Saint Lucia Travel Agent Specialist Program - (Page 14)

The Bri g U nico rn, use d in the mo v ie " R o ots." A Step Back in Time Ancient Arawaks and Caribs inhabited Saint Lucia long before the arrival of the Europeans. Some archaeological ﬁnds have been dated back to 1000 B.C. The Caribs arrived around A.D. 800, conq uering the peaceful Arawaks and assimilating them into Carib culture. The Caribs would live on Saint Lucia through the ferocious 16th century piracy period with Francois le Clerc. Even though their numbers dwindled, they lived in Saint Lucia until well into the 18th century. While local lore often points to Christopher Columbus having touched land here, actual records show that during his four visits to the New World, Saint Lucia was not on his navigational charts. However, 67 English settlers arrived here in 1605, blown off course on their j ourney to Guyana. Within a few weeks, the Caribs had massacred most of them, only allowing 19 survivors to leave the island in a dug-out canoe. Over the nex t two centuries, England and France battled over possession of Saint Lucia, with the island changing ﬂags 1 times. It was the French, however, who secured the ﬁrst lasting European settlement at Soufriere in 17 6. Capitaliz ing on the area' s fertile soil, estates were swiftly established and slaves were brought in from Africa to work the land, starting with cotton and tobacco plantations and later adding sugar, which became the most proﬁtable export. (Today, bananas dominate the plantation landscapes.) Saint Lucia' s colonial history, however, continued to seesaw back and forth between conq uering powers, as a British invasion succeeded in 1778, establishing naval bases at ros Islet and igeon Island. England ﬁnally got the permanent upper hand in 1815, under terms of the Treaty of Paris. And under the British, the 1838 Emancipation freed the slaves, giving them the right to own their own property, although many families chose to remain at the estates as S14 S14-S15 History.indd 14 10/24/13 1:51 PM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Saint Lucia Travel Agent Specialist Program

Destination Weddings
Honeymoons & Romance
Accommodations
History
Culture
Spas
Tours & Activities
Things to Do
Getting There/Fast Facts

Saint Lucia Travel Agent Specialist Program