Dominican Republic history is a series of tumultuous events, filled with revolution and political unrest that have shaped the Dominican Republic into the colorful culture we see today. Like many other Caribbean Islands, Domincan Republic history with the European world began with Columbus, who first reached the Island in late 1492 (wrecking his ship on the Atlantic shore). The entire Island became known as the “Spanish Island” or Isla Expanola, a name that has remained through modern times in the form ‘Hispaniola’. Dominican Republic history really began with the founding of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic’s capital, a few years after its initial discovery. Dominican Republic History claims to have, in Santo Domingo, the oldest inhabited city in the Americas. The Dominican Republic became the jewel of Spain’s triangle trade in the New World making the Island a vital port in the Old World’s economy.

Spanish rule has a violent series of events that cross Dominican Republic’s history. After centuries of foreign rule, the Dominican Republic gained independence in 1865 at a severe cost to the civil peace. The domestic revolutions brought international factors to play in the Dominican Republic’s history as the United States occupied the country from 1916 to 1924. The newest chapter in the Dominican Republic history began in 1966 when democratic rule came to the Island following an American military intervention. The modern Dominican Republic is highly dependent on tourism for current development, a big change in the history of the Dominican Republic.