<P> Evolving from the wars that Revolutionary France fought with the rest of Europe, the Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars fought between France (led by Napoleon Bonaparte) and alliances involving Britain, Prussia, Spain, Portugal, Russia and Austria at different times, from 1799 to 1815 . </P> <P> In the case of Spain and its colonies, in May 1808, Napoleon captured Carlos IV and King Fernando VII and installed his own brother, Joseph Bonaparte on the Spanish Throne because he didn't want anyone outside of his own bloodline to rule Spain . This pivotal point greatly disrupted the political stability of both Spain and its colonies . Cities throughout Spain and its colonies in America each formed governing bodies primarily consisting of local elites . These ruling local elites were called juntas and their underlying principle in taking power over their communities was that "in absence of the king, Fernando VII, their sovereignty devolved temporarily back to the community ." The juntas swore loyalty to the captive Fernando VII and each ruled different and diverse parts of the colony . Most of Fernando's subjects were loyal to him in 1808, but after he was restored to the Spanish crown in 1814, his policy of restoring absolute power alienated both the juntas and his subjects . He abrogated the Cadiz Constitution of 1812 and persecuted anyone who had supported it . The violence used by royalist forces and the prospect of being ruled by Fernando shifted the majority of the colonist population in favor of separation from Spain . </P> <P> The royalists were the American and European supporters of King Ferdinand . The Royalists' were made up of a diversity of peoples loyal to the crown, with Americans composing 9% of the royalist forces in all fronts . There were two types of units: the expeditionary units created in Spain and militias created in the Americas . The militias included some veteran units (called the disciplined militia). Only 11% of the personnel in the militias were European or American whites . </P> <P> After Rafael del Riego's revolution, in 1820, no more Spanish soldiers were sent to the wars in the Americas . In 1820 there were only 10,001 Spanish soldiers in the Americas, and Spaniards formed only 10% of all the royalist armies, and only half of the soldiers of the expeditionary units were European . By the Battle of Ayacucho in 1824, less than 1% of the soldiers were European . </P>

What was one effect of the latin american revolutions of the 19th century