Devastations of Osorio

The Devastations of Osorio (in Spanish, las Devastaciones de Osorio) refer to a period in the colonial history of the Captaincy General of Santo Domingo, modern day Dominican Republic in the early 17th century. In order to eliminate the contraband trade in the north and the northwest parts of the island, the Spanish monarch Philip III sent an order to the then-governor of Hispaniola, Antonio de Osorio, to depopulate those parts of the island (by force if necessary) and to relocate the inhabitants to the vicinity of Santo Domingo in the southeast of the island. The Devastations were carried out between 1605 and 1606.