Dominica History

Dominica has been inhabited by human beings for a long time - there is evidence that the island was inhabited in at least 3100 BC. The first settlers were the Ortoroid people who set out from the South American mainland and gradually spread northwards through the Caribbean island chain.

Evidence suggests they became extinct around 400BC. Later came the Igneri or "Arawak speakers" who settled in about 400AD. Their way of life was agricultural and peaceful with a well-defined culture. By 1400 this was about to change as a similar tribe, the Kalinago or as the "Caribs" (as they became more commonly known) departed South America and aggressively moved their way up the Caribbean.

The Caribs seemed to be very much into raiding and the men aggressively attacked the Igneri, stealing their women when it was deemed feasible. The Caribs were organised and were very successful in eliminating the Igneri from many of the Caribbean islands, including Dominica.

Columbus was the first European to set eyes on Dominica on 3rd November, 1493 - it was a Sunday - so he named it after the day. Dominica's history from this point in many ways mirrors that of other Caribbean islands but differs in a few very significant ways. The Spanish were the first to try to colonise islands in the Lesser Antilles and they were met with stiff resistance. Spanish attempts to colonise Dominica and surrounding islands with their Christian missionaries failed miserably - the Caribs either killed or held the missionaries hostage and the Spanish were not willing to pit their fighting skills against a skilled enemy and the rugged terrain of Dominica. In fact, this attitude pretty much summed up how the next wave of European colonists, the English and the French, were to feel when they arrived in Dominica at the start of the 1600's.

The English and the French were in a race to colonise the Caribbean in order to tap into the riches that lay in exploiting the natural resources of the Caribbean. They fought long and hard with each other and the Caribs and Dominica bears the scars of these battles. The place names in Dominica are a mixture of French, English and Carib. After unsuccessful attempts by the French to win over the Caribs with Christianity, a more hardline approach was adopted - especially by the English - who went out to systematically destroy the Caribs who got in their way. They managed to reduce the Carib population by forcing them to flee back to the South American mainland and, rather unwittingly, by introducing new diseases against which the Caribs had no resistance. About three thousand Caribs still inhabit Dominica today, most of them living in Carib Territory up in the North East of the island.

The French were the first to really set up shop in Dominica and by 1727 there were 50-60 French families in Dominica. Most were woodcutters gathering wood for export but some grew tobacco and cotton. They were a tough lot and there was no overall plan governing their presence or development. Officially, Dominica was a neutral country throughout this period belonging neither to the French nor English - but the English were hungry for territory and saw Dominica as strategically important - so they attacked it in 1761. By year end the island was basically under British control. In 1763 at The Peace of Paris Dominica was officially ceded to Britain. But the French had left an indelible mark on Dominica - and it can still be seen to this day through the language (patois), customs, religion and the many French place names. Slaves were imported to provide labour during this period and, as in other Caribbean islands, this was to leave a permanent impression on Dominica's ethnic make-up.

The British realised that to send the French settlers packing would mean disrupting the growing agricultural economy of the island - so a kind of peaceful co-existence was established. Forts were built, the largest at The Cabrits above Portsmouth and above Roseau at Morne Bruce.

The French military attacked the British fortifications in 1778, encouraged by the American War of Independence, and won. Things did not go well. Most of the English inhabitants left taking their reciprocal trade links with them. This strained the existing agricultural system (big hungry French occupying force) and the economy was under pressure. A hurricane decided to hit in 1779 and, obviously not satisfied with the damage, returned in 1780. In 1781 Roseau was destroyed by fire. In 1782 the English saw their chance to settle the score. The ensuing naval battle, The Battle of the Saintes, saw an English victory and ousted French administration over Dominica once and for all.

Escaped slaves, known as Maroons, had become well armed during all the recent troubles and they took on the English 1785-86. They were cornered and defeated and their leaders imprisoned and/or executed. The French Revolution resulted in a French Republican invasion in 1797. They were eventually defeated. Maroon-related fighting took place until around 1815 and their effectiveness was always helped by Dominica's rugged terrain into which they could retreat to relative safety. This typified the European experience in Dominica whether it be Carib resistance or the Maroons and set the tone for the island making it palpably different from its English-administered neighbours.

