When the Spaniards arrived in the Antilles, they were inhabited by Taino Indians, who in about I in BC. Oe. migrated there from South America. In 1492 the first expedition of Christopher Columbus landed in the Bahamas, staying in full confidence that they have opened a new route to Asia. On the island, called Hispaniola (now Haiti), was founded the first Spanish settlement, and began a century-long domination of Spain in the region. From 1506 to 1511 years, with the participation of Hernan Cortes and Diego Velazquez de Cuellar, the island of Hispaniola and Cuba were conquered, and the local population - turned into slaves. In 1517 Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba opened the Yucatan peninsula, where the Spaniards first met the advanced Mayan civilization. Subsequent expeditions of Juan de Grijalva (1518) and Hernan Cortes (1519) initiated the conquest and colonization of Mexico.
Other European empires have also expanded to the west, sending ships to the New World. The first British colonies were in Bermuda (1612), the islands of St. Kitts (1623) and Barbados (1627) and were then used for the colonization of other islands. French West Indies also started with the island of St. Kitts (1624), then the settlements were established on the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique (1635). Britain and France also successfully pushed forward the island in weakening the Spanish empire - in 1655 under the supervision of the British turned Jamaica, and in 1697 the French seized the western part of Hispaniola. In the XVII century on the islands of Curacao, St. Martin, Aruba and there were a number of other Dutch colony, and later became members of the Netherlands Antilles. Danish possessions in the region appeared in 1672 on St. John and St. Thomas.
The European powers are actively imported African slaves and agricultural exports (tobacco, sugar, dyes) and precious metals (gold and silver), using even the special fleet. Caribbean region has become a new trading platform for European goods, which resulted in the development of piracy.