The ‘Bolivarian soldier’: Chavismo and the transformation of the armed forces in Venezuela

This thesis examines the transformation of Venezuela's armed forces under chavismo through a historical perspective. By tracing their evolution across successive periods since 1999, it demonstrates how Chávez and Maduro reshaped the military’s doctrine, ideology, and ethos, enabling it to play a central role in Venezuela’s Bolivarian revolution. To explain this transformation, the study examines the interactions between endogenous and exogenous factors that combined to forge the current Bolivarian National Armed Force (FANB). Endogenous factors include the military’s long-standing self-understanding of its national role and the Bolivarian revolution's attempt to redefine the legacy of Bolívar. Exogenous factors encompass the political upheavals of the late twentieth century, the radicalising dynamics of chavismo, and international pressures that reinforced the regime’s decision to build a fusionist civil–military model. Central to this model is the notion of the alianza cívico-militar, institutionalised through innovations such as the Bolivarian National Militia and the territorial defence system, which entrenches the armed forces at the heart of governance and society. The thesis situates these developments within a longer trajectory of Venezuelan civil–military relations, showing how chavismo both drew on and departed from earlier patterns. It further considers the implications of this model for the country’s authoritarian turn and for processes of militarisation more broadly. By contextualising Venezuela’s experience within a regional and historical perspective, the study contributes to a wider understanding of civil–military relations in Latin America, and the role of Latin American militaries in political development.