Costa Rica: A Historical Background

Besides the odd monuments and artefacts, not much is known of the indigenous people who inhabited the region before the arrival of the Spanish. Research of the faded remnants reveals a close link between the Incas, Mayas and the people who inhabited the area. Their tremulous social organisation and small population could, however, not resist the Spanish colonisers and within a few years all traces of the indigenous population was wiped out by the colonisers.

Christopher Columbus arrived in 1502 AD but it wasn’t till the 1560’s that the Spanish established any settlements. Attracted by tales of gold, Cartago in the western highlands was the first to be colonised. But the Spanish were to be disappointed, there was no gold and Costa Rica was left to continue its slumber away from the interference of Europe. The lack of Indians at Cartago meant no slave labour and no emergence of mestizo culture. In 1723, the nearby Volcan Irazu erupted destroying much of the town. However, the surviving populace soon rebuilt the town.

The 18th century witnessed the revival of the Spaniards’ interest in Costa Rica and colonies were established in Heredia, San Jose and Alajuela. In 1808, coffee was introduced into the economy. This added a new dimension to the economic and political scene in Costa Rica.

The year 1856 is marked out in the history of Costa Rica. William Walker the US military renegade, who had established control over Nicaragua, invaded Costa Rica. However, the army was defeated under the leadership of Juan Rafeal Mora, the then President.

The late 19th century witnessed wide scale modernisation under the leadership of General Tomas Guardia who established the infrastructure for an economically stable Costa Rica but at the cost of civil liberties. A new constitution was introduced in 1871. New cash crops like banana and sugar were introduced. This economic advancement brought with it a different social and political structure.

As compared to its neighbouring Central American countries, Costa Rica’s history has been fairly dormant. However 1948 saw a flash of violence when the communist rebels did not allow Ulate, the winner in the elections to take up office and civil war broke out. As a result of the civil strife the army of the country was dismantled completely. Today only a police force comprising of 7000 members known as the Civil Guard is in operation. The new constitution formulated during this period, 1949, aimed for a more democratic country and finally all sections of the population – women and blacks – were given the right to vote.

Though the political scene has been relatively quiet in the past few years, several natural disasters have rocked the face of Costa Rica. Both Hurricane Cesar (1996) and Hurricane Mitch (1998) caused considerable damage to the country.