Evaluate the policies and impact of caudillo rule in one country.

Candidates will make an appraisal of both the policies and the impact of caudillo rule in any one country. They may evaluate the policies and impact in a running comparison or they may choose to treat each caudillo independently. As to impact, candidates may address the role of caudillos in the independence movements of their country, the establishment of power based on either military prowess or land ownership, and their taking on of foreign debt and the resulting consequences. In respect to policies, issues that may be discussed include caudillos’ tendency to use force, even terror, to consolidate power and respond to rebellions, the establishment of trade agreements and loans with Europe, sometimes in support of their military actions in the Americas, and the tendency to achieve legitimacy and popular support through charisma and the granting of favours, rather than the establishment of strong national institutions.