of 1948 which ended with the enactment of the current 1949 Constitution on 7 November 1949 starting the Second Costa Rican Republic.

The First Costa Rican Republic marked the dominion of the liberal ideology and the hegemony of a very powerful liberal oligarchy that ruled the country for most of its history. The liberal hegemony was so prevalent that the period between 1870 and 1940 is known as the Liberal State.