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Jan 1, 1502
Christopher Columbus "Discovers" Nicaragua
Christopher Columbus "discovered" Nicaragua on his fourth voyage to the Americas. Although the Spanish were only interested in the wealth of Mexico and Peru, he claimed the country for Spain. With limited European immigration and the indigenous people dying due to new disease, the population rapidly declined, only to be taken interest in during the coming centuries. -
William Walker's "Presidency"
William Walker was an American who traveled to Nicaragu to annex it for America, concurrent with the belief of Manifest Destiny at the time, as written by the Gilder Lehrman Institute. Taking advantage of instability at the time, he rose to power in a fraudulent election. He was forcibly removed shortly after in 1857 by a combination of forces from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and the United States. His presidency was a precursor to America's overzealous political involvement in the future. -
José Santos Zelaya's Presidency
Zelaya's presidency is known as one of the most upsetting periods in the country's history. He created a strong army and fostered nationalist ideals. He supported foreign investment by increasing coffee production and banana exports. He focused on internal growth, such as expansion of roads and railways and construction of new schools. However, he was known to persecute opposition and allow monopolies and the selling of foreign investment to increase his wealth as written by About Education. -
United States' Unreliable Involvement
The United States sent marines to protect our citizens following an invitation from Adolfo Diaz, as revealed by MacroHistory Timeline. They later helped remove Zelaya from power and remained there to support future government development. Following World War I, isolationist ideals called for the removal of the marines. After civil war erupted, the marines reentered to help create stability. The Great Depression made it too costly to remain active abroad, and the final troops left in 1833. -
Augusto César Sandino Civil War Rebellion
He emerged as a leader in the civil war, commonly known as a "bandit" by the United States as written by ExecutedToday. Refusing to acknowledge the truce arranged by the US, he turned against the marines and National Guard using guerilla warfare. While not necessarily ever making much progress towards national leadership, his forces constantly drained the economy and embarrassed the formal National Guard with their untrained, vicious actions. -
Anastasio Somoza García's Presidency
After gaining control of the National Guard and capitalizing on the US's withdrawal, he forced his uncle to resign to become president. He was talented in his approach to please all people, such as allowing a weak opposition to appear democratic and supporting the Allies in World War I to gain aid and investment from the United States, with FDR saying, "Somoza may be a son of a b*, but he's our son of a b*," as told by HistoryToday. He directed most national profits into his own pockets. -
Luis Somoza Debayle's Presidency
Luis assumed the presidency following his father's death. Although repression and corruption continued, his term is generally recognized as having been milder than that of his father and younger brother, and he worked to modernize the country. While he did not opt to run for reelection to a second term, he (and his brother) ensured that the politicians later elected as president were loyal to the Somoza family, never truly relinquishing his power as written by Encyclopedia Britannica. -
Anastasio Samoza Debayle's Presidency
After his older brother passed away, Anastasio was given presidency. He approach this responsibility with intolerance and hostility towards his opposition. His regime was based on repression, reflected in his infamous statement “I don’t want an educated population; I want oxen" when discussing education of citizens as told by the Acton Institute. In response to this ruthless dictatorship, rising apparent opposition against his greedy pocket-lining practices forced him to flee the country. -
Sources (Part One)
https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/jackson-lincoln/essays/filibuster-king-strange-career-william-walker-most-dangerous-i
http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/presidentscentralamerica/p/08JSZelaya.htm
http://www.fsmitha.com/h2/ch14us-5.htm
http://www.executedtoday.com/2012/02/21/1934-augusto-cesar-sandino-national-hero/ -
