In April 11th, 1717, King Felipe V arranged the royal monopoly of Cuban tobacco. This decision got into history as "Tobacco Monopoly", and was the death cause of honest planters who were against such onerous law. This restrictive period lasted up to June 23rd, 1817, when the monopoly was countermanded by Royal Decree, which allowed the free trade between the Island and the known world, always through Spanish ports.
Its farming was exclusive occupation of free men. While the roughness of sugar production allowed the use of working slaves, the tobacco plant requires the treatment for a delicate lady, as the Apostle Jose Marti said. So, thousands of Canary Islands' immigrants, who arrived to Cuba by the end of 19th century, worked in the growing of tobacco.
With the reorganization of the Cuban economy during the last years, tobacco has been displaced from the second position of exportable productions, regarding the incomes it provides, but it is still between the first ones because of its world-wide recognized quality.