Nicaragua
Early Settlement, Development of Agriculture, and the Impact of Imperialism
Early Settlement, Development of Agriculture, and the Impact of Imperialism
Nicaragua possesses an immensely complex and tumultuous history, particularly since the beginning of colonial influence in the region five centuries ago. Its abundant wildlife, natural resources, and active geology led to the development of diverse societies and their inevitable exploitation by colonial powers. Our knowledge of pre-colonial societies in modern day Nicaragua is limited because they were virtually wiped out by the diseases, slave trade, and warfare of the Spanish conquerors in the sixteenth century (Lange, 1992). However, archeological and historical research continues to expand our knowledge of the indigenous cultures of this region. Understanding the nature of those civilizations and the legacy of colonailism/imperialism is vital in order to comprehend Nicaragua’s relationship with world powers today and to find effective solutions to its numerous internal problems.
Early Human Settlement and Development of Pre-Colonial Agrarian Societies
Nicaragua’s geological features and relatively tropical climate helped shape the character of the region´s earliest societies and agricultural methods. It has wide variety of climates ranging from tropical forests along the east (miskito) coast, to savanna in the southeastern lowlands, to volcanic highlands in the northern and central regions of the country (Maranatha Village). The largest concentrations of early human settlement developed around the fertile lands surrounding Lake Managua and Lake Nicaragua near the Pacific Coast (Central American). The earliest evidence of settlement in Nicaragua is the 10,000-year-old Footprints of the Acahualinca, preserved by volcanic ash. Unfortunately no other artifacts of those people were found so knowledge of their culture is very limited. More extensive data exists concerning societies immigrating to the Nicaraguan area from the north and south around the tenth century CE (Maranatha Village). (The Aztec capital of Teotihucana fell around this time). The region was “a key transition zone between mesoamerican cultures (around) El Salvador and the Intermediate Area cultures of Costa Rica and Panama” (Lange, 1992). Two basic cultures formed in Nicaragua. The people settling in the western and central regions were linguistically and culturally similar to the Aztec and Maya of Mexico and those settling further east in the Caribbean lowlands resembled societies from the south as far as Colombia. Western peoples spoke dialects of Pipil, which is closely related to the Aztec language of Nahuatl. They also lived on Aztec staple foods such as corn, beans, chili peppers, and avocados, and the domestication of turkeys and dogs for their meat (Country Study). As far as those in the east,
“The various dialects and languages…are related to Chibcha, spoken by groups in northern Colombia. Eastern Nicaragua's population consisted of extended families or tribes. Food was obtained by hunting, fishing, and slash-and-burn agriculture. Root crops (especially cassava), plantains, and pineapples were the staple foods. The people of eastern Nicaragua appear to have traded with and been influenced by the native peoples of the Caribbean, as round thatched huts and canoes, both typical of the Caribbean, were common in eastern Nicaragua” (Country Study).
The centuries approaching Spanish occupation saw three distinct tribes (the Niquirano, the Chorotegano, and the Chontal) occupying much of Nicaragua. Most tribes of the region had monarchical governments with a chief (cacique) ruling over nobility who then regulated smaller localities (Country Study). Councils of elected elders that were drawn from several communities chose the Chiefs (Stanislawski, 1983). These tribes were much less centralized and extensive than the Aztec and Mayan empires of Mesoamerica. This was due to many factors such as geographical barriers, climate, and less need for extensive trade (due to abundance of resources within a small region). Agriculture thrived along the volcano belt, which, in the right conditions, could yield fertile soils “capable of sustaining much more agricultural use and abuse than the weak, clay-laden soils…that are more common in tropical regions. Thus volcanically active areas in the tropics often supported dense populations for long periods, with intensive and highly productive agro-ecosystems” (Lange, 1992). The geographical location and unique features of the Nicaraguan region allowed for the rise of indigenous farming communities that had the potential to flourish, were it not for the unforgiving drive of European colonial expansion.
