Federal Revolution of 1899
Federal Revolution of 1899 in Bolivia is a name of a brief civil war of 1898-99 that ended 15 year long political domination by the Conservative Party and brought to power the Liberal Party which held it until 1920. Besides the change in the ruling party, revolution brought about the change of Bolivia's capital from Sucre to La Paz.
The political revolution was preceded by the changes in Bolivia's economy. The traditional silver miners, who supported and led the Conservative Party, suffered from the fall of silver prices, while the tin producers, who traditionally supported the Liberal Party, enjoyed the rise of tin prices.[1]
Liberals supported the movement to declare La Paz the capital and gathered considerable popular support behind the idea of turning hitherto unitary Bolivia into a federal republic.
The revolution began in 1899 as a conflict over Bolivia's capital city. In November of 1898 Conservatives approved a law which maintained the capital in silver mining elite's city of Sucre, despite strong objections from the new commercial center, city of tin traders of La Paz which wanted to become the new capital. The Conservative regime was also weakened by the Willka revolt by the Native peoples in the northern altiplano.
After routing the Conservatives at the Battle of the Second Crucero, fought in Oruro province, José Manuel Pando became President - first as a member of a transitional Liberal junta and then as the sole leader when a hastily convened Congress in 1900 named him Constitutional President with a full 4-year term. He was followed by presidency of Ismael Montes (1904-08 and 1913-1917).