History of Colombia

The first traces of a person’s stay in the territory of present-day Colombia date back to the 15th-12th centuries BC. e., as evidenced by archaeological excavations. In the territory of present-day Bogotá, there lived tribes of hunter-gatherers who lived mainly in the valley of the Magdalena River.

From the beginning of our era, Indians (Caribbean, Arawak, Chibcha Muiski) lived in what is now Colombia, with Chibcha prevailing among them. At the same time, two cultural traditions were distinguished in the Chibcha tribe - tyrone and mouiski. The former lived mainly on the Caribbean coast, the latter on the highlands of Kundinamarca.

The Chibcha Muiskis had a very developed society at that time, they were one of the most developed civilizations in South America (after the Mayans and Incas). They created jewelry from gold and an alloy of gold with copper, gold plates acted as a monetary equivalent. The Chibcha Muiski worshiped the Sun God as a source of fertility and brought animals to him as sacrifices.

Before colonization, 2 million Indians lived on the territory. The most numerous were the mouisks ( chibcha ) that inhabited the Kundinamarka plateau. There were 5 territorial formations of muiskas, the largest - Bakata.

Colonization of the territory of modern Colombia dates back to the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus . At first, the Spaniards began to colonize the Caribbean coast, but the attempt failed. The second attempt was also unsuccessful. However, in 1525, the Spaniards still managed to create the first city of Santa Marta . From this city, the Spaniards moved along the Magdalena River . In 1536, a detachment of conquistadors moved from Santa Marta inland, led by Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada . In the battles with the Indians, the conquistadors lost 3/4 of the composition, but they nevertheless reached the lands of the Muiski and it was not difficult to conquer them. On August 6, 1538, Jimenez de Quesada founded the city of Santa Fe de Bogota ^[1] . Sebastian de Belalcasar also participated in the conquest of land. He founded the cities of Popayan and Kali in 1536 . The king of Spain appointed Belalkasar the head of the territory of the Cauca Valley, and Quesada became the governor of New Granada - this is the name Quesada gave the conquered territory.

The conquest of the provinces of Anserma and Kimbay in 1539 - 1540 carried out by captain Jorge Robledo . He also carefully described the provinces of Colombia, their conquest by the Spaniards, the customs of the local Indians, the various languages ​​and words of them chronicler Cieza de Leon, Pedro , as well as the explorer of the Chibcha civilization Simon, Pedro .

Treasures of the Chibcha Muisk

The treasures captured by conquistador Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada in Colombia from the Chibcha Masks were less than those captured by the Incas from Francisco Pizarro , as can be seen from the report of the royal officials Juan de San Martin and Antonio de Lebrichi, who took part in the campaign personally (July 1539 ):

When the deputy [Jimenez de Quesada] returned to Tunhu , the available gold was weighed, and weighed, was, as in what was captured in Tunja, so Sogamoso and another small amount of gold captured in the province, weighing one hundred and ninety-one one thousand and one hundred and ninety-four pesos of pure gold , and another, more low-grade, gold, thirty-seven thousand, two hundred thirty-eight pesos, and another gold, called gold crowbar, accumulated eighteen thousand three hundred and ninety pesos. One thousand eight hundred and fifteen emerald stones were captured, among which there are high-quality stones, some large, and others small, and diverse.

- Juan de San Martin and Antonio de Lebrich. Report on the conquest of the New Kingdom of Granada (July 1539) ^[2] .

In 1549 , the Royal Audience of Bogotá was formed, subordinate to the Viceroy of Peru. Later, under the same Viceroyalty, captain-general was created with the capital in Bogota. In 1718, New Granada became the Viceroyalty (this status was abolished in 1723 , restored in 1740 ). The territory of modern Ecuador , Venezuela and Panama also became a part of the new Viceroyalty. The Spaniards owned all the fertile lands, but agriculture was of secondary importance to them. They were interested in the extraction of emeralds, gold and salt. Education was then administered by the church and was available only to the children of the nobility. Literate were 5% of the population.

The struggle for independence began at the end of the 18th century. In 1781, there was an armed uprising of mestizos and creoles, spreading throughout the country. The uprising was hardly suppressed. In 1809, Napoleon invaded Spain. July 20, the top of the Creoles proclaimed the self-government of New Granada . July 20 is considered the country's independence day. A number of local juntas merged into the United Provinces of New Granada . In 1815, numerous Spanish troops were sent to New Granada to restore order, which in 1816 restored Spanish rule . In 1819, at the Battle of Boyaca, the Spaniards were defeated by Simon Bolivar . Great Colombia was proclaimed, which, in addition to modern Colombia, included modern Venezuela, Panama and Ecuador. In 1830, Venezuela and Ecuador separated.

