Early Cuban Conflict

Conflict plays a crucial role in the history of any people. Those living on the island of Cuba are no different. Although the Cuban natives were not warlike, conflicts over slavery and with Caribs played a role in shaping the history of the island.

 

 It would be difficult to believe that the Cuban natives did not, at some point, encounter the Carib people. The Caribs were an extremely warlike tribe and are widely believed to be the cannibalistic enemy to the native Taino. The Carib people traveled by fleet of canoes from island to island, making war on the Taino people. The Carib warriors heavily favored the bow and arrow as their weapon of choice. Often when attacking Taino villages, Caribs would use flaming arrows to completely destroy the area. While there is no known written evidence, the extremely aggressive nature of the Caribs make it is easy to believe that this warlike tribe made some adversarial contact with Cuban natives.

The next major recorded conflict came with the Spanish settling the island. Soon after establishing themselves on Cuba, the Spanish sought to enslave some of the native population. Outright resistance by the Taino would be futile as their main weapons were wooden spears or darts whose tips were often fire-tempered for strength or mounted with bone. This compared to the more modern weapons of the Spanish, which often included firearms and armor. With large-scale direct confrontation a non-option, these natives chose resisted in a theoretically more passive confrontation. Cuban natives would often commit suicide rather than be taken into bondage. This method of conflict was extremely effective as it deprived Spanish of a critical moneymaking asset: human workforce. 

For whatever reason, there was a huge cultural divide between the Cuban natives and Carib people. This cultural riff would be the source of much fighting and bloodshed throughout the Caribbean islands. It is also true that the Carib people would sometimes expand to newly conquered islands. Thus, the majority of conflicts endured between the Carib and Taino people were over cultural differences and the seeking of profit.

Conflict between Europeans and Cuban natives stemmed from much of the same differences. The Spanish tended to think of the “uncivilized” Taino as beneath them. This cultural difference would lead to Spanish dehumanization of native Cubans, a trend, which would happen in most of the Caribbean. It would be naive to believe that all conflict simply came from this cultural misunderstanding. Much direct conflict came from the Spanish’s determination for profit. This is evident in their search for a free source of labor among the Taino people. While much of the conflict may have been indirect, it stemmed from cultural misunderstandings and Spanish greed.

Early Cuban conflicts against their oppressors were paramount in their history. From the defense from the warlike Caribs to the resistance of European slavery, we see a resilient spirit in the Cuban people.

Sources:

Carter, E. H., G. W. Digby, and R. N. Murray. (1959). History of the West Indian Peoples - From Earliest Times to the 17th Century. (pp. 22-44). Cheltenham: Nelson and Sons.

Emily R. Lundberg. (9/23/2011). Island Caribs Attack Tainos. Retrieved from http://www.cubaheritage.org/articles.asp?lID=1&artID=9.

Wright, Irene. (1916). The Early History of Cuba, 1492-1586. (pp. 5-7). New York, NY: The Macmillan Company