Captaincy General of Cuba

Origins

Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar led the conquest of Cuba from 1511, founding Baracoa and other towns; the Taíno chief Hatuey, who resisted, was burnt in 1512. Havana, moved to its present site around 1519, became the island's main city and, from 1607, its capital.

Rule and society

Havana was the gathering port of the treasure fleets returning to Spain and was heavily fortified. The British occupied it in 1762-63. After the Haitian Revolution of the 1790s Cuba became the world's leading sugar producer, relying on hundreds of thousands of enslaved Africans; slavery lasted until 1886. Captains-general such as Miguel Tacón ruled with broad powers.

Decline and legacy

The Ten Years' War of 1868-78, led by the Republic of Cuba in Arms, and the war of 1895 challenged Spanish rule. After United States intervention in 1898, Spain gave up the island, which passed to the United States Military Government in Cuba.