19th Century

In 1800 the population was 155,000. The country had no legal commerce. Sugar, coffee, and tobacco were the major crops, but agriculture was poorly developed. When other Latin American countries began agitating for independence, there was little revolutionary sentiment in Puerto Rico.

During the reign of Joseph Bonaparte in Spain (1808-13) Puerto Rico was permitted representation in the Spanish Cortes (national assembly). As a result in 1815 Spain authorized free trade for Puerto Rico, and the island was opened to immigration and settlement. Legal trade brought rapid economic growth. Coffee became the major export. By mid-century the population had grown to 500,000.

An independence movement gradually took shape. In 1868 there was an armed uprising in the town of Lares, but it was quickly suppressed. The movement, however, continued to gain strength and spurred reforms by the Spanish, including the abolition of slavery in 1873. The outstanding political leader of the period was Luis Muñoz Rivera (1859-1916), who in 1897 persuaded Spain to grant a charter making Puerto Rico a dominion. This had not yet been put into effect when, in 1898, United States troops occupied Puerto Rico during the Spanish-American War. By the Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded the island to the United States. The population at the time was about 900,000.