Christopher Columbus sighted the island of Jamaica during his second voyage, and it became a Spanish colony in 1509. Saint Jago de la Vega (now Spanish Town) was founded about 1523. Colonization was slow under Spanish rule. Jamaica was captured by an English naval force under Sir William Penn in 1655. The island was formally transferred to England in 1670. Jamaica became a world center for slavery, which lasted until 1838.
Independence for Jamaican slaves in the early 19th century brought great unrest for the island's white population. Both societies co-existed for several decades before conditions reached the boiling point. In October 1865, an insurrection occurred at Port Morant. Imposing martial law, the government speedily quelled the uprising and inflicted brutal reprisals. Jamaica was made a crown colony, thus losing the large degree of self-government it had enjoyed since the late 17th century. Representative government was partly restored in 1884.
On August 6, 1962, the island gained independence.
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