This action marks the end of the first part of Bolivar's life, his restless
youth, the preparation for struggles through sorrow and patient study, his
military training under Miranda, and the clarification in his mind of the
supreme purposes to which he was going to devote his life, no longer in a
secondary position, but as a leader, a commanding figure on the American
continent.
CHAPTER IV
_Bolivar's First Expedition. The Cruelty of War_
(1812-1813)
After the entrance of Monteverde in Caracas and the ensuing persecutions,
all Venezuela could be considered as reconquered for Spain, and it seemed
that all was lost for the cause of independence. The disobedience of
Monteverde, who, as we have remarked before, had no instructions to
continue the campaign, had been forgiven and rewarded, for it had been
sanctioned by success. Until the end of 1812, Caracas was treated
high-handedly and was very cruelly punished for all interest it had
manifested in, and all support it had given to, the cause of independence.
Bolivar joined some patriots in Curacao, where he remained until October
in the company of his relative and loyal friend, Jose Felix Ribas. He then
sailed for Cartagena, a city of New Granada which at that time was free
from Spain, and offered his service to the Republican government of that
city. Bolivar was made colonel under a Frenchman called Pedro Labatut.
In Cartagena, Bolivar continued to write, supporting his idea that the only
salvation for the colonies lay in war with Spain.
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