The history of Panama includes the long history of the Isthmus of Panama region prior to European colonization, from Pre-Columbian cultures, through the Spanish colonial era, and eventual independence as the modern country of Panama. Panama was part of the Spanish Empire for over 300 years (1513–1821) and its fate changed with its geopolitical importance to the Spanish crown. In the 16th and 17th centuries, at the height of the Empire, no other region would prove of more strategic and economic importance.