Venezuela

History

Venezuela was the site of one of the first permanent Spanish settlements in South America in 1522, and most of the territory eventually became part of the viceroyalty of New Granada. Parts of what is now eastern Venezuela became New Andalusia. After several unsuccessful uprisings, the country declared independence from Spain on July 5th 1811 under the leadership of its most famous son, Simón Bolívar. Nevertheless, the full control over Venezuelan territory was achieved after Bolivar, with the help of General José Antonio Páez and especially the then General Grand Marshall Antonio José de Sucre, whose battle plan Bolívar chose to follow, won the Battle of Carabobo in June 24th 1821, and after José Prudencio Padilla won the Naval Battle of Lake Maracaibo on July 24th 1823. Subsequently, Bolívar led the armies of Venezuela and other countries to freedom and founded what are now Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. Another important revolutionary leader during the war was the aforementioned Antonio José de Sucre, who won many battles for Bolivar and was a candidate to become his natural successor until he was murdered. Venezuela became, after the revolutionary war, along with Colombia and Ecuador part of the Republic of Gran Colombia (República de Gran Colombia) until 1830, when the country separated through a rebellion led by the aforementioned Jose Antonio Páez and declared itself as a sovereign republic. Páez became the first president of Venezuela.

Related Topics:
Spanish - South America - 1522 - Viceroyalty - New Granada - New Andalusia - July 5th - 1811 - Simón Bolívar - José Antonio Páez - Grand Marshall - Antonio José de Sucre - Battle of Carabobo - June 24th - 1821 - José Prudencio Padilla - Naval Battle of Lake Maracaibo - July 24th - 1823 - Colombia - Panama - Ecuador - Peru - Bolivia - Republic of Gran Colombia - 1830 - Republic

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Much of Venezuela's 19th and early 20th century history was characterized by political instability, political struggle, and dictatorial rule. Following the death of Juan Vicente Gómez in 1935 and the demise of caudillismo (authoritarian oligarchical rule), democratic struggles eventually forced the military to withdraw from direct involvement in national politics in 1958. Since that year, Venezuela has enjoyed an unbroken tradition of democratic civilian rule, though not without conflict.

Related Topics:
19th - 20th century - Dictator - Juan Vicente Gómez - 1935 - 1958

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In 1992, there was an attempt by rebellious entities within the Venezuelan military, led by Lieutenant Hugo Chávez, to remove two-time democratically elected president Carlos Andrés Pérez from power. The coup ultimately failed, and Chávez and his co-conspirators were jailed for treason. Pérez, on the other hand, was eventually impeached and convicted for corruption. The coup brought about the death of 80 civilians and 17 members of the armed forces. Chávez's role in resisting a president generally perceived as corrupt by the lower classes made him a prominent figure among them. Chávez was eventually released from jail in 1994 by Perez's elected successor, Rafael Caldera.

Related Topics:
1992 - Hugo Chávez - Carlos Andrés Pérez - Rafael Caldera

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Chávez was elected president in 1998 with 56% of the vote as part of a new political party, the Movement for the Fifth Republic. His platform (Bolivarian revolution) called for the signing of a new constitution, which was written by a Constituent Assembly and approved by referendum in 1999. Chávez was re-elected in 2000 under the new constitution with 59% of the vote. In November 2000, the National Assembly granted Chávez the right to rule by decree for one year, and in November 2001, Chávez made a set of 49 decrees, including large reforms in oil and agrarian policy. Those decrees made him popular with the poor.

Related Topics:
Elected president in 1998 - Movement for the Fifth Republic - Bolivarian revolution - New constitution - Re-elected in 2000

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Although parties supporting Chávez have consistently won a majority of seats in parliament, Chávez has only slowly been able to gain control of most branches of the government, due to the power of the corrupt public service bureaucracy. The government has often had to create new grassroots public services in the form of "missions" to avoid going through the corrupt bureaucracy. Chávez openly admits to attempting to establish socialism in Venezuela and has formed close ties with Cuban President Fidel Castro. The most recent examples include seizure of plantations whose occupants claim as privately owned.

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In December 2001, the nation's largest business organizations, Fedecamaras, the Confederación de Trabajadores de Venezuela, the largest labor union in Venezuela, and the petroleum workers' union of PDVSA organized a general strike. This is a first in the history of labour relations; owners, executives, and managers and rank and file workers joined together to protest the ruinous economic policies of Chávez. In April 2002, high-ranking members within the Armed Forces refused to carry out the Plan Avila, ordered by Chávez, during massive opposition demonstrations that unexpectedly began to march towards the Presidential Palace on April 11th. Accordingly to television broadcasts, unarmed protesters were shot at by pro-government protesters, who killed more than 18 people that day, although it has been shown that the anti-goverment group and the pro-goverment one were too far away from each other. To this day, the responsibility for these deaths has not been established. During the chaos that ensued, Chávez was taken hostage to the military and forced to sign a letter of resignation (which has yet to be found) by members of the Armed Forces. During the confusion, Fedecámaras President Pedro Carmona Estanga stepped up and took power. Though initially supported by the high-ranking military that had rebelled against Chávez, he lost support after he proceeded to dissolve all democratic institutions formed under the Chávez regime - and part of the military that remained loyal to Chávez brought him back. Diosdado Cabello, Vice President of Venezuela, became temporary president as dictated by the constitution. Chávez was restored to the Presidency in 48 hours.

Related Topics:
December - 2001 - General strike - Diosdado Cabello

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The following two years were marked by massive protests by the opposition, who managed in 2004 to obtain more than 2 million signatures to call for a referendum on Chávez, who accused many of the signatures of being fraudulent. The recall referendum was held on 15 August 2004, and Chávez won with approximately 60% of the vote. Leaders and supporters of the opposition refused to accept the results of the election, and claimed fraud, despite all international observers endorsing the election as free and fair. The Organization of American States and the Carter Center certified the referendum.

Related Topics:
15 August - 2004 - Organization of American States - Carter Center

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Venezuela is member of the South American Community of Nations (SACN). (more)

Related Topics:
South American Community of Nations - SACN - (more)

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See also: Discoverer of the Americas, List of Presidents of Venezuela

Related Topics:
Discoverer of the Americas - List of Presidents of Venezuela

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