The history of the Caribbean is rich with adventerous tales, blended cultures, and natural diversity. The impact of colonialism and slavery can still be seen in many of the island cultures today; so much so, in fact, that travelers often note a sense of living with the near-tangible history that permeates the region.

Caribbean Indians
When European explorers first traveled to the New World, there were primarily two races of American Indians living in the Caribbean: the Taínos (often called Arawaks), who originally settled in the Windwards and Leewards and eventually inhabited the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas; and the Caribs who came from Venezuela in South America and lived throughout the Lesser Antilles. History tells us that before both of those groups, the Ciboneys came to the Caribbean islands nearly four or five thousand years ago.

The Taínos (which translates to "peace") began populating the region around a few hundred years B.C. European explorers noted separate Arawak tribes occupied several islands: the Borinquens were in Puerto Rico and the Lucayans inhabited the Bahamas, while other Taínos were on the islands of Hispaniola, Jamaica, and Cuba.

Eventually, the Carib tribesmen began systematically forcing the Taínos off the islands. However, it was the Spaniard explorers who ultimately exterminated the Taíno. During their quest for gold, the Spaniards eradicated the tribe in fewer than fifty years. The conquistadors sent the Taíno to South Africa to work in the gold mines and pearl beds, but many Taínos committed suicide to escape this enslavement. The gold plundering continued until 1521 when larger reserves were discovered in Mexico.

Almost no indigenous Caribbean Indians survive today. There is a lasting legacy of their history, however, in Arawak features found in the faces of some Cubans and Dominicans.

Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus' voyages, although sometimes controversial, certainly set the mark for New World exploration. After the fall of Constantinople, the previously safe routes to the Far East were sealed off, putting a tremendous hindrance on the ancient spice trade. There was an increased desire to explore the west and forge new routes that would reopen the spice trade. This was the motivation for Columbus? historic voyages to the west and he called the islands he stumbled upon the Indies because he thought he'd found the western passage to Asia and maintained such until his death in 1506.

For his inaugural trek, Columbus solicited funds from all the major European kings until King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain agreed to sponsor his travels to the western world. In 1492, he readied his vessels - the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria--and set off with his crew from Palos. Columbus first spotted land on October 12, 1492. He christened this Bahamian island San Salvador. He would eventually touch down in Cuba before crashing the Santa Maria off the coast of Hispaniola, known today as the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Columbus abandoned thirty-eight of his crew members on Hispaniola and returned to Spain where he proclaimed that he had reached Asia.

Columbus made his way to Trinidad in 1498, then returned to a tumultuous Hispaniola where he contended with island rebels. Despite being sent back to Spain in shackles, Columbus secured a fourth commission from the Spanish monarchy in 1502, but with the stipulation that he not return to Hispaniola. When he set sail this time, he discovered Central America's gold coffers. This journey ended, however, when he shipwrecked off the coast of Jamaica.

Colonization and Independence
Some islands changed hands more than twenty times during the Caribbean wars. European imperialists waged war among themselves and with the Carib Indians. Spanish explorers wiped out the Taíno as they plundered the Caribbean for gold in the 16th century. It wasn't until the Emancipation Act of 1834 ended slavery and Europe no longer relied on the islands for sugar production that the Caribbean became less of a fighting prize; however, the lasting European influence on the history of the Caribbean can be seen by this colonization timeline:

1496 The Spanish founded settlements in Hispaniola
1508 The Spanish founded settlements in Puerto Rico
1515 The Spanish founded settlements in Cuba
1554 The Dutch plundered Santiago de Cuba
1555 The French plunder Havana
1586 Santo Domingo surrendered to the British
1595 The British took over San Juan
1628 The Dutch captured the Spanish silver fleet off Cuba
1634 The Dutch seized Cura?ao
1635 The French acquired Martinique
1655 The British commandeered Jamaica from Spain
1665 The French occupied half of Hispaniola and called it Haiti

Cuba and Puerto Rico were ceded to the United States in the late 19th century, and Cuba gained its independence in 1901, but independence for all the island nations wasn't a legitimate prospect until the 1960s. The French possessions remain departments of France; citizens of these islands have the same rights and privileges as citizens of Burgundy or Province. In 1962, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago becameindependent states within the British Commonwealth; Barbados did the same four years later. Next came independence for Antigua, Barbuda, Redonda, Anguilla, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and Dominica. Today, the islands continue to build on this self-reliance.