The Impact of Colonial Invasion
Christopher Columbus sighted Nicaragua on his travels in 1502, but it was not until twenty years later that the first Spanish expedition would arrive on its soil (History, Pre Columbian). In 1522, Gil Gonzalez de Avila led a formal military expedition that marked the beginning of the Spanish conquest of Nicaraguan territory (History, Pre-Columbian). Gonzalez was welcomed with open arms by the chief Nicoya and then soon after by chief Nicarao (after whom Nicaragua was named) who gave him loads of gold as a gift. Both of these chiefs and thousands among their tribe also converted to Roman Catholicism; “All were baptized within eight days” (Country Study). Gonzalez finally met resistance when he pushed further into Nicaragua (around today´s capital city, Managau), and retreated temporarily to Panama with his new gifts. Francisco Fernandez de Cordoba further invaded the Nicaraguan region from 1523 to 1524 and founded the cities of Granada and Leon (Country Study). The indigenous settlement along the southern coast of Lake Managua put up an intense resistance, and were thus completely wiped out by Cordoba´s forces. Neither the people, nor their language, survived.
Though it was home to some large tribes, Nicaragua was still quite decentralized in the sixteenth century.
“[Conquistadors] advancing up from Darien found no unified structure in Nicaragua. This area [Nicaragua] too had to be conquered piecemeal. The conquest…can be said to have lasted almost two decades. A fragmented Spanish effort to conquer an already fragmented aboriginal society had tremendous negative implications for the conquered peoples” (Lange, 1992).
According to Lange, the most immediate and detrimental implication for the natives was the slave trade, which began almost immediately. “Indians were rounded up as they were found and marched down to the Pacific coast…as Early as 1535 it was being reported to the Crown that one third of the aboriginal population of Nicaragua had been enslaved and disposed of in this fashion” (Lange, 1992). A 1548 census found only 11,137 indigenous people left in western Nicaragua of an estimated 1 million before the conquest (History, Pre-Columbian). Much of this can be attributed to diseases, such as the measles, brought by Europeans for which natives had no immunity. By the end of the 1500s, Nicaragua was effectively reduced to the colonial cities of Leon and Granada, located near the Managuan and Nicaraguan Lakes (Country Study).
The true scope of the devastation to native population and culture is difficult to comprehend. Indian society and culture were virtually eliminated. The equality between men and women that had been common of indigenous tribes could not escape transformation by European patriarchal values. Colonial ideology of the time was indoctrinated with racism, ensuring that an inferior status was bestowed upon the natives. There was basically no facet of indigenous culture that could escape colonial influence. The near elimination of natives largely ended traditional agricultural techniques. The Spaniards were not knowledgeable of the ways in which indigenous tribes had sustained themselves in past centuries, and had little interest in gaining such knowledge. Northern European methods of farming were not suited for tropical climates in terms of sustainability and efficiency. Their economic plans were for a cash economy, not one that is self-sufficient. Large-scale monoculture for export is not designed to support large numbers of people rather; it is designed to benefit those who control commerce (Staniswalski, 1983). Thus Nicaraguan agriculture was radically transformed to benefit the elites of the Spanish empire.
“Some small areas continued to be cultivated at the end of the 1500s, but most previously tilled land reverted to jungle. By the early 1600s, cattle raising, along with small areas of corn and cocoa cultivation and forestry, had become the primary function of Nicaragua's land. Beef, hides, and tallow were the colony's principal exports for the next two and a half centuries” (Nicaragua).
Under Spanish rule, Nicaragua became part of the Captaincy General (kingdom) of Guatemala; technically part of the huge Spanish territory based in Mexico known as the Viceroyalty of New Spain (History). The initial violence of the Spanish occupation was a pre-cursor to the violent political clashes that would rack the country over the following centuries. The economy of the Captaincy General was marred by trade restrictions, natural disasters, and foreign attacks throughout the seventeenth century (Country Study). The corrupt elites of the local government neglected agricultural production, numerous earthquakes caused extensive damage, and
“[Conquistadors] advancing up from Darien found no unified structure in Nicaragua. This area [Nicaragua] too had to be conquered piecemeal. The conquest…can be said to have lasted almost two decades. A fragmented Spanish effort to conquer an already fragmented aboriginal society had tremendous negative implications for the conquered peoples” (Lange, 1992).