In 1832, after the death of Bolivar, Santander was elected president of the country. He promoted the development of finance and education and managed to maintain internal stability, but in 1839 a civil war broke out in the country, which lasted until 1842 . Two parties emerged in the country - the Liberal and the Conservative. In 1845, Thomas Cipriano de Mosquera y Arboleda, who was a member of the Conservative Party, was elected president of the country. Under him, finances were streamlined, new roads were built, shipping developed. In 1849, liberal Jose Jose Hilario Lopez won the election. In 1853, a new constitution was adopted, abolishing slavery and proclaiming the separation of the church from the state. She became the cause of a series of uprisings and civil war . In 1863, a new constitution was adopted, which gave the states even greater autonomy, and the country was renamed the United States of Colombia. In 1867, President Mosquera was overthrown and expelled from the country. In the country's economy, coffee production played an increasingly important role, which eventually became a monoculture. Tobacco, quinine, gold and cotton were also exported. In 1880, Rafael Moledo became president, who later joined the conservatives. He held the presidency in 1880 - 1882 and from 1884 to 1894 .

In 1886, a conservative constitution was adopted, which enshrined centralized administration, transformed states into departments, renamed the country into the Republic of Colombia, and returned the church to a privileged position. After the death of Nunez, the three terms were ruled by conservatives Miguel Antonio Caro ( 1894 - 1898 ), Manuel Antonio Sanklemente ( 1898 - 1900 ) and General Jose Manuel Marroquin ( 1900 - 1904 ). In 1899, an armed uprising of the liberals began, which grew into a civil war , which lasted until 1902.

The Colombian government refused to allow the United States to build a transoceanic canal on the territory of modern Panama. In response, a separatist uprising supported by the United States began in Panama. On November 3, 1903, the rebels announced the separation of Panama from Colombia and the formation of an independent republic of Panama . Relations with the United States remained tense until 1921 . Against the secession of Panama, popular uprisings began, leading to the resignation of the government in 1909 .

In 1910, a new constitution was adopted, according to which the president was elected for 4 years.

From 1914 to 1918, the country was ruled by conservatives. The country has established stability. In 1916 - 1918, the richest oil reserves were discovered on the territory of Colombia, and since then the penetration of American corporations into the Colombian economy began. In agriculture, United Fruit acquired vast lands. Strikes by United Fruit workers and oil workers often broke out, often resulting in a bloody clash, the largest of which was in the Magdalen department in 1928 . The global economic crisis of 1929-1933 hit the Colombian economy hard due to falling coffee prices in world markets. The conservative party split, and liberals came to power, led by Enrique Olai Herrera.

In 1934, Alfonso Lopez Pumarejo became president, amending the outdated 1886 constitution. The amendments provided workers with much greater protection for their rights. Reforms continued under Santos Montejo , in particular, the church was separated from school education. In 1942, Lopez Pumarejo returned to power. However, inflation was growing in the country, discontent was observed both among workers and among the military. In 1945, he resigned. Until August 1946, the acting president was Alberto Lieras Camargo .

In 1947, a political conflict arose between conservatives and liberals - conservatives led by Mariano Ospina Peres expelled liberals from the government. The latter, in response, decided to nominate Jorge Gaitan , an adherent of leftist ideas, at the next election. On April 9, 1948, Gaitan was killed, which triggered an armed uprising .

In 1949, Laureano Eleutherio Gomez Castro , who became a dictator in a short time , was elected president. Congress was dissolved, censorship was established, and the constitution was suspended. In the villages, the latifundists drove the peasants from the land, a guerrilla movement unfolded. The outbreak of civil war was called " La Violencia " and lasted 10 years, during which about 250 thousand people died.

In 1953, Gustavo Rojas Pinilla was elected president, who promised the restoration of democracy, but in fact did nothing and began to persecute opposition leaders. On May 8, 1957, Pinilla was overthrown. After that, conservatives and liberals agreed on an equal government, creating a National Front.

In 1958, Alberto Lieras Camargo became president. He lifted the state of emergency in the country, and introduced agrarian reform. His government accepted the US Alliance for Progress program. The economic downturn was stopped, which was achieved as a result of the rise in world coffee prices.

In 1964 (actively - from 1966), the civil war between the government and left-wing partisans continued until 2016 (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - Army of the People (FARC), Army of National Liberation (ELN)).

