The first Cubans  
 

The first inhabitants reached the island around 2000 b.C. from other south-american lands; when the island was descovered, different indios had already settled on the island: the Guanajatabeyes in the western part, the Ciboneyes on the rest of the island. The third Indios group, more developed than the others, were the Taìnos, a tribe from the island of Hispaniola (the current Dominican Republic and Haiti) feeding fro their island; once in Cuba, they settled in the eastern part of the island.

Cuban Indios were peaceful, had legumes, tapioca, potatoes and coffee plantations, used to hunt and fish, had an economy based on goods exchange and believed in different gods represented by bone-made small statues. The Tainos used to sleep on hammocks and lived in group of huts around the main hut of the head-tribe, called Cacique, with religious and healing powers.

 
     
 
Discovery
  
 

When Columbus (Colòn) discovered the island on the 27th of October 1492, landing close to Baracoa, more than 100.000 indios lived on the island; Columbus thought he had reached Cipango, the name used at the time for Japan. He called the island Juana, after Don Juan, prince of Spain and described Cuba as "the most beautiful island a human eye has ever seen". The first Spanish were welcomed as Gods and left the island in peace, without harming local tribes.

  
 
     
 
The conquest
  
 

300 man led by Diego Velasquez de Cuellar moved from Hispaniola in 1512 to conquer the island. In 1514 the settlements of Baracoa, Bayamo, Santiago, Trinidad were founded and Habana construction had begun; Santiago was declared administrative capital of the Spanish colony.

Regardless of the efforts of Velasquez to limit Spanish excesses towards the Indios, it was a period of massacres and bloody repressions. In this period the Cacique Hatuey led some attacks to Spanish troops; once caught he was burned alive, refusing baptism from father Bartolomè de la Casas. Today Hatuey is considered "el primero", first Cuban hero.

  
     
 
Slavery
  
 

Cuba didn't have those natural treasures the Spanish were looking for, so it was used mainly as a base for the conquer of Mexico by Hernan Cortez, between 1519 and 1521. During that period, many illnesses were introduced by the Spanish and the number of the Indios decreased from 5000 to 1500; that's the reason why slaves from Africa were introduced in Cuba. They were grouped by original tribe, so many of them were able to preserve their beliefs and traditions which formed today's Santeria. During this period many animal breeding sites were introduced, together with the cultivation of tobacco, a Spanish monopoly for many years.

 
 
     
 
Pirates and the English conquer
  
 

The role of Cuba as a strathegic point for the conquer of Mexico was a risk for pirates' incursions (some of them very famous, like the French Jaques de Sores and the Dutch Piet Heyn); that's the reason why la Habana and other towns were fortified. In the meantime Jamaica was conquered by the English and started putting pressure on the Spanish, that were involved in the war of 7 years between France and England. On August 13th, 1762, the Spanish surrendered to the English and an 11-months English domination started over Cuba; the English boosted commerce and imported many slaves.

  
     
 
Cuba, last Spanish colony
 
 

After the peace agreement signed in Paris in 1763, Cuba went back into Spanish hands, giving-up Florida State. The new-born US were the first trading partners of Cuba, after Jamaica and Haiti became independent. In 1825 Mexico became independent, so Cuba and Puerto Rico were the last two Spanish colonies; there was a plan of the south-american Libertador, Simòn Bolivàr, to free them from the Spanish, but he encountered US opposition to his plans and gave-up.

  
 
 

In 1850, Narciso Lopez, a Spanish general pro US and in favor of keeping slavery (later abolished in 1888 after strong UK pressure) invaded the island with 600 men and kept a temporary Republic for 1 year; the current flag and shield date back to that period. Not being backed by the local plantation owners, he left the island; in 1852 tried to conquer again the island, but was caught and killed by the Spanish.

 
     
  The first Independence War  
 

The denial of any autonomy under the Spanish flag and the poor economy, brought the Oriente provinces to declare independence in 1868. In October, Carlos Manuel de Cespedes freed his slaves and gave birth to a revolt. General Maximo Gomez led the rebels army, which was nor effective moving eastwards against the Spanish.

In 1878 an agreement signed with the Spanish guaranteed amnesty to insurgents, but some of them, including Antonio Maceo, refused the agreement and were exiled. In the following 17 years, Spain tried to boost economy and built railway lines; many plantations were bought by US farmers and the US cleared all customs tolls for goods from Cuba, which became the third trading partner of US. During those years, a group of political refugees in the US gathered around poet Josè Martì, to go back to Cuba and take power.

  
     
 
The second Independence War
  
 

In 1892 Josè Martì reached S.Domingo and Costa Rica to enroll the exiled generals Maximo Gomez and Antonio Maceo. In 1894 the US raised again the custom's tax for goods from Cuba, causing serious economic problems to the island and giving insurgents a good excuse to attack the Spanish. Landed on the west coasts, insurgents went eastwards; Josè Martì died facing the enemy, while Gomez and Maceo reached Pinar del Rio and Habana. The invincible Captain Wyler was sent by the Spanish to stop the insurgents, but soon after the Spanish Prime Minister was killed in Spain, forcing the Crown to face internal problems and loosing ties on the colonies. Independence was then offered to Maceo and Gomez under the Spanish flag.

  
 
     
  US intervention  
 

In January 1898, US warship Maine, in Habana to officially protect US citizens, blew-up and real causes were never known; the US government blamed the Spanish Crown and, after another Spanish refuse to sell Cuba to the US, on the 25th of April, the US declared war to Spain. Not much opposition was posed by Spain, which surrendered in July, limiting losses for Spanish Crown. The local troops who won the independence wars were not helped by the US troops, which fled the island after cholera and yellow fever had spread through Cuba.

Peace between US and Spain was signed in Paris, in 1898, recognizing the right for self-determination of the Cubans, but under the US military occupation. Many US government went to power until real independence; the one of Leonard Wood tried to eliminate yellow fever and built schools, hospitals and streets. In 1900 the local assembly was put in charge, by Wood, to write the new Constitution based on the American one. Moreover, the Platt's bill guaranteed the military presence on the island (like Guantanamo base).