A Brief History of Colombia

The modern Bogotá is believed to be inhabited by communities of hunters as early as 10,000 BC. At the start of first millennium BC, groups of Amerindians have built up the so-called “cacicazgos”. These are political systems headed by caciques in which the two most complex are the Tayronas and Muiscas. In the late 1490’s, Spain begun its discovery of the Carribean and Pacific Ocean. Its first permanent settlement was established at Santa Marta in 1525. The Viceroyalty of New Granada was finally restored in 1739 which includes several northwestern provinces of South America such as Venezuela, Panama and Ecuador. Consequently, Colombia became one of the main administrative centers of Spain in the western hemisphere. After a long battle for sovereignty, the country’s independence was ultimately declared in July 20, 1810 through the leadership of Simon Bolivar and Francisco de Paula Santander. These 2 heroes became the first president and vice-president of Colombia in 1819.

After Colombia gained its independence from Spain, internal issues regarding politics and territorial divisions continue to take place. Probably the most historic civil in the history of Colombia is the “Thousand Days Civil War” that led to the establishment of Panama as a nation in 1903. A period of public violence known as La Violencia overwhelmed the capital city of Bogotá between 1940 and 1950, mainly because of the assassination of the Liberal presidential contender Jorge Bogotazo. In the late 1980s, the economic and political arenas of Colombia were particularly influenced by powerful and aggressive drug cartels. In 1991, the new Colombian Constitution was ratified with key provisions on the nation’s human, gender, ethnic and political rights. The current government of President Alvaro Uribe has Bush have initiated significant improvements to ensure the public security.