republic · Mesoamerica and the Caribbean
First Dominican Republic
Origins
The secret society La Trinitaria, founded in 1838 by Juan Pablo Duarte, organised resistance to Haitian rule. On 27 February 1844 Francisco del Rosario Sánchez and Ramón Matías Mella proclaimed independence at the Puerta del Conde in Santo Domingo. The cattle rancher Pedro Santana defeated the Haitian army and soon exiled Duarte and the other founders.
Rule and society
The constitution of San Cristóbal of November 1844 included Article 210, giving Santana dictatorial powers. Santana and Buenaventura Báez alternated in power, each seeking foreign protection from France, Spain or the United States. The country repeatedly defended itself against Haitian invasions under Faustin Soulouque, notably at Las Carreras in 1849 and at Santomé and Sabana Larga in 1855 to 1856. Tobacco from the Cibao valley and mahogany were the main exports; printing of paper money caused ruinous inflation.
Decline and legacy
Fearing renewed Haitian attack and seeking to keep power, Santana negotiated the country's annexation to Spain, proclaimed on 18 March 1861, creating the Province of Santo Domingo.
Lineage
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). First Dominican Republic. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/first-dominican-republic
- MLA
- “First Dominican Republic.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/first-dominican-republic. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “First Dominican Republic.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/first-dominican-republic.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘First Dominican Republic’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/first-dominican-republic (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