Pirates, Treasure And Uprising: The Caribbean Past
If you are looking for something to spice up you interest in a lovely Caribbean beach holiday, you have only to look no further than the history of the islands to get all the drama and excitement you need. Although the islands today are a by-word for rest and relaxation, there was a time when the islands and the trade routes they lay on were bitterly contested by navies and pirates preying on the rich merchant ships visiting them.
Caribbean holidays today have few reminders of the strife that once marred the area and turned many ports into havens of disorder. Originally used as a route from South America by Spanish galleons, the cargo of these treasure ships was a prime target for pirates and several were either sunk or foundered in storms throughout the island chain. It’s still possible to find a previously uncharted wreck and make some remarkable finds, but the location of prospective wrecks is as closely guarded as the legendary treasure maps were in pirate days! You can, however, take a scuba tour that will take you over some of the known wrecks where treasure has been recovered.
Barbados holidays are now seen as an luxury destination, but they weren’t always regarded as somewhere nice to go! In the seventeenth century, Barbados cemented its usefulness to Europe by being one of the major sugar cane producers, but the plantation owner could never get enough slaves and workers to harvest enough cane to keep up with demand. Many criminals from Europe were shipped over to Barbados by slave traders, who would often follow the press-ganging tradition of the navy and kidnap a few poor or unsuspecting souls into the bargain! The “red legs” as they were known, worked alongside the native population and imported African slaves and you can still visit the areas in which they were housed.
One of the islands where the maritime tradition still runs almost as strongly as it did in the past is Antigua, site of the first English naval base in the Caribbean which was founded by Nelson himself. Although Nelson didn’t venture onto the island very much, the seafaring tradition of the island is still kept in high regard by Antiguans and if you are lucky, Antigua holidays can happen at the same time as one of it’s famous sailing competitions or regattas. Antigua hosts an important event on the yacht racing schedule and you can see competitors from all over the world take part.


