On March 19, 1812, the Spanish Cortes promulgated the Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy, often called the Constitution of Cádiz. Two hundred years later, this document—which placed sovereignty “essentially” in the nation (not the king), granted citizenship to all Spaniards of European and American (but not African) origin, and established elected representation for Spain’s mainland and overseas territories at national, provincial and local levels—has received the royal treatment. Spain’s king marked the anniversary at a commemorative ceremony in Cádiz, and scholars interested in the independence of Spanish America are asking what impact it had in conferences from Boston to Lima to Vienna. While the fanfare is substantially smaller in Central America, the “Cádiz experiment” initiated by France’s 1807 invasion of the Iberian Peninsula and overthrow of the Spanish monarchy had an enormous impact in the Captaincy General of Guatemala…as a dozen documents I found in the JCB collections demonstrate.On March 19, 1812, the Spanish Cortes promulgated the Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy, often called the Constitution of Cádiz. Two hundred years later, this document—which placed sovereignty “essentially” in the nation (not the king), granted citizenship to all Spaniards of European and American (but not African) origin, and established elected representation for Spain’s mainland and overseas territories at national, provincial and local levels—has received the royal treatment. Spain’s king marked the anniversary at a commemorative ceremony in Cádiz, and scholars interested in the independence of Spanish America are asking what impact it had in conferences from Boston to Lima to Vienna. While the fanfare is substantially smaller in Central America, the “Cádiz experiment” initiated by France’s 1807 invasion of the Iberian Peninsula and overthrow of the Spanish monarchy had an enormous impact in the Captaincy General of Guatemala…as a dozen documents I found in the JCB collections demonstrate.