Colombian Declaration of Independence from Spanish rule and the rule of the Regency Council. Bogota would be the first city of the colony to break its ties with Spain, followed by more provincial capitals in the coming months. Colombian Declaration of Independence The Colombian Declaration of Independence refers to the events of July 20, 1810, in Santa Fe de Bogota, in the Spanish colonial Viceroyalty of New Granada. They resulted in the establishment of a Junta de Santa Fe that day. The experience in self-government eventually led to the creation of the Republic of Gran Colombia. Spain was ruled by a typical enlightened absolutist
Direct colonial rule Direct colonial rule Direct colonial rule is a form of colonialism that involves the establishment of a centralized foreign authority within a territory, which is run by colonial officials. According to Michael W. Doyle of Harvard University, in a system of direct rule, the native population is excluded from all but the lowest level of the colonial government. Ugandan academic Mahmood Mamdani classifies direct rule as centralized despotism: a system where natives were not considered citizens. The opposite of direct colonial rule is indirect rule, which integrates pre-established local elites and native institutions into the administration of the colonial government.