Social Studies: Caribbean Colonizattion

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Map of Caribbean, 1843.

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After Christopher Columbus' voyages most of the Caribbean was owned by Spain. The region was originally called the West Indies because when Christopher Columbus landed here in 1492 he believed that he had reached the Indies Mountains in Asia.

The Spanish found out that their was gold when they found small amounts in the personal ornaments of the native population. The Spanish, who came seeking wealth, enslaved the native population and rapidly drove them to near-extinction . They then imported African slaves.

The Portuguese and Spanish colonies were bringing in gold and other countries, like England, the Netherlands, and France, wanted to start their own profitable colonies. The many colonies in the Caribbean led to many European wars throughout the centuries.

In the 19th and 20th centuries a number of colonies gained independence from the European powers, some examples are Haiti, Saint-Domingue and Cuba.

Sources: Wikipedia