History of El Salvador

The history of El Salvador has been a struggle against many conquistadors, empires, dictatorships and world powers. After gaining independence, several Spanish Creoles took control of the government and economy. Anastacio Aquino, king of the Nonoualquenos, led a rebellion against what was referred to as an abuse of power and corruption, but it was repressed by the government.

This repression would have repercussions for the future of El Salvador. La matanza, and all the liberation movements from the 1930s to 1980s, would emerge from the injustices committed by Spanish rule, Creoles, and other foreign power interventions.

Before the Spanish conquest, the area that is known as El Salvador was composed of three indigenous states and several principalities. In central El Salvador were the indigenous inhabitants, the Pipils, or the Pipiles, a tribe of the nomadic people of Nahua that were settled there for a long time. "The Pipil were a determined people who stoutly resisted Spanish efforts to extend their dominion southward."[1]

The region of the east was populated and then governed by the Lencas. The North zone of the Lempa High River was populated and governed by the Chortis, a Mayan people. Their culture was similar to that of their Aztec and Maya neighbors.

"Several notable archaeological sites contain dwellings and other evidence of daily life 1400 years ago; these were found preserved beneath 6 m (20 ft) of volcanic ash."[2]

The first Spanish attempt to control El Señorío of Cuzcatlán, or The Lordship of Cuzcatlán, failed in 1524, when Pedro de Alvarado was forced to retreat by Pipil warriors led by King Atlacatl and Prince Atonal in the Battle of Acajuctla. In 1525, he returned and succeeded in bringing the district under control of the Audiencia of Mexico.

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