Retroversion of the sovereignty to the people

The Retroversion of the sovereignty to the people, which challenged the legitimacy of the colonial authorities,^[1] was the principle underlying the self-government temporarily in the absence of the legitimate king.

But, in both Spain and Spanish America, this principle was replaced by the concept of popular sovereignty, currently expressed in most constitutional systems throughout the world, whereby the people delegate governmental functions in their leaders and retaining the sovereignty. This was the principle underlying the Spanish American Independence processes