Timeline: Haiti

A chronology of key events:

1492 - Christopher Columbus lands and names the island Hispaniola, or Little Spain.

Poverty and desperation have fuelled an exodus

Haiti: A nation still on edge

1496 - Spanish establish first European settlement in western hemisphere at Santo Domingo, now capital of Dominican Republic.

1697 - Spain cedes western part of Hispaniola to France, and this becomes Haiti, or Land of Mountains.

1801 - A former black slave who became a guerrilla leader, Toussaint Louverture, conquers Haiti, abolishing slavery and proclaiming himself governor-general of an autonomous government over all Hispaniola.

1802 - French force led by Napoleon's brother-in-law, Charles Leclerc, fails to conquer Haitian interior.

Independence

1804 - Haiti becomes independent; former slave Jean-Jacques Dessalines declares himself emperor.

More than 90% of Haitians are said to practice voodoo

2003: Voodoo's spell over Haiti

1806 - Dessalines assassinated and Haiti divided into a black-controlled north and a mulatto-ruled south

1818-43 - Pierre Boyer unifies Haiti, but excludes blacks from power.

1915 - US invades Haiti following black-mulatto friction, which it thought endangered its property and investments in the country.

1934 - US withdraws troops from Haiti, but maintains fiscal control until 1947.

Duvalier dictatorships

1956 - Voodoo physician Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier seizes power in military coup and is elected president a year later.

"Baby Doc" Duvalier retained his father's brutal methods

• Born in 1951
• Succeeded "Papa Doc" in 1971
• Fled to France in 1986

On This Day 1971: "Papa Doc" Duvalier dies

1964 - Duvalier declares himself president-for-life and establishes a dictatorship with the help of the Tontons Macoute militia.

1971 - Duvalier dies and is succeeded by his 19-year-old son, Jean-Claude, or "Baby Doc", who also declares himself president-for-life.

1986 - Baby Doc flees Haiti in the wake of mounting popular discontent and is replaced by Lieutenant-General Henri Namphy as head of a governing council.

1988 - Leslie Manigat becomes president, but is ousted in a coup led by Brigadier-General Prosper Avril, who installs a civilian government under military control.

Democracy, coup and intervention

1990 - Jean-Bertrand Aristide elected president.

1991 - Aristide ousted in a coup led by Brigadier-General Raoul Cedras, triggering sanctions by the US and the Organisation of American States.

1993 - UN imposes sanctions after the military regime rejects an accord facilitating Aristide's return.

1994 - Military regime relinquishes power in the face of an imminent US invasion; US forces oversee a transition to a civilian government; Aristide returns.

Former president Aristide lives in exile

Profile: Jean-Bertrand Aristide

1995 - UN peacekeepers begin to replace US troops; Aristide supporters win parliamentary elections; Rene Preval elected in December to replace Aristide as president.

1996 - Preval sworn in as president.

1997-99 - Serious political deadlock; new government named.

1999 - Preval declares that parliament's term has expired and begins ruling by decree following a series of disagreements with deputies.

Aristide's second term

2000 November - Aristide elected president for a second non-consecutive term, amid allegations of irregularities.

2001 July - Presidential spokesman accuses former army officers of trying to overthrow the government after armed men attack three locations, killing four police officers.

2001 December - 30 armed men try to seize the National Palace in an apparent coup attempt; 12 people are killed in the raid, which the government blames on former army members.

2002 July - Haiti is approved as a full member of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) trade bloc.

2003 April - Voodoo recognised as a religion, on a par with other faiths.

UN force was sent to help stabilise Haiti

• UN authorised despatch of 6,700 soldiers, 1,600 police
• Mandate set to expire in October 2008, "with the intention of further renewal"
• Peacekeepers led by Brazil

2004 January-February - Celebrations marking 200 years of independence are marred by violent uprising against President Aristide. Rebels seize towns and cities; dozens are killed. Mr Aristide is forced into exile; an interim government takes over.

2004 May - Severe floods in south, and in parts of neighbouring Dominican Republic, leave more than 2,000 dead or disappeared.

2004 June - First UN peacekeepers arrive, to take over security duties from US-led force and to help flood survivors.

2004 July - International donors pledge more than $1bn in aid.

2004 September - Nearly 3,000 killed in flooding in the north, in the wake of tropical storm Jeanne.

late 2004 - Rising levels of deadly political and gang violence in the capital; armed gangs loyal to former President Aristide are said to be responsible for many killings.

2005 April - Prominent rebel leader Ravix Remissainthe is killed by police in the capital.

2005 July - Hurricane Dennis kills at least 45 people.

Preval wins elections

February 2006: Voters swamped polling stations

Eager voters cause chaos in Haiti

In pictures - Preval's victory

2006 February - General elections, the first since former President Aristide was overthrown in 2004. Rene Preval is declared the winner of the presidential vote after a deal is reached over spoiled ballot papers.

2006 June - A democratically-elected government headed by Prime Minister Jacques-Edouard Alexis takes office.

2006 September - Launch of a UN-run scheme to disarm gang members in return for grants, job training.

2006 October - US partially lifts an arms embargo, imposed in 1991.

2007 January - UN troops launch tough new offensive against armed gangs in Cite Soleil, one of the capital's largest and most violent shantytowns.

2008 April - Food riots. Government announces emergency plan to cut price of rice in bid to halt unrest. Parliament dismisses Prime Minister Alexis.

2008 May - US and World Bank announce extra food aid totalling 30m dollars.

In response to plea from President Preval for more police to help combat wave of kidnappings-for-ransom, Brazil agrees to boost its peacekeeping force.

Tropical storms

2008 August/September - Nearly 800 people are killed and hundreds are left injured as Haiti is hit by a series of devastating storms and hurricanes. The UN special envoy to Haiti says the country has been overwhelmed and calls for more international help.

2008 September - Michele Pierre-Louis succeeds Jacques-Edouard Alexis as prime minister.

2008 November - A school in Port-au-Prince collapses with around 500 pupils and teachers inside. The authorities blame poor construction methods.

2009 May - Former US President Bill Clinton appointed UN special envoy to Haiti.

2009 July - World Bank and International Monetary Fund cancel $1.2bn of Haiti's debt - 80% of the total - after judging it to have fulfilled economic reform and poverty reduction conditions.

2009 October-November - Jean-Max Bellerive becomes prime minister after the Senate passes censure motion against his predecessor, Michelle Pierre-Louis.