This Friday, September 15, Costa Rica celebrates 196 years of independence. If you live in Costa Rica you are probably already familiar with many aspects of the country’s history and traditions regarding this day, but in case you need a quick refreshing course here are some quick facts you should know about Costa Rica’s Independence and the road traveled to become an officially independent republic.

1) Costa Rica used to be a colony of Spain along with Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua, with Guatemala functioning as sort of a “regional government”
2) When Mexico declared its independence from Spain in 1821, Guatemala signed the Independence Act declaring the City of Guatemala as independent on September 15, 1821; this date is taken as the independence day for the rest of the Central American colonies, however, the actual independence declaration did not arrive in Costa Rica until October 13, 1821 and it arrived along with another document issued in Leon, Nicaragua, known as “Acta de los Nublados” in which complete independence from Guatemala is confirmed and “moderation” is requested until things “get cleared up”, in case Spain reverted the independence and to consider the possible union to the Mexico Empire.
3) In October 29, 1821, leaders and representatives from the four provinces (San Jose, Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago) gathered in Cartago, and Costa Rica confirms the independence from Spain; however, the representatives from Cartago and Heredia wanted to adhere to the rules that would be issued by the Mexico Empire of Agustin de Iturbide, while San José and Alajuela wanted to be completely independent.
4) Putting their differences on hold, the delegates from each province gathered again in Cartago in November to create a set of rules to abide by, what is now considered the first constitution of Costa Rica, the “Pacto de Concordia” (December 1) declared the right of the Province of Costa Rica of constituting its own form of government, slavery was abolished and the residents’ rights recognized. At this moment, it was agreed that the capital city would rotate among the four cities.
5) In 1823 the differences between the cities came to their maximum point and ended up in what is considered the First Civil War of Costa Rica, where San José and Alajuela battled with Cartago and Heredia. San Jose and Alajuela came out victorious.
6) In 1824 Costa Rica formed part of the Central American Federal Republic as a participant state, however with very little influence since it had only two representatives in Guatemala. Eventually, Braulio Carrillo broke Costa Rica out of the Federal Republic in 1838.
7) Some years of political instability came, and it was in 1848 when Jose María Castro Madríz decided to transform the then “state” of Costa Rica to a Republic. Making Costa Rica an independent Republic declared as such on August 31, 1848, and therefore Madriz became the last State Chief and the First President of Costa Rica.

Costa Rica celebrates its independence every 15 of September between parades and anthems. The celebration begins with the torch run that starts in Guatemala in September 9 where the “independence torch” is lit and carried by foot through the different Central American countries, finishing in Cartago Costa Rica on the 14th of September at 6 p.m. moment in which Costa Rica gathers to sing the 15th of September anthem with lit “faroles” (lanterns).