This study, based on the author’s doctoral dissertation, sets out to show the “central role of war in the attempt at constructing the Bolivarian nations” (p. 13). It focuses more specifically on the transformation of the insurgent army in Venezuela and Colombia during the years between 1810 and 1825. Thibaud argues that the military process itself helped create new nations and new national identities for the region. Grounded in a fundamentally Guerresque vision of independence (the late François-Xavier Guerra was Thibaud’s thesis adviser), the volume charts the evolution of armed conflict from the gentlemanly struggles (at least in New Granada) of the war’s early years, through the guerrilla warfare typical of 1815–16, to the formation of an institutionalized army after 1819. Along the way, it provides a wealth of information about the size, composition, and structure of patriot forces. Using a database of 3,815 hojas de servicio, Thibaud shows...

You do not currently have access to this content.