History

The first European known to have visited Panama was the Spaniard Rodrigo de Bastidas in 1501. In 1502, Christopher Columbus explored the eastern Panamanian coast on his fourth trip to the New World; one of the ships he abandoned on this voyage was believed to have been discovered off the coast near the port of Portobelo in 2001. In 1513, Vasco Núñez de Balboa crossed the isthmus and saw the Pacific Ocean. Panama's early importance centered on its position as a transshipment route between Spain and its New World colonies. Panama was, as a result, one of Spain's wealthiest colonial centers during the 17th century. A Scottish attempt to establish a rival colony (the Darien Scheme, 1698–99; see Darién) was a dismal failure.

Panama declared its independence from Spain in 1821 and joined Simón Bolívar's Gran Colombia. The economy lagged until the late 19th century, when interest in transportation schemes across the isthmus developed. In the 1880s a French company headed by Ferdinand de Lesseps began to excavate a canal across the isthmus; it later sold the rights to the United States. U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt supported a Panamanian independence movement, hoping for more favorable treaty terms for canal construction. These efforts led to a Panamanian revolt and declaration of independence from Colombia on Nov. 3, 1903. The new government immediately concluded the Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the United States. This treaty created the U.S.-controlled Panama Canal Zone (see also Bunau-Varilla, Philippe Jean; Hay-Pauncefote Treaty).