Quito's first cry of independence

On 10 August 1809 creole leaders in Quito deposed the Spanish president of the Audiencia and set up a governing junta, one of the first in Spanish America. The plotters had met the night before at the house of Manuela Cañizares. Royal troops soon restored control, and on 2 August 1810 soldiers killed the imprisoned leaders in their barracks cells. Ecuador keeps 10 August as its national day.