By Ian Wood - for Home:World

Nicaragua's natural resources and strategic location have made it a jewel that many have fought to possess. Domestic and international power struggles for control of this land have torn the country apart many times over but the Nicaraguan people's tenacity has always brought it back together.

Christopher Columbus was the first conquistador to lay eyes on Nicaragua in 1502, though his search for a passage through the Americas led him onto South America. One of his successors, Francisco Hernandez Cordoba settled the first city in the Americas, Granada, in 1524. Nicaragua's currency is now known as the Cordoba, or "Cord" in his honor. Nicaragua remained a Spanish colony until 1821, when the countries of Central America were liberated.

In and effort to push outside interests away from the Americas, the United States created the Monroe Doctrine, declaring these countries independent. It was the beginning of a long and tumultuous relationship with the United States.

For a brief time in the 1850's American, William Walker, took control of Nicaragua. The "Grey-eyed Man of Destiny", as he called himself had a vision for Nicaragua and its Central American neighbors. He wanted to turn the countries into slave states supporting the Southern United States during the U.S. Civil War. Warring political parties within Nicaragua put aside their differences and united to take control back from Walker.

The most iconic figure in Nicaraguan History is, without a doubt, Augusto Cesar Sandino. Born in 1893, the illegitimate son of a wealthy land owner and his servant, Sandino was shunned by his father and had to support his mother when she was imprisoned for failing to repay debts. Sandino grew too loathe the caste system that oppressed his mother and so many other Nicaraguans.

Sandino set up camp in the northern mountains of Nicaragua and pioneered guerrilla warfare tactics to attack his enemies, including United States Marines. Using his knowledge of the mountains, Sandino evaded capture many times and became a hero to many Nicaraguans.

In an effort to bring peace to Nicaragua Sandino agreed to meet with its president. After his meeting with the president Sandino was shot. In 1934, his movement had seemingly come to an end.

Thirty years after the death of Sandino, Carlos Fonseca Amador, a young student with a keen interest in politics resurrected Sandino's image. The silhouette of Sandino with his broad brimmed cowboy hat became and icon for the FSLN, or Frente Sandinista de Liberacion National, the Sandinista Front for National Liberation.

At the core of the FSLN's ideology was a belief that control of Nicaragua must be returned to its people. Their beliefs were completely contradictory to the Somoza regime, a family that held a tight grip on Nicaraguan politics using force and staged elections.

A revolution was in the making, and in 1979 the FSLN overthrew the Somoza dictatorship and seized power of Nicaraguan. The 1980's would be a time of great bloodshed and political unrest for Nicaragua.

Nicaragua became a microcosm of world politics. The FSLN was backed by the U.S.S.R., Cuba and El Salvador. Loyalists to the Somozas were forced underground and became knows as counter-revolutionaries or "Contras". The Contras were backed by the United States, which feared the spread the communism to Central America.

The Contra War took and incredible toll on the people of Nicaragua. As the 80's came to a close the Soviet Union collapsed and support for the FSLN dried up. Likewise, U.S. support of the Contras ended.

Peace was finally brought to Nicaragua when Costa Rican president, Oscar Arias helped Nicaragua, and neighboring countries, to work out peace accords that would allow for peaceful elections and an open dialogue between opposing parties.

In 1990 Nicaragua peacefully elected Violeta Barrios de Chamorro, the widow of a famous journalist who had been slain by the Somoza regime. She was not associated with any political party. Since Chamorro's election, control of Nicaragua has changed hands a number of times, always peacefully.

Back to Nicaragua Articles