Hispaniola in the 17th century underwent many changes. It started out under Spanish rule. Then after piracy became prevalent, the Spanish gave up a third of the island that was closest to the island of Tortuga a safe haven for pirates. The French saw their opportunity to gain a foothold in the new world. So, they came and inhabited the part of the island the Spanish had given up causing a split in Hispaniola that still exists today. Who would think that all this conflict started over a few pirates and some cows?
The Spanish, through Christopher Columbus, claimed Hispaniola for themselves on his first voyage to the New World. The Spanish set up their Caribbean capital on Hispaniola, but they rarely paid attention to Hispaniola except to make sure that they kept a tight trade reign on the island. They ignored Hispaniola because, while it may have been the first settlement, it was not the most profitable.
Hispaniola served as an excellent stopping point for pirates on their way to Tortuga. The pirates, who roamed the Caribbean preying on the Spanish treasure ships, took advantage of the Spanish’s lack of attention and frequently stopped at Hispaniola to get supplies. The citizens of the island were farmers and breeders of livestock, especially cows. The pirates bartered with the citizens for supplies and livestock. The Spanish tried to keep the pirates off of the island but to no avail. So, the Spanish officials moved the citizens inland to towns where they could not have access to the coast to trade with the pirates and abandoned the western third of Hispaniola in 1603. This relocation caused the citizens to turn their cows loose to roam over the island because they would not have the land to let their cows graze properly in such close confinement. Now with cows loose all over the island, the pirates had even easier access to beef, and they no longer had to purchase it.
Louis XIV of France also took advantage of the Spanish relocation to move in on the third of the island that the Spanish abandoned. The French also claimed the island of Tortuga, the pirate stronghold. The Spanish refused to recognize the French claim on part of the island. That changed with the Treaty of Rhyswick.
This map shows the different countries claims on Hispaniola with the western French claim in red and the eastern Spanish claim in gold. The Nine Years’ War, which was known as King William’s War in North America, settled the dispute between France and Spain over Hispaniola. The war was the result of France’s King Louis XIV territory grab in Europe. Most of the fighting occurred in Europe, but it did have repercussions in Hispaniola. The Treaty of Ryswick which ended the war in 1697 forced the Spanish to recognize French control over the western third of the island. Although the official border was not set until 1777 by the Treaty of Aranjuez, the events of the 17th century ensured that Hispaniola would continue to be a divided island.
Sources:
Guitar, Lynne. "History of Dominican Republic." Last modified 2010. Accessed September 25, 2011. http://www.hispaniola.com/dominican_republic/info/history.php.
O'Neil, Daniel. "Gold, cows, and pirates: the story of how the island of Hispaniola (or Quisqueya) ended up split into two countries: 1492-1777." Creating border Opportunities in Dominican Republic and Haiti (blog), September 02, 2009. http://nuestrafrontera.org/wordpress/2009/09/gold-cows-and-pirates-the-story-of-how-the-island-of-hispaniola-or-quisqueya-ended-up-split-in-two-countrie (accessed September 25, 2011).
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