Advanced indigenous peoples flourished in Ecuador long before the area was mostly conquered by the Inca empire in the 15th century. Through a succession of wars and marriages with the different nations that inhabited the interandean valley, the region became part of the Inca Empire. Atahualpa, one of the sons of the Inca emperor Huayna Capac, was born in Quito. However, he could not receive the crown of the Empire since the emperor had another son, Huascar, born in Cusco, the capital of the Inca Empire. Therefore the empire was divided in two: Atahualpa received the north, with his capital in Quito, and Huascar received the south with its capital in Cuzco. In 1531, the Spanish conquistadors, under Francisco Pizarro, arrived in an Inca empire torn by civil war. Atahualpa wanted to align with the Spanish to defeat Huascar and reign over a re-unified Incan empire. The Spanish, however, had conquest intentions and established themselves in a fort in Cajamarca, captured Atahualpa during the Battle of Cajamarca and held him for ransom. A room was filled with gold to secure his release. During his capture, Atahualpa arranged for the murder of his half-brother Huascar in Cuzco. The stage was set for the Spaniards to take over the Incan empire. Despite being surrounded and vastly outnumbered, the Spanish executed Atahualpa. To escape the confines of the fort, the Spaniards fired all their cannons and broke through the lines of the bewildered Incans. In subsequent years the Spanish colonists became the new elite centering their power in Peru.

The indigenous population was decimated by disease in the first decades of Spanish rule — a time when the natives also were forced into the "encomienda" labor system for Spanish landlords. In 1563, Quito became the seat of a royal "audiencia" (administrative district) of Spain and part of the Peruvian Viceroyalty with its capital in Lima.

After nearly 300 years of Spanish colonization, Quito was a city of about 10,000 inhabitants, and it was there in 1822 that Ecuador joined Simón Bolívar's Republic of Gran Colombia, only to become a separate republic in 1830.

The 19th century was marked by instability, with a rapid succession of rulers. The conservative Gabriel Garcia Moreno unified the country in the 1860s with the support of the Roman Catholic Church. In the late 1800s, world demand for cocoa tied the economy to commodity exports and led to migrations from the highlands to the agricultural frontier on the coast.

A coastal-based liberal revolution in 1895 under Eloy Alfaro reduced the power of the clergy, and this liberal wing retained power until the military coup of 1925. The 1930s and 1940s were marked by populist politicians such as five-time President José María Velasco Ibarra.

Control over territory in the Amazon has led to a long-lasting dispute between Ecuador and Peru. In 1941, in midst of fast-growing tensions between the two countries, war broke out. Peru claimed that Ecuador's military presence in Peruvian-claimed territory was an invasion while Ecuador, on the other hand, claimed Peru invaded Ecuador. In July 1941 troops were mobilized. Peru had an army of 11,681 troops, facing a poorly supplied and badly armed Ecuadorian force of 5,300 soldiers, of which a little over 1,300 were deployed in the southern provinces of the country. Hostilities broke on July 5, 1941, when Peruvian forces crossed the Zarumilla river on several spots, testing the strength and disposition of the Ecuadorian border troops. Finally, on July 23, 1941, the Peruvians launched a major invasion, crossing the Zarumilla river in force and advancing into the Ecuadorian province of El Oro. Over the course of the war Peru gained control over all the disputed territory and occupied the Ecuadorian province of El Oro and some parts of the province of Loja (some 6% of the country), demanding that the Ecuadorian government give up their territorial claims. The Peruvian Navy blocked the port of Guayaquil, cutting supplies to the Ecuadorian troops. After a few weeks of war and under pressure by the U.S and several Latin American nations, all fighting came to a stop. Ecuador and Peru came to an accord formalised in the Rio Protocol, signed on January 29, 1942, in favor of hemispheric unity against the Axis Powers in WWII. As a result of its victory, Peru was awarded the disputed territory. Two more wars would follow to finally end the dispute. See Paquisha Incident and Cenepa War



Recession and popular unrest led to a return to populist politics and domestic military interventions in the 1960s, while foreign companies developed oil resources in the Ecuadorian Amazon. In 1972, the construction of the Andian pipeline, which brought oil from the east to the coast was completed, making Ecuador South America's second largest oil producer. That same year a nationalist military junta overthrew the government, remaining in power until 1979 when more democratic constitutional measures were implemented. By 1982, the government faced an economic crisis, characterized by high inflation, budget deficits, a falling currency, mounting debt service, and uncompetitive industries, leading to chronic government instability.

Many years of mismanagement, starting with the mishandling of the country's debt during the 1970s military regime, have left the country essentially ungovernable. By the mid 90s, the government of Ecuador has been characterized by a weak executive branch that struggles to appease the ruling classes, represented in the legislative and judiciary. The last three democratically elected presidents have failed to finish their terms during that period.

Among the most relevant factors in the democratic instability is the emergence of the indigenous population as an active constituency. The population were motivated by government failures to deliver on promises of land reform and lower unemployment, and by historical exploitation by the land-holding elite.

Their movement, along with the continuing destabilizing efforts by both the Elite and Leftist movements, have led to a deterioration of the executive office. The public and the other branches of government give the president very little political capital to work with, as happened when in April 2005 Ecuador's Congress ousted President Lucio Gutiérrez. The Vice-President, Alfredo Palacio, took his place and is expected to be in power until the next scheduled election.

Politics of Ecuador takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Ecuador is both head of state and head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Congress. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.

Executive Branch:
President: Alfredo Palacio (since 20 April 2005 and after Lucio Guitiérrez was removed from office by Congress)
Vice President: Nicanor Alejandro Serrano Aguilar (since 5 May 2005)

Cabinet: Cabinet is appointed by the president who has sole authority for determining the number of Ministers and their scope. Currently there are 15 Ministers (Ministerios) and 7 Secretariats (Secretarías).

Elections: the President and Vice president are elected on the same ticket by universal, mandatory popular vote for a four-year term and are not allowed to serve consecutive terms. Last general election was held on October 20th 2002 with a run-off election that took place on November 24th 2002 in which Lucio Guitiérrez was elected as President. Next general elections will take place in October 2006.

Legislative Branch: unicameral National Congress Congreso Nacional that has 100 seats with members that are popularly elected by province to serve four-year terms.

Judicial Branch: Represented by the Supreme Court Corte Suprema. According to the country's constitution, Justices Ministros Juez are elected by the existing members of the Supreme Court, nonetheless in December 2004 Congress successfully replaced the entire court.

Ecuador is divided into 22 provinces, each with its own administrative capital. The capitals are provided in parentheses.

Approximately 96.8% of Ecuadorians are Roman Catholic. Much of the population is practicing and attends Mass regularly. In the rural parts of Ecuador, indigenous beliefs and Christianity are sometimes syncretized.

There is a small Muslim minority numbering in the low thousands. The Jewish community numbers just over 1,000 individuals and is mostly of German and Italian origin.

There are also Sephardic Jews (Judeo-Spanish Jews). Few of them still practice Judaism at different levels, while the majority are today Christians whose ancestors were converted to Catholicism.

Ecuador's mainstream culture is defined by Ecuador's mestizo majority and, like their ancestry, is a mixture of European and Amerindian influences infused with African elements inherited from slave ancestors. Ecuador's indigenous communities are integrated into that mainstream culture to varying degrees, but some may also practise their own autochthonous cultures, particularly the more remote indigenous communities of the Amazon basin. African-Ecuadoreans, much less integrated into the mainstream majority, are victims of high-unemployment and racism.