AHC: An earlier Mexican Revolutionary War

there were rumors that Bernardo Galvez was killed in 1786 with the approval of the crown because he was getting too popular, and he was admiring the American Revolution. Get him an official taster so he doesn't go belly up (rumors were poison) and have him be looking to be king. He's a military hero, so he might get the backing of mexican military, making it tough for Mother Spain to squash him.
 
there were rumors that Bernardo Galvez was killed in 1786 with the approval of the crown because he was getting too popular, and he was admiring the American Revolution. Get him an official taster so he doesn't go belly up (rumors were poison) and have him be looking to be king. He's a military hero, so he might get the backing of mexican military, making it tough for Mother Spain to squash him.
I read a little about that, and its an interesting idea. But, what reason would he have to rebel against Spain?
 
I read a little about that, and its an interesting idea. But, what reason would he have to rebel against Spain?

I wish I could remember where I read this from, bit if I recall correctly the early to mid 1780's there was a lot of resentment brewing between the criollos and peninsulares, over the same issues that would eventually spur the former to support independence. I also recall (a little less hazily) that there was an epidemic that afflicted New Spain in 1784 or 1785...right before Galvez's passing (and as Viceroy he would order that the whole colony be inoculated...no wonder he was so popular).

All you have to do is exasterbate these problems through the 80's, and have Galvez survive. The conservatives (particularly Mexico City's Audiencia) didn't keep their "love" of Galvez secret, and in a ATL where he lives to reside over an increasingly hostile population...maybe throw in another calamity in Spain or something, and before you know it Galvez is in a similar situation to Viceroy Iturrigaray except 20 years early. Now the difference with Iturrigaray was that the Audiencia in his instance usurped power from him in order to "save" the colony from radicals, and while they'd try to do the same against Galvez no doubt, it's probably not in the best spirit of this potential TL to have Galvez meet a similar fate too. ;)
 
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Once the nation is independent several decades before IRL, does that mean more power right off the bat, more time to develop? Because it is certainly harder for Spain to reconquer Mexico than for Britain to reconquer the USA.
 
SBJ,
what reason? same reason Iturbide went solo: he wants to be king. (not saying that he did want to be king, but it would be a dang good reason)
 
Would King Charles IV dying circa 1800 and Ferdinand VII taking over sooner than in OTL be enough to lead to an earlier revolution?
 
There's not much reason a change of leadership would touch off much of a change. Ferdinand was an unknown at the time, and wasn't hated yet. The mother country wasn't a shambles.

Sure, you have the underlying Criollo vs peninsulars vs the common folk/native population and the feudal society thing, but it wasn't at the powderkeg point with the Spanish world still seeming relatively stable, so Ferd coming to power isn't much of a spark. he's only 16, though, so I guess it represents an opportunity while there's a power struggle in Spain looking to see if Godoy can hang on/who gets to be regent. Then again, Momma runs the show anyway while Charles hunts, so there probably isn't much of a power shift. Just switch one figurehead king (husband) to another figurehead king (son). The power struggle then gets delayed til Ferdinand comes of age and tries to take over from Mom, but that doesn't really satisfy the OP of speeding up the revolution by much. It does present butterflies for the Nap wars/Spain. the whole kidnap the kings thing on a pretext of settling the 'who is king' dispute goes away, and that is HUGE for the spanish america revolution situation.
 
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