Caribbean, South and Central America
Scroll down the page or follow the links. Use your 'Back' button to return here.
| British Guiana | Mosquito Prot. | British Honduras | Caymans & Jamaica | Bahamas | Turks & Caicos | Leeward Is. | Windward Is. |
| Barbados | Trinidad & Tobago |

British Territories of the Caribbean, South and Central America shown and underlined in pink.

British Guiana  Guyana 1966

Sir Walter Raleigh set out in 1592 for Guiana in search of the mines of El Dorado. In 1663 the British gained their first settlement between the Copenam and Maroni rivers. There was considerable interest from the Dutch and French at this time and Britain formally ceded their colony to the Dutch in 1667 and took possession of New Amsterdam or New York as it was subsequently known. During the next hundred years the Dutch colonised the territory, forming the three colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice, named from the three rivers of the area, but in 1781 British privateers captured them. The next decade saw a change of hands several times between the French, Dutch and British who took possession again in 1796 to prevent a French take-over after the defeat of Holland by Napoleon. The colony was restored to Holland in 1802 only to be recaptured by the British in 1803. It was formally ceded to Britain in 1814 and was to be the only British possession on the continent of South America. In 1831 the three colonies became counties and were consolidated into the one crown colony of British Guiana, with the capital at Georgetown. Various disputes regarding the delineation of the extent of British territory during the 19th century ensued. By 1904 the problems were solved by arbitration from the King of Italy. During World War II the lease of military and naval bases to the USA proved useful to the allied war effort.
British Guiana was granted independence within the Commonwealth on 26th May 1966, to become Guyana and a republic in 1970.

A territory named from the Misskito Indians and corrupted by Europeans to Mosquito. The first settlement was in 1630 by agents of an English Chartered Company who established friendly relations with the Mosquito (Misskito) Indians. From 1655 until 1850 Britain claimed a protectorate over the area which was disputed by Spain, Central American republics and the USA. The latter’s opposition was that Great Britain would acquire a privileged position in regard to the proposed interoceanic canal. With the Clayton-Bulwer treaty of 1850 both Britain and the US pledged not to fortify or colonise any part of Central America. The Treaty of Managua on 28th January 1860 transferred the territory, from Cape Gracias a Dios down to Greytown, (San Juan del Norte) to Nicaragua.

From 1862  Belize From 1981

‘His Majesty’s Settlement in the Bay of Honduras,’ as the territory was formally styled in official documents, owes its origin in 1638, to former buccaneers turned log-wood cutters. Thereafter joined by agents of the Chartered Company, which exploited the pearl fisheries of the Mosquito Coast. Spain, during the next 150 years tried various attempts to dislodge Britain, the last being in 1798 when the British secured the town of Belize. Treaties with the Spanish and neighbouring countries eventually settled the borders and Britain’s legal sovereignty by 1859. The Colony was exempted from the Clayton-Bulwer treaty of 1850. The territory was proclaimed the crown colony of British Honduras in 1862. It was subject to the jurisdiction of the Governor of Jamaica and sustained itself with little direct support from the British government. In 1964 it attained complete internal self-government and in 1973 adopted its old name of Belize. Independence was accepted, as a member of the Commonwealth, on 21st September 1981, with an agreement that Britain would maintain a military presence to protect it from the ancient Spanish treaty claims of Guatemala. In 1991 Guatemala finally recognised the independence of Belize. 1993 saw a reduction of the British military, as it was thought invasion unlikely.

A group of three islands that were discovered by Columbus in 1503. The islands were colonised from Jamaica by the British. Both Jamaica and the Caymans were recognised as British possessions with the Treaty of Madrid in 1670. They were a dependency of Jamaica until 1959 when they became a Crown Colony. They  remain a British Dependent Territory.

Discovered by Columbus in 1494 and named Santiago, the island has always been known as Jamaica, which derives from the Indian name Jaymaca. The Spanish took possession of the island in 1509 and annihilated the indigenous Arawak Indians. The British captured the island in 1655 and by 1658 the Spanish were entirely expelled. Their slaves, or Maroons as they were called, took to the mountains waging war until the end of the 18th century. The island became the haunt of buccaneers but after the Treaty of Madrid in 1670, which recognised British sovereignty, they were suppressed. By 1672 the sugar industry had been introduced to Jamaica, which contributed greatly to its prosperity. With the abolition of the slave trade by the British government in 1807 and the slave emancipation act of 1834, the plantations fell into difficulties. Then with the removal of duty imposed on foreign imports of sugar, the price of sugar fell causing many plantations to go bankrupt. In 1865 E.J.Eyre became governor of a virtually bankrupt colony. He imposed taxes on the people causing widespread discontent and rioting which resulted in the imposition of martial law. The island became a crown colony in 1866. Eyre’s successor, Sir Henry Storks introduced various changes to the style of government and by 1895 a new representative constitution was granted to the island. An earthquake of 1907 destroyed much of Kingston and Port Royal and was a severe check to the island’s prosperity. The world depression of the 1930’s caused further economic decline and civil unrest. In 1944 the island was granted self-government. Jamaica became a founding member of the Federation of the West Indies in 1958. However it was not a success and after it’s collapse, William A. Bustamante negotiated for independence within the Commonwealth, which came on 6th August 1962.

