Editing Nicaragua (section)

=== Somoza dynasty (1927–1979) ===
[[File:Trujillo-Somoza 1952.jpg|thumb|President [[Anastasio Somoza García]] (left) with [[Dominican Republic|Dominican]] President [[Rafael Trujillo]] in 1952]]
[[File:Meeting with President Anastasio Somoza Debayle of Nicaragua, before State Dinner - NARA - 194723-perspective-tilt-crop.jpg|thumb|[[Anastasio Somoza Debayle]] (center) with U.S. president [[Richard Nixon]] in 1971]]
Nicaragua has experienced several military dictatorships, the longest being the hereditary dictatorship of the [[Somoza family]], who ruled for 43 nonconsecutive years during the 20th century.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Colburn|first=Forrest D.|title=Nicaragua, Forlorn|journal=World Policy Journal|issue=Spring 2012|url=http://www.worldpolicy.org/journal/spring2012/nicaragua-forlorn|access-date=31 May 2012|date=26 March 2012|volume=29|pages=91–100|doi=10.1177/0740277512443806|archive-date=6 May 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120506221638/http://www.worldpolicy.org/journal/spring2012/nicaragua-forlorn|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Somoza family came to power in 1937 partly as a result of a U.S.-engineered pact in 1927 that stipulated the formation of the ''Guardia Nacional'' to replace the marines who had long reigned in the country.<ref>{{cite book|title=Lying for Empire: How to Commit War Crimes With a Straight Face|first=David|last=Model|publisher=Common Courage Press|year=2005}}</ref> Somoza García slowly eliminated officers in the national guard who might have stood in his way, and then deposed Sacasa and became president on 1&nbsp;January 1937, in a [[Electoral fraud|rigged election]].<ref name=SY/>

In 1941, during the [[Second World War]], Nicaragua declared war on [[Empire of Japan|Japan]] (8 December), [[Nazi Germany|Germany]] (11 December), [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy]] (11 December), [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] (19 December), [[Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)|Hungary]] (19 December) and [[Kingdom of Romania|Romania]] (19 December). Only Romania reciprocated, declaring war on Nicaragua on the same day (19 December 1941).<ref>Goldstein, Erik (2005) ''Wars and Peace Treaties: 1816 to 1991''. Routledge. p. 218. {{ISBN|9781134899111}}</ref> No soldiers were sent to the war, but Somoza García confiscated properties held by [[German Nicaraguan]] residents.<ref>{{cite news|title=El asalto de Somoza a los alemanes |date=6 January 2005 |url=http://archivo.elnuevodiario.com.ni/2005/enero/06-enero-2005/nacional/nacional-20050106-04.html |access-date=13 July 2007 |language=es |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012011055/http://archivo.elnuevodiario.com.ni/2005/enero/06-enero-2005/nacional/nacional-20050106-04.html |archive-date=12 October 2007 }}</ref> In 1945, Nicaragua was among the first countries to ratify the United Nations Charter.<ref>{{cite web|title=Charter of the United Nations and Statute of the International Court of Justice|page=49|publisher=United Nations|place=San Francisco|date=26 June 1945|url=http://treaties.un.org/doc/Publication/CTC/uncharter.pdf|access-date=21 July 2011|archive-date=16 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116214749/http://treaties.un.org/doc/Publication/CTC/uncharter.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 29 September 1956,<ref>{{Cite web|date=30 September 1956|title=SOMOZA'S NATION CALLED HIS FIEF; Rule of Nicaraguan General, Beginning With 1935 Coup, Was Seldom Challenged PRESIDENT FIRST IN '37 Graduate of Business School in U.S., He Acquired Great Wealth During Regime|url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1956/09/30/88469093.html|access-date=8 November 2021|website=New York Times TimesMachine|language=en|archive-date=5 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240205140309/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1956/09/30/88469093.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Somoza García was shot to death by [[Rigoberto López Pérez]], a 27-year-old Liberal Nicaraguan poet. [[Luis Somoza Debayle]], the eldest son of the late president, was appointed president by the congress and officially took charge of the country.<ref name=SY/> He is remembered by some as moderate, but after only a few years in power died of a heart attack. His successor as president was [[René Schick Gutiérrez]], whom most Nicaraguans viewed "as nothing more than a puppet of the Somozas".<ref>{{cite news|last=Leonard |first=TM |title=Against all odds: U.S. policy and the 1963 Central America Summit Conference |year=2003 |publisher=Journal of Third World Studies |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3821/is_200304/ai_n9173383/pg_11 |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20090628115503/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3821/is_200304/ai_n9173383/pg_11 |url-status=dead |archive-date=28 June 2009 |page=11 |access-date=9 May 2007 }}</ref> Somoza García's youngest son, [[Anastasio Somoza Debayle]], often referred to simply as "Somoza", became president in 1967.

An [[1972 Nicaragua earthquake|earthquake in 1972]] destroyed nearly 90% of Managua, including much of its infrastructure.<ref>{{cite news|title=Headline: Nicaragua Earthquake |date=16 December 1972 |publisher=Vanderbilt Television News Archive |url=http://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/program.pl?ID=221286 |access-date=24 May 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510035404/https://tvnews.vanderbilt.edu/program.pl?ID=221286 |archive-date=10 May 2011 }}</ref> Instead of helping to rebuild the city, Somoza siphoned off relief money. The mishandling of relief money also prompted [[Pittsburgh Pirates]] star [[Roberto Clemente]] to personally fly to Managua on 31&nbsp;December 1972, but he died ''en route'' in an airplane accident.<ref>{{cite web |title=Roberto Clemente |url=https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/clemente-roberto |website=National Baseball Hall of Fame |access-date=8 March 2022 |archive-date=8 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308052248/https://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/clemente-roberto |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Roberto Clemente – Bio|publisher=The National Baseball Hall of Fame|url=http://baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/hofer_bios/clemente_roberto.htm|access-date=9 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070427145215/http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/hofer_bios/clemente_roberto.htm|archive-date=27 April 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> Even the economic elite were reluctant to support Somoza, as he had acquired monopolies in industries that were key to rebuilding the nation.<ref>{{cite news|title=A Battle Ends, a War Begins|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,946048-1,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930135935/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,946048-1,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 September 2007|magazine=TIME|access-date=21 August 2007|date=11 September 1978}}</ref>

The Somoza family was among a few families or groups of influential firms which reaped most of the benefits of the country's growth from the 1950s to the 1970s. When Somoza was deposed by the Sandinistas in 1979, the family's worth was estimated to be between $500&nbsp;million and $1.5&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{cite news|last=Annis|first=B|title=Nicaragua: Diversification and Growth, 1945–77|year=1993|publisher=The Library of Congress|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ni0047)|access-date=25 September 2012|archive-date=7 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407221029/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+ni0047)|url-status=live}}</ref>