If there must be nation building, then let there be Walker

On a weekly basis or so, I will share stories of historical figures who tickle my fancy. These essays will be painstakingly devoid of accuracy and fact checking, but will, nonetheless, allow me to share with you the story that has evolved (devolved?) in my mind. History is a wonderful field of study. I believe there is an aesthetic to the human story; an intrigue that can only be enjoyed with the knowledge that the story told is both unique and true.

William Walker is one of those historical figures whose story reads almost like the tall tales of Paul Bunyon and Pecos Bill. A man with a real hunger for adventure, Walker lived in the early 19th century staking his claims in San Francisco and eventually becoming a mercenary for hire. Nicaraguan revolutionaries hired him and his band of soldiers to help overthrow the existing conservative government. His insurgency encountered success when he captured Granada thus ending the fighting. Rather than taking his booty and moving on to new fights and skirmishes, Walker had a brilliant idea. He petitioned the United States to recognize the new government with the idea of annexing the small country. He made himself its president. He couldn’t have been much older than 30 at the time.

His tenure was short lived--even by Latin American standards of the time—but his actions in office are worth noting: he re-instituted slavery and made English the official language of Nicaragua (though I’m not sure how effectively it was implemented). A faction of neighboring countries who were threatened by Walker’s belligerence defeated him and drove him out of the country. Cornelius Vanderbilt, whose economic interests in the area were enormous, interestingly enough funded both Walker’s rise to power and his demise. And we though Halliburton was dangerous!

Walker is probably better known in Nicaragua where he is vilified and held up as the poster boy for American imperialism. In the US, nary a word is written of him in our history books. Sometimes the truth can be a bitter pill to swallow.