Ecuador History

Ecuador History

Early period until the 18th century

Findings from the highlands of Ecuador date to around 10,000 years before the beginning of the Christian era. The ceramic finds from the Valdivia phase (3200 to 1800 BC) form some of the oldest evidence of South America. After 1800 BC The first permanent permanent settlements formed, which were connected with the beginning of field construction. In the post-Christian period, regional cultures only developed, which from 500 AD. came into an integration phase, which was influenced by the influence of the Incas in the middle of the 15th century. The Incas had founded an empire under Manco Capac in Peru around 1200 and developed into an important figure in the north of the South American continent in the following three centuries.

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In the 1960s, the Incas incorporated the southern highlands of Loja and Cuenca into their empire. At the end of the 15th century, the entire interior and parts of the coastal region followed. Shortly before the arrival of European seafarers, the Inca Empire had an area of ​​around two million square kilometers – that is five times the area of ​​Germany today. From 1531 the Spaniards conquered the Inca empire and thus subjugated Ecuador, which was added to the Viceroyalty of Peru in 1563 as Audiencia with Quito as the capital. The beginnings of Spanish colonization were characterized by forced Christianization, forced labor and enslavement. At the beginning of the 18th century, the Audiencia Quito – as the area of ​​today’s Ecuador was called by the Spaniards – came to the Viceroyalty of Neugranada,

19th century

The desire for independence increased from the beginning of the 19th century, with the revolution in 1809 the fight for independence against Spain and its representatives began. It ended with General Sucres’ victory at Pichincha in 1822. After a few years of belonging to Greater Colombia, Ecuador took over in 1830. An unstable period of coups, internal unrest and territorial disputes began, which led to the loss of a large part of the Amazonian territory. Domestic conflicts arose from the different objectives of the liberals (merchants in the coastal region) on the one hand and the conservatives (large landowners of the highlands) on the other.

Also in the 19th century, the Ecuadorians took possession of the Gal¨¢pagos Islands – the archipelago was discovered by the Spaniards in 1535, Charles Darwins stayed there in 1835.

20th century

Under President Eloy Alfaro, religious freedom was enforced at the turn of the 20th century and the separation of church and state was accomplished. According to AbbreviationFinder, railway lines emerged and in the early 20th century the expansion of the road network began under General Plaza. There followed a phase of political instability, which was not resolved by the election of Jos¨¦ Mar¨ªa Velasco Ibarra as head of state in 1934 – he was overthrown five times until 1972, but came to power four times (1935, 1947, 1956 and 1961) – but did so an economic upswing and social improvements have been implemented. The charismatic leader had a political influence on Ecuador for forty years. During his reign, the protocol of Rio de Janeiro, by which the country lost almost half of its territory to Peru,

After the (fifth) coup in 1972 against Velasco ruled a military government, which was replaced in 1976 by a junta of the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Large parts of the oil industry were nationalized, but this did not change the country’s economic situation. After a referendum in 1979, a new liberal constitution was enacted and the country was one of the first countries in Latin America to begin to democratize. In new elections, Jaime Rold¨®s Aguilera came to power from the People’s Party CFP (Concentraci¨®n de Fuerzas Populares), under whose government government debt and inflation rose sharply. His successor was the Christian Democrat Le¨®n Febres Cordero in 1984, who also failed to solve social and economic problems. He was followed in 1988 by the social democratic R. Borja Cevallos and in 1992 by the neoliberal S. Dur¨¢n Ball¨¦n. Whilst the government was unable to meet the expectations placed on it, an agricultural reform brought about a redistribution of land that opened new perspectives, especially for the Indians living in the Amazon region.

In 1995 there were again border disputes with Peru, involving a region that was claimed by both sides and in which oil sources were suspected. After the state of emergency had already been declared in Ecuador, a war could still be prevented through the mediation of the UN. In 1996, AJ Bucaram Ortiz surprisingly came to power and started negotiations with the former enemy of the war, Peru. However, he was deposed again in 1997 after a general strike and large demonstrations led to corruption and nepotism. The army intervened again for the first time after 1972 and with its help Vice President Rosalia Arteaga became interim president. However, after a few months in elections, she was defeated by the former President of Parliament, F. Alarc¨®n, who became the new President.

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After another large-scale demonstration by Indian populations demanding the resignation of President Mahuad Witt, a three-member junta took over in a bloodless coup in early 2000, the previous Vice President Dr. Gustavo Noboa Bejarano, a respected politician, was proclaimed the new head of state. Under his presidency, the IMF (International Monetary Fund), along with the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, approved new large-scale loans to boost the economy; the economic situation improved. Following renewed demonstrations by Native Americans in the capital city of Quito in February 2001, Antonio Varga, President and Native Leader, agreed to end the conflict and withdraw price increases. In November 2002, Lucio Gutierrez was elected new head of state. At the height of a wave of protests over corruption and violation of the rule of law, he was removed from office in April 2005. The previous Vice President Dr. Sworn in Alfredo Palacio. In January 2007, President Rafael Correa took office. The main points of his government program are a stronger role of the state in the economy (realignment of the oil sector under state control) and the intensification of social programs. The National Congress has been replaced by a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution. This constitution, which came into force on October 20, 2008, significantly strengthens the role of the President. Correa was confirmed in office in 2009 and 2013.

In 2008, Ecuador founded the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) along with the other eleven independent states of South America, modeled on the European Union. The relationship with Colombia is, however, burdened by the internal conflict there: Ecuadorian territory is repeatedly violated by Colombian troops in the context of cocaine extermination campaigns or in the persecution of FARC rebels.

Ecuador President