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Puerto Rico: The History Of A Beautiful Island
By Tina Fernandez colonies, with just one representative at the Cortes and no who immigrated to Puerto Rico) and followers of Spanish
solid separatist movement (yet). In other words, Spain did colonial policy (large merchants, clergy, military, and
I was born and raised in Puerto Rico, having moved to not think granting Puerto Rico their 22 wishes would lead landowners whose markets were predominantly in Spain). In
Boca Raton merely two years ago. My beautiful island has to any huge upheaval. short, the ideological division between “Puerto Ricans” and
always enchanted me; I’ve fallen in love with its beaches, As separatist sentiment continued to gain traction, Puerto “Spaniards” became increasingly evident every day. What a
rainforests, and people. One thing, however, that I did not Ricans began to embrace the idea of autonomy. In 1868, few decades prior was perceived as unthreatening was now
pay much attention to was its history. It wasn’t until last Puerto Rico’s only and briefly successful revolution took a fervent movement that challenged Spain’s established
year that I began having insightful conversations with my place- the Grito de Lares. This movement was organized authority day by day.
friends about Puerto Rican’s political history and current by Ramón Emeterio Betances and carried out by workers By the last decades of the 19th century, Spain grew desperate
circumstances. Although I still have a lot to learn, I’d like connected to the coffee economy. Like most revolutionaries and even conceded to Cuba and Puerto Rico’s equal rights
to share with you all a series of articles on the history of at the time, Betances’ influence derived from Simón Bolivar to their Spanish counterparts, under Title I of the Spanish
Puerto Rico. I’ll begin by giving an overview on Puerto and other independence movements in the rest of the Constitution. An exciting accomplishment for Puerto Ricans
Rico’s colonial roots, a period from 1493 to 1898. Americas, such as the Haitian Revolution of 1791. Betances was the approval of the Autonomic Charter, which occurred on
Like many other islands in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico wrote The Ten Commandments of Free Men, in which he November 25, 1897 and bestowed self-government to Puerto
was colonized by Spain in the 15th century. With the demanded, among other things, the abolition of slavery, Rico, prompting the island’s first elections. The elections
Capitulations of Santa Fe signed by the Catholic Monarchs freedom of speech, religion, and commerce, and the right of were held on March 1898, with the Liberal Party receiving the
of Spain, Christopher Columbus was given the money, Puerto Ricans to elect their authorities. Although the Spanish majority. Unfortunately, autonomy was extremely short lived;
ships, and men to embark on an exploration of the New found out about the rebellion in time to stop it, Betances eight days later the United States invaded Puerto Rico due to the
World. Columbus arrived in the already-habited island of still carried it out, and while not completely successful, its Spanish-American War of 1898. Puerto Rico, as well as Cuba,
Puerto Rico in November 19, 1493, while on his second effects would later on have a profound impact on the island. Guam, and the Philippines, would be relinquished by Spain
trip. He named the island San Juan Bautista, although the For example, the uprising pressured Spain into granting and given to the United States as part of the peace treaty to end
island’s natives- the Tainos- had their own name for it: Puerto Rico more political rights. These consisted of the war. Just as Puerto Ricans were making significant progress
Borikén. It was not until 1508, however, that the conquest being able to send 14 more representatives to the Spanish towards sovereignty, they became colonized all over again.
of Puerto Rico actually began. Juan Ponce de León, one of Cortes. On another hand, the possibility of more freedom Puerto Rico’s history is rich in common themes and
the conquistadores of Hispaniola (present-day Dominican continued to fuel Puerto Rican political thinking, and the continuity. Under American rule, the island saw many
Republic and Haiti) decided to conquer Puerto Rico because first political parties were organized in November 1870: transformations that defined its 20th century self. I hope to
he had heard of abundant amounts of gold there. Gold was the Liberal Reform Party (Partido Liberal Reformista, write about this period in my next article.
vital to the economic system that defined Spain at the time. renamed the Puerto Rican Autonomist Party in 1887) and
When Juan Ponce de León arrived at the island, he met with the Conservative Party (Partido Conservador). The rise Sources:
Agüeybaná, the leading cacique in the island. The conquest of political parties reflected the divergence of economic
1
was surprisingly peaceful; Agüeybaná welcomed Ponce de interests between the Spanish and the creole Puerto Ricans. Dietz, James. Economic History of Puerto Rico: Institutional Change
León and his 50 men. For the first couple of decades, the The Liberal Reform Party favored greater autonomy and and Capitalist Development. Princeton University Press, 2018. Print.
