Country Guide » Culture and History
Panama’s history has been shaped by its strategic location between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean. The native Cuevas and Cocole tribes quickly disappeared after the Spanish arrived with their weapons and diseases in the early 16th century. Panama City, on the Pacific coast, thrived as Spain conquered and plundered Peru. Caravans loaded with gold traveled overland across the narrow isthmus from Panama City to be loaded on galleons bound for Spain.
However, this wealth attracted pirates and, in the early 1700s, Panama’s Caribbean shore was dotted with so many pirate strongholds that shippers chose instead to sail around Cape Horn to Peru. Panama’s importance rapidly declined, and Spain did not contest its inclusion as a province of Colombia when that country won its independence from Spain in 1821.
Panama, Traces of the Conquerors Remain Throughout History
The Isthmus of Panama was visited by the Spanish conquerors for the first time as the result of an expedition organized by a wealthy solicitor from Triana, Rodrigo de Bastidas, in 1501. Bastidas traversed the north coast from the Gulf of Darien, through the Kunas Islands, to what is today known as Portobello. After collecting a wealth of gold and pearls, Bastidas had to suspend his expedition due to the poor condition of his ships and return to Spain with only a portion of the treasure.
Panama, Where Spain Founded the First City
On October 10, 1502, Christopher Columbus arrived on the coast of Veraguas and was mesmerized by the gold jewelry worn by the Indians. Several weeks later, on November 2, the discoverer came upon a beautiful protected bay, which he baptized with the name Portobelo. It was on Panamanian soil that Spain founded the first city on solid ground: Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien. On September 25, 1513, Vasco Nunez de Balboa discovered the southern sea and connected the Pacific Ocean with the Caribbean Sea for the first time, forever sealing Panama’s fate and strategic importance as the bridge of the world. Toward the end of the 1500s and throughout the 1600s, Panama was an important center for conquistadors, smugglers and famous pirates such as Henry Morgan and Francis Drake, who pillaged and destroyed cities.
Panama Cuts Ties with Spain and Joins the Americas
In 1821 the isthmus gained its independence from the Spanish crown and became part of Simon Bolivar’s Gran Colombia. This military leader convened a caucus in Panama in 1826 with the objective of creating a great confederation between Gran Colombia, Central America and Mexico. But he was never able to realize his dream. Gran Colombia was dissolved and Panama became part of Nueva Granada.
The first transoceanic railway was built between 1850 and 1855, connecting the two coasts in less than two hours. In 1880 the French began construction of an interoceanic canal under the leadership of Ferdinand de Lesseps. But they failed in their attempt, as the workforce was plagued by debilitating diarrhea, malaria, yellow fever and typhus, and above all, due to serious financial problems. In 1903, Panama gained its separation from Colombia.
