DOMINICANA, REPUBBLICA. — It occupies the eastern part (approximately two-thirds) of Columbus’s Hispaniola, now commonly called the island of Haiti. Covering 50,000 sq km, it has (according to the 1947 estimate) 2.2 million inhabitants (44 per sq km).
The country is not lacking in resources (metals, phosphates, petroleum), although these are still very little exploited; it produces chiefly sugar, cocoa, coffee, tobacco, fine woods, etc. Independent since 27 February 1844, it was occupied by the U.S.A. between 1916 and 1934; it constitutes a unitary republic (divided into 18 provinces and 1 federal district), representative, with a bicameral parliament and universal direct suffrage. The capital, Ciudad Trujillo (founded by Bartolomeo Colombo in 1496 under the name of S. Domingo), is the only city with more than 100,000 inhabitants.
The first Mass on American soil was celebrated at S. Domingo on 6 January 1494, and the first convents, the first Catholic schools, and the first episcopal see for America were subsequently established there; the latter was created a diocese in 1511 and raised to an archdiocese in 1546. It was there that Fra Bartolomeo de Las Casas and Fra Antonio de Montesinos, both Dominicans, fought in defense of the Indians; and there, too, arose the first University of America, established by Pope Paul III with the bull In Apostolatus culmine of 28 October 1538 (cf. Acto Academico para rendir tributo a la memoria de S. S. el papa Paulo III, published by the University of S. Domingo, Ciudad Trujillo 1949) and entrusted to the Order of Preachers. Having gained independence in 1844, chiefly through the efforts of those young patriots called “Trinitarians,” because they were devoted to the Most Holy Trinity, their leader Juan Pablo Duarte placed the symbol of the Cross on the Dominican flag and the book of the Gospels in the Republic’s coat of arms. The R. D. was therefore born in intimate association with the Church, to such an extent that the priest Fernando Arturo de Merifio occupied the presidency of the Republic in 1880, and after him the same office was held by the archbishop of S. Domingo, Adolfo Alessandro Nouel. Article 93 of the Constitution regulates relations between Church and State as follows: “The relations between the State and the Church continued to be the same as they presently are, while the Roman Catholic Apostolic religion is the religion professed by the majority of Dominicans.” The representation to the Holy See was raised to the rank of an embassy in 1945, and, correspondingly, the papal representation to the Dominican Republic was raised to a nunciature.