Chronology of Colonial Cuba American battleship, USS "Maine", was sunk under strange circumstances in the Havana Harbor. This brought about American intervention in the war, which became the Spanish–American War that ended with the Treaty of Paris on December 10, within which Spain ceded Cuba and Puerto Rico to the United States. Thus, a new stage in Cuban history was begun. Chronology of Colonial Cuba The chronology of the colonial time of Cuba is about the Spanish colonial period in Cuba, and the efforts to obtain independence from the Spanish Empire and includes history from the "discovery" of the island by Christopher Columbus to
Raid on Santiago de Cuba (1603) Raid on Santiago de Cuba (1603) The Capture of Santigao De Cuba was a minor military event that took place towards the end of the Anglo–Spanish War in May 1603. Santiago de Cuba was attacked and sacked by English privateers led by Christopher Cleeve. In late February 1603 Christopher Cleeve, in the large armed merchant galleon "Elizabeth and Cleeve" along with a pinnace left England on a privateering expedition to raid the Spanish Main; funded largely by a number of London Merchants. Cleeve arrived in the Caribbean in April; Cleeve's main target was Santiago de Cuba which had escaped attacks