According to Lange, the most immediate and detrimental implication for the natives was the slave trade, which began almost immediately. “Indians were rounded up as they were found and marched down to the Pacific coast…as Early as 1535 it was being reported to the Crown that one third of the aboriginal population of Nicaragua had been enslaved and disposed of in this fashion” (Lange, 1992). A 1548 census found only 11,137 indigenous people left in western Nicaragua of an estimated 1 million before the conquest (History, Pre-Columbian). Much of this can be attributed to diseases, such as the measles, brought by Europeans for which natives had no immunity. By the end of the 1500s, Nicaragua was effectively reduced to the colonial cities of Leon and Granada, located near the Managuan and Nicaraguan Lakes (Country Study).
The true scope of the devastation to native population and culture is difficult to comprehend. Indian society and culture were virtually eliminated. The equality between men and women that had been common of indigenous tribes could not escape transformation by European patriarchal values. Colonial ideology of the time was indoctrinated with racism, ensuring that an inferior status was bestowed upon the natives. There was basically no facet of indigenous culture that could escape colonial influence. The near elimination of natives largely ended traditional agricultural techniques. The Spaniards were not knowledgeable of the ways in which indigenous tribes had sustained themselves in past centuries, and had little interest in gaining such knowledge. Northern European methods of farming were not suited for tropical climates in terms of sustainability and efficiency. Their economic plans were for a cash economy, not one that is self-sufficient. Large-scale monoculture for export is not designed to support large numbers of people rather; it is designed to benefit those who control commerce (Staniswalski, 1983). Thus Nicaraguan agriculture was radically transformed to benefit the elites of the Spanish empire.
“Some small areas continued to be cultivated at the end of the 1500s, but most previously tilled land reverted to jungle. By the early 1600s, cattle raising, along with small areas of corn and cocoa cultivation and forestry, had become the primary function of Nicaragua's land. Beef, hides, and tallow were the colony's principal exports for the next two and a half centuries” (Nicaragua).
Under Spanish rule, Nicaragua became part of the Captaincy General (kingdom) of Guatemala; technically part of the huge Spanish territory based in Mexico known as the Viceroyalty of New Spain (History). The initial violence of the Spanish occupation was a pre-cursor to the violent political clashes that would rack the country over the following centuries. The economy of the Captaincy General was marred by trade restrictions, natural disasters, and foreign attacks throughout the seventeenth century (Country Study). The corrupt elites of the local government neglected agricultural production, numerous earthquakes caused extensive damage, and
“from 1651 to 1689, Nicaragua was subjected to bloody incursions from English, French, and Dutch pirates. Within the captaincy general, the Province of Nicaragua remained weak and unstable; ruled by persons with little interest in the welfare of its people” (Country Study).
Though the Spanish controlled the interior and westernmost part of the country, Britain began to extend its influence over the Caribbean coast as early as 1633 (Nicaragua, Country Profile). In 1687 the English governor of Jamaica named a Miskito prisoner, "King of the Mosquitia Nation," and declared the region to be under the protection of the English crown (Country Study). This rivalry would last until the end of British control over the east coast of Nicaragua in 1893 (Country History). This competition added to the already insecure state of Nicaragua and ensured a continued vacillation between exploitation and neglect of the poor masses.
