AHC: British Empire attempts to conquer parts of Latin America

How could the rising British attempt to conquer significant chunks of Latin America after 1800? Belize, Mosquito Coast, the Lesser Antilles, etc. don't count.

How successful could they get?

If the states just become puppets, that fulfills the challenge as long as they have a class of British traders, soldiers, or craftsmen living in them. British including Irish if they are supportive of the British state.
 
How could the rising British attempt to conquer significant chunks of Latin America after 1800? Belize, Mosquito Coast, the Lesser Antilles, etc. don't count.

How successful could they get?

If the states just become puppets, that fulfills the challenge as long as they have a class of British traders, soldiers, or craftsmen living in them. British including Irish if they are supportive of the British state.

They did try, and failed. They invaded Buenos Aires, in 1896 and then in 1807, but were expelled. They had plans of conquering Valparaiso (Chile), Buenos Aires and Montevideo. From there, they might have expanded inland.

But then, in 1808, European alliances shifted and Spain (or what was left of it) become and ally against Napoleon, which ment that expeditions to their empire weren't politically feasible any longer. And then, when the Latin Americans revoltedbelled against Spain, the new rulers of the new republics were willing to trade freely with the British, and abolished all restrictions to trade with foreigners (non Spanish) that had existed during colonial days. So, the british saw now reason to conquer them.

In fact, IOTL, the South Cone was firmly on the British sphere of influence. Banks, Railways, insurance companies, bonds, all that was in british hands. And most manufactured goods came from Britain. There was even a sizable british colony, formed of traders, bankers and railway engeniers, that, while beeing waaaay smaller than the Italian or Spanish communities, kept very close, was very worried about mantainening their identity, and was highly influential. These British, however, usually didn't became big landowners, except in places like Santa Cruz or Tierra del Fuego, where the soil was the poorest.
 
True, the British threw support behind Miranada and Burr to try and conquer the Spanish territories, but as soon as Napoleon turned on Spain.
 
True, the British threw support behind Miranada and Burr to try and conquer the Spanish territories, but as soon as Napoleon turned on Spain.

So, maybe if Napoleon hadn't invaded Spain and spain had remaines as a willing, independent ally, further British attempts to conquer Latin America might be possible...

Yet they need to proceed better than IOTL, when these attacks only generetad that even those few who wished independence from Spain rallied with the Spanish against the British. One of these would be patriots, Belgrano, is said to have claimed during the british invassions: "El amo viejo o ninguno" (the old master of none)
 

Anaxagoras

Banned
Economically, Latin America was pretty much part of the British Empire anyway. Trying to bring them under direct control would have been a waste of money.
 
Sub-challenge - can we get Montevideo under British rule, acting as a Latin American Hong Kong, a financial centre?
 
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