Central American Union and Liberal Reform in Honduras (1875–1885)

Abstract

This article offers a reinterpretation of the Honduran Liberal Reform as a project subordinated to the Central American unification plan led by Justo Rufino Barrios from Guatemala. In contrast to traditional historiography—which describes the Reform as a national process of modernization—this study argues that the policies implemented by Marco Aurelio Soto between 1876 and 1883 stemmed from regional commitments made at the 1875 unionist conferences. The research follows the classical historical method, emphasizing both internal and external critique of primary sources such as La Gaceta, La Paz, and La República, official speeches, diplomatic correspondence, and legislation from the period. Structured in five chronological sections, the article traces the development of the Reform from 1875 to Barrios’s failed unification attempt in 1885, demonstrating its continuity under Luis Bográn’s presidency. The study concludes that the Reform was not incomplete, but rather a regional integration strategy fulfilled within its intended framework. By adopting a regional and comparative lens, the article challenges the conventional timeline (1876–1883), extending it to 1885 in regional terms and to 1891 in its domestic effects. It thus proposes a new approach to interpreting nineteenth-century Central American history through the geopolitical dynamics of the isthmus.