120 years ago, on May 27, 1900, the two weeks of fighting near the Colombian town of Palongoro finally ended. A year ago, in 1899, a civil war broke out between the Colombian Liberal Party and the Conservative Party. Wars caused by political movements are always unavoidable, but these wars were not as cruel, bloody and protracted as this war. In October 1899, Rafael Uribe led the Liberal Party to launch an uprising. By November 1902, Uribe and other major leaders of the Liberal Party announced their surrender and the war ended. This war lasted 1130 days and was called the "Thousand Days War" by Colombia.
The cause of the war is very traditional: In 1898, the ruling Conservative Party won the parliamentary election again. The opposition Liberal Party accused the voting results of artificial manipulation and therefore refused to recognize the voting results. The picture shows the Conservative Party at the banquet, with a Gatling gun on the left.
This type of conflict is now a war of words on the Internet, but it was more direct in Colombia at the time. The hot tempers of Latin American liberals and Colombian liberals made them take more drastic actions. In 1899, armed uprising broke out in many places in Colombia, which eventually led to a civil war that lasted for three years. The picture shows the teachers and students of the Columbia Military Academy. They all stand on the side of the Conservative Party and participate in the civil war. You can see that their military uniforms are completely German style.
Neighboring countries Venezuela and Ecuador are the Liberal parties in power, and they will naturally support the actions of Colombian "like-minded people", which makes the situation in Colombia worse. The two countries provided money and guns to support the armed organization of the Colombian Liberal Party. The Conservative Party has a regular Colombian army, so it ultimately won the battle in almost all provinces. Sitting in a chair in the picture is Conservative Party General Ramon Gonzalez Valencia.
The Liberal Party was only dominant in the isthmus of Panama in Colombia at that time. After the "Thousand Day War" ended, under the instigation of the United States, the local Liberal Party and refugees in Colombia declared independence from Colombia and established the Republic of Panama. . In this way, the long-awaited construction of the Panama Canal by the United States finally exhausted their pockets, and the decline in Colombia's national strength due to the "Thousand Day War" was the main background for Panama's independence. On the right side of the picture is the Liberal Party General Mauro Murillo, known as "Black Mauro" because of his dark skin.
Regardless of the number of people participating in the war or the number of casualties, the battle in the small town of Palongoro was the largest in the "Thousand Days War". According to different sources, the number of the Liberal Party’s army is 7,000 to 10,000, and that of the Conservative Party is 12,000. With the arrival of reinforcements, the number has increased to 18,000. Although the Conservative Party has a national army, a considerable part of its force is made up of militias without uniforms.
The Liberal Party uses a red flag with a capital white letter "L" in the center of the flag, which is the initial letter of "Liberales". The Conservative Party is holding the Colombian yellow, blue and red flag and the blue flag with the capital letter "C (the first letter of Conservadores)" in the center. The picture shows the Conservative Party general Benito Uroya standing among a group of militiamen.
From a military point of view, there is nothing to say about the Palongoro battle. There is no complicated plan and tactical action, just a frontal attack and a counterattack in an open space. The battle usually ends with a machete, with the dominant side cutting off the head of the other soldier. The picture shows a militia from the Liberal Party.
The bloody battle continued. In order to relieve fatigue and improve morale, the two sides distributed large amounts of undiluted 50° rum to the combatants, which was also mixed with cocaine. Such a cocktail made the soldiers fearless of death, or even pain, and would not pay attention to the stench of hundreds of unburied bodies rotting in the high temperature environment. The picture shows the child soldiers of the Liberal Party.
There is no obvious difference between the militias of the two sides, and it is impossible to distinguish the two from these photos. For example, in this photo, some people say they are from the Conservative Party because they are holding a flag similar to the Colombian flag. But at the same time, there is information that shows that the Liberal Party militia in the photo.
After repeated battles, the Liberal Party defended Palongoro, but eventually had to retreat due to heavy casualties. During the two weeks of fighting, more than 1,000 people on the Liberal Party’s side were killed, 1,700 were injured, and 1,100 others were missing. This is the Liberal Party militia from the Panama region, when Panama had not yet independent from Colombia.
About 1,500 people from the Conservative Party were killed and 2,800 people were injured. Although the Conservative Party eventually occupied the town, many sporadic fighting broke out. The picture shows the Liberal Party militia wearing a bullet belt.
"The Thousand Days War" destroyed Colombia in all directions. Colombia has grown from a regional power in Latin America to a slump. The picture shows the banknotes issued by the Liberal Party in the area under its control.
The "Thousand Days War" oil painting by modern Colombian artists reveals the horrific side of the civil war.
The impressive monument left by the Palongoro battlefield (left). This did not happen in the Middle Ages, but the 20th century with phones, cars, and cameras. Finally these remains were buried, and a cross was erected on the basis of the original monument. The original image of this monument is painted at the bottom of the cross, along with photos of the combatants at that time.
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