On January 26, 1813 one of the founding fathers of the Dominican Republic was born.
Far before his birth, Haitian troops under the power of Toussaint L’Ouverture invaded Santo
Domingo resulting in his parents flee of the Dominican. Until the Spanish were victorious in the
War of Reconquista in 1809, Duarte’s parents temporarily located themselves in Puerto Rico.
The Duarte family moved back to the Dominican as soon as the war was over and immediately
put Juan’s education first. Juan Pablo Duarte helped to shape the independent country of the
Dominican Republic, which still thrives today.
(A) The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica, Juan Pablo Duarte
At a young age, Duarte was passionate about education. His parents enrolled him in one
of the
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best schools in the Dominican Republic to help him receive the best education possible. Receiving a well rounded education was so important to Duarte’s parents that they sent him to New York at the age of 15 so he would be able to obtain the most knowledge.
Additionally, he
traveled to France, London, and Spain. In 1832, he returned to the Dominican Republic at the
age of 20. Traveling at such a young age helped to shape Duarte’s character. He was able to
appreciate the world outside of his own country. He learned about different cultures, different
types of government, and all together different ways of life.
(B) Colonial Zone-Dominican Republic (DR), Juan Pablo Duarte "The Father of the Country" /
"Padre de la patria"
Duarte spent many years away from his country, but when he returned to his native land,
it remained under the control of the Haitian government. He strongly disliked the role of the
Haitian people in his country. Duarte was very patriotic and passionate about his beliefs. He
began organizing groups of politicians to refuse Haitian control. In 1838, Duarte created a secret
society called “La Trinita”. This organization was established to diminish the Haitian occupation .
Duarte and his followers did not keep quiet for long, they began to put on theatrical
performances and began public speaking to spread their ideas. The group continued to grow and
later became public. People became more comfortable with the idea of fighting for their
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own independence. Duarte sparked the fire inside the people of the Dominican when he took a stand for his country. (C) Colonial Zone-Dominican Republic (DR), Juan Pablo Duarte "The Father of the Country" / "Padre de la patria" With the help from La Trinita and it’s many followers, La Trinita was able to overthrow Jean-Pierre Boyer, the Haitian president.
However, when the new president forced him into
exile, Duarte was forced to flee. He settled in Caracas, Venezuela until he felt his work was not
done in his country. Seven years after Boyer was overthrown, the Dominican Republic went to
war with Haiti and proclaimed February 27, 1844 the Dominican Republic’s independence day.
Duarte, along with other men of La Trinita, purchased weapons and other supplies needed for
war out of their own pocket.
(A) The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica, Juan Pablo Duarte
After two years of fighting, the Dominican Republic ended with a victory. The
Dominican Republic was now free from Haitian rule and became an independent nation. The
people of the Republic praised Duarte for sparking their revolution. The people of the country
felt so much gratitude towards Duarte they named the highest point in the Caribbean “Pico
Duarte” in his honor. He was otherwise praised in the U.S. with the establishment of Juan Pablo
Duarte Square in New York City. His view of government were not fully recognized before his
death in 1876, but they continue to serve as a guide for majority of the current
Dominican governments.
Katz, William L. Toussaint L’Ouverture and the Haitian Revolution by William Loren Katz. HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY, n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2014. .
When Father Hidalgo’s plans were discovered him and his fellow conspirators were forced to act. On September 16, 1810, Father Hidalgo gave his famous “Grito de Dolores”, “Cry of Dolores”, where he called upon the Mexican people to fight with him against the Spanish rule. Hundreds, which soon turned into 80,000, of people joined him and attacked Spaniards and looted cities. After a huge loss of Calderon Bridge, the rebel army scattered and the Spanish army found Hidalgo and Allende and executed them. The rebels do not give up and continued to fight a long and bloody war until 1828 when they won their independence. (Mexican Independence from Spain - The Hidalgo Era, 1810-1811, 1; Celebrating Mexico’s Independence Day: 7 Traditions Followed To Commemorate The Country’s Most Important Day,
The Haitian Declaration of Independence was composed by the Commander in Chief, after Haiti officially declared its independence. The purpose of this document was to end slavery as well as gain independence. After examining the letter thoroughly, you see that the he was writing to the people of Haiti. On the first page of the letter, he explained that the Haitians, had gathered for “with one last act of national authority,” pledged “to live independent or die,” (Dessalines,1) and would destroy any French invading force. The Haitian
de Besault, Lawrence. President Trujillo: His work and the Dominican Republic. Santiago: Editorial El Diario, 1941.
Haiti began as the French colony Saint-Domingue. The island was filled with plantations and slaves to work on them. Almost a decade and a half after its settlement, this colony paved the way for many changes throughout the French empire and many other slave nations. Through its difficult struggle, we examine whether the slave revolt of Saint-Domingue that began in the late 16th century was justifiable and whether its result of creating the free nation of Haiti was a success.
in Santo Domingo. Santo Domingo is the capital of Dominican Republic. David Ortiz was the
Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina is without a doubt one of the most known figures within the Dominican history. The “Era de Trujillo” (The Trujillo Era) occupied the Dominican Republic for the long period of thirty-one years. His dictatorship started in 1930 and ended with his assassination on May 30, 1961. Trujillo’s Career began with the occupation of the United States in 1916. During this time he was trained in a military school, and became part of the National Police, a military group made by the Unites States to maintain order in the Dominican Republic . Trujillo stood out during his military career and rapidly ascended within the military ranges. Under the government of Horatio Vasquez Trujillo received the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was put in charge of chiefs and assistant commanders of the National Police . This new position gave him the opportunity to be part of the overthrowing of Horatio Vasquez. Trujillo was sworn into presidency on August 16, 1930. Marking the beginning of what is known as the cruel, violent and controversial part of history in the Dominican Republic.
