Moreover, José Hilario López abolished the Native American reservation system and slavery, earning him the title of Liberator of New Granada.
Yet the slaves José Hilario López had freed possessed neither land nor property, and before long they became even cheaper tenant farmers. Far from improving, their lives only grew worse.
With the reservation system abolished, the Native Americans too were driven from their last homes and left completely homeless.
To strike at the Church's power, José Hilario López successively recalled the ambassador stationed at the Vatican, expelled the bishop of the capital Bogotá, abolished tithes, expelled Jesuit priests, confiscated Church lands, and carried out a whole string of similar measures.
José Hilario López achieved his goal of weakening the Church, but he also offended the religious forces beyond all repair. The two sides had practically reached the point of fighting to the death.
If José Hilario López and his successors had been able to maintain their grip on power, perhaps this would not have been much of a problem.
But regrettably, José Hilario López's clever little schemes brought retaliation from the Austrian Empire. The arrival of the Austrian Imperial Navy successfully set off the emotions of New Granada's populace.
Political enemies divided by opinion, ambitious high officials, Austrians in spirit, homeless Native Americans, tenant farmers drowning in misery, and a deeply dissatisfied Church all successfully linked up with one another.
For a time, flames of war sprang up across all of New Granada. José Hilario López could barely hold the area around the capital, Bogotá. Within a single week, he survived nearly a hundred assassination attempts; even the servants his own household wanted him dead. He could only hide in the barracks with his family.
"Why is this happening?"
Covered in blood, José Hilario López blankly asked one of