As many as 400,000 Amerindians were living in the land now known as Venezuela when Christopher Columbus landed at the mouth of the Orinoco in August 1498, on his third voyage of discovery. The nation received its name, meaning "Little Venice," from Alonso de Ojeda, who sailed into the Gulf of Venezuela in August 1499 and was reminded of the Italian city by the native huts built on stilts over the water.
The first Europeans to settle Venezuela were Germans. Holy Roman Emperor Charles V granted the Welsers, a German banking firm, the right to colonize and develop Venezuela in exchange for the cancellation of a debt. Lasting a little less than 20 years, the administration of the Welsers was characterized by extensive exploration and organization of the territory but also by brutality toward the native population. In 1546, the grant was rescinded, and Venezuela was returned to the Spanish crown.
Under the Spanish, Eastern Venezuela was governed under the audiencia (region under a royal court) of Santo Domingo, and the western and southern regions became a captaincy-general under the viceroyalty of Peru. Settlement of the colony was hampered by constant wars with the Amerindians, which did not stop until after a smallpox epidemic in 1580. Meanwhile, the province was carved into encomiendas (hereditary grants), which were given to the conquistadores as rewards.
By the end of the century, however, the encomienda system was abandoned, and existing grants were declared illegal. The cabildos, or town councils, won more authority, and a national consciousness began to develop. In 1717, the western and southern provinces were incorporated into the viceroyalty of New Granada, and in 1783, the area of present-day Venezuela became a captaincy-general of Caracas.
The war for independence against Spain began in 1810. Francisco de Miranda ("El Precursor"), a military adventurer, was named leader of the Congress of Cabildos, which declared the independence of Venezuela on 5 July 1811. Royalist factions rallied to overthrow the new republic, which was weakened when an earthquake destroyed revolutionary strongholds and left royalist centers virtually untouched.
Miranda was captured and sent to die in a dungeon in Cádiz, but Simón Bolívar, a native of Caracas who had served under Miranda, was able to flee to Colombia. He then led an army across the Andes into Venezuela, declaring "War to the death and no quarter to Spaniards." In August 1812, he entered Caracas and assumed the title of Liberator ("El Libertador"). He was defeated and forced to flee to Jamaica, as the royalists again took control of the capital.
In December 1816, Bolívar, after landing in eastern Venezuela, established his headquarters in Angostura, now Ciudad Bolívar. He was aided by Gen. José Antonio Páez. The Congress of Angostura convened in October 1818 and in February 1819 elected Bolívar president of the Venezuelan republic. In the spring, he crossed the Andes, and in July, he entered Tunja, Colombia, with about 3,000 men and, after defeating the Spaniards at Boyacá, entered Bogotá. Under Bolívar's leadership, Gran Colombia (Greater Colombia) was formed from Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela, with Bolívar as its president and military dictator. The end of the Venezuelan war of independence came with Bolívar's victory at Carabobo in June 1821.
In 1830, Venezuela seceded from Gran Colombia. A period of civil wars lasted from 1846 to 1870, when the caudillo Antonio Guzmán Blanco assumed power. Guzmán was overthrown in 1888, and a few years later, Joaquín Crespo, a former puppet president of Guzmán, seized power. The next dictator, Cipriano Castro (1899–1908), was a colorful, if controversial, figure. A drunkard and a libertine, Castro also put Venezuela deeply into debt. When Castro refused to repay its outstanding loans, Germany, Great Britain, and Italy sent gunboats to blockade the Venezuelan coast. After mediation by the United States and a decision favorable to the European creditors by the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, Venezuela met its obligations by 1907.
The next year, Castro sought medical care in Paris, leaving Venezuela in the hands of Juan Vicente Gómez. Gómez (1908–35) promptly seized power and ruled as dictator until his death. Although uneducated and practically illiterate, Gómez had a mind for business and proved a capable administrator. During his dictatorship, agriculture was developed and oil was discovered, making Venezuela one of the richest countries in Latin America. Oil concessions attracted US, British, and Dutch companies, initiating an era of oil wealth that continues today.
Venezuela took its last steps toward full democracy after January 1958, when a popular revolt with military backing drove Pérez Jiménez from power. An interim government consisting of a military junta held elections in December 1958, and Betancourt was chosen president. Venezuela has had fair and free elections ever since. After the death of Gómez, Venezuela began to move toward democracy. During two military governments, opposition parties were permitted, allowing the Democratic Action (Acción Democrática—AD) to organize. In 1945, the military scheduled an election, but many feared a fraudulent outcome.
The AD deposed the military, and a junta named AD leader Rómulo Betancourt provisional president. Betancourt set elections for 1947, and conducted the first free election for president in Venezuelan history. The AD candidate Rómulo Gallegos, a distinguished novelist, was elected overwhelmingly, but the military intervened in November 1948. A bloodless army coup replaced Gallegos with a military junta that ruled for four years. In December 1952, during the scheduled presidential election Marcos Pérez Jiménez seized power and became an absolute dictator.
The Betancourt government (1959–64) instituted modest programs for fiscal and agrarian reform, school construction, the elimination of illiteracy, and diversification of the economy. However, a depression beginning in 1960 trammeled these efforts and aggravated dissatisfaction with the regime. Betancourt was challenged by political instability coming from several fronts. The military, looking for a chance to return to power, engaged in several attempts to overthrow the government.
Betancourt also opposed Fidel Castro, and allied with the United States against him. Castroites in Venezuela responded with a guerrilla campaign under the FALN (Armed Forces for National Liberation). Betancourt charged the Castro government with attempting to subvert his government by supporting the FALN. In February 1964, the OAS formally charged Cuba with an act of aggression against Venezuela as a result of the discovery of an arms shipment to guerrillas in November 1963.
