, however, took sides with the settlers, who named him governor under the doctrine that "the authority of the people is superior to that of the king". Also it was stated that the authority of the town hall gets its legitimacy from the common man. It must be noted that the concept that "the sovereignty of the community is superior to all written law" was a radical thought at the time. Mompox, one of the leaders, used the motto "Community and Freedom".

In 1724 Viceroy José de Armendáriz sent in troops, who defeated the Comuneros. Antequera was captured, brought to Lima, and, in 1731, executed. Further revolts in Asunción in 1730 and 1732 were quelled.