«Un coloso sobre la arena»: Definiendo el camino hacia la plantación esclavista en Cuba, 1792-1825

From 1791 on, the Creole elite on the island of Cuba started taking advantage of the political situation on the neighboring island of Saint-Domingue, which they had tried to replace on the sugar and coffee markets. To reach their objectives it was necessary to import greater numbers of African slaves to put to work on the plantations. The battle for the right to keep importing Africans to the island was fought during the first three decades of the 19th century, not only in Cuba and Spain, but also in London, Paris and Vienna. This article discusses and analyses the obstacles the Cuban Creole elite encountered throughout the period, and how, one way or another, both the increase in the slave trade and sugar production were ensured through legal and illegal measures.