El Salvador’s Soldiers’ Day: May 7, 2010 Soldiers’ Day is a public holiday in El Salvador.
Every year on the 7th of May. El Salvador marks the founding of its armed forces in 1824.
History of El Salvador’s Soldiers’ Day
The Fuerza Armada de El Salvador or the Armed Forces was established in 1840 after the dissolution of the United Provinces of Central America.
With the other countries of Central America, the nation declared its independence from Spain on Sept. 15, 1821, and was part of a federation of Central American states until that union dissolved in 1838.
Independence has been a tradition even through the many revolutions that have governed the nation. Military dictatorship was the rule of government from 1931 to 1979.
In 1969, El Salvador invaded Honduras after Honduran landowners deported several thousand Salvadorans. The four-day war became known as the “football war” because it broke out during a soccer game between the two countries.
The United Provinces of Central America was a central American sovereign state which has a brief existence from 1823 to 1840. It included the following countries in Central America: El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua. With the nationalism of each region being important to each people, individual independence of each province became an important goal of the areas.
The Armed Forces of El Salvador is composed of the Army, the Air Force and the Navy which was reestablished in 1952 after 40 years of absence. The event that leads to the creation of the armed forces is now known as Soldiers’ Day.
El Salvador’s Soldiers’ Day: Traditions, Customs and Activities
Soldiers’ Day is celebrated with grand parade among the members of the Armed Forces. Celebrations and ceremonial activities follow where relatives and friends of members of the soldiers are allowed to attend. The day is a celebration for the soldiers of the military with parades of the divisions of active soldiers and retired soldiers. The parades are followed by a ceremony and celebrations at each military base throughout the country. Relatives and friends are invited to celebrate together with the military forces stationed throughout the country.
Today, the prosperity so each country is dependent on the other country in the area. As each country in the Latin American region struggles with the challenges of economic stability, the people take much pride in their heritage and national achievements. But, traditionally the borders of the area continue to be in dispute and have required outside intervention to settle border conflicts.