Evolving trade policies in the early eighteenth century would prove to have long lasting effects on Nicaragua. The War of the Spanish Succession from 1701 through 1704 replaced the Hapsburgs with the Bourbons now ruling Spain (Country Study). The Bourbons established more liberal free-trade policies in relation to its colonies that tended to help out growers with new crops, merchants, and export interests. Wealthy landowners in the colonies resisted this new economic strategy because it threatened their established position. Different cities in the Captaincy General tended to form factions over this issue depending on the makeup of the elites. “In Nicaragua, Leon…became the center for free-trading liberalism. The conservative elite in Granada, however, had made their fortunes under the old protectionist system and resisted change” (Country Study). This inter-city ideological competition elevated to violence and over time the factions became institutionalized, forgetting the original conflict. Independence in the nineteenth century eliminated Spain as a mediator, which worsened the conflict.
“The violent rivalry between liberals and conservatives was one of the most important and destructive aspects of Nicaraguan history, a characteristic that would last until well into the twentieth century. Politicians frequently chose party loyalty over national interest, and, particularly in the 1800s, the nation was often the loser in interparty strife” (Country Study).
This rivalry extended beyond the domestic realm and translated into conflict and interference among Latin American countries. This continues to be a source of violence within and around Nicaragua today.
In the early nineteenth century there arose a struggle for independence in the Americas. The first revolt came from El Salvador in 1811 with a demand for less repressive laws (Country Study). Popular uprisings soon broke out in Nicaragua and elsewhere, eventually leading to the Captaincy General of Guatemala declaring its independence from Spain on September 15, 1821 (Country Study). Nicaragua was briefly part of the Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide, a member of the Central American Federation from 1825 to 1838, and was finally declared its own sovereign entity on April 30, 1838 (Early History). This opened up possibilities for improvement in Nicaragua; however, deep historical conflicts, poverty, and inequality did not just disappear with independence. On the same token, foreign influence certainly did not go away upon declaration of political independence.
Though the Spanish controlled the interior and westernmost part of the country, Britain began to extend its influence over the Caribbean coast as early as 1633 (Nicaragua, Country Profile). In 1687 the English governor of Jamaica named a Miskito prisoner, "King of the Mosquitia Nation," and declared the region to be under the protection of the English crown (Country Study). This rivalry would last until the end of British control over the east coast of Nicaragua in 1893 (Country History). This competition added to the already insecure state of Nicaragua and ensured a continued vacillation between exploitation and neglect of the poor masses.
Evolving trade policies in the early eighteenth century would prove to have long lasting effects on Nicaragua. The War of the Spanish Succession from 1701 through 1704 replaced the Hapsburgs with the Bourbons now ruling Spain (Country Study). The Bourbons established more liberal free-trade policies in relation to its colonies that tended to help out growers with new crops, merchants, and export interests. Wealthy landowners in the colonies resisted this new economic strategy because it threatened their established position. Different cities in the Captaincy General tended to form factions over this issue depending on the makeup of the elites. “In Nicaragua, Leon…became the center for free-trading liberalism. The conservative elite in Granada, however, had made their fortunes under the old protectionist system and resisted change” (Country Study). This inter-city ideological competition elevated to violence and over time the factions became institutionalized, forgetting the original conflict. Independence in the nineteenth century eliminated Spain as a mediator, which worsened the conflict.
“The violent rivalry between liberals and conservatives was one of the most important and destructive aspects of Nicaraguan history, a characteristic that would last until well into the twentieth century. Politicians frequently chose party loyalty over national interest, and, particularly in the 1800s, the nation was often the loser in interparty strife” (Country Study).
This rivalry extended beyond the domestic realm and translated into conflict and interference among Latin American countries. This continues to be a source of violence within and around Nicaragua today.
In the early nineteenth century there arose a struggle for independence in the Americas. The first revolt came from El Salvador in 1811 with a demand for less repressive laws (Country Study). Popular uprisings soon broke out in Nicaragua and elsewhere, eventually leading to the Captaincy General of Guatemala declaring its independence from Spain on September 15, 1821 (Country Study). Nicaragua was briefly part of the Mexican Empire of Agustín de Iturbide, a member of the Central American Federation from 1825 to 1838, and was finally declared its own sovereign entity on April 30, 1838 (Early History). This opened up possibilities for improvement in Nicaragua; however, deep historical conflicts, poverty, and inequality did not just disappear with independence. On the same token, foreign influence certainly did not go away upon declaration of political independence.