Slavery
The 18th century brought about a turning point in Caribbean history when slavery was brought to the islands. European importers demanded high quantities of sugar, the product of sugarcane, which grew easily in the Caribbean's temperate weather. As demand for sugar increased, so did the demand for plantation labor.

The indigenous Arawaks were the Europeans' original slaves but they were quickly dying out. By this time slavery was a fixture in European and Arab countries. To continue the grievous trend in the Caribbean, then-friar Bartoleme de las Casas of Hispaniola suggested enslaving Africans. Hence, many new slaves came from Africa's Guinea coast. They were taken from their homes by slave-raiding parties, which were often endorsed by the local government.

They were shipped to the West Indies via the notorious Middle Passage--a horrendous mode of transport in which slaves were packed into the ship's hold so tightly that they could not move freely and sometimes suffocated to death. On average, 12 percent of slaves died on the trip; those who survived were fed, "oiled", and paraded through the streets to the slave market where they were auctioned off and traded for liquor, guns, and other goods.

They were pawns in the infamous Triangular Trade: European ships set sail for the Caribbean colonies with bartering goods, arms, and liquor for African slave traders; slaves were captured and shipped from Africa to the islands; and in the final step, sugar and rum were exported from the Caribbean back to Europe.

The average life expectancy for an imported slave was only seven years, but history tells that many died within the first year after they arrived. The acclimation period, or "seasoning" as it was called, was a time of brutal adjustment for the new slaves. They were forced to adopt new cultural customs and language.

On the plantations, owners demanded slaves sever every tie to their homeland and kept slaves of the same culture apart; rebellion was still common. They exercised harsh punishments for disobedience or acts of will; indeed, it was not illegal to kill an African man in the British colonies until the beginning of the 19th century.

In the 1770s, anti-slavery movements began to take shape in Europe. The Society for the Abolition of Slavery was established in 1787 to raise public awareness of the inhumane treatment of slaves. It wasn't until 1807, however, that a law was passed banning the trade of slaves on British ships.

Soon after the law was passed, many other countries enacted similar laws; in 1831, a massive anti-slavery rebellion in Jamaica destroyed many sugar estates, motivating Parliament to sanction the Emancipation Act of 1834. After a four-year "apprenticeship" during which the slaves were still bound to plantation life, they were released unconditionally.

Cuba was still importing slaves until 1865, and did not officially abolish slavery until 1888. The French possessions did not free their slaves until 1848, followed by the Dutch in 1863 and Puerto Rico in 1873. Many freed slaves purchased parcels of land for subsistence farming. On some of the smaller Caribbean islands, however, there was little land left to buy, so they had to return to plantation work.

Caribbean islands were riding an economic high as they entered the 20th century. And as during any wartime, sugar prices soared. But the Great Depression after the first World War took the world by storm, and many precarious island governments were toppled by the economic stress.

U.S. Territories
When the U.S. won the Spanish-American war, Puerto Rico became the first U.S. territory in the Caribbean. At first, the U.S. was unsure how to deal with this territorial holding. Officials did not want to grant the island statehood for two reasons: Puerto Ricans were 40% non-white according to census data, and they spoke Spanish.

Instead, the U.S. enacted the Foraker Act in 1900. It copied the British Crown Colonies' government, and included the following elements:

The U.S. President appoints the island's Supreme Court and Governor.

The Governor names 11 members to an Executive Council.

