This video explores the basics of Costa Rican history and politics to explain why Costa Rica is one of the richest and most stable countries in Latin America despite having begun as poor backwater in the Spanish Empire. It begins with Columbus third voyage and ends with the Presidency of Carlos Alvarado, it covers the 1948 civil war, the rule of the PLN and the development of the coffee industry.

Seligson, Mitchell A. (2017) "Costa Rica" Latin American Politics and Development Ed. by Harvey Kline, Christine Wade and Howard Wiarda. New York: Routledge Press.