African swine fever virus (ASFV), which prevails in Eastern and Southern Africa as a mild disease-causing agent in warthogs, found a most sensitive host in the domesticated pig. In the latter, ASFV affects the reticuloendothelial cells and causes the death of the host without a response from the immune system. ASFV made its appearance in Europe in the 1960s, infecting pigs in the Iberian peninsula, and causing great economic losses as a result. ASFV spread to France, causing local epidemics in 1964, 1968 and 1974. The year 1978 marked the appearance of ASFV in Malta and Sardinia, as well as in Brazil, followed by epidemics in the Dominican Republic and Haiti (1979) and Cuba (1980). The ASF epidemics were halted by destruction of the pig populations in the affected countries. This led to eradication of the disease, except in Sardinia, where the virus escaped into the wild pig population. After a hiatus of several years, ASFV caused an epidemic in Belgium in 1985 and in The Netherlands in 1986. Rapid methods of diagnosis, strict control of pig movements, and the elimination of infected pigs put a stop to the outbreak.