History of Colombia
Home to many Indigenous peoples and cultures since at least 12,000 BCE. 6 eras, 1717 to today.
Viceroyalty of New Granada, 1717–1819 Draft, not yet reviewed
The Viceroyalty of New Granada was the name given on 27 May 1717 to the jurisdiction of the Spanish Empire in northern South America, corresponding to modern Colombia, Ecuador, Panama and Venezuela. It was created in 1717 by King Felipe V, suspended in 1723 for financial problems and restored in 1739. Control from Spain was never very effective, and travel and communications within the viceroyalty were difficult. The territories of the viceroyalty gained full de facto independence from Spain between 1819 and 1822.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Jorge de Villalonga, Viceroy of New Granada, 1717–1724
- Sebastián de Eslava, Viceroy of New Granada, 1740–1749
- José Alfonso Pizarro, Viceroy of New Granada, 1749–1753
- Manuel Antonio Flórez, Viceroy of New Granada, 1776–1781
- Francisco Gil de Taboada, Viceroy of New Granada, 1788–1789
- José Manuel de Ezpeleta, 1st Count of Ezpeleta de Beire, Viceroy of New Granada, 1790–1797
- Antonio José Amar y Borbón, Viceroy of New Granada, 1803–1810
- Francisco Montalvo y Ambulodi, Viceroy of New Granada, 1816–1818
Gran Colombia, 1819–1831 Draft, not yet reviewed
Gran Colombia was the Colombian state that encompassed much of northern South America and parts of Central America from 1819 to 1831. It included present-day Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Panama, Venezuela, parts of northern Peru, northwestern Brazil, and claimed the Essequibo region. Its existence was marked by a struggle between those who supported a centralized government with a strong presidency and those who supported a decentralized, federal form of government. Gran Colombia was dissolved in 1831 due to the political differences that existed between supporters of federalism and centralism, as well as regional tensions among the peoples that made up the republic.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Simón Bolívar, President of Colombia, 1819–1830
- Domingo Caycedo, President of Colombia, 1830–1831
Republic of New Granada, 1831–1858 Draft, not yet reviewed
The Republic of New Granada was a centralist unitary republic consisting primarily of present-day Colombia and Panama that existed from 1831 to 1858. The state was created after the dissolution of Gran Colombia in 1830 through the secession of Ecuador and Venezuela. The history of the Republic of New Granada was marked by competing economic and political interests and rocked by violent conflicts and civil wars. In 1858, the state was renamed into the Granadine Confederation.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Francisco de Paula Santander, President of Colombia, 1832–1837
- Pedro Alcántara Herrán, President of Colombia, 1841–1845
- José María Obando, President of Colombia, 1853–1854
- José de Obaldía, President of Colombia, 1854–1855
- José María Melo, President of Colombia, 1854–1854
Granadine Confederation, 1858–1863 Draft, not yet reviewed
The Granadine Confederation was a short-lived federal republic established in 1858 as a result of a constitutional change replacing the Republic of New Granada. It consisted of the present-day nations of Colombia and Panama and parts of northwestern Brazil. The short but complicated life of the Granadine Confederation was marked by rivalry between the Conservative Party and the Liberal Party, which ended in a Civil War (1860–1862). In turn, the Granadine Confederation was replaced by the United States of Colombia after another constitutional change in 1863.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Mariano Ospina Rodríguez, President of Colombia, 1858–1861
- Juan José Nieto Gil, President of Colombia, 1861–1861
- Bartolomé Calvo, President of Colombia, 1861–1861
United States of Colombia, 1863–1886 Draft, not yet reviewed
The United States of Colombia was the name adopted in 1863 by the Constitución de Rionegro for the Granadine Confederation, after years of civil war. It was a federal state composed of nine sovereign states. In 1863 the Constitución de Rionegro established a federal system with a central presidency with a term of two years and without the possibility of immediate re-election. In 1886 the Colombian Conservative Party led by President Rafael Núñez proclaimed a new constitution of a unitary and centralist character that abolished the United States of Colombia and created the Republic of Colombia.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera, President of Colombia, 1863–1864
- Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera, President of Colombia, 1866–1867
- José María Rojas Garrido, President of Colombia, 1866–1866
- Santos Acosta, President of Colombia, 1867–1868
- Joaquín Riascos, President of Colombia, 1867–1867
- Santos Gutiérrez, President of Colombia, 1868–1870
- Eustorgio Salgar, President of Colombia, 1870–1872
- Manuel Murillo Toro, President of Colombia, 1872–1874
- Santiago Pérez de Manosalbas, President of Colombia, 1874–1876
- Manuel María Ramírez, President of Colombia, 1877–1877
- Julián Trujillo Largacha, President of Colombia, 1878–1880
- José Eusebio Otalora, President of Colombia, 1882–1884
- Clímaco Calderón, President of Colombia, 1882–1882
- Francisco Javier Zaldúa, President of Colombia, 1882–1882
- Ezequiel Hurtado, President of Colombia, 1884–1884
Republic of Colombia, 1886 to today Draft, not yet reviewed
After a two-year civil war in 1863, the United States of Colombia was created, which became known as the Republic of Colombia in 1886. With the backing of the US and France, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903, resulting in Colombia's present borders. Beginning in the 1960s, the country has suffered from an asymmetric low-intensity armed conflict and political violence, both of which escalated in the 1990s. The Colombian government and the FARC signed a revised peace deal in November 2016, which the Colombian congress approved.
Seat of power: Bogotá
Rulers
- Rafael Núñez, President of Colombia, 1886–1894
- Miguel Antonio Caro Tobar, President of Colombia, 1892–1898
- José Manuel Marroquín, President of Colombia, 1900–1904
- José Vicente Concha, President of Colombia, 1914–1918
- Pedro Nel Ospina Vázquez, President of Colombia, 1922–1926
- Miguel Abadía Méndez, President of Colombia, 1926–1930
- Enrique Olaya Herrera, President of Colombia, 1930–1934
- Eduardo Santos, President of Colombia, 1938–1942
- Alfonso López Pumarejo, President of Colombia, 1942–1946
- Mariano Ospina Pérez, President of Colombia, 1946–1950
- Gustavo Rojas Pinilla, President of Colombia, 1953–1957
- Álvaro Uribe Vélez, President of Colombia, 2002–2010
- Juan Manuel Santos, President of Colombia, 2010–2018
- Gustavo Petro, President of Colombia, 2022–2026
- Abelardo de la Espriella, President of Colombia, 2026 to today
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.