Independence of Jamaica

The Colony of Jamaica gained independence from the United Kingdom on 6 August 1962. In Jamaica, this date is celebrated as Independence Day, a national holiday.

The Caribbean island now known as Jamaica was first settled by the Arawak and Taíno peoples, who originated in neighboring South America.Genoan explorer Christopher Columbus discovered Jamaica in 1494 during his second voyage to the New World, and claimed it for Crown of Castile. At this time, over two hundred villages existed in Jamaica, largely located on the south coast and ruled by caciques, or "chiefs of villages".

The Spanish Empire began its official rule in Jamaica in 1509, with formal occupation of the island by conquistador Juan de Esquivel and his men. The Spaniards enslaved many of the native people, overworking and harming them to the point that many perished within fifty years of European arrival. Subsequently, the lack of indigenous labor was resolved by bringing in African slaves. Disappointed by the lack of gold on the island, the Spanish mainly used Jamaica as a military base to supply colonizing efforts in the mainland Americas.

After 146 years of Spanish rule, a large group of British sailors and soldiers landed in the Kingston Harbour on 10 May 1655, during the Anglo-Spanish War. English, who had set their sights on Jamaica after a disastrous defeat in an earlier attempt to take the island of Hispaniola, marched toward Villa de la Vega, the administrative center of the island. Spanish forces surrendered without much fight on 11 May, many of them fleeing to Spanish Cuba or the northern portion of the island.

...
Wikipedia