Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean
The Classic Taíno lived in eastern Cuba, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico. They spoke a dialect called Classic Taíno. Compared to their neighbors, the Classic Taíno had substantially developed agricultural societies. Puerto Rico was divided into twenty chiefdoms which were organized into one united kingdom or confederation, Borinquen. Hispaniola was divided into roughly 45 chiefdoms, which were organized into five kingdoms under the leadership of the chief of each area's premier chiefdom. Beginning around 1450, Classic Taíno from Hispaniola began migrating to eastern Cuba; they are conventionally known as the Cuban Taíno. The Cuban Taíno gained power over some of Cuba's earlier Western Taíno inhabitants, the Ciboney, but no regional or island-wide political structure had developed on the island at the time of Spanish colonization of the Americas.
Juan de Esquivel
Friar Bartolomé de las Casas wrote Spanish authorities about his conduct during the Higüey massacre of 1502. According to Bryan Edwards, he was "one of the few Castilians...distinguished for generosity and humanity". The island was populated by natives: Arawaks and Tainos. Although Esquivel or his men could not find gold in the island, they developed the colony towards producing cotton. Feuding between the Spanish Crown and Diego Columbus meand Michel de Passamonte would be sent to replace him.