The popular vote chooses the 35-member House of Delegates.

The U.S. Congress retained veto power over any Puerto Rican laws.

In 1902 there would be no tariffs for goods between Puerto Rico and the U.S.

People would be citizens of Puerto Rico - not the U.S.

This bill was not well-liked by any of the parties involved, but political troubles made it difficult to change. However, President Woodrow Wilson created the Jones Act to govern Puerto Rico in 1917, the same year that the U.S. purchased the Virgin Islands from the Danes. The purchase went through to stop the Germans from taking territory in the Americas.

The Jones Act, however, provided the following only for Puerto Rico:

Puerto Ricans would be protected by the Constitution as U.S. citizens.

Puerto Ricans could travel freely to the mainland.

The islanders were exempt from federal voting or taxes, but could be drafted.

Puerto Rico's Senate and House were elected via universal male suffrage, until 1929 when women gained the right to vote. The President continued to appoint the Governor and Supreme Court.

After World War I the U.S. all but forgot about its Virgin Islands territories, leaving them under naval control until 1931, when control was transferred to the Department of the Interior. Nonetheless, the islanders gained U.S. citizenship in 1927.

At first the islands retained their Danish-style government. The Organic Act of 1936 guaranteed their Constitutional rights, but gave local governments the rights to use all local taxes. Voting rights on the Virgin Islands were also relaxed, giving the right to vote to any U.S. citizens who could read English.

U.S. Intervention
Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands weren't the only interests the U.S. had in the Caribbean. The war that gave the U.S. control of Puerto Rico also freed Cuba, and the U.S. government helped Cuba to form its own government. Haiti and the Dominican Republic also had a close association with the U.S. throughout modern history.

Cuba
In 1902 Tomás Estrada Palma became Cuba's first President. However, in 1906 both Palma and his Vice President resigned after an uprising by Jos? Miguel G?mez, and U.S. troops were sent to help control the island. Palma had won re-election in 1905 while the country experienced an economic boom. He was also one of the few presidents who did not line his pockets with Cuban funds. Still, the election campaign had involved dirty politics on the sides of both Palma and G?mez.

U.S. troops again returned in 1917 to help establish Mario García Menocal's presidency after his re-election in 1916. Several other presidents reigned until 1924 when General Gerardo Machado y Morales was elected and turned the presidency into a dictatorship.

The U.S. again intervened in 1933, forcing Machado to resign and hoping to find a peaceful solution to the troubles on Cuba before protests could turn into civil war. The president installed by President Franklin Roosevelt's Ambassador was soon overthrown. In 1934 the U.S. recognized Sergeant Fulgencio Batista y Zalvidar as the Cuban leader, but Batista named Carlos Mendieta as President.

By 1940 Batista was so well-liked that he was elected as President in an honest election. The U.S. relinquished much of the control it had gained over Cuba through the Platt Amendment, but retained its naval base in Guantánamo Bay. Hispaniola

At this time, both Haiti and the Dominican Republic were struggling as nations. Although they had earned their independence in the first half of the 17th century, their political structures were still unstable and subject to many changes of power. For example, Ram?n Cáceres was elected as president of the Dominican Republic in 1906, but was assassinated in 1911.

Concerns of German occupation during the first World War caused the U.S. to occupy Haiti in 1915 and the Dominican Republic in 1916, which subsequently improved conditions on the island. In 1927, the young Rafael Trujillo was given control of the Dominican National Guard. By 1928 the Guard became the country's army.

The U.S. trained these soldiers in an effort to reduce the number of bandits in the countryside. However, Trujillo had his eyes on leadership, and in 1930 he took control of the Dominican Republic. This same year a hurricane devastated the country, and economic turmoil reigned as the Great Depression took its toll on the island.

In 1931 Trujillo became the country's dictator and rebuilt Santo Domingo, naming it Trujillo City in his own honor. Although he was a dictator, Trujillo was extremely popular during the beginning of his reign as he rebuilt the island and improved roads, public buildings, railways, and even hotels for tourism.

