In the latter part of the 15th century, while sailing his second expedition, Christopher Columbus came across a small island—an island that long before 1492-1494 had been inhabited by the Taino population, and that at the time was called Boriquen. The Taino population was, at the time, the first people Columbus encountered who were a part of the New World. To claim more land for the Spaniards—as he was sent to do, Columbus decided that he and his troops would hold hundreds of Taino captives and settle there, claiming the land as theirs. As time progressed, Christopher Columbus and his followers embezzled the island by mining all its silver and gold. In addition, to establish the Spanish rule over the island, they renamed it San Juan Baustista—what is now the capital of Puerto Rico. Moving forward a couple of years, to the 16th century, the Spaniards had already cemented themselves by establishing their autonomy over the economic and political state of the island. The beginning of the colonization of Puerto Rico coincides with the period in which Nicolás de Ovando is replaced by Diego Colón as governor of Hispaniola. [1] After the second decade of the sixteenth century, only sporadic mention of the Indians of Puerto Rico appears in the historical record. The period of Indian rebellion, extending off and on from 1511 to 1515, was considerably longer than in Hispaniola, or anywhere else in the Caribbean. [2] Despite the official ban on Indian slavery in 1530, the exemption of the Caribs from this ban meant that islands such as Puerto Rico and Hispaniola could continue to legally acquire Indian slaves from the Lesser Antilles. [3] The Taino disappeared, but not their contribution to the culture. They had mixed with the “colonizadores” (colonizers), and their influence left its imprint.
In the wake of Christopher Columbus’ expansion further North and South, Puerto Rico, was relegated to the role of a strategic military outpost. [4] Because of this and the continued acquisition of slaves, a revolt began to happen. This is when the Spaniards got to building. Because they were concentrated on the north-east of the island, it is there were they began the construction of La Fortaleza and the Castillo San Felipe, now known as El Morro. This was a castle whose sole purpose was to serve as a shield against any attacks from the enemy. This because in defense of the larger empire; the English, French, and Dutch challenged the Spaniards with military incursions, economic encroachment, and territorial acquisition. [5]When being constructed, Castillo San Felipe had, other than all the Spaniard troops, various cannons that were ready to be fired if any attacks came from the sea. This is what one can see depicted in the image presented at the very beginning (https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47d9-7c11-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99). In this image, the artist was trying to portray what San Juan, Puerto Rico looked like after years of having been colonized by Spain and having gone through the Spanish-American War. If you look closely at the image, you might notice the various ships that are docked alongside the shoreline of the island, as well as the Castillo San Felipe; that at the time was well more than half-way constructed. For the most part, you can see how the conquest of the Spanish, at least when it comes to social, political, and cultural horizons was depicted at the time.
If you would like to know more about the history of Puerto Rico, how it became a United States territory, and the issues the Island is facing right now, then you should watch the video that is linked below.
http://https://youtu.be/Bx_o1PWHdLAHdLA
References:
[1] Karen F. Anderson-Cordova. Surviving Spanish Conquest. University Alabama Press, 2017, 38.
[2] Ibid., 45.
[3] Jose Trias Monge. The Trials of the Oldest Colony in the World. Yale University Press, 1997, 5.
[4] Roberto Marquez. Sojourners, Settlers, Castaways, and Creators: A Recollection of Puerto Rico Past and Present. Massachusetts Review, 1995, 2-3.
[5] Ibid., 2-3.