Caribbean History

Since the 15th century, the Caribbean has played an important role in the colonial conflicts of the European powers, as shown by its history. Christopher Columbus arrived in the Caribbean in 1492 and annexed it to Spain. The first Spanish settlements in the Caribbean were established the following year. Although Mexico and Peru were more appealing locations for Spanish exploration and settlement after the Spanish conquests of the Aztec empire and the Inca empire in the early sixteenth century, the Caribbean continued to play a strategic role.

On the Caribbean islands that Spain had ignored, non-Hispanic privateers, traders, and immigrants began establishing permanent colonies and trading centers in the 1620s and 1630s. These colonies proliferated all throughout the Caribbean, from Tobago in the south east to the Bahamas in the north. Additionally, French and English buccaneers established themselves at this time on the island of Tortuga, the northern and western shores of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), and later in Jamaica.

The islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico were no longer a part of the Spanish Empire in the New World following the Spanish-American War in the late 19th century. The Caribbean played a significant role in the 20th century's World War II, the subsequent wave of decolonization, and the conflict between Communist Cuba and the United States. Genocide, slavery, immigration, and rivalry between world powers have given Caribbean history an impact disproportionate to its size.