At one time an important center of Mayan culture, the region was colonized after 1524 by the Spanish, who established mines in the highlands. Honduras gained independence in 1821 and, after brief periods as part of the Mexican Empire and the Central American Confederation, became a separate republic in 1838. Its history has been turbulent, marked by frequent coups (nearly one a year) and trouble with neighbors, most recently a four-day war with El Salvador (1969) and border clashes with Nicaragua (1981). Foreign influence and conservative government were the rule from the 1890s to the 1950s, when a labor code and other reforms were adopted. From 1963 to the early 1980s, rightist-to-moderate army elements dominated the nation's politics. A new constitution (1982) brought free elections, but the army remains the most important power in the country. Carlos Roberto Reina became president in 1994.

Tegucigalpa is the capital of the Republic of Honduras. It is located on hilly terrain hemmed in by mountains, at an elevation of approx. 1000 m (3,200 ft) above sea level. Tegucigalpa, founded in 1578 on the slopes of Mount Picacho as a gold and silver-mining centre, alternated with Comayagua, 55 km (35 mi) to the northwest, as capital from 1824 to 1880, when Tegucigalpa was made the permanent capital of the republic. In 1938 it was combined with the city of Comayaguela, which is located just across the Choluteca River to the south, to form the distrito central ("central district").

The city's principal buildings include the presidential and legislative palaces, the National University of Honduras (1847), and an 18th-century cathedral. Industrial production, formerly small and mostly for local consumption, increased in the 1970s with the improvement of road connections. Products include textiles, clothing, sugar, cigarettes, lumber, plywood, paper, ceramics, cement, glass, metalware, plastics, chemicals, tires, electrical appliances, and farm machinery. In 1977 plans were implemented to expand the textile industry, and a wood drying plant and a fish redistribution centre were added. Silver, lead, and zinc are mined in the area around the city. Tegucigalpa also has an industrial park.