History of Trinidad Essay -- Essays Papers

History of Trinidad The history of Trinidad began far before Columbus landed on the island. Before any Spanish lived on the island, it was inhabited by two indigenous tribes. The Arawaks lived in the southern region of the island. The Caribs, who were regarded as a much more violent and vicious than the Arawaks, lived in the north. The Caribs are described as â€Å"warlike† people and for this reason they were able to withstand more of chance fighting the Spanish conquerors, though not enough. The recorded history of the island begins with Columbus' landing in July 31, 1498. The island was appropriately named Trinidad after the Holy Trinity. Spain showed little interest in the new territory until about 1530 when Antonio Sedeno was named Captain-General of the island for life. This mission did not last as many suspected, Sedeno returned back to Spain within four years after not being able to tame and civilize the natives. Donimgo de Vera in St. Joseph established the first permanent settlement in 1592 in St. Joseph. Over the next two centuries more attempts at colonization were made but with little success. This all culminated in 1699 with the Arena Massacre, in which the natives killed the Spanish governor and all but one of his men and all of the priests. This kept people weary of the island and it's people until the end of the 18th century. True colonization was not until the Cedula of Population was established in 1783. This document was designed to draw people of ot...