How did the Dominican Republic win independence from Haiti?
Dominican independence from Haiti
La independencia de Santo Domingo
27 February 1844. The Spanish-speaking east of Hispaniola had a different road to nationhood.
Draft: not yet checked against its sources.
Where: The Spanish Caribbean, Dominican Republic
What happened
The Spanish-speaking east of Hispaniola had a different road to nationhood. Haiti occupied it in 1822, and for twenty-two years the former Spanish colony was ruled from Port-au-Prince. In 1838 a young merchant's son, Juan Pablo Duarte, founded a secret society, La Trinitaria, to work for separation. Duarte was in exile when the moment came: on the night of 27 February 1844 his followers, led by Francisco del Rosario Sánchez and Ramón Matías Mella, raised the new flag at the Puerta del Conde in Santo Domingo and declared the Dominican Republic. The Haitian garrison gave up the next day. Duarte returned but was soon expelled by the strongman Pedro Santana and died in Venezuela in 1876. The young republic was even re-annexed to Spain from 1861 to 1865 before winning its 'Restoration'. 27 February is the national day.
Say it
El 27 de febrero de 1844 los dominicanos declararon su independencia de Haití.
On 27 February 1844 the Dominicans declared their independence from Haiti.
Why it matters
The Dominican Republic is the only Spanish-speaking country whose independence day marks separation from a neighbour rather than from Spain, which still shapes its identity and its tense relationship with Haiti.
Read about it
Connected
- Ayacucho: the end of Spanish rule in South America (9 December 1824)
- The abolition of slavery in Cuba (October 1886)
Sources
- Juan Pablo Duarte — Comisión Permanente de Efemérides Patrias (gob.do)