In 1970, Rojas Pinilla returned to politics, nominating himself against Misael Pastrana Borrero . The latter was declared the winner on April 19 . This caused discontent among workers and students, while inflation jumped sharply. Another major partisan organization appeared - the April 19th Movement (M-19) .

Alfonso Lopez Michelsen , who won in 1974, refused American assistance, but this caused a new jump in inflation. The rebel movement expanded in the country, and in 1975 a state of emergency was introduced.

In the summer of 1977, the wealthy drug lords Pablo Escobar , José Gonzalo Rodríguez Gácha and the Ochoa brothers teamed up to create the Medellin cocaine cartel .

In 1978, Julio Cesar Turbay Ayala became president, in which the economy continued to grow stably, but in 1981 a global economic downturn began, which also affected Colombia. Partisan detachments and criminal structures launched their activities throughout the country.

In the 1982 election, conservative Belisario Betancourt was elected. In 1984, a truce was concluded with the rebels, but in November 1985 it was broken when the rebels from the M-19 captured the Palace of Justice in Bogotá and all died in the ensuing assault and battle.

On the night of November 13, 1985, an eruption of Ruiz volcano occurred 200 km west of Bogota. As a result of the eruption and the ensuing powerful mudflow , about 25 thousand people died, about 227 thousand were injured, the city of Armero was almost completely destroyed.

In 1989, President Barko Vargas declared a “total war” on the drug lords, but this did not lead to the desired results and even worsened the situation - the drug lords responded to the repression.

In 1990, a new political crisis occurred in the country. In the next presidential election, three candidates were killed by drug lords, in the end, Cesar Gaviria Trujillo won, who carried out a number of economic reforms and went on negotiations with the rebels. In 1991, a new constitution was adopted. But the situation still worsened - and even after the death of the main drug lord Pablo Escobar , who was killed during a special police operation in Medellin on December 2, 1993 . Crime continued to grow, and the partisan war did not stop.

In 1994, Ernesto Samper Pisano became president, who promised to improve the social system, but actually did nothing.

In 1998, Andres Pastrana won the election, turning to the rebels with a new ceasefire.

Alvaro Uribe Presidency

In the first round of the 2002 presidential election, Alvaro Uribe won with 54% of the vote. Uribe pursued a tough policy towards left-wing radical rebels, thereby gaining great popularity among the country's population. May 28, 2006 with an unprecedented number of votes - 62.2% - re-elected President of Colombia.

In March 2008, the destruction of Ecuador during a cross-border operation by Colombian law enforcement agencies of one of the leaders of the radical left terrorist group FARC Raul Reyes led to the severance of Colombian diplomatic relations with Ecuador and Venezuela . At the same time, most Latin American countries condemned the actions of the Colombian authorities, while the United States expressed its support for President Uribe. Relations between the countries were settled after the mediation of the Organization of American States and the apologies Colombia made to Ecuador.

On July 2, 2008, as a result of a special operation, the former senator and presidential candidate in the 2002 elections Ingrid Betancourt , who had been held captive by the FARC militants for 6 years, as well as 14 other prisoners, were released.

Uribe, whose popularity rating exceeded 60%, could not run for a third consecutive term, according to a decision of the Constitutional Court in February 2010.

Президентство Хуана Мануэля Сантоса

30 мая 2010 в Колумбии состоялся первый тур президентских выборов . Наибольшее количество (свыше 47 %) голосов избирателей набрал бывший министр обороны, член правящей Социальной партии национального единства и союзник Урибе — Хуан Мануэль Сантос . Второе место (22 %) занял представитель экологической «Партии зелёных», бывший мэр Боготы Антанас Моккус Шивицкас (из семьи литовских эмигрантов). Президентом во втором туре стал Сантос. В 2014 Сантос был повторно избран президентом.

В августе 2015 г. разгорелся дипломатический конфликт между Венесуэлой и Колумбией вследствие предпринятых Венесуэлой для борьбы с военизированными группировками и контрабандистами мер, которые включали массовые депортации колумбийцев, проживающих на венесуэльской территории, и закрытие границы.

• Робледо, Хорхе , «Доклад о походе капитана Хорхе Робледо в провинции Ансерма и Кимбайа» (неопр.) . Архивировано 13 июля 2012 года.
• Библиография по истории Новой Гранады XVI—XVII века: Колумбия, Венесуэла, Эквадор, Панама. Историография. Хронисты, Историки.