Portland State University PDXScholar Dissertations and Theses Dissertations and Theses 1985 An analysis of the six military-dominated political cycles in El Salvador between 1931 and 1979 Thomas Ramon Rookard Portland State University Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds Part of the Latin American History Commons, and the Political History Commons Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Rookard, Thomas Ramon, "An analysis of the six military-dominated political cycles in El Salvador between 1931 and 1979" (1985). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 3520. https://doi.org/10.15760/etd.5404 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of PDXScholar. Please contact us if we can make this document more accessible:
[email protected]. AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Thomas Ramon Rookard for the Master of Arts in History presented March 12, 1985. Title: An Analysis of the Six Military-Dominated Political Cycles in El Salvador Between 1931 and 1979. APPROVED BY MEMBERS OF THE THESIS COMMITTEE: Victor Dahl, Chairman Frederick M. Nunn A comparative study of the cycles of military-political power in El Salvador between 1931 and 1979 indicates that the country was convulsed six times by political struggle. A pattern emerged wherein the military asserted itself as maintainer of the status quo each time that repression of, or concession to, the masses threatened the economic and political balance. 2 Just as a cyclical pattern of economic development had evolved in the colonial period, so a similar pattern emerged in El Salvador's political life after 1932.