14 of 14 events · 1821 – 2026
Sovereign state in Central America
10 November 1821 – 28 November 1821
Independence of Panama from Spain was accomplished through a bloodless revolt between 10 November 1821 and 28 November 1821. Seizing the opportunity, when the Spanish governor left Panama to march on rebellious Ecuadorians, José de Fábrega led a push for independence.
28 November 1821
The Declaration of Independence of Panama (Acta de Independencia de Panamá) is the document through which Panama declared its independence from the Spanish Empire on November 28, 1821. It was proclaimed in the Cathedral Plaza of Panama City after a council of leaders had met and drafted twelve points calling for severing Panama's relationship with the Spanish Crown and joining with the newly formed Republic of Gran Colombia.
7 September 1882
The 1882 Panama earthquake occurred on September 7 at around 03:50 (UTC-5). The earthquake measured a magnitude between 7.9 and 8.3 on the surface-wave magnitude scale, making it the largest earthquake recorded in Panamanian history.
3 November 1903
The secession of Panama from Colombia was formalized on 3 November 1903, with the establishment of the Republic of Panama and the abolition of the Colombia–Costa Rica border. From the independence of Panama from Spain in 1821, Panama had simultaneously joined itself to the confederation of Gran Colombia through the Independence Act of Panama.
18 November 1903
The Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty (Spanish: Tratado Hay-Bunau Varilla) was a treaty signed on November 18, 1903, by the United States and Panama, which established the Panama Canal Zone and the subsequent construction of the Panama Canal. It was named after its two primary negotiators, Philippe-Jean Bunau-Varilla, the French diplomatic representative of Panama, and United States secretary of state John Hay.
6 April 1914
The Thomson–Urrutia Treaty was ratified on April 20, 1921, between the United States and Colombia. Based on the terms of the agreement, the U.S. paid Colombia 25 million dollars in return for Colombia's recognition of Panama's independence.
3 April 1959 – 1 May 1959
The Cuban invasion of Panama was a military operation carried out in April 1959 in which Cuban troops, along with some Panamanian guerrillas, sought to initiate a revolution in Panama modeled after the Cuban example. The mission was led by Panamanian Enrique Morales in support of a coup attempt by Roberto Arias.
11 October 1968
The 1968 Panamanian coup d'état was the military coup that took place in the Republic of Panama on October 11, 1968, when the National Guard, led by Major Boris Martínez, Lieutenant Colonel Jose Humberto Ramos, Rubén Darío Paredes and other military officers overthrew President Arnulfo Arias, who was elected in the May 12 general election and assumed office on October 1.
20 December 1989 – 31 January 1990
The United States invasion of Panama began in mid-December 1989 during the presidency of George H. W. Bush. The purpose of the invasion was to depose the de facto ruler of Panama, General Manuel Noriega, who was wanted by U.S. authorities for racketeering and drug trafficking.
20 December 1989
Operation Acid Gambit took place as an opening action of the United States invasion of Panama, on 20 December 1989. It was a U.S. Delta Force operation that retrieved Kurt Muse, a rumored asset of the Central Intelligence Agency, operating in Panama who had been arrested for leading a plot with other Panamanians to overthrow the government of Panama, from the Cárcel Modelo, a notorious prison in Panama City.
6 June 1992
Copa Airlines Flight 201 was a regularly scheduled passenger flight from Tocumen International Airport in Panama City, Panama, to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. On 6 June 1992, the Boeing 737-200 operating the route rolled, entered a steep dive, disintegrated in mid-air, and crashed into the jungle of the Darién Gap 29 minutes after takeoff, killing all 47 people on board.
25 December 2003
The 2003 Puerto Armuelles earthquake occurred on December 25 at 02:11 local time (07:11 UTC). The epicenter was located in Panama, at about 7 km east of Puerto Armuelles, near the Panama-Costa Rica border.
1 December 2019
The global COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an outbreak in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. It spread to other parts of Asia and then worldwide in early 2020.
9 October 2026
On 9 October 2026, at 12:56:06 EST (17:56:06 UTC), a Mw 7.7 earthquake struck the Azuero Peninsula within Panama. The earthquake caused significant damage across several parts of the country, killed at least three people and injured at least 27 others.