Colombia (Cherry, Plum, and Chrysanthemum)

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia (Spanish: República de Colombia) is a federal constitutional republic in northwestern South America. It is bordered by Central American Federation to the northwest; by the Caribbean Sea to the north; by Guyana to the east; by Peru-Bolivia and Brazil to the south; and by the Pacific Ocean to the west.

Colonization (1522–1821)
Spain's colonization of Colombia started in 1522, establishing its first permanent South American settlement in the present-day city of Cumaná. It was followed by the founding of Santa Marta in 1525 and Cartagena in 1533. Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada led an expedition to the interior in 1535, and founded the "New City of Granada", the name of which soon changed to "Santa Fé de Bogotá". In 1549, the institution of the Audiencia in Santa Fe de Bogotá gave that city the status of capital of New Granada, which comprised in large northern part of modern Colombia

In the 16th century, indigenous peoples such as many of the Mariches, themselves descendants of the Caribs converted to Roman Catholicism. Several attempts against the Spanish by the natives were suppressed. Most notable and famous resistance was come from the Wayuus. There had been rebellions in 1701 (when they destroyed a Capuchin mission), 1727 (when more than 2,000 Wayuus attacked the Spanish), 1741, 1757, 1761 and 1768.

In 1717 the Viceroyalty of New Granada was created, and then it was temporarily removed, to finally be re-established in 1739 with Santa Fé de Bogotá as its capital. This Viceroyalty included some other provinces of northwestern South America and corresponds mainly to most of parts of today Colombia.

War of Independence (1821–1826)
On August 10, 1809, that the first call for the Latin America independence from Spain was made in Quito, under the leadership of the city's criollos. Although it lasted no more than two months, it had important effect and was an inspiration for the independence movement of the rest of Latin America. In 1891, the Colombian government declared August 10 as the Day of Enlightenment and being one of important Colombian national non-working holiday.

In 1821, a movement initiated by Simón Bolivar begun the struggle for the independence not only Colombia, but also all Latin America. The war against the royalist forces lasted until 1826, when finally Spain was forced to negotiate with the pro-independence leaders and recognize the emancipation. The Congress of Cúcuta took place in 1821 and established the independent Republic of Colombia that united Venezuela and New Granada.

The United States recognized the independence of Colombia in 1822. Britain waited until 1825, after the Battle of Ayacucho in Mexico, to recognize Colombia as a sovereign state. Both nations also recognized more Latin American states in the next few years.

National Technocracy (1880–1909)
The failure of the Traditionalist-dominated ministry of Domingo Suarez to solve the nation’s economic crisis and the Central American troops attack to Panama led to the chaotic constitutional crisis in 1879. The ultra-conservative Traditionalist Party defeated by the Bolivarianist Party in the 1879 Chamber of Tribunes election while the Traditionalists dominated most of the seats in the Senate. President of the Republic, Juan Alfaro, elected the new Cabinet of Colombia and appointed the Traditionalist Alfonso Pinchez Esteban as its Leading Minister on December 24, 1879. The Censors of Colombia, however, sided mostly to the Bolivarianist-dominated Chamber of Tribunes and issued a motion of no confidence to the new Cabinet on January 15, 1880.

Pinchez’s ministry resigned on January 18, 1880 after the Censors threatened to dissolve the Senate and calling a new constitutional congress to promulgate new constitution if the President does not appoint the Bolivarianist Ministry as favored by the Chamber. To maintain his position and the stability of the nation, Alfaro appointed an inventor and scientist, Fernando Augusto Carlos, as a compromise for the position of Leading Minister on January 20, 1880.

Fernando Carlos was an Alfaronist, the staunch supporter of Juan Alfaro, during the 1869 Restoration and viewed both as a moderate by the Traditionalists and a conservative by the Bolivarianist, made him a common enemy by every political factions on the Parliament of Colombia at the time.

Between 1880 and 1883, Carlos’s Ministry remained in office mostly depended on the support from the Traditionalists in the Senate. However, the situation reverted significantly on 1883 Chamber of Tribunes election where pro-Alfaro party, the Alfaronists, under Fernando Carlos able to achieve the second largest number of seats on the Chamber behind the Bolivarianist and were overpowered the Traditionalists. The Bolivarianists failed to rise on power after the Alfaronists and the Traditionalists formed a coalition and created the single parliamentary majority.

In 1884, Juan Alfaro died of long-suffering stroke and created a power vacuum on the Colombian government. Although Alfaro’s position was replaced by Vice-President Victor De Rojas, Carlos quickly consolidated his power with the support from the conservative Chamber of Tribunes and Senate. Carlos refused himself to being nominated as the next President of Colombia and preferred to stay in his office as the Leading Minister. As result, the Colombian government moved from the presidential republic toward the parliamentary system under the strong influences of Fernando Carlos.

Carlos was a closet Freemason and a long-time admirer of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck and wanted to implement Bismarck-inspired policies on the modernization and industrialization of Colombia. His government of technocrats and scientists widely known today as the "National Technocracy".

