 Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the island was split into absolutist chiefdoms, three where modern-day Santo Domingo now exists, and two where modern-day Haiti now exists (albeit also including some territory which is currently part of Santo Domingo).Carib people from islands further south were often at war with the Taíno people.Columbus reached the island in 1492 (slaves imported from Africa arrived from 1503 onwards—many natives were also soon enslaved), and within a few decades the Spanish controlled most of the island.