Editing History of Central America (section)

=== Federal Republic of Central America ===
[[File:Flag of the United Provinces of Central America.svg|thumb|Flag of Central America]]

In 1823, the [[Federal Republic of Central America]] was formed. It was intended to be a [[federal republic]] modeled after the [[United States|United States of America]]. It was provisionally known as "The United Provinces of Central America," while the final name according to the Constitution of 1824 was "The Federal Republic of Central America." It is sometimes incorrectly referred to in English as "The United States of Central America." The Central American nation consisted of the states of [[Guatemala]], [[El Salvador]], [[Honduras]], [[Nicaragua]], and [[Costa Rica]]. In the 1830s, an additional state was added, [[Los Altos, Central America|Los Altos]], with its capital in [[Quetzaltenango]], occupying parts of what is now the western highlands of Guatemala as well as part of [[Chiapas]] (now part of Mexico), but this state was reincorporated into Guatemala and Mexico respectively in 1840.

Central American liberals had high hopes for the federal republic, which they believed would evolve into a modern, democratic nation, enriched by trade crossing through it between the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] and the [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]] oceans. These aspirations are reflected in the emblems of the federal republic: The flag shows a white band between two blue stripes, representing the land between two oceans. The coat of arms shows five mountains (one for each state) between two oceans, surmounted by a [[Phrygian cap]], the emblem of the [[French Revolution]].

The Union dissolved in [[civil war]] between 1838 and 1840. Its disintegration began when [[Nicaragua]] separated from the federation on November 5, 1838. The United Provinces of Central America (or PUCA- Provincias Unidas De Centro-America in Spanish) is the name given to the different states of Central America in the time after Central America's independence and before becoming their own distinct nations (between 1823 and 1840<ref>{{cite web |title=United Provinces of Central America |url=http://www.britannica.com/place/United-Provinces-of-Central-America |access-date=April 15, 2016 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]}}</ref>). It was a political movement that strived to unify the regions of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Guatemala (Panama and Belize at the time were under separate ownership) under a liberal federal government and believed that united they would be a stronger political unit. Unfortunately, due to many strong political disagreements within the different states, the UPCA eventually disbanded and the regions became separate nations with devastating political and economic civil wars that are still felt today.

The [[Captaincy General of Guatemala|kingdom of Guatemala]], as Central America was more commonly known as during Spanish and Mexican rule, had been annexed into Mexico in 1822 under the rule of emperor [[Agustín de Iturbide]]. The annexation was not without controversy, however, and tensions simmered between the republicans and nationalists favoring complete independence on one side and monarchists, who often favored annexation into Mexico, on the other. These tensions took varying forms depending on the region in question. In El Salvador, the provincial council openly defied annexation into Mexico. Meanwhile, in other regions, inner tensions between cities such as Leon Granada in Nicaragua made any sense of unity fleeting at best.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kenyon|first=Gordon|date=1961|title=Mexican Influence in Central America, 1821-1823|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2510200|journal=The Hispanic American Historical Review|volume=41|issue=2|pages=175–205|doi=10.2307/2510200|jstor=2510200|issn=0018-2168}}</ref> Shortly after the annexation, opposition against the monarch from Central American nationalists and republicans continued to grow. These groups pushed for independence from Mexico. Iturbide's unsuccessful leadership of Central America and the seeming collapse of the Mexican Empire caused his party to fail against the uprising rebels and on July 1, 1823, Central America gained its independence.

[[Image:CentralAmerica1892.jpg|thumb|Central America in 1892]]

After independence, officials from the different regions gathered in a junta to decide the future of El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras, and Guatemala. They decided to unite into a federation of five autonomous states, thus creating the UPCA, a term coined by Brigadier General [[Vicente Filisola]], who was stationed in [[Guatemala City]].

The UPCA's aims were to be a liberal government with political principles modeled after the United States,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Foster|first1=Lyn|title=A Brief History of Central America|date=April 15, 2016|publisher=Facts on File|location=New York|isbn=9780816066711|pages=[https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofce0000fost/page/135 135–160]|edition=2nd|url=https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofce0000fost/page/135}}</ref> and also to remain united. They felt that the “provinces alone were too small and weak economically to survive as sovereign states” so they “avert[ed] fragmentation of the isthmus”<ref name="A Brief History of Central America">{{cite book|last1=Foster|first1=Lyn|title=A Brief History of Central America|date=April 15, 2016|publisher=Facts on File|location=New York|isbn=9780816066711|pages=[https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofce0000fost/page/136 136]|edition=2nd|url=https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofce0000fost/page/136}}</ref> and pushed for union. However, the UPCA soon noticed that there were many political ideals between the regions and conservative parties on the other end of the political spectrum actively showed their discontent under the new liberal regime. Despite this, the beginning of the federation went relatively smoothly and negotiations helped them reform borders, capital cities were moved to accommodate the citizens, and economies of coffee grew high. All the while, tensions between the liberals and conservatives and power struggles within the different economies increasingly grew.

One of the most notable key figures of UPCA was [[Francisco Morazan]], a liberal advocate who was chosen president of the UPCA. In the 1820s and through the 1830s Morazan took an active role in liberal movements throughout Central America, especially in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras against conservative parties. These battles between parties increasingly divided the nation causing sour relationships and distance between them. Differences between liberals who wanted [[free trade]], favored a republic and had anti-clerical views contested those of the conservatives who wanted a monarchy, trade under close control and power to the church.  These conflicts, along with [[cholera]] outbreaks, foreign intervention, and distress among those in poverty caused many insurgencies, resulting in various civil wars throughout Central America.

Morazan was captured in Costa Rica by the conservative party and they assassinated him on September 15, 1842,<ref>{{cite book|last1=Pearcy|first1=Thomas|title=The History of Central America|date=April 15, 2016|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, CT|isbn=978-0313322938|pages=40–60}}</ref> which marked the official end of the UPCA. Upon notification of his death, greater turmoil and fights among the opposing liberal and conservative parties increased. It is said that the conservative-liberal struggles that Morazan campaigned for are still in effect today.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Pearcy|first1=Thomas|title=The History of Central America|date=April 15, 2016|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, CT|isbn=978-0313322938|pages=54}}</ref> In addition, lacking a central authority proved to be unproductive and created more disputes and distrust within the different nations. In fact, foreigners who were looking to make economic and/or political negotiations were told that they had to go to each individual region for consultations and found it inconvenient.<ref name="A Brief History of Central America"/>
The desire for power and their inability to overcome bad relations among each other led to the fall of the UPCA. Nicaragua, Honduras, and Costa Rica seceded from the union in 1838. In 1839 Guatemala seceded, and in 1840 El Salvador did the same.

The provinces shortly after became their own separate republican nations, of which we are more familiar with today and eventually Panama and Belize came to be seen as part of what we know today as "Central America." Tensions among the different nations, however, continued to grow more aggressive throughout the rest of the 19th century. Despite knowing that unification would overall work better for Central America, they remained separate. Though many attempts to reunite the nations have been attempted throughout the years, none has succeeded.  Civil wars continued to be part of Central America through the 20th into the 21st century.