Carlos introduced the policy of welfare state in 1885 and Colombia became the first Latin American nation to do so. The increasing centralization also started from 1886 onward and made many local caudillos turned against his administration. Carlos’s vision of “technocratic nation” led to massive industrialization on Colombia. Colombian economy enormously shifted from the traditional agrarian economy to the industrialized one.

In 1891, the Alfaronists able to dominate the Censors and made Carlos’s administration secured from any parliamentary opposition for the next 28 years. The attempts by the aristocratic Senate to overthrow Carlos from his position met a failure in 1892. Carlos responded by issued the 1892 Law of Senate Membership Composition that reduced the number of Senate members from 192 to only 80 seats.

On March 14, 1893, Leading Minister Fernando Carlos outlined an ambitious plan for continuing the construction of canal on the Isthmus of Panama to connect the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean that abandoned by the French. Colombian government negotiated for the technical supports to the United States government to construct the “new Suez Canal” in Panama in 1894. The United States accepted Colombia’s offer and established the Isthmian Canal Company in 1896.

After ten years of construction, the Panama Canal opened in 1906, under the Isthmian Canal Authority, a joint canal management of the United States and the Republic of Colombia. The opening of Panama Canal contributed significantly for the economic development of Colombia in particular and Latin American countries in general.

Carlos reorganized the military of Colombia in 1895, effectively end the potential military coup or civil war in Colombia. The national command of Colombian military placed under the supervision of the government that elected by the President of Colombia, instead by the office of President itself.that given Carlos and his cabinet the full authority over national military. This moves made Carlos lost the support from the military-oriented Alfaronists and he formed his own political party, the Industrialists Party (Partido Industrialista).

Colombia's National Technocracy regime remained powerful until Fernando Carlos died in office in 1908. After Carlos death, Colombia saw an emergence of new political power, the leftist-oriented Colombian Socialist Party. The Tradicionalista, the Alfaronista, the Parliamentarios and the Industrialista merged and formed Colombian Conservative Party in 1909. The Conservatives candidate, José Gil Fortoul, elected as the new President of Colombia in 1910, officially ended Fernando Carlos-style of parliamentary government in Colombia.

Conservative Hegemony (1909–1946)
The discovery of massive oil deposits in Lake Maracaibo in 1914 led to the second phase of Colombian industrial development. By the World War I, Colombia emerged as the only influential economic and military power between other Latin America countries. Colombia remained neutral and peaceful during the World War I (1914 - 1918) and gave Colombia the chance on the political development of "healthy and stable" democracy than other Latin America countries.

Although regarded as embracing "two-party system", the Conservatives held a significant and unchallenged influences over Colombian politics with other smaller parties were the subordinates of the Conservatives, except for the Bolivarianistas. The Bolivarianistas remained refusing any coalition with the Conservatives neither to merge with the Conservative Party nor to join the Conservative governments. The Conservative Party continued to dominate the Colombian National Congress between 1909 and 1934.

The Great Depression of 1929 mainly effected the Colombian politics for the next 84 years. The Bolivarianists, the Socialist Party, the Labour Party, the Venezuelan Regional Party, and the National Party merged to form the Colombian Progressive Party (Partido Progresista) in 1930. The Progressive Party under Rómulo Betancourt able to gain 44 seats in the 1934 Chamber of Tribunes election, marked a start of the end of Conservative Hegemony.

Rómulo Betancourt elected as the first President of Colombia from Progressive Party in 1936. But, Betancourt forced to govern under the will of the Colombian Congress that still dominated by the Conservatives. Betancourt presidency became toothless and merely ceremonial. As a consequence, Colombia returned back to the system of parliamentary government where the Colombian Cabinet mainly from the Conservative Party and the real chief of executive of Colombia at the time was Conservative Leading Minister Laureano Gómez.

The invasion of the Central American Federation to Panama Canal and British Honduras led Colombia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America to participate in Panama War (1935-1936). Traditional military alliance with Italy resulted to the entry of Central American Federation into the Axis in 1939 and forced Colombia into greater military combats with the Federation during the World War II (1939-1945). Colombia officially declared war with Fascist Italy in 1939 and with the Third Reich in 1940.

In 1946, the Progressives won the Chamber of Tribunes election by majority and paved a way for President Betancourt to form a Progressive cabinet. The populist leader of the Progressives, Jorge Eliecer Gaitan, was appointed as the Leading Minister of the Colombian Republic on May 19, 1946.

Gaitan Administration (1946–1960)
As the Leading Minister of Colombia, Gaitan introduced five basic policies of his Cabinet: nationalization, social justice, social welfare, neutral foreign policy and land reform in his address before the Colombian National Congress on May 21, 1946. Gaitan stated he and the Progressive government will turn the Colombian economy over from "the oligarchs" and "the wealthy industrialists" to the hand of "the farmers and the laborers, the true patriots of Fatherland." Gaitan also outlined to nationalize several key industries and infrastructures under the central government.