Complex sentence: The people of the isthmus made several attempts to secede and came close to success in 1831, then again during the Thousand Days' War of 1899--1902, understood among indigenous Panamanians as a struggle for land rights under the leadership of Victoriano Lorenzo.
Split into simpler sentences: The people of the isthmus made several attempts to secede and came close to success in 1831, and again during the Thousand Days'War of 1899--1902. The Thousand Days' War is understood among indigenous Panamanians as a struggle for land rights under the leadership of Victoriano Lorenzo.