But as a big country, Bolivia's overall development after independence is not very good. Even the whole of South America? The weakest? A country. Why do I say that? This weakness is mainly reflected in its military strength. It is quite obvious that it has fought many wars with its neighbors in history, but it was not only defeated, but also forced to cede territory. In addition to Brazil, there is a small country like Chile, which makes people feel incredible.
Why is this happening in Bolivia? Destructive? And then what?
First of all, let's learn about the internal situation of Bolivia in history.
Bolivia, a country, is still very turbulent after independence. In less than 200 years from the founding of the People's Republic to the beginning of 2 1 century, nearly 200 coups took place. In other words, some governments may be overthrown by another new government within two or three months or even earlier.
The reason for this phenomenon is that Bolivia, as one of the important colonies of western colonists in South America, has a variety of nationalities and is prone to some contradictions, but the state has not taken effective measures to alleviate the contradictions, resulting in a strong sense of hierarchy among Bolivians. The status of local aborigines and blacks is the lowest, then the status of hybrids is slightly higher, and the status of whites is the highest.
With class contradictions, there will naturally be disputes. The long-term struggle of these three classes has made the internal contradictions in Bolivia never stop, and even bloody conflicts have emerged.
In this domestic high-pressure political situation, the real sovereignty of the whole country will generally be firmly in the hands of the army. But we should all know that when the country is completely ruled by the army, some inevitable problems will arise.
For example, under the rule of the military, the probability of dictatorship is very high, and one party's dictatorship will make many forces dissatisfied, so it is easy to produce some conflicts of interest, as was the case in Bolivia at that time.
The Bolivian army is very disharmonious, a bit like China in the Republic of China, and basically it is fighting on its own; On the surface, everyone agrees with this unification, but in fact, all armies have their own wishful thinking, and the government lobbies among warlords to achieve a balance. In foreign wars, although slogans are louder and louder, in real wars, everyone has his own small abacus.
There are class contradictions in Bolivia and conflicts of interest in the army in charge of the country, which is very unfavorable to the harmony of the whole country. If the country is like this, it will easily lead to people's negative emotions, so that social productive forces will not develop, and eventually the overall development of the country will be slow, gradually forming a sharp gap with neighboring countries.
If a country's machinery can't operate normally, it is naturally impossible to produce a large number of war materials. Even though Bolivia has a large territory, when it is at war with other countries, it cannot gather enough strength to compete with it, and this strength not only refers to military weapons, but also manifests itself in the gathering of manpower.
Therefore, although Bolivia has a large territory, it is only a paper tiger, just superficial.
After talking about the domestic situation, let's take a look at the external situation.
Why do individuals mention it many times? Destructive? Mainly because its military strength is too weak, even some small countries around it can't beat it. For example, 1879 lost the battle with Chile's saltpeter (one of the main raw materials of heavy industry in the second industrial revolution). Chile's land area is not as good as Bolivia's, but it not only defeated Bolivia, but even bullied it into losing a large territory.
And the reason why it was so miserable was not only because Bolivia had a problem, but also because this small South American country was not to be underestimated at that time. Does it have one? Capital? Competing with Bolivia means that Bolivia will end in a fiasco in a changing situation.
Let's start with Chile? The saltpeter war? What is the strength of Chile?
At that time, saltpeter was a vital strategic resource in the world. As long as it is found anywhere, it will definitely lead to the competition of many forces. At that time, a large number of saltpeter deposits were discovered in Atacama. However, after the Spanish colonists left, this area became the border zone between Bolivia, Chile and Peru, and the detailed territorial division was not settled.
In other words, this is a problem area with rich strategic resources, and such a place will naturally trigger a series of competitions. In the dispute, although Bolivia has close comrade-in-arms Peru, it is still no match for Chile. Eventually, all the territory near the Pacific coast was lost in the 1884 armistice agreement. It is worth mentioning that the cession of these lands has made Bolivia have no access to the sea since then, and it has been weakening since then.
Chile can win, on the one hand, because it is at its peak; On the one hand, it is supported by Britain.
1, Chile was in chaos like Bolivia after its independence in 18 18. However, its specific national conditions are still different from Bolivia, and Chile's political power has always been in the hands of white landlords. Since 183 1 Conservative Party came to power, on the premise of protecting the interests of the big landlord class, measures have been taken to alleviate class contradictions, and the domestic order in Chile has become more and more stable.
After stability, Chile began to open to the outside world. It constantly uses local resources to introduce British and American foreign capital, and its economy develops rapidly. At that time, Chile once became one of the most important copper producers in the world. In addition, with the help of foreign capital, it began to build railways. At first, railways only transported minerals. Then everything was shipped. Over time, Chile's domestic infrastructure and military weapons are getting closer to Britain and the United States.
This is in stark contrast to Bolivia, where disputes continue, even because there are many plateaus in China, and a large number of people are not integrated into this national system, while Chile is stable, not only with strong cohesion, but also with smooth railway network to transport materials to the maximum extent; In addition, although we have been buying arms from Europe, a large number of Bolivian troops still have no firearms, and most of them go to the battlefield with primitive bows and arrows. How can this be Chile's well-equipped opponent?
The rise of Britain is also a major factor. Britain stood up. Why did Bolivia lose? At that time, Britain sided with Chile, mainly because its interests were violated by Bolivia.
Since Atacama mined saltpeter, restless Britain began to scramble for treasures, and many mining companies were established there. However, Bolivia's domestic war continues, and the military has raised the tax rate for British companies for military needs. After expressing its dissatisfaction with Britain, Bolivia forcibly confiscated all its assets, which naturally aroused Britain's anger.
With the support of Britain alone, Bolivia is still no match for Chile, even if there is no contradiction.