Corporate Body
Capitanía General de CubaOther forms
from 1712 to 1898
The General Captain was the head of the administration that held the political military command. When the first audience was created and, then, the viceroyalty was established on land, the General Captaincies, which were entities of total administration, were settled in the colonies' geographic periphery to govern and defend the new border territories. The General Captain in the island of Cuba, who has the highest civil and military authority, was very important in the 18th century. But it was even more important in 1795 when Santo Domingo was given to France and when the Audience moved to Puerto Príncipe. When the empire split up in the 19th century, la Habana became the Spanish capital of Caribe, which explains that some archives of territories out of the island were conserved there. Its relationship with the territories of Louisiana and Florida was constant. When Louisiana was given to France, its archives were delivered to Panzacola. They were moved from there to la Habana on the eve of Florida's cession to the United States. The only documentation of East Florida that was delivered to la Habana was the one related to Treasury. The rest remained there.
La posición estratégica de la Isla de Cuba, y el hecho de quedar al margen de los movimientos independentistas de América, supusieron que muchos de los papeles de las distintas zonas americanas fueran a parar a la isla. Es por ésta razón por la que hay papeles de Caracas, Santa Fe, México, Cartagena, etc. Por otra parte de la Capitanía General de Cuba dependieron las colonias de los Estados Unidos, razón por la cual se conservaron los papeles de Luisiana y Florida, muchos de los cuales son indispensables para la historia de Estados Unidos.
-Código de Referencia de PARES: ES.41091.AGI/27//CUBA
-Código de Referencia de PARES: ES.28079.AHN/2.3.2.76//