Legislaturas revolucionarias: El caso neogranadino (1811-1816)

In contrast to the British North American colonies, the Spanish ones lacked any form of legislative bodies. As a consequence, at the onset of their revolutions in about 1810, their leaders were utterly lacking in parliamentary experience. In the light of this, it can be said that one of the most relevant innovations brought about by independence in Spanish America was the onset of the legislative branch of political power. However, the composition and operation of the earliest among those collegiate powers remains fundamentally unknown to this day. I seek to amend this by recourse to the Neogranadino case and, particularly, the provincial State of Antioquia, whose six successive legislatures are here studied in terms of their member composition and legislative activity.