History of the Dominican Republic

By Robert Nickel

So where is the incredible country known as the Dominican Republic? Well, it has the distinction of sharing an island in the Caribbean with another country, Haiti. It seems like an odd arrangement, as most islands in, or around, that size in the Caribbean are countries unto themselves. The island the Dominican Republic resides on is known as, La Hispaniola, and is part of the Greater Antilles archipelago.

The Dominican Republic, by both size and population, is the second largest Caribbean nation after Cuba. Its land mass measures 48,442 square kilometers and the population is estimated to be 10 million. The capitol city of the Dominican Republic is Santo Domingo, which has a population of almost 4 million people.

Not only is the Dominican Republic the second largest and second most populated country in the Caribbean, it also has the second largest economy. The economy was once dominated by sugar production, but is focused around the service industry.

An interesting bit of history is that, Santo Domingo, is the first Spanish capital in the new world and the first permanent settlement by Europeans. Santo Domingo was also the first city in the Americas to have a castle, cathedral and a university. Prior to the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492, the seafaring Tainos people inhabited the area where Santo Domingo now resides.

The Spanish ruled the Dominican Republic for three centuries, but it did occasionally lapse into French or Haitian control. In 1821, the Dominican Republic became independent, although slavery was not abolished and rights were severely limited for the mostly mulatto and black population. Ruler, Jose Nunez de Caceres, wanted to incorporate the Dominican Republic into the short-lived republic known as, Gran Colombia. This did not sit well with the Haitians and, with the help of the slave revolts, Jose Nunez de Caceres was removed from power.

Things were not resolved yet for the Dominican Republic. In 1844, they fought the Dominican War of Independence to free themselves from Haitian control. Prior to this, the Dominican Republic found itself under Haitian rule for 22 years. There was also a lapse back into Spanish rule for another 72 years. When the Spanish rule ended, the Americans then stepped in between1916-1924. For six years after that there was relative calm under the leadership of, Horacio Vasquez Lajara. This was not to last as the country fell into a dictatorship led by Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina until 1961.

In 1965, the country fell into civil war. An intervention, led by the USA, helped to end the internal conflict. The leadership gap was then filled by the authoritarian, Joaquin Balague, from 1966-1978. Progress has been made since then and the Dominican Republic, led for the most part by Leonel Fernandez, is attempting to move toward a representative democracy.

Thankfully, things have stabilized in the Dominican Republic and the economy is growing. The majority of growth in their economy can be attributed to tourism. In fact, one in every 7 jobs is now related to tourism. Also, with all the tourist construction projects and the growth of ecotourism in the country, new employment in the industry is expected keep pace.

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Tags: columbus, Dominican history, dominican republic, French rule, land mass, population, settlement, Spanish rule, Travel and Leisure

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