El Salvador Essay Research Paper HISTORYThe Olmec

El Salvador Essay, Research Paper

HISTORY

The Olmec Boulder, a stone sculpture of a giant head found near Chalchuapa in

western El Salvador, is evidence of Olmec presence in the region from at

least 2000 BC. The step-pyramid ruins at Tazumal and San Andres show that the

Maya also lived in western El Salvador for over 1000 years. Groups that

inhabited the eastern part of the country included the Chorti, Lenca and

Pok’omame.

When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the country was dominated by

the Pipil, descendants of Nahuatl-speaking Toltecs and Aztecs, both Mexican

tribes. The Pipil probably came to central El Salvador in the 11th century

just after the Maya dynasty collapsed. Their culture was similar to that of

the Aztecs, with heavy Maya influences and a maize-based agricultural economy

that supported several cities and a complex culture including hieroglyphic

writing, astronomy and mathematics.

Spain’s claim was staked by the conquistador Pedro de Alvarado, who arrived

in the area in 1525. The Spanish developed plantations of cotton, balsam and

indigo. Throughout the 1700s agriculture boomed, but a group of 14 elite

European families maintained control of most of the land, which was farmed by

enslaved indigenous people or slaves imported from Africa.

Father Jose Matias Delgado organized a revolt against Spain in 1811, but it

was quickly suppressed. Napoleon’s invasion of Spain the following year

increased the impetus for reform, and El Salvador eventually gained

independence in 1821. This did not alter the dynamics of land ownership, an

issue at the core of an unsuccessful Indian rebellion in 1833, led by

Anastasio Aquino. In 1841, following the dissolution of the Central American

Federation (formed between El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras and

Nicaragua), El Salvador became a sovereign independent nation.

In the second half of the 19th century, synthetic dyes undermined the indigo

market, and coffee took main stage in the economy. By the 20th century, 95%

of El Salvador’s income came from coffee exports, but only 2% of the

population controlled that wealth. Intermittent efforts by the poor majority

to redress El Salvador’s social and economic injustices were met with severe

repression. The first popular movement for change followed on the heels of

the stock-market crash of 1929 and the subsequent plummeting of coffee

prices.

In January 1932, Augustin Farabundo Marti, a founder of the Central American

Socialist party, led an uprising of peasants and Indians. The military

responded by systematically killing anyone who looked Indian or who supported

the uprising. In all, 30,000 people were killed. Marti was arrested and

executed by firing squad; his name is preserved in the FMLN (Frente Marti

Liberacion Nacional).

By the 1960s El Salvador’s failing economy and severe overpopulation drove

hundreds of thousands of Salvadorans to cross illegally into Honduras seeking

work. In 1969, allegations of Honduran mistreatment of Salvadoran immigrants

were raised just as a World Cup soccer match between the two countries was

being played. National rivalries and passions escalated to a ridiculous level

that resulted in El Salvador invading Honduran territory and bombing its

airports. The conflict lasted less than 100 hours, but relations between the

two neighbors were hostile for over a decade.

During the 1970s the population suffered from increased landlessness,

poverty, unemployment and overpopulation. Political parties became polarized

and fought for power largely through coups and electoral fraud. In 1972, the

military arrested and exiled the elected president and installed their own

candidate in power. Guerrilla activity increased, and the government

responded by unleashing ‘death squads’ who murdered, tortured or kidnapped

thousands of Salvadorans.

In 1979, a junta of military and civilians overthrew the president and

promised reforms. When these reforms were not met, opposition parties banded

together under the party name Federacion Democratico Revolucionario, of which

the FMLN was the largest group.

The successful revolution in Nicaragua in 1979 encouraged many Salvadorans to

believe that armed struggle was the only way to secure reforms. When popular

archbishop Oscar Romero was assassinated saying mass in 1980, his death

sparked an armed insurrection.

FMLN guerrillas gained control of areas in the north and east of El Salvador

and blew up bridges, destroyed power lines and burned coffee plantations in a

bid to stifle the country’s economy. The Reagan Administration, unnerved by

the success of Nicaragua’s socialist revolution, donated huge amounts of

money to the Salvadoran government, and the military retaliated by decimating

villages, causing 300,000 citizens to flee the country.

In

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