Back in the 4th millennium BC. people lived in Cuba. At the beginning of our era, the Taino Indians, whose civilization was considered the most developed, moved here from Latin America. They settled their villages on the islands, grazed cattle and cultivated the land.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered these islands to Europeans, and by the beginning of the 16th century, the entire local population was enslaved by the Spanish conquerors. The landlords began to intensively use the labor of the Indians on the plantations of sugar cane and tobacco. Since the indigenous people did not want to work for the colonialists, African slaves soon began to be brought here. In those years, Cuba had the status of a separate captaincy general, but was completely subordinate to the Spanish crown. A strict economic regime was established, under which all imported and exported goods went through Spain and were heavily taxed. This led to numerous strikes that continued for two centuries. Check a2zdirectory for old history of Cuba.
In 1868, an armed uprising of slaves arose, as a result of which Cuba was proclaimed independent. Up until 1878, negotiations were underway with the Spanish government. The rebels achieved the abolition of slavery, the eradication of racial discrimination, the implementation of administrative reforms and laid down their arms. However, along with obtaining freedoms by the local population, the economic dependence of Cuba on the United States increased. And again, a large number of dissatisfied workers appeared in the country, among whom the Cuban poet, and now the national hero of Cuba, the revolutionary Jose Marti, acted.
In 1895, another armed uprising broke out, which ended with the formation of the Cuban Republic. These riots took advantage of the US government, which had its own interests. In 1898, the United States declared war on Spain and, with the help of the Cubans, in 1899 captured the island. Spain renounced ownership of Cuba, but the US did not recognize Cuba as fully independent. America achieved the opportunity to interfere in the politics of the new republic, place its naval bases on the island and receive economic privileges. Thus, in 1902, an independent Cuban Republic was proclaimed, “bound hand and foot” by treaties with the United States. From that time until the 1959 revolution, the United States and Cuba were constantly in confrontation, the local population staged strikes and protests.
Since 1953, Fidel Castro entered the arena of war, who, together with Ernesto Che Guevara, led the rebel guerrilla movement. In 1959 they entered Havana. As a result of the coup, a Revolutionary government headed by Fidel Castro was created, which adhered to a tough policy, and the revolution was called “socialist”.
In 1961, the United States severed diplomatic relations with Cuba and tried to seize the island, but to no avail. The government of Fidel Castro banned the activities of opposition parties and created a single Communist Party. Acting on the example of the development of the USSR, Cuba has for a long time found in him a powerful ally. The USSR planted several missiles on the island, aimed at the main cities of the United States, which marked the beginning of the “Caribbean Crisis”. Fidel Castro wanted Cuba to acquire complete economic independence – all forces were put on the cultivation of sugar cane and the export of sugar. In 1991, the USSR collapsed, and Cuba lost its main partner. The country’s economy fell into decline, but by the end of the 20th century, the revision of the main priorities and the development of economic relations with foreign countries made it possible to improve the situation.
Until now, Cuba remains the only socialist power in the Western Hemisphere, but its revolutionary past makes other countries respect it and, to some extent, fear it.
