1763 - Spain transfers title of Florida to Britain in exchange for the return of the City of Havana, Cuba, which had been captured when Spain allied itself with France in the French and Indian War. Britain controlled Florida from 1763 until 1783, when it again became a Spanish possession at the end of the American Revolution. During this "British Period" when the Union Jack flew over Florida, the British divided Florida into two territories: East Florida and West Florida.