The current authoritarian regime could not produce that democratic power. The upper class originally wanted Charles-Henri Baker, one of the richest person in Haiti, to be president, however he was not even close to the threshold. The socialites chose the second best alternative, Martelly, and want to keep him(and them) in power forever. Haiti may never attain democracy, or it may suddenly become democratic just after one night. Haitian government needs to not go back to its Duvalierst back trail and increase government transparency, otherwise Haiti will never complete the transition from the poorest to the second
Trujillo use of violence and challenge of political authority demonstrated that from the very beginning he created an insurgency regime within his military ranks that oppressed his country. Which 30 years later, his own military generals and freedom fighters will be the very ones to end his reign. To this very day, some of the Dominican people whether living in the United States or Dominican Republic are hesitate to talk about it, but are glad that it is in the past and
Once assuming the presidency, Trujillo took some of his most loyal men and created a small military force called the Servicio de Inteligencia Militar, or SIM. Their job was to control the public and eliminate any opposition, no matter how big. One of the biggest jobs SIM was ordered to perform was the Parsley Massacre of 1937. A year after a political compromise between the two nations, thousands of Haitians were illegally immigrated into the Dominican Republic. Many Dominicans were complaining about the settlements growing exponentially on the border, as it hindered trade. Trujillo responded with, “We have already begun to remedy the situation. Three hundred Haitians are now dead in [the city of] Bánica. This remedy will continue.” Trujillo had ordered his men to get rid of the Haitians occupying the borderlands. Approximately 20,000 Haitians and some dark Dominicans were killed. If you couldn 't pronounce "perejil" or parsley with a roll of the "r", it entailed you spoke French and as a Haitian you were killed. Women and children were as mercilessly killed as the men by bayonets, machetes, and rifles. Dominicans that tried to help were killed as well. The bodies were dumped in a body of water running between the two countries, as if to send a message. SIM was so effective that horrible genocide occurred during only five days. It was an event that tarnished the Haitian-Dominican
The unification under Boyer lasted for twenty-two years. The Dominicans regained their independence from the Haitians in 1844. The political unrest in both countries between the time of their independences and the United States occupation of the nations of 1915 and 1916 was staggering. “Haiti had 33 heads of state, with an average time in power of 3.4 years. Meanwhile, between independence in 1844 and the U.S. military occupation in 1916, the Dominican Republic had 61 heads of state, with an average time in power of only 1.2 years” (Jaramillo & Sancak). The political landscape on both sides of the island were identical. There was no foreign interest on the Haitian side of the island from the period of their independence to the American intervention. Due to a chaotic political landscape and with Haiti’s policy of no foreign landowners allowed there was no hope for the previous Caribbean powerhouse to take its place on the throne of sugar
... Housing for the D.R. Fellow nations sought to believe that the U.s would repeat the actions with the D.R that they took almost 50 years the events of the Dominican revolution. The U.S and the Dominican Republic share a good relationship and today with a strong democracy the small island in the Caribbean has well imitated the United States and gain a strong independence.
On January 1, 1804, the country of Haiti formally declared independence from the French colonial powers. This newfound state of freedom was born as a result of the Haitian revolution (1791–1804), a movement that was primarily lead by the former slave and prominent leader, Toussaint L’Overture. Due to the successful nature of this slave revolt, the nation of Haiti became a huge inspiration for surrounding colonies – becoming the second former European colony in the New World that was able to achieve independence. Despite the hard-won efforts of the oppressed, political stability within the country quickly unravelled as the national identity formed during the revolution deteriorated under rising conflict between mulattoes and blacks.
The island of Saint-Domingue was made up of a mixture of people including whites from France, creoles, free people of color, and slaves. Once sugar became a major cash crop on the island, an estimated half-million African slaves were brought in to work the land. These slaves outnumbered their white masters more than ten to one and made up the majority of the island inhabitants. Even so, the island had the most secure slave regime in the Caribbean because of the cooperation between masters and free men of color. Due to the difficult policing jobs given to the freed men with little reward, the communication between them and the white masters broke down. Now that the white slaveholders were on their own, it was only a matter of time before their brutal treatment of slaves would lead to an uprising. Once enslaved Africans received word of the revolution in France they too began demanding freedom. After years of civil unrest and vicious fighting, Haiti declared its freedom from France in January of 1804. What makes the Haitian Revolution more radical than the two before it is the fact that it was led by slaves. Throughout the previous revolutions, the main goal was for white men, essentially, to be free from oppressive government rule. There were few thoughts regarding the rights of slaves, even though they too were men. The fact that this group of people were able to remove the colonial authority and establish their own country during this period of time was particularly radical and unheard
Haiti was once an economic power when France held claim to the Eastern Part of Hispaniola, then named St. Domingue. It was a French colony flourishing with coffee and sugar. Eventually the ideals of the French Revolution - Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity - made its way to the colonies resulting in a revolution. Haiti was the first slave-led revolution and declared its independence as a republic on January 1, 1804. After their declaration of independence, things started to make a turn for the worst. In 1934 the U.S. forces occupied Haiti to establish stability. The U.S. appointed heads of state but the real power was present in the U.S. occupiers, whereas the heads of state are just figureheads. Haiti’s economy dwindled further down when France demanded reparations of 150 million francs, which wasn’t paid off until 1947. In 65 years, Haiti had 22 heads of state.” In 1957 Francois Duvalier is elected president. He later “creates a totalitarian dictatorship and in 1964 declares himself president-for-life.” This is where Haiti’s political instability really begins.