Episodes

  • The Cali Cartel: Colombia's Quiet Kingpins — Fexingo History

    The Cali Cartel: Colombia's Quiet Kingpins — Fexingo History
    Apr 26 2026
    This episode dives into the rise and fall of the Cali Cartel, often overshadowed by Pablo Escobar's Medellín Cartel but ultimately more sophisticated and longer-lasting. We explore the cartel's origins in the 1970s with the Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, their shift from kidnapping to cocaine trafficking, and their unique business model that prioritized bribery over violence. Lucas and Luna discuss the cartel's infiltration of Colombia's government and economy, including the 1994 Ernesto Samper campaign scandal. The conversation also covers the cartel's eventual downfall in the mid-1990s, led by the Cali Cartel's own former allies and the US-backed Bloque de Búsqueda. We touch on the legacy of the cartel's leaders, including Miguel Rodríguez Orejuela's current imprisonment in the US, and how their methods influenced modern drug trafficking.

    #CaliCartel #RodriguezOrejuela #Cocaine #DrugTrafficking #ColombiaHistory #PabloEscobar #MedellinCartel #ErnestoSamper #BloqueDeBusqueda #Narcotrafico #1990s #ColdWar #DEA #FARC #History #FexingoHistory #LatinAmerica #OrganizedCrime #Colombia #SouthAmerica

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    6 mins
  • Pablo Escobar: The Rise and Fall of Medellín's Kingpin — Fexingo History

    Pablo Escobar: The Rise and Fall of Medellín's Kingpin — Fexingo History
    Apr 26 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna delve into the life and reign of Pablo Escobar, from his humble beginnings in Rionegro to becoming the head of the Medellín Cartel. They explore his rise through contraband and cocaine trafficking, his brutal tactics including 'plata o plomo', and his political ambitions that led to the construction of a luxury prison, La Catedral. The conversation covers key events like the 1984 assassination of Justice Minister Rodrigo Lara Bonilla, the Palace of Justice siege in 1985, and the manhunt led by the Search Bloc after Escobar's escape. Lucas discusses the role of Los Pepes, the alliance between Cali Cartel and Colombian authorities, and the final shootout on a rooftop in Medellín on December 2, 1993. The episode ends with a reflection on Escobar's legacy and the enduring impact of narco-violence on Colombia.

    #PabloEscobar #MedellinCartel #Cocaine #PlataOPlomo #LaCatedral #SearchBloc #LosPepes #RodrigoLaraBonilla #PalaceOfJusticeSiege #CaliCartel #NarcoViolence #ColombiaHistory #1980s #1990s #DrugWar #TrueCrime #History #FexingoHistory #Colombia #SouthAmerica

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    5 mins
  • Operation Marquetalia: The Birth of the FARC — Fexingo History

    Operation Marquetalia: The Birth of the FARC — Fexingo History
    Apr 25 2026
    In 1964, the Colombian military launched Operation Marquetalia, a U.S.-backed counterinsurgency campaign against a small communist enclave in the southern jungles. This episode explores how the attack misfired, uniting scattered peasant guerrillas into the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). We follow the story of Manuel Marulanda Vélez, a coffee farmer turned rebel who survived the bombing and built a movement that would last five decades. We also examine the role of the National Front power-sharing pact and the unresolved land inequality that fueled the conflict. Drawing on declassified documents and oral histories, we trace the FARC's transformation from a self-defense group to a Marxist army controlling cocaine trafficking. Along the way, we meet other key figures like Jacobo Arenas and discuss the influence of the Cuban Revolution. This is the untold origin story of Colombia's longest war.

    #OperationMarquetalia #FARC #ManuelMarulandaVLez #Colombia #Guerrilla #ColdWar #LaViolencia #NationalFront #LandReform #JacoboArenas #CubanRevolution #Counterinsurgency #Marquetalia #Toribio #PlanLaso #History #FexingoHistory #SouthAmerica #WorldHistory #Podcast

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    7 mins
  • The Bogotazo: Colombia's Political Earthquake — Fexingo History

    The Bogotazo: Colombia's Political Earthquake — Fexingo History
    Apr 25 2026
    In 1948, the murder of liberal leader Jorge Eliécer Gaitán sparked a riot that devastated Bogotá and launched a decade of bloodshed known as La Violencia. This episode explores Gaitán's rise as a populist champion of the poor, his fiery 'oración por la paz' speech, the chaotic Bogotazo that saw 3,000 people killed, and the political vacuum that allowed Conservative hardliners to seize control. We trace how the event deepened Colombia's urban-rural divide, radicalized peasant guerrillas like the Liberal guerrillas in the Llanos Orientales, and set the stage for the formation of FARC years later. Along the way, we revisit the legacy of Gaitán's assassination—still unresolved—and its echoes in today's protests. Specific details include the 'Carrera Séptima' route of the riot, the burning of the Palacio de Justicia, and the role of 'chusma' (mob) violence.

