1815-1870







Bahamas 1629-1815



The island called SAN SALVADOR by Christopher Columbus when he first set foot in the new world in 1492 is believed to be one of the Bahamas. The Spanish did not settle; yet the native LUCAYO population was exterminated by the Spanish not long after.
The Bahamas were part of the territories in the Americas granted by King Charles I. to SIR ROBERT HEATH in 1629; in 1640, religious dissenters coming from Bermuda settled the island of ELEUTHERIA. Other Bahamas islands were used as hideouts by pirates. When the Spanish sent an expedition, Eleutheria was given up; it had not been economically successful.
The island of NEW PROVIDENCE was settled in 1656 by another party of Bermudans. In 1670, the CAROLINA COMPANY acquired a grant of the islands from Charles II. The Bahamas were given a governor and a parliament (1671); yet life remained difficult, as the settlement, regarded a pirate's nest by the Spanish, was raided by them several times. Plantation economy was not as successful as hoped for, and the islanders did, in fact, engage in piracy. Among the Pirates making the Bahamas their home were HENRY MORGAN and Edward Teach, better known under the name BLACKBEARD.
In 1717, Captain WOODES ROGERS was appointed by the King as governor, with the specific task of ending piracy (the crown had previously acquired the proprietor's claims). By this act, the Bahamas had been separated from Carolina (although the Carolina Company held up it's claim until 1787). In 1799, the TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS were formally annexed to the Bahamas.
The capital CHARLES' TOWNE was renamed NASSAU in 1689 when William of Orange-Nassau was crowned King of England. In 1776, Nassau was taken by the U.S. navy; in 1782, the island group was occupied by the Spanish, returned to the British in 1783. From the now independent United States, settlers loyal to the British crown emigrated to the Bahamas.
In the 18th century, after piracy had been ended in 1728, COTTON plantations were vital to the Bahamas' economy.





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This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted in 2001, last revised on November 6th 2004

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