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 and Brazil to the south; and by the Pacific Ocean to the west.

Colonization
In 1498, during his third voyage to the Americas, Christopher Columbus sailed near the Orinoco Delta and then landed in the Gulf of Paria. Amazed, Columbus expressed in his moving letter to Isabella and Ferdinand that he had reached the heaven on Earth (paradise), and confused by the unusual saltiness of the water. His certainty of having attained Paradise made him name this region Land of Grace, a phrase that has become the country's nickname.

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

There are also the attempts at colonization by the Germans (Klein-Venedig, 1528–1546) and the Scots (New Caledonia, 1698–1700).

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.

With the risk that the land was deserted, the Spanish Crown sold properties to the governors, conquerors and their descendants creating large farms and possession of mines. Slaves were introduced as labor. Also to protect the indigenous population decimated, and Indian reservations were created. The repopulation was achieved by allowing colonization by farmers and their families who came from Spain.

In 1717 the Viceroyalty of New Granada was originally created, and then it was temporarily removed, to finally be reestablished 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.

Independence
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 like Juan Pío Montúfar, Quiroga, Salinas, and Bishop Cuero y Caicedo. Although it lasted no more than two months, it had important repercussions and was an inspiration for the independence movement of the rest of Latian America.

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 Spanish American states in the next few years.

Fernando Carlos administration
The failure of the Traditionalist-dominated ministry of Domingo Suarez to solve the nation’s economic crisis 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 Juan Alfaro elected the new Cabinet of Colombia and appointed the Traditionalist Alfonso Pinchez y Esteban as its First Minister on December 24, 1879. The Censors of Colombia, however, sided mostly to the Liberal-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 Liberal 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 First 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 Liberals 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 First 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.

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, Carlos speech before the Colombian Parliament 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 British government to construct the “new Suez Canal” in Panama in 1894. The British 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 Kingdom 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.