Perhaps no other country has more to offer the visitor than Peru: panoramic mountain ranges, vast deserts, beautiful beaches and tropical jungle. All this combined with a rich historical and archaeological past and enduring indigenous cultures.

The indigenous Inca civilisation of what is now Peru was conquered by Spain in the early 16th century. Spain ruled the country until the early 19th century. The wars of independence, which expelled the Spanish from virtually the entire South American continent, reached Peru in the early 1820s. After the 1821 declaration of independence, Peru was challenged by the royalists. The new government appealed to the revolutionary leader, Simon Bolivar, for assistance, who proceeded to defeat the royalists at the Battle of Ayacucho in December 1824, after which he became head of state.

Relations between Peru and its neighbours were difficult in the early years of independence. There were border disputes with Brazil and Ecuador, and especially with Chile. The War of the Pacific broke out between Peru and Chile in 1879, with a complete victory for Chile and the loss to Peru of some southern territories. Internal problems dominated the agenda for the next 30 years, as a series of governments struggled to keep the economy, which was almost completely destroyed as a result of the Pacific War, from disintegrating.

The first of Peru’s many military coups was in 1914. The junta lasted five years, before giving way to the civilian government of Augusto Leguia. His tenure ended with another military take-over. While the military has always been a powerful force in Peruvian politics, its principal opponent and the country’s largest political party for much of the 20th century was the Alianza Popular Revolucionaria Americana (APRA), founded by Dr Victor Raul Haya de la Torre in 1924, as a continent-wide anti-imperialist movement. Although increasingly moderate and Peruvian-centred in its appeal, APRA has nevertheless been illegal for much of its history.

Politics has also persistently been dogged by alleged – and sometimes proven – corruption. The ‘war on drugs’ has long dominated relations between Peru and the USA. Border disputes have also arisen; the most serious of these was with Ecuador over access to the Amazonian river system and control of the potentially mineral-rich Condor mountain range. In early 1995, full-scale fighting broke out after talks broke down, continuing intermittently until a settlement was reached in 1999.

Just as complex is Peru's topography: divided into the three main geographical zones of costa (coast); sierra (mountains); and selva (rainforest). Such diverse landscape generates diverse pleasures; Peru successfully offers history, archaeology, sports, beaches, mountains, medicinal springs, nature, fantastic landscapes, friendly people and mesmeric music. Ancient archaeological remains and Nazca Lines augment Peru's sense of mystery, of possessing an awesomeness of both humankind and nature.