Post Independence: Internal and External Struggles
Nicaragua’s strategic location as a transit route across the isthmus piqued US and British interests in the country in the nineteenth century (Early History). Partly as a protective measure from the British, Nicaragua made an agreement with the US in 1848, granting the Accessory Transit Company exclusive rights to build a transisthmian route over the next decade (Country Study). Violence broke out between Britain and the United States, who then made a compromise without Nicaragua’s say, leading to civil unrest and power struggles in the country. The following 30 years were restored to relative peace under the leadership of a conservative regime. Then, in 1893, Liberals under General Santos Zelaya seized power and installed a dictatorship (Nicaragua, Country Profile). A constitution was adopted “incorporating anticlerical provisions, limitations on foreigners' rights to claim diplomatic protection, and abolition of the death penalty” (Country Study).
“Zelaya opened the country to foreign investment, expanded coffee production, and boosted banana exports. His government promoted internal development and modernized Nicaragua's infrastructure. During his tenure, new roads and seaport facilities were constructed, railroad lines were extended, and many government buildings and schools were built. The proliferation of United States companies in Nicaragua grew to the point that, by the early 1900s, United States firms controlled most of the production of coffee, bananas, gold, and lumber” (Nicaragua, Country Profile).
In 1909, US troops ousted Zelaya, and political instability inevitably followed (Country Profile). In 1911, the country became a US protectorate (Country Study). US-supervised elections followed, and the US stationed troops to ensure peace and stability (Country Profile). After a liberal revolt errupted in 1912, 2500 U.S. marines occupied the country. The occupation would last for the next two decades, and guerrilla groups formed under the leadership of Augusto Sandino in opposition to the U.S. presence. Their attempts were unsuccessful, however, and “In 1934, the head of the US-trained National Guard, General Somoza, had the guerrilla leader killed. In 1937, after fraudulent elections, Somoza became Nicaragua's President” (Country Profile). “Somoza Garcia ruled Nicaragua with a strong arm, deriving his power from three main sources: the ownership or control of large portions of the Nicaraguan economy, the military support of the National Guard, and his acceptance and support from the United States” (Country Study). For the next 40 years the Somoza family maintained power over the country while gathering immense wealth at the expense of the Nicaraguan people.
Legacy of Imperialism
Imperialism has played a monumental role over the past few centuries in shaping the character of modern day Nicaragua. A completely different society would be in place now was it not for the devastation effects of the initial Spanish occupation. It is one of the poorest Latin American countries today, heavily in debt and impoverished. The extensive US involvement in Nicaragua that marked the first half of the 20th century is still in practice. An example of the US’ interest in “stability” and “economic concerns” over that of human rights can be drawn from the Iran-Contra affair of the 1980’s. US actions in that case were quite similar to its past record in dealing with Latin American countries; interfering with force in the affairs of other nations in order to promote its interests even if it involves funding a brutal dictator or undermining a massive popular movement. Today Nicaragua is prevented from helping out its poorest citizens by the requirements Structural Adjustment Programs of the World Bank, which require cutting social spending in order to pay off debt. The legacy of colonialism is highly visible in Nicaragua today and the colonial influence of contemporary world powers is affecting the nation as much now as it ever has.
Conclusion
Nicaragua’s history since European contact has been marked by conflict and drastic change. Though our knowledge of the indigenous peoples of Nicaragua is limited due to their large-scale eradication (due to disease, murder, forced exportation for slavery…), archeological research is helping us reach a higher understanding of traditional societies and agricultural methods. A greater understanding of those cultures and the history of colonial influence on them and their land is necessary in order to solve contemporary Nicaraguan problems whose roots lie in past and present imperial exploitation.
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