TheRevolution of the Reforms was a military movement inVenezuela between 7 June 1835, and 1 March 1836, against thegovernment of José María Vargas, the conservative Congress, and the influence ofJosé Antonio Páez.^[1][2] It was led by outstanding independence heroes such asSantiago Mariño,Diego Ibarra,Pedro Briceño Méndez,José Laurencio Silva,José María Melo,Blas Bruzual,Luis Perú de Lacroix,Pedro Carujo,José Tadeo Monagas,Renato Beluche,Andrés Level de Goda, and Estanislao Rendon.^[1]

The rebels first demanded the reconstitution ofGran Colombia and political reforms such as the establishment offederalism, the establishment of military jurisdiction, thestate religion and the vindication of the name of the LiberatorSimón Bolívar. They denounced the existence of an "oligarchy", strengthened by import and export trade and the protection of Gran Colombia.^[1]

The reformists challenged thegovernment of José María Vargas and the Congress, which symbolized the coalition between the "Godo's" and "conservatives." The "Godo's" were so named for their support of Spanish rule and Royalist allegiance during the independence war, while the "conservatives" were primarily whitecriollos, economically and politically liberal, led by GeneralPáez and his followers. The military saw the restoration of lands to the "Godo's," lands previously awarded to independence fighters as military compensation, as a direct insult. Additionally, the military privileges of the Liberation Army's members were revoked.

These groups perceived the mixed center-federal government structure as a means for the oligarchies ofCaracas andValencia to assert their dominance.^[2][3]José María Vargas opposed Congress's proposed 1% subsidiary tax bill, but the bill was passed nonetheless. In response, Vargas accused the Senate of violating the constitution. On 29 April 1835, he tendered his resignation, citing his inability to maintain peace among the conflicting parties. Although his resignation was not accepted, his adversaries saw this as an indication of his weakening position.^[4]

On 7 June 1835, the insurrection broke out inMaracaibo, proclaiming a federal system and GeneralSantiago Mariño as head of the armed movement. Although this uprising failed, it was only the beginning of more unrest throughout the country. InCaracas, a rebellion broke out in the night of 7–8 July 1835.Pedro Carujo, chief of the Anzoátegui battalion, and then-CaptainJulián Castro, placed PresidentVargas under house arrest on 8 July. On that occasion, the famous dialogue between Carujo and Vargas took place, which historiography has recorded for posterity: "The world belongs to the brave," Carujo tells Vargas. To which the president replies: "No, the world belongs to the just man; it is the good man, and not the brave, who has always lived and will live happily on earth and secure in his conscience".^[5]

Vargas and Vice PresidentAndrés Narvarte were exiled to the Danish island ofSaint Thomas.

After taking power in Caracas, on July 9, 1835, the military commanderPedro Briceño Méndez released a Manifesto in which he condemned both the National Constitution and the set of laws enacted during the presidency ofJosé Antonio Páez, and it was proposed that the leadership of the reform process would be in charge of the Patriots who years before had shed their blood in the War of Independence.^[1]

GeneralSantiago Mariño was appointed as supreme leader of the new government and GeneralPedro Carujo as commander of troops. After totally controllingCaracas, the movement spread throughout Venezuela, fromZulia, the east andCarabobo.^[6]

Páez, who had temporarily been removed from government, after the defeat of his candidateCarlos Soublette in the presidential elections of 1835, marched from his property in San Pablo, 190 km from Caracas, to support the dismissed authorities,^[7] from 15 July 1835. Given his military prestige and his popularity, when Páez passed throughValencia,Maracay andLa Victoria, he recruited numerous militiamen and also part of the troops that, under the command of GeneralJosé Laurencio Silva, had been sent fromCaracas to fight it.^[1]

Páez entered Caracas on 28 July 1835,^[7] after the capital had been abandoned by the reformists. He established a Government Council and entrusted GeneralJosé María Carreño in charge of thePresidency, at the same time he sent a commission to Saint Thomas to bring back Vargas and Narvarte. On 20 August 1835, Vargas recovered the presidency of the Republic.^[1]

Mariño and his followers took refuge in the east of the country, protected byJosé Tadeo Monagas. On 3 November 1835, Paez decreed a pardon for the main leaders of the revolution, who were still fighting in the east. Most of the rebels stopped fighting, but on 17 December 1835, a group of reformers under the command ofBlas Bruzual andPedro Carujo took the plaza ofPuerto Cabello and declared the port under a state of siege.Páez and GeneralLeón de Febres Cordero took part in the counterattack, in which both Bruzual and Carujo were captured on 24 December 1835.^{[citation needed]}

Carujo was wounded, and as a result of the infection he died in Valencia while Bruzual was imprisoned and would later escape to Colombia. With the control overMaracaibo on 1 January 1836, and then with the surrender ofPuerto Cabello on 1 March 1836, the armed conflict came to an end. After the defeat of the rebellion, PresidentVargas, faced with the majority of Congress, resigned from the presidency on 24 April 1836. The defeat of the reformists meant the triumph of conservative civilism and its regime of constitutional institutions.^[7]

• Elections in Venezuela

• Wars involving Venezuela
• 1830s in Venezuela
• Civil wars involving the states and peoples of South America
• Venezuelan rebels

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from August 2022
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from January 2025