The term Creole nationalism or Criollo nationalism refers to the ideology that emerged in independence movements among the Criollos, especially in Latin America in the early 19th century. Creole nationalists wanted an end to control by European powers. That goal was facilitated when the French Emperor Napoleon seized control of much of Spain and Portugal (1807–1814), breaking the chain of control from the Spanish and Portuguese kings to the local governors. The colonies rejected allegiance to Napoleonic metropoles, and increasingly the creoles demanded independence. They sought to overthrow the "peninsulares" - the temporary officials sent from the motherlands to impose control. They achieved independence in the course of civil wars between 1808 and 1826.