The Spanish in Santo Domingo leave both…

The Spanish in Santo Domingo leave both economic devastation and political chaos in their wake.

In the period from 1865 to 1879, there will be twenty-one different governments and at least fifty military uprisings. 

A power struggle begins between the conservative, cacique-dominated south and the more liberal Cibao, where the prevalence of medium-sized landholdings contributes to a more egalitarian social structure.

The two camps eventually coalesce under the banners of separate political parties.

The cibaenos adhered to the National Liberal Party (Partido Nacional Liberal), which becomes known as the Blue Party (Partido Azul).

The southerners rally to Báez and the Red Party (Partido Rojo).