CWS Nicaragua Timeline By SuryaNeil Period: 1900 to 2019 Post-Cold War Nicaragua Timespan Period: 1912 to 1933 US Occupation of Nicaragua Period: 1927 to 1933 Augusto Cesar Sandino's Campaign Against US 1934 Augusto Cesar Sandino's Assassination 1937 Anastasio Somoza Garcia Comes to Power Period: 1937 to 1979 Somoza Family Dictatorship of Nicaragua 1961 Sandinista National Liberation Front Created (FSLN) Period: 1961 to 1979 FSLN Guerrilla Warfare Against Somoza Dictatorship Period: 1961 to 1990 Nicaraguan Revolution 1979 Somoza Family Ousted by FSLN 1982 Secretly US-backed Conservative Contra Rebels Begin Attacks Period: 1982 to 1988 Contra War 1990 US-Backed Political Party Defeats FSLN in Elections 1998 Hurricane Mitch Kills 3,000, Leaves 100,000+ Homeless 2006 Sandinista & Former FSLN Leader Daniel Ortega Wins Presidency (Still President Today)