You are probably familiar with the 4th of July. This date marked the independence of the United States from the United Kingdom back in 1776.
But did you know July 4th is also Puerto Rico’s Independence Day? Well, not quite, but it is celebrated because Puerto Rico is kind of (but not really) part of the United States.
Let’s take a quick look at the history of this beautiful island: It was originally inhabited by natives called “Taíno”, but when the island became a Spanish colony in 1493, the native tribe began to dissolve overtime. Given its great location and resources, the island became an important asset for the Spanish empire until the late 1800s when the natives campaigned for independence. They did not get it, but they did receive a bit more autonomy for a short while.
In 1898, the United States and Spain waged war (we’ll dive in a bit more on this later) and Spain ended up surrendering Puerto Rico to the Americans as part of a peace treaty. The Puerto Ricans have been under American governance ever since, with some unrest and demands for greater freedom.
First, in the 1900s, the Foreaker Act granted them some autonomy in the territory and then the American citizenship followed in 1917.
Finally, on 25th July 1952, they signed the first Puerto Rican Constitution and changed their name to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Have fun learning!
