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ENRIQUILLO Cave of Wonders!

The August 4, 1496, the Head Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher Columbus, founded in the past called English island of Santo Domingo de Guzman, the first permanent European settlement in America permanently, is the oldest of our entire continent and is now the capital of the Dominican Republic. Just have 514 years in 2010!

Background. Although the discovery of America was the October 12, 1492 on the island of San Salvador, the English colonizers arrived on December 5 of that year to the island Quisqueya (named after the Taino) and then named as the English. They built a fort called La Navidad, which was destroyed by the island's Taino inhabitants who felt invaded. In 1493 and in his second expedition, Christopher Columbus became the first European resettlement on the mainland, creating a city called "La Isabela" (North Coast Puerto Plata today) in order to find precious metals (gold, etc). La Isabela was subsequently affected and semi-destroyed by two hurricanes that along with several epidemics among other things, forced the conquerors to leave and look south, the new place of settlement, so to reach the Rio Ozama founded Santo Domingo!

The historic Santo Domingo de Guzmán, aptly named "where it all began" is not only the first city founded by Europeans in America but FUO the cradle from where did all the early expeditions of discovery and English conquest to the great empires of Aztecs, Incas, Mayas, etc the rest of America.

During its first century, Santo Domingo FUO the starting point of many scans and conquests of the New World. " The expeditions that led to Ponce de Leon's discovery and conquest of Puerto Rico to Florida (USA), Hernan Cortes conquered Mexico, Peru Francisco Pizzaro conquer the Basque and Nunez de Balboa's exploration of the Pacific Ocean all started from our SANTO DOMINGO.

was originally founded in 1496 on the eastern bank Ozama of which is kept track of the Rosary Church and then moved by Nicolás de Ovando in 1502 to the western margin of the river (part now occupied). It is a cosmopolitan, vibrant and is steeped in a deep historical past associated with the conquest of the Americas. It is indeed, was the largest city in the island of English in his time and now.

original design of the city (see map) and a large portion of its walls is seen today in the Colonial Zone. The Colonial Zone, bordered by the River Ozama, has stunning sixteenth-century buildings, including houses and churches reflect the architectural style of the Renaissance period. The Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo de Guzman, has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and includes the oldest structures built by the English in the New World.

colonial buildings Highlights include the Cathedral of America, which is the first Catholic cathedral in America, the Alcazar de Colon, which was the residence of Don Diego Columbus, son of Christopher Columbus who was viceroy of the colony and of Doña Maria de Toledo, his wife, the San Francisco Monastery, the ruins of the first monastery in America, the Museo de las Casas Reales, which was the palace of the Governor General and the Palace of Royal Audiences; Columbus Park, a historic square, the Fortaleza Ozama, the oldest fortress in America, the National Pantheon, a Jesuit building, which currently contains the remains of renowned Dominican Republic and the Church of the Convent Dominico, the first convent in America.

Santo Domingo and the colonial city is a cultural and historical treasure of the Dominican Republic and the world because it shows how important it was for the impoverished fifteenth century Spain and other European conquerors at that time!