    #JorgeEliCerGaitN #Bogotazo #LaViolencia #ColombianHistory #History #FexingoHistory #Bogot #1948 #CarreraSPtima #PalacioDeJusticia #LiberalParty #ConservativeParty #LlanosOrientales #Guerrillas #Populism #Assassination #PoliticalViolence #LatinAmerica #Colombia #SouthAmerica

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    6 mins
  • The Thousand Days' War and the Loss of Panama — Fexingo History

    The Thousand Days' War and the Loss of Panama — Fexingo History
    Apr 24 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into the devastating Thousand Days' War (1899–1902), a civil conflict that tore Colombia apart at the turn of the 20th century. They explore the bitter rivalry between Liberals and Conservatives, the key figures like Rafael Uribe Uribe, and the war's brutal toll—over 100,000 dead. The conversation then turns to the aftermath: the loss of Panama in 1903, fueled by U.S. intervention and Colombian political paralysis. Lucas explains how President Theodore Roosevelt backed Panamanian independence and secured the Panama Canal, a move that still stings in Colombian memory. They also touch on the long-term consequences, including the rise of the banana enclave economy and the seeds of later violence. This is a deep look at a pivotal, often overlooked chapter that reshaped Colombia's borders and psyche.

    #ThousandDaysWar #Panama #RafaelUribeUribe #TheodoreRoosevelt #Colombia #CivilWar #PanamaCanal #USIntervention #1899 #1903 #HayBunauVarillaTreaty #Conservatives #Liberals #ColombianHistory #BananaRepublic #History #FexingoHistory #SouthAmerica #WorldHistory #Podcast

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    5 mins
  • Coffee, Gold, and the Birth of a Nation: Colombia's 19th Century — Fexingo History

    Coffee, Gold, and the Birth of a Nation: Colombia's 19th Century — Fexingo History
    Apr 24 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the turbulent decades following Colombia's independence from Spain. They focus on the little-known figure of José Antonio Páez, the llanero leader who shaped the nation's early politics, and the destructive War of the Thousand Days (1899-1902) that killed over 100,000 people. They discuss how coffee replaced gold as the economic engine, the creation of the two-party system (Liberals vs. Conservatives), and the drafting of the 1886 constitution that centralized power. The episode also covers the Panama Canal fiasco—how the United States backed Panama's separation in 1903, leaving Colombia bitter. Lucas explains the origins of 'La Violencia' in 19th-century factionalism, and how the nation's geography made unification a nightmare. Luna asks sharp questions about caudillos, federalism, and the role of the Catholic Church. This episode sets the stage for understanding modern Colombia's conflicts without once mentioning Pablo Escobar or the cartels.

    #ColombianHistory #WarOfTheThousandDays #JoseAntonioPaez #CoffeeRepublic #PanamaCanal #Caudillos #Federalism #1886Constitution #LiberalConservative #LaViolenciaOrigins #Llaneros #Regeneracion #RafaelNunez #ColombianPolitics #19thCentury #History #FexingoHistory #SouthAmerica #Colombia #WorldHistory

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    5 mins
  • Cartagena: The Pearl of Colombia's Violent Birth — Fexingo History

    Cartagena: The Pearl of Colombia's Violent Birth — Fexingo History
    Apr 23 2026
    In 1741, the British navy besieged Cartagena de Indias, a walled city that was the key to Spanish control of South America. This episode tells the story of that pivotal battle and the centuries of conflict that shaped Colombia—from indigenous Tairona and Muisca kingdoms to Spanish conquest, the brutal slave trade, the struggle for independence led by Simón Bolívar, and the 20th-century violence of La Violencia and the drug cartels. We meet figures like Blas de Lezo, the one-eyed admiral who defended Cartagena, and explore how Colombia's geography—three Andean ranges, vast plains, and dense jungles—fragmented power and fueled a history of war, coffee, and coca.

    #Cartagena #BlasDeLezo #ColombiaHistory #SimNBolVar #LaViolencia #PabloEscobar #MedellNCartel #SpanishConquest #Tairona #Muisca #Coffee #Cocaine #FARC #Bogot #SouthAmerica #History #FexingoHistory #ColonialWars #Colombia #WorldHistory

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    5 mins