ABSTRACT
Enlightenment refers to an intellectual, political, and social movement, with strong ties to economics and technology, originating in Europe in the late 17th century. It culminates in the revolutions of North America, France, and Haiti at the end of the 18th century, as well as of Latin American independences at the beginning of the 19th century. In the Americas, the panoply of colonizers and subsequent intersection of cultures, and the influx of other groups, such as Quakers and German Anabaptists, created a highly variegated map of Enlightenment practices and persecutions. The Order of the Society of Jesus, known as the Jesuits, was the center of a social and political upheaval that sits squarely in the middle of the 18th century, and of Enlightenment. Despite the variety of circumstances and the different rhythms of rebellion, most of the American states owe their independence to Enlightenment ideas, writings, and rhetoric. The former’s son eventually declared the country’s independence in 1822.
