The Spanish authorities fiercely repressed the first of the cities to form a Sovereign Junta. They tried to prevent the contagion. The viceroys of Lima and Bogota immediately sent troops with the order to besiege Quito and not allow "a grain of salt" to enter. After the defeat, the armies of Lima and Bogota occupied the city, and a year later, on August 2, 1810, they murdered 300 patriots and citizens, which shook entire America.
In the beginning, the Juntas were not independent: they were called interim depositaries of the sovereignty until the legitimate king returned. But the reaction of the Spaniards led to the polarization of the positions and the creole elites multiplied, since 1811, the proclamation, without ambages (plainly), of independence (in Caracas, for example, the First Republic was installed). The military reaction of the colonial authorities was immediate. They met with little success, for they had no trained armies. The Creole reaction was increasingly strong and organized, which turned the process into a true continental war that lasted for several years.
