When was bolivia colonized

Tihuanaco is now one of the most popular highlights for visitors to La Paz. Historians believe this was a very complex culture which was quite advanced for their era.

It is believed they even made contact with the Nazca people, of modern-day Peru. But the Tihuanacos were not the only culture living in Bolivia in these ancient times.

The Bolivian lowlands were inhabited by the Moxos, whilst the Mollos lived north of what is now La Paz. All of these cultures disappeared, almost into thin air, at about the same time. As luck would have it, or as history has shown, when one culture disappears it is usually at the hands of one mightier, greater power. The Incas , one of the most known ancient empire in South America , rose to prominence in Bolivia in the 15 th century, advancing and conquering lands at a head-spinning speed.

They assimilated foreign indigenous cultures into their own, enslaving them to work in their mines and fields, and building their great cities and aqueducts. Reflection of tourist at the Salar de Uyuni. The Spanish arrived in Bolivia looking for gold and riches in the early s. Their rule was brutal and, it must be said, also very efficient. Within a decade, it is said, the country we now called Bolivia was conquered. Called Upper Peru and under the administration of Lime, Bolivia was turned into one, bona fide, colossal mine.

Over the next years, Bolivia — and its indigenous inhabitants — was prolifically exploited for minerals and labour, with all the revenue shipped out across the Atlantic. The silver-enriched mountains of Potosi continued to be mined right until the s and the city is an incredibly fascinating place to visit albeit, arguably, not an immensely pretty one. Lovely view over the La Merced church in Sucre.

Economically Bolivia prospered. Tin mining boomed and it replaced silver mining as the main industry. Meanwhile, railways were built in Bolivia linking parts of Bolivia. In the north, a rubber industry boomed.

However politically Bolivia was split between Conservatives and Liberals. Then in Bolivian Liberals rose in rebellion. The so-called Federal Revolution ended with the Liberals seizing power. Then in rubber tappers in the Acre region rebelled demanding independence. They were supported by the Brazilians and in the Bolivian government decided to sell Acre to Brazil.

In the Conservatives staged a coup in Bolivia and regained power. In the s mining in Bolivia flourished but after the Wall Street Crash in the Bolivian economy suffered severely. The war went very badly for Bolivia and many of her men died in the conflict. The war ended in but in army officers staged a coup. They introduced a regime they called military socialism and they nationalized the holdings of the American Standard Oil Company.

In the MNR formed an alliance with some army officers and they staged a coup. Gualberto Villarroel led the new government. However, Villaroel was overthrown by a revolution in and he was hanged outside the presidential palace. Bolivia was then ruled by a coalition of traditional parties until when the army took control. However, in the MNR launched a revolution and returned to power in Bolivia. They then embarked on a program of reform. The three biggest tin companies in Bolivia were nationalized and universal suffrage was introduced everybody was given the vote.

However, in mids Bolivia suffered from high inflation. Faced with economic troubles the Bolivian government turned to the USA for help. The USA gave loans and the economy stabilized but in the army staged another coup. For most of the next 18 years, Bolivia endured military dictatorship. Despite the repression, the Bolivian economy boomed and the population grew rapidly. Indigenous people, who still make up the majority of the population of Bolivia today, have been forced to live in deplorable conditions throughout Bolivia's entire history, working in the mines photo and as laborers in agriculture.

They were given very little or no education, had no access to economic opportunities, and were unable to participate politically. It is interesting to note, however, that due to Bolivia's geographically isolated position, indigenous groups here were not as hard hit by European diseases as native peoples in other regions whose numbers were severely dessimated due to the diseases they were unaccustomed to.

This may be one of the reasons people of indigenous descent still comprise nearly two-thirds of Bolivia's population today. In addition, few African slaves were brought into the region that is Bolivia today during the colonial era because there was a large enough indigenous population to use as labor in the mines, whereas African slaves were taken to coastal regions, especially in Brazil. The descendants of the few African slaves that were brought over, now inhabit a small are north of La Paz near Coroico and are called "Afrobolivianos".

With the arrival of priests from the Jesuit order, who established missions throughout an extensive portion of South America, self-sustainable communities were created. The Jesuits set up a system of obrajes textile mills and taught the natives to create and play typical baroque-style European musical instruments. Today, visitors can take a historical tour of an entire circuit of towns known as the Jesuit Missions to view the baroque-style architecture of these old mission churches, many of which remain intact and have been restored.

Throughout the next three centuries, the histories of the Spanish and indigenous cultures and races became intricately entwined. Throughout the colonial era indigenous groups, forced to accept the Roman Catholic religion, simply assimilated it into their native beliefs continuing to worship their own deities along with the God and saints of the Catholic religion. You can read more about that on our Bolivian religion page.