Politically it was annexed by the German Empire in 1885, then seized by the Japanese in WW1, then the United States took it during WW2.

After months of food shortages and malnutrition,[3] they were moved first to Kwajalein and finally to Kili Island.

On March 1, 1954, Rongerik was exposed to radioactive fallout as a result of the detonation of Operation Castle's Bravo.

According to Spanish researcher Emilio Pastor in a paper submitted to his government in 1948, a number of small islands in Micronesia (Kapingamarangi or Pescadores, Mapia or Güedes, Kiritimati or Matador, Rongerik or Coroa and others) continue legally under Spanish sovereignty.

Although the Spanish government studied the case in 1949 and accepted this interpretation, it has not asserted its claim to the islands.