island thrived as a source of gold, forcing labor upon the supported the expansion of trade between other nations;
Tainos, which underwent constant abuse and exploitation. it catered to the interests of the creole farmers (both sugar Solá García, Cesar J., and Juan R. Hernández García. Puerto Rico:
After 1518, Spaniards began bringing African slaves to and coffee producers). In contrast, the Conservative Party The Story of an Island and Its People. Edited by Pedro L. San Miguel
compensate for the declining Taino population, which had supported the interests of peninsulares (native Spaniards and Jane Ramirez, Santillana Educación, 2015
been heavily decreasing due to European diseases. As time
2
passed, the gold eventually ran out, transforming Puerto B’H
Rico into an agrarian society which cultivated anything from Sabra Wall Decor
ginger and sugar to cassava, coffee, and tobacco, although
never in significantly large quantities. Puerto Rico held an
important strategic and military role, but the island did not EstimatEs
have a powerful export economy (probably due to its small
size), making it unprofitable to the monarchy.
During the 19th century, Puerto Rico saw many important Painting & More ...
economic and political changes take place. For instance, the
cultivation of coffee, which had begun in 1736, expanded
strongly in the last third of the 19th century. Coffee was • Popcorn Ceiling • Wallpaper Removal
frequently cultivated alongside plantains and bananas, which
provided shade to the coffee plants. And while sugarcane • Knock Down
plantations required much larger resources of labor- both • Drywall Repair
land and workers, coffee could be cultivated with smaller
pieces of land and less workers. In a way, coffee production Cell: (954) 931-4716 Licensed & Insured
disincentivized the sugarcane plantation system, and Office: (561) 395-3057 CC: 03-11120-P-K
empowered local peasants to become sustainable. To give
exact statistics, in the 1890s, 41% of cultivated land was
used for coffee production, and over half of all farms on the
island were actively involved in coffee production of some Southwind S
sort. Meanwhile, only 15% of the cultivated land was being
used to produce sugarcane.
1 In Taino society, Caciques were the most powerful and respected
members. Essentially the leaders of their communities.
2 A government-conducted census showed that there were only 1,553
Tainos living in Puerto Rico in 1530, a sharp decline from the 50 to
70,000 of them at the start of colonization in 1508.
Politically speaking, the nineteenth century also saw
the birth of Puerto Rico’s first political parties, which
were strongly influenced by separatist and anti-Spanish
sentiments. In 1808, Napoleon Bonaparte forced Spanish
King Charles IV to abdicate his throne, taking him and
his son Ferdinand VII as prisoners. As a result of French
occupation, the Junta Suprema formed in Spain, with the
purpose of fighting against France and restoring Ferdinand
VII to the throne. In 1809, the Junta Suprema helped organize
the Cortes, the first Spanish parliament. This committee Enjoy the sunsets on the wrap around patio overlooking the golf course of this 2 bedroom, 2 bath first
granted representation to the colonies, most likely in an floor Aruba model in Southwinds. Double door entry and unique layout makes this feel more like a
effort to ensure they would remain loyal to Spain. Puerto house than a condo. Beautifully updated kitchen with granite counters and SS appliances. Large master
Ricans chose Ramón Power y Giralt as their representative, bedroom with stunning remodeled master bath and 2 extra large closets.
excited at the opportunity to finally have a voice in political $329,000
discourse. Once in Spain, Ramón Power y Giralt brought to
the committee a list of 22 proposals he wanted the Cortes
to enforce. These proposals reflected the growing liberal
sentiments in Puerto Rico and the rising tensions between Stephanie Scheller
creoles and Spanish immigrants (peninsulares). Some of
the requests included in the list were lower taxes and the Broker Associate
appointment of native Puerto Ricans to public posts. The LoKation Real Estate
proposals would essentially benefit the creole classes at the
expense of Spanish plantation owners. Spain agreed to the 954-494-8490
proposals, mostly as an act of desperation; their power was
in decline and Puerto Rico was one of their last remaining