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In 1492, Christopher Columbus discovered 'the most beautiful land human eyes had ever seen'. The island, baptized by the Spanish as Hispaniola, would be the starting point for the conquest of the New World and see the construction of the first cities in the American continent. Among them Santo Domingo, which still proudly conserves traces of it's colonial past (Cathedral Santa María la Menor, Alcázar de Colón...).
A century later, forgotten by the Spanish and populated by pirates, the island would be converted into the object of everyone's desire.
In 1655, the French arrived to the Occidental part, occupying it officially in 1697 (the Ryswich Treaty). A century later, the Spanish part is annexed to France through the Bâle Treaty and in 1822, to the growing Haitian Republic. On February 27th, 1844, the Eastern territory is liberated and proclaimed the Dominican Republic.
The Dominican history of the 20th century is very hectic. The country would live an American occupation (1916 - 1924), the long dictatorship of General Trujillo - from 1930 to 1961 and a civil war in 1965.
After 1966, the Domincan Republic converts into a democracy with it's own president and elections every 4 years.
The actual president, elected in 2000, is Dr. Hipolito Mejia.
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