The islands were visited by Columbus in 1492 and he wrote glowing reports regarding the temperament of the native Indian people. They were however doomed to destruction. The governor of the Spanish island of Hispaniola had exhausted the labour force there and turned his attention to the Bahamas for replacements. In 1509, 40,000 Indians were transported to Hispaniola to eventually perish in the mines.
The Spanish had not colonised the islands and they were thus left open to the British who included them into the Carolina colonies in 1629. However, settlement did not begin until 1646 with some islands receiving colonists from Bermuda. British possession was recognised with the Treaty of Madrid in 1670. The islands became a retreat of buccaneers and pirates, such as Edward (Blackbeard) Teach. The French and Spanish attacked the island of New Providence more than once. The merchants petitioned the crown to take possession and restore order. Thus the islands became a crown colony in 1717 and received their first governor, Woodes-Rogers, in 1718. During the American war of Independence, loyalist colonists came and brought their slaves with them to cultivate cotton but this venture failed. The Spanish captured New Providence in 1781only to be retaken in 1783. The islands became a centre for blockade running during the American civil war of 1861-1865.
During WWII the governor of the Bahamas was the Duke of Windsor who had abdicated the throne as King Edward VIII in 1936.
In 1964 the islands were granted internal self-government to be followed by independence as the Commonwealth of the Bahamas on 10th July 1973.
The Bahamas are a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

Once part of the colony of the Bahamas, the islands became a separate colony in 1848 by a submission of a petition by the inhabitants. The Turks and Caicos Islands remain a British Dependent Territory.

West Indies Federation: It was believed that the independence of individual islands was not viable, so a federation was formed in 1958. Some islands however seceded and gained independence so the idea was dropped in 1962.

Associated States of Great Britain: This was another attempt at a Federation of the East Caribbean in 1967. This also failed.

(British) Leeward Islands: A British Colony from 1871-1956 under one governor and divided into five presidencies. Consisted of, the Virgin Islands, Antigua (with Barbuda and Redonda), St. Kitts (with Nevis and Anguilla), Dominica and Montserrat. Sombrero Island was only used as a lighthouse station.

Consists of Anegada, Virgin Gorda, Tortola and various smaller islands.  In 1667 the British established themselves on Tortola. The Danish occupied what are now the US Virgin Islands. The Danish Islands of St. Thomas and St. John changed hands several times between the Danish and British. In 1817 the Danish sold their islands to the USA. The British Virgin Islands were part of the colony of the Leeward Islands from 1871 until 1956 and remain a self-governing Dependent Territory of Britain.

A British possession since 1650, Anguilla was part of the presidency of St. Kitts-Nevis and formed part of the Federation of the West Indies in 1958. It later became an Associated State of Great Britain with St. Kitts and Nevis in 1967. However, Anguilla seceded and declared independence in the same year. This was disputed and subsequently the island was returned to colonial status. By 1980 Anguilla had achieved full self-government and remains a British Dependent Territory.

1967  From1983

Columbus named the island of St. Christopher in 1493 but this was shortened to St. Kitts after the arrival of the British in 1624. It became the first successful colony in the Caribbean. Part of the colony of the Leeward Islands from 1871, then a member of the West Indies Federation in 1958, the islands were granted full self-government in 1967 to become an independent member of the Commonwealth on 19th September 1983. Nevis has its own legislature and can secede from St. Kitts should it so chose.

English settlers first took possession of the islands in 1632. The French ravaged Antigua in 1666 but it was retaken and formally restored to Britain with the Treaty of Breda. The islands became part of the Leeward Islands colony in 1871 with Antigua as the residence of the governor. They became part of the West Indies Federation and an Associated State of Great Britain in 1967 gaining internal autonomy. The islands achieved independence within the Commonwealth on 1st November 1981.