In 1933, the U.S. left Haiti and the island's political struggles began as leaders fought for power. These political struggles and power changes lasted for more than 20 years.

Shared Troubles
Though some islands fared better than others during this time, the Great Depression struck all of the Caribbean islands, which often relied on the support of their parent nation. Sugar prices fell drastically, leaving most islands without a source of income following a sugar high that had allowed many of the islands to grow through the introduction of roads and other construction projects.

These economic troubles hit the independent countries of the Caribbean hardest. Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic were forced to borrow money to stay afloat. Economic troubles almost invariably led to political shake-ups, as unhappy islanders revolted. Power changed hands frequently, often creating worse situations as a series of corrupt politicians came into office.

A second World War provided another economic boom in the Caribbean, but troubled nations continued their fight for leadership. Island conditions improved and worsened a number of times during the beginning of the 20th century, but in the end, a wartime rise in sugar prices could not lift the islands out of the political turmoil they had fallen into.

The two World Wars book-end the Great Depression, and these economic changes led to historic political problems, particularly among the Caribbean's independent nations. Those with colonial ties managed to make it through these tough times.

French Policy
Immediately after the end of World War II France began making political changes. The first change came in 1945, when Martinique and Guadeloupe became political Departments of France. This gave the citizens of these islands the same rights as French citizens living in Europe. In these Departments, both St. Barth?lemy and French St. Martin were included with Guadeloupe.

Guadeloupe and Martinique were governed by a prefect (governor) from France, who controlled public services and the army and carried out any government directives. However, a 1960 riot on Martinique led to a larger role for the elected island councils, giving them more control of local laws and spending.

After 1946 agriculture became much less important, but French assistance has kept the quality of life high on these islands. While many Caribbean citizens have moved to France, many illegal immigrants enter these islands from throughout the region.

U.S. Holdings
Just after the second World War the U.S. made some changes, as well. In 1947 the Jones Law was amended, and Puerto Rico was given the opportunity to elect its own governor. Luis Mu?oz Marín, who had served on the Senate for years, became the first governor of the island.

His widespread popularity was due in part to his campaign platform asserting that Puerto Rico should gain commonwealth status. His landslide victory of 61% of the popular vote spurred Congress to action, and in 1950 President Truman created the Public Law 600, allowing Puerto Rico to draft its own constitution.

Within two years Puerto Rico had become a U.S. commonwealth with the following attributes:

The island was locally self-governing.

Puerto Ricans pay no federal taxes.

Defense and foreign relations are left to the U.S.

Though this gives Puerto Rico less autonomy than British or Dutch colonies, the commonwealth government has many economic advantages for the islanders, who have used this economic advantage in recent history to attract investors. Another important change in 1947 was the Industrial Incentive Act, which encouraged the growth of industry on Puerto Rico. New industries were granted subsidies and tax exemptions for periods of 10 to 30 years. After Governor Marín's resignation in 1964, the political parties splintered.

The U.S. Virgin Islands were given limited self-government in 1968. However, both the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico have repeatedly voted against closer associations with the U.S. Elections in Puerto Rico have traditionally been close, but the islanders choose to remain a commonwealth and not become a state. The U.S. Virgin Islands have voted against further autonomy five times since 1954.

Dutch Divisions
The Netherlands Antilles never fully recovered from the end of slavery, and by 1948 they were among the poorest Caribbean islands. However, after World War II they were granted full adult suffrage; two years later they gained internal self-government.

The Statute of the Realm led to a different style of government, giving the Dutch crown control of three kingdoms: the Netherlands, Suriname, and the Netherlands Antilles. Cura?ao led the Netherlands Antilles group, which spawned problems with other islands that did not trust Cura?ao.

