America · Part 7

at the port in Ecuador, Guayaquil, to discuss the future course of actions in Latin America and for a probable unification. While San Martin wanted European form of government with constitutional monarchy in the colonies, Bolivar wanted republican form of government. Though they could not reach any agreement, San Martin retired and allowed Bolivar to take full command. Bolivar could get independence for all South American colonies by . After the independence of all the colonies, Bolivar tried to unite all Latin American countries under one nation called Gran Colombia. However, the rugged geographical features with mountains and forests along with power struggles could not make it a reality. Though most of the Latin American countries declared themselves as republics and were free from Spanish rule, they were still dependent to a greater extent on foreign powers. While Mexico was invaded by the US and France, in the course of the nineteenth century, Britain continued to exercise its dominating influence over countries like Argentina and Chile for a long time to come. In each Latin American country oligarchic cliques ran rival Liberal and Conservative parties and preserved unequal social structure characterised by extreme privilege to great landowners and grinding poverty to the underprivileged. In the twentieth century, especially after World War II, South America was a troubled continent as USA sought to control it by pliant dictatorial governments (often referred to as banana republics).