Discovered by Columbus in 1493 who named it after the mountain of Monserrado in Spain. It was colonised by Britain in 1632, taken by the French in 1664, restored to the British in 1668, capitulated to the French in 1782 and again restored in 1784. In 1871 it became part of the colony of the Leeward Islands. July 1997 saw the eruption of Chances Peak volcano that made two thirds of the island including the capital of Plymouth uninhabitable. The British governments’ attitude, in seeming to shirk its responsibilities towards this British Dependent Territory, provoked much criticism in the region and in Britain.

Named after the day of discovery by Columbus in 1493, Sunday 3rd November. It was first settled by the French in 1632 who lived on terms of friendship with the native Carib Indians. A treaty was signed in 1660 between the British, French and Caribs that assigned the islands of St. Vincent and Dominica to the Caribs. Britain attempted to gain a foothold in the island but failed and it was again agreed in 1748 to leave the island in the possession of the Caribs. However, French settlement increased and a governor was installed. It was captured by the British in 1761 and formally ceded to Britain with the Treaty of Paris in 1763. From 1778 to 1805 it was attacked several times by the French from their neighbouring islands. Dominica became part of the colony of the Leeward Islands in 1872, a member of the West Indies Federation in 1958 and an Associated State of Great Britain in 1967. It became independent on 3rd November 1978 and is a member of the Commonwealth.

(British) Windward Islands: A confederation of three separate British colonies that comprised: St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada.

Until 1967  1967 on

The native Caribs killed the majority of the first English settlers who had arrived in 1605. In 1627, with the Carlisle grant, it was included among other British possessions but the French disputed this. It was first captured by the British in 1663 but restored to France in 1667. By 1748 Britain and France recognised the island as neutral. However in 1762 its inhabitants surrendered to the British Admiral Rodney and General Monckton. The 1763 Treaty of Paris saw Britain recognise the French claim, but various changes of hand ensued until it was finally ceded to Britain in 1814. The island colony formed part of the confederated colony of the Windward Islands whose governor-in-chief resided in Grenada. A representative local government was established in 1924 and St. Lucia was a member of the Federation of the West Indies from 1958 until 1962. As with most other British islands in the Lesser Antilles, it gained self-government in 1967. St. Lucia became a fully independent member of the Commonwealth on 22nd February 1979.

1979  From 1985

In 1667 Charles I granted the island of St. Vincent, named by Columbus in 1498, to the earl of Carlisle. It was declared neutral in 1660 but captured by General Monckton in 1762 and confirmed as a British possession by the Treaty of Paris in 1763. In 1779 it was surrendered to the French but restored to Britain by the 1783 Treaty of Versailles. After the abolition of slavery, Portuguese and Indian labour were introduced, most returned home on the expiry of their indentures. The islands suffered from hurricanes and volcanic eruptions the most serious one in 1902. A self-governing Associated State from 1969, St. Vincent with some of the Grenadine islands became an independent member of the Commonwealth on 27th October 1979.

1967  From 1974

Granted to the British, but not settled, in 1627, it was purchased by the governor of Martinique in 1650. The French were well received by the Caribs, whom they afterwards extirpated with the greatest cruelty. During the wars between Great Britain and France the island capitulated to the British in 1762 being formally ceded the following year by the Treaty of Paris. It changed hands a couple of times after that and was finally British again by 1783. This island colony was part of the Windward Islands colony, to become self-governing and eventually independent on 7th February 1974.
Grenada is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The crew of the English ship ‘Orange Blossom’ found the island uninhabited and took possession of it in 1605, but the first actual settlement of the island began in 1625. It became a crown colony in 1652 and became a strategically important base for the Royal Navy. The only threat to British possession was a French attack in 1805, but this was foiled by Admiral Cochrane. The abolition of slavery produced no ill results as the former slaves became hired wage earning workers and continued to work the plantations, which prospered. Riots accompanied the proposed federation of the Windward Islands in 1876, which secured the island as a separate colony. Barbados became a member of the West Indies Federation and achieved independence as a Commonwealth member on 30th November 1966.

Columbus discovered Tobago in 1498 and the English flag is thought to have first been planted in 1580. It passed between Dutch, British (1763) and then French control and was finally ceded to Britain in 1814. Until 1889 it was part of the Windward Islands colony when it united with Trinidad.
Trinidad was discovered in the same year as Tobago and became a Spanish possession; it was essentially left to the Caribs until settlement began in 1532. Sir Walter Raleigh sacked the then capital of San Jose de Oruna in 1595, and the Dutch and French attacked it during the next century. During war between Britain and Spain the island capitulated to the British in 1797 and was finally ceded by the 1802 Treaty of Amiens. Trinidad and Tobago became independent within the Commonwealth on 31st August 1962 and a republic in 1976.