The islands supported themselves via offshore banking and tourism. In fact, Cura?ao began its offshore banking in 1963 with an agreement with the U.S. that was beneficial for both parties. In 1955 the first tourist hotel was built on Sint Maarten; it contained only 20 rooms.

Federating the Indies
Britain had worked to group its islands under a central governing body called the British Leeward Islands Federation in the 1800s. But by 1956 the Federation had crumbled. The islands hoped to go their separate ways, but Britain still wanted a united Caribbean government.

Though the British crown created the West Indies Federation two years later, the British Virgin Islands don't join it. Against their wishes, Jamaica and Trinidad joined with this group. The seat of power was then located on Trinidad. The politicians who dominated this federation were largely Jamaican, from the island's own labor parties.

By 1961 Jamaica had had enough of the federation, and stated its wish for independence. Britain agreed, and Jamaica received its independence in 1962. Soon afterward, the Federation fell apart when Trinidad left the group. Montserrat returned to Crown Colony status, and Barbados voted for its own independence in 1966.

Dictators' Rise and Fall
Though Trujillo began his reign in the Dominican Republic by greatly improving the country, his methods involved torture and murder to suppress his rivals. By the late 1950s, sugar prices were dropping steeply and his opposition was more widespread.

In 1960 Trujillo attempted to assassinate Venezuela's president, and the Organization of American states banned weapon sales to the Dominican Republic. The U.S. withdrew its price support for Dominican sugar. The following year Trujillo was assassinated by a seven-man team, though it is said they had some help from the U.S.

Trujillo's son took control of the army, with the figurehead president of Joaquin Balaguer still in place. However, the U.S. no longer wanted the Trujillo family in control and sent a ship to Trujillo City. In 1962 Juan Bosch became the president in free, democratic elections and attempted to improve the situation by redistributing 7 million acres of government land to more than 70,000 landless peasants.

Bosch was soon exiled, however, for a number of reasons. He weakened the Roman Catholic influence and threatened to weaken the army as well. His toleration of Communism was another setback, and in 1963 he was exiled.

The U.S again invaded the Dominican Republic in 1965, putting an end to political squabbles. Balaguer was elected and instated in 1966. He came alongside a new constitution, which featured an all-powerful government and president.

Haiti's political squabbling ended in 1957 when Fran?ois Duvalier, known as "Papa Doc," won the presidency. Though he was an extremely popular politician with widespread support, he soon created a dictatorship and in 1964 declared himself "President for Life." He, too, weakened the Roman Catholic church, instead supporting Vodou (Voodoo).

Popular Socialism
Though a few elections took place in Cuba in the 40s and 50s, Batista returned to Cuba in 1951 and announced that he would run for the presidency. However, he feared that he would lose the election and thus overthrew the government in 1952. Though at first he was accepted, Fidel Castro led a revolt against him in 1953.

Castro was pardoned by Batista and went to Mexico. There he met "Che" Ernest Guevara and began leading a new socialist group. His return to Cuba was followed shortly afterward by the 1958 elections, which were rigged. On January 1, 1959 Batista fled, taking a good portion of Cuba's treasury with him.

Castro moved into Havana in 1959, and began taking over farms, factories, and retail stores, making them government possessions. The Agrarian Reform Act limited the size of personal holdings, and the Cuban government began seizing all properties larger than these limits, no matter if they were owned by Americans or Cubans.

After many changes by Castro, including seizures of American businesses, President Eisenhower broke diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1961. By this time, Castro had already cultivated relations with Communist Russia. Kennedy planned the Bay of Pigs invasion that year, but the U.S. operation failed.

Russian involvement with Castro and Cuba increased, and the 1962 missile crisis grew from Kennedy's Bay of Pigs loss. However, the agreement between Russia and the U.S. for removal of the nuclear missiles angered Castro, who rushed to retain them. Regardless, this did not end the association between Russian Communism and Cuba.

Throughout the 20th century the U.S. has been involved in the affairs of much of the Caribbean. However, the British, Dutch, and French islands have each kept to themselves, slowly working out their own governments.

