history of the bvi
When Columbus discovered the Virgin Islands in 1493 he named them Las Once Mil Virgines, after the 11,000 virgins who St Ursula was supposed to have led to their martyrdom in Germany. St Ursula was a British princess. When Columbus arrived, apparently into the North Sound area of Virgin Gorda, he was met by Amerindians, whose forefathers had lived in these islands for centuries. Virgin Gorda was so named as the sailors saw a profile of a "fat virgin" laying on its back! The British Virgin Islands are located 60 miles east of Puerto Rico, and 15 miles from the US Virgin Islands. We are located between latitude 18.25 degrees north and longitutde 64.37 west.After Columbus came European pirates and settles, slaves, lebanese merchants, who have all influenced the history, and culture of the islands. Other Cultures from within the Caribbean, Colonial Wars and North America have also played a part in the culture and history. Amerindians travelled from the Orinoco Basin in South America in dugout canoes approx 600 BC. First there were the Arawkan speaking Taino Indians, and then the Caribs from whose name the word Caribbean is derived. They introduced a variety of fruits and vegetables from pineapple to sweet potato. Cassava bread, which is still made in their traditional way is still very popular on Tortola.
The Virgin Islands had a lack of level land, which made agriculture here very hard, but in the 16th and 17th century, privateers and pirates made good use of all the sheltered bays and coves to attack Spanish merchant ships carrying gold to Europe. Many islands still retain names like Deadman's Chest, Bellamy, and Thatch. Tales of treasure abound all over the islands and the channel in the middle is named after Sir Francis Drake who passed through in 1595.
The first permanent European settlement was established in 1648, by the dutch. In 1665 a small group of Dutch settlers on Tortola brought African slaves with them to cultivate sugar cane. By 1672 possession of the islands had passed to the British.
Britain abolished slavery in 1834 which doomed the plantation way of life, but Tortola had a Quaker settlement at Long Look that granted freedom and land to all their slaves in 1780 and created the first free black community in the West Indies. When Britain abolished slavery, slaves already owned 41 percent of the land, and then purchased the abandoned plantations of their former owners. The plantarion era can be seen all over the British Virgin Islands with many ruins from forts to sugar mills to great houses. The Virgin Islands went back to being a slow agricultural society until the next century, when tourism starting playing a permanent role. At the turn of the 19th century there were 2 white people in the BVI, one a doctor, and the other a preacher.
All the islands are hilly and of volcanic origin, except for Anegada which a low lying and of coral origin. The British Virgin Islands are made up of 64 islands, cays and large "rocks". Approximately 12 of the islands are inhabited, with a total population now of around 23,000, with 80% of the population living on Tortola, which is home to the capital, Roadtown.Exploring the Past
Here are a couple brochures in PDF format that list various spots on both Virgin Gorda and Tortola that you can explore. Exploring the Past-Tortola and Exploring the Past- Virgin Gorda These brochures have been put out by the BVI Tourist Board.
