Dominican Republic History
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The Dominican Republic's main language is Spanish although English is widely spoken. The area takes up around 2/3 of the island of Hispaniola, which is part of the Greater Antillles island chain. The country has 3 major mountain ranges, which gives tourists lots of environments to explore. The island of Hispaniola was originally occupied by the Tainos, an Arawak people. Christopher Columbus was welcomed by the Tainos in 1492, but subsequent visitors fro overseas reduced the Tainos population from around a
million to 500 in 50 year span due to the brutality of the newcomers. Slaves were brought in from Africa by the Spanish starting around 1503 to ensure labor for plantation work. Haiti took over control of the entire island in 1822, and held it until 1844 when forces led by Juan Pablo Duarte drove the Haitians out of the area and established the Dominican Republic as an independent state. The next few years saw the Dominican Republic in and out of Spanish control due to economic and internal disruptions. The United States occupied the Dominican Republic in 1916 and helped the country establish a military government. The U.S. ended their stay in 1924 when the Dominican Republic became a democratic government in itself. Unfortunately, several years later in 1930, Rafael L. Trujillo seized control and economic development along with human rights began a rapid decline on the island. An assassination attempt on Venezuelan president Romulo Betancourt led to the Dominican Republic being sanctioned by the Organization of American States. After Trujillo's own assassination, his family was forced to exile in 1961. Sanctions were lifted in 1962 and control of the government came under new President Rafael E. Bonnelly. Numerous coups and skirmish's plagued the Dominican Republic through to the year 2000.
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