Dominican Dominance
Balaguer spent the early years of his second presidency working hard to gain the support of the peasants on the Dominican Republic. He reformed the government, built roads, and added hydroelectric plants, irrigation systems, schools, and churches. However, Bosch returned from exile and founded a socialist party that eventually posed a threat to Balaguer.

Antonio Guzmán Fernández won the 1978 election, but Balaguer attempted to seize the results and nullify the election until U.S. President Jimmy Carter stepped in to stop him. Fernández took power that year, but soon appointed friends and family to top positions. He used his widespread public support to weaken the island's military, and his administration was known for misappropriating funds meant for hurricane relief in 1979.

Because of this, Fernández's own party withdrew its support and instead supported Salvador Jorge Blanco for the election in 1982. Fernández subsequently killed himself before Blanco's inauguration. Economic troubles became so dire in 1984 that the government was forced to remove price controls on imports, and riots broke out.

In the 1986 election Balaguer again became president, and ordered investigations into the corruption of Blanco's administration. Blanco fled to the U.S., but returned to the Dominican Republic in 1991. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison but was released in 1994.

In recent years, the exchange of power has gone much more smoothly on the Dominican Republic. The most recent election in 2004 put Leonel Fernandez in power. Constitutional changes in 1994 allowed a president to take power only if he or she has won a majority vote and mandated that runoff elections be called when there is not a 50 percent majority.

Haiti's Docs
"Papa Doc" Duvalier was elected by popular vote in Haiti, but stayed in power by helping the rich elite to become richer (and making the poor poorer). Before he died in 1971 he named his 19-year-old son Jean-Claude Duvalier as his successor.

While Haiti suffered, "Baby Doc's" wife spent more than a million dollars in Paris, and Duvalier and his appointees took more than $505 million in public money for their own uses. But in 1986 Duvalier and his wife fled to France to escape mass protests.

In U.S.- controlled elections in 1990, Jean-Bertrand Aristide won with a large majority of the vote. Aristide was both passionate and Roman-Catholic, but his popular support was not enough to keep him in power, and he fled to Venezuela in 1991. In 1994 Aristide returned to control with help from the U.S. military.

Ren? Pr?val, a longtime friend of Aristide, took the election in 1996. He enjoyed popular support as a companion of Aristide until Aristide himself turned against Pr?val. Aristide again won the 2000 elections but resigned in 2004 due to a coup. A new election is scheduled for 2006.

Cuba's Troubles
With the encouragement of Russia, Cuba sent troops around the world in the 1970s. The small country sent troops to Angola in 1975 and Ethiopia in 1977 in support of Communist regimes in those countries. Despite this, Jimmy Carter worked to improve U.S. relations with Cuba.

However, Cuba was experiencing an economic depression, and in 1980 Castro authorized the now-infamous Mariel boatlift. Though Castro used this as a chance to get rid of disabled and criminal members of the Cuban populace, a vast majority were simply hoping for a chance to leave the country. Political prisoners included poets Reinaldo Arenas and Robert Valero.

Cuba's economy has continued to decline since the Soviet Union fell apart in the early 1990s. Russia's annual loans were extremely important to the success of a Communist Cuba. But throughout all of the island's economic difficulties, Castro has remained staunchly socialist.

In 1998 Cuba made history by hosting a visit from Pope John Paul II and permitting him to be broadcast without censorship. He urged the island to break away from socialism, but also urged other countries, particularly the U.S., to break trade restrictions against Cuba.

After the Pope's visit, Castro released some prisoners as a show of his respect for the papal request. Some European nations, including Spain, have reestablished contact with Cuba. Some Caribbean nations have also opened their doors to Castro.

All of these Caribbean nations have had troubled pasts, but all are working toward more stable futures. The islands share a similar history of falling to leaders who have taken total control of each nation.

Island History