Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Panama and Venezuela) but never got the chance - Haiti invaded and finally achieved its
goal of a united Hispaniola.
Dominicans chafed under Haitian rule for the next 22 years, and to this day both coun-
tries regard the other with disdain and suspicion. Resistance grew until February 27, 1844
- a day celebrated as Dominican Independence Day - when a separatist movement headed
by Juan Pablo Duarte captured Santo Domingo in a bloodless coup. The Puerto del Conde
in Santo Domingo marks the spot where Duarte entered the city. Despite the reversal of
fortunes of the two countries in the 20th century, many Dominicans still view Haiti as an
aggressive nation with territorial ambitions.
Fearing another invasion and still feeling threatened by Haiti in 1861, the Dominican
Republic once again submitted to Spanish rule. But ordinary Dominicans did not support
the move and, after four years of armed resistance, succeeded in expelling Spanish troops
in what is known as the War of Restoration. (Restauración is a common street name
throughout the DR, and there are a number of monuments to the war, including a promin-
ent one in Santiago.) On March 3, 1865, the Queen of Spain signed a decree annulling the
annexation and withdrew her soldiers from the island.
The
trinitaria,
a bougainvillea that blooms purple, red and magenta, also refers to Juan Pablo
Duarte, Francisco de Rosario Sánchez and Ramón Mella, the three fathers of the republic, and
to the secret cells of three that were organized in 1838 to struggle for independence from Haiti.
