to support independence from Spain. They supported the Three Guarantees of Agustín de Iturbide but declared their own separate independence from the Spanish Crown in 1821. There was division in the state as to whether ally or unite with Mexico or the new Central American Republic when it split from Mexico in 1823. Those in the highlands preferred union with Mexico but the lowlands, including the Soconusco, preferred Central America. 19th-21st centuries Soconusco's political status would be undecided for most of the rest of the 19th century. Mexico annexed Chiapas formally in 1824 and made its first formal claim to the Soconusco in 1825. That was not accepted by Guatemala or the ruling elite in Soconusco. In 1830, Central American troops entered the Soconusco to pursue a political dissident, but troops from the highlands of Chiapas countered their entrance. The first attempt to settle a border in the area occurred in 1831 with several others in the decades that follow but without success, in part because of political instability in Mexico. The Central American Republic dissolved between 1838 and 1840, leaving Guatemala to pursue claims to the Soconusco, which it did by declaring it part of the Quetzaltenango District in 1840. The population there favored inclusion into Guatemala. However, Antonio López de Santa Anna sent troops into Soconusco and the rest of Chiapas to press the population to formally unite with Mexico, which Soconusco did in 1842. More negotiations were attempted in 1877 and 1879, but a treaty was not signed by Mexico and Guatemala until 1882 to formalize a border. It split the Soconusco region, with the greater part going to Mexico. One reason behind the reaching of the agreement was concerns of the United States taking advantage of the continued instability between Mexico and the Central American states. However, Guatemala still made claims to the Soconusco until 1895. Since the finalization of the border with Guatemala, Soconusco's history has been dominated by the development of its economy. In the last quarter of the 19th century, the migration of foreigners from the United States and Europe was encouraged by the Porfirio Díaz regime with land grants and the construction of a rail line. The goal of the government was to bring in foreign capital to the country to develop its natural resources and modernize it. For the Soconusco region, that meant the development of coffee plantations. In less than