The Dominican Republic was explored by Columbus on his first voyage in 1492. He named it La Española, and his son, Diego, was its first viceroy. The capital, Santo Domingo, founded in 1496, is the oldest European settlement in the Western Hemisphere. Spain ceded the colony to France in 1795, and Haitian blacks under Toussaint L'Ouverture conquered it in 1801. In 1808, the people revolted and captured Santo Domingo the next year, setting up the first republic. Spain regained title to the colony in 1814. In 1821 Spanish rule was overthrown, but in 1822 the colony was reconquered by the Haitians. In 1844, the Haitians were thrown out and the Dominican Republic was established, headed by Pedro Santana. Uprisings and Haitian attacks led Santana to make the country a province of Spain from 1861 to 1865.
President Buenaventura Báez, faced with an economy in shambles, attempted to have the country annexed to the U.S. in 1870, but the U.S. Senate refused to ratify a treaty of annexation. Disorder continued until the dictatorship of Ulíses Heureaux; in 1916, when chaos broke out again, the U.S. sent in a contingent of marines, who remained until 1924. A sergeant in the Dominican army trained by the marines, Rafaél Leonides Trujillo Molina, overthrew Horacio Vásquez in 1930 and established a dictatorship that lasted until his assassination in 1961, 31 years later. In 1962, Juan Bosch of the leftist Dominican Revolutionary Party, became the first democratically elected president in four decades.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
click this link to listen to the national anthem in Spanish called Isle of Beauty, Isle of Splendour. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37_rWLNluNw&feature=related
Here are the lyrics in English:
Isle of beauty, isle of splendor,
Isle to all so sweet and fair,
All must surely gaze in wonder
At thy gifts so rich and rare.
Rivers, valleys, hills and mountains,
All these gifts we do extol.
Healthy land, so like all fountains,
Giving cheer that warms the soul.
Dominica, God hath blest thee
With a clime benign and bright,
Pastures green and flowers of beauty
Filling all with pure delight,
And a people strong and healthy,
Full of godly, rev'rent fear.
May we ever seek to praise Thee
For these gifts so rich and rare.
Come ye forward, sons and daughters
Of this gem beyond compare.
Strive for honour, sons and daughters,
Do the right, be firm, be fair.
Toil with hearts and hands and voices.
We must prosper! Sound the call,
In which ev'ryone rejoices,
"All for Each and Each for All."
Here are the lyrics in English:
Isle of beauty, isle of splendor,
Isle to all so sweet and fair,
All must surely gaze in wonder
At thy gifts so rich and rare.
Rivers, valleys, hills and mountains,
All these gifts we do extol.
Healthy land, so like all fountains,
Giving cheer that warms the soul.
Dominica, God hath blest thee
With a clime benign and bright,
Pastures green and flowers of beauty
Filling all with pure delight,
And a people strong and healthy,
Full of godly, rev'rent fear.
May we ever seek to praise Thee
For these gifts so rich and rare.
Come ye forward, sons and daughters
Of this gem beyond compare.
Strive for honour, sons and daughters,
Do the right, be firm, be fair.
Toil with hearts and hands and voices.
We must prosper! Sound the call,
In which ev'ryone rejoices,
"All for Each and Each for All."
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Diminican Republic isn't very big. It is biger than Vermont. It is about the size of Vermont and New hampshire combined. They have only 8,443,000 people there. There is alot of vegitation. The people of Dominican Republic are artsy people. They like to draw, paint, color bright and beautiful pictures. If you like a certain picture you can show them what it looks like and they will paint it for you. It takes them about a wekk to paint a picture.
With colors straight out of a crayon box and landscapes too diverse and magnificent for words, the Dominican Republic provides a picture-perfect view, regardless of where the spectator stands. Proud of its beauty and careful to maintain it, the government has taken a very systematic approach to ensuring these colors do not fade for future generations.Setting aside 20 percent of the country's land for preservation has resulted in 83 areas: 19 national parks, six scientific reserves, 32 natural monuments, 15 natural reserves, two marine sanctuaries and nine protected parcels of islands also called panoramic views
From tropical forests to semi-deserts, the Dominican Republic is comprised of various climate conditions, the largest being sub-tropical moist and sub-tropical dry forests. Four mountain ranges elevate the island and are capped by four of the tallest peaks in the Caribbean: Pico Duarte at 10,128 feet above sea level (ASL), La Pelona at 10,072 feet ASL, La Rucilla at 9,990 feet ASL and Pico Yaque at 9,055 feet ASL. However, being the tallest isn't its only colossal claim. The Dominican Republic also has the lowest point in the Caribbean at 144 feet below sea level at Lake Enriguillo.These mountain ranges, valleys, deserts, lakes and islands serve as home to 5,600 plant species. Thirty-six percent of the country's floral species are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else on the planet, of which, 300 endemic orchids have been identified. The Dominican Republic even has an endemic palm tree called the "manacle palm."Of the 303 bird species living in the country, 27 are endemic, including the yellow and brown Hispaniola woodpecker and the narrow-billed tody. Many of the birds are also listed as endangered or threatened throughout the world. One bird, listed as critical, is the Ridgway's hawk. Those are just some of the thing syou can do in Dominican Republic.
With colors straight out of a crayon box and landscapes too diverse and magnificent for words, the Dominican Republic provides a picture-perfect view, regardless of where the spectator stands. Proud of its beauty and careful to maintain it, the government has taken a very systematic approach to ensuring these colors do not fade for future generations.Setting aside 20 percent of the country's land for preservation has resulted in 83 areas: 19 national parks, six scientific reserves, 32 natural monuments, 15 natural reserves, two marine sanctuaries and nine protected parcels of islands also called panoramic views
From tropical forests to semi-deserts, the Dominican Republic is comprised of various climate conditions, the largest being sub-tropical moist and sub-tropical dry forests. Four mountain ranges elevate the island and are capped by four of the tallest peaks in the Caribbean: Pico Duarte at 10,128 feet above sea level (ASL), La Pelona at 10,072 feet ASL, La Rucilla at 9,990 feet ASL and Pico Yaque at 9,055 feet ASL. However, being the tallest isn't its only colossal claim. The Dominican Republic also has the lowest point in the Caribbean at 144 feet below sea level at Lake Enriguillo.These mountain ranges, valleys, deserts, lakes and islands serve as home to 5,600 plant species. Thirty-six percent of the country's floral species are endemic, meaning they are found nowhere else on the planet, of which, 300 endemic orchids have been identified. The Dominican Republic even has an endemic palm tree called the "manacle palm."Of the 303 bird species living in the country, 27 are endemic, including the yellow and brown Hispaniola woodpecker and the narrow-billed tody. Many of the birds are also listed as endangered or threatened throughout the world. One bird, listed as critical, is the Ridgway's hawk. Those are just some of the thing syou can do in Dominican Republic.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
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