Dominica was hit hard by the decline in colonial agriculture in the 1800's -exacerbated by natural disasters and the end of the slavery era -other cash crops were undertaken, namely cocoa and and limes but a long, gradual decline and long overdue social upheaval meant tough times for Dominica. As in many other Caribbean islands, Dominica experienced increasing domestic political battles. The priveleged whites were consisitently challenged for ther conservative views and efforts to maintain the prejudicial social structure. As their power dwindled, many in Dominica pushed for greater autonomy. It acheived it, slowly but surely - but not without turbulent politics and sometimes violent confrontations as the island debated a new political system and constitution. The late 1960's, 1970's and early 1980's were characterised by serious political instability. This retarded Dominica's ability to take advantage of the the booming tourism industry being experinced by many of its Caribbean neighhbours. The Independence Constitution, after much political wrangling, took effect on 3rd November 1978 separating Dominica from British control. Increasing poilitical stabilty from the mid-1980's allowed Dominica to offer itself as a pristine Caribbean eco-destination, unspoiled by indiscriminate development.

The island's economic development was, and is, shaped in large part by its topography - the steep mountains, ravines and thick rainforest always played a role in Dominica's history. Dominica's human history has often been characterised as a struggle between man and nature, but in more recent times this Georgian-era analogy has become less relevant. Today sees Dominicans aware of the value of their natural resources and controlling development to protect these resouces as much as possible - eco-tourism is a rapidly growing industry and offers increased diversification from an economy traditionally based on agriculture.

Further reading: The Dominica Story:A History of The Island (1995) by Lennox Honeychurch.
This book is a must-read for anyone interested in Dominica's history. It is absolutely fascinating, thorough, broad in scope yet excellent in detail and is very readable. A brilliant piece of work.

Dominica Political History

The Caribs, who settled here in the 14th century, called the island Waitikubuli, which means 'tall is her body.' With less poetic flair, Christopher Columbus named the island after the day of the week he spotted it - Sunday, 3 November 1493.

In 1607, Captain John Smith and his followers stopped at the Dominican coastal settlement of Portsmouth for a couple of days before heading north to establish Jamestown, North America's first permanent English settlement. The harbor became so important to the British that they intended to make Portsmouth the island's capital until outbreaks of malaria and yellow fever thwarted the plan.

France laid claim to the island in 1635 and a few years later sent a contingent of missionaries, who were driven off by unwelcoming Caribs. The French and English signed a neutrality treaty in 1660 agreeing to Carib possession of the island. Nevertheless, French settlers from the neighboring French West Indies began establishing coffee plantations on Dominica toward the end of the century. France then sent a governor in the 1720s and took formal possession of the island.

For the remainder of the 18th century, Dominica was caught up in the French and British skirmishes that marked the era, changing hands between the two powers several times. Under the Treaty of Paris, the French reluctantly ceded the island to the British in 1763. The French tried to recapture Dominica in 1795 and again in 1805, when they managed to burn much of Roseau to the ground.

After 1805 the island remained firmly in the possession of the British, who established sugar plantations on Dominica's more accessible slopes. The British administered the island as part of the Leeward Islands Federation until 1939, when it was transferred to the Windward Islands Federation.

In 1967, Dominica gained control over its internal affairs as a West Indies Associated State; in 1978, on the 485th anniversary of Columbus' 'discovery,' Dominica became an independent republic within the Commonwealth.

The initial year of independence was a turbulent one. The island's first prime minister, Patrick John, was forced to resign in June 1979 after a series of corrupt schemes came to light, including an attempt to transfer 15% of the island to US developers. Hurricane David, packing winds of 150 miles an hour, devastated the island in August 1979, denuding vast tracts of forest, destroying banana crops and wreaking havoc on much of Roseau. 42 people were killed and 75% of the islanders' homes were destroyed or severely damaged.

In 1980 Mary Eugenia Charles was elected Prime Minister, becoming the first female elected head of state in the Caribbean. Within a year of her inauguration she survived two unsuccessful coups, including a bizarre attempt orchestrated by Patrick John involving mercenaries recruited from the Ku Klux Klan.

As chairperson of the Organization of East Caribbean States, Prime Minister Charles endorsed the 1983 US invasion of Grenada and sent a symbolic force of Dominican troops to participate. An appreciative USA responded with increased aid to Dominica, one consequence of which is the island's fine paved roads. After 15 years in office, Charles resigned in 1995 and was replaced by Edison James of the United Workers' Party (DUWP).

Lately, Dominica's politics have been turbulent and fractious, with former PM Edison James facing charges of corruption and embezzlement. The most recent elections were held in January of 2000. Roosevelt Douglas, leader of the Labour Party of Dominica (LDP), became the new prime minister. But even in these unsettled times nobody was prepared for the news of the sudden death of Douglas on October 1, 2000, after only eight months in office. The passing of 'Rosie', who was beloved by many in Dominica for his years of fighting for autonomy and working-class issues, has once again put Dominican politics up in the air.

http://www.visit-dominica.com

http://www.thedominican.net

http://www.avirtualdominica.com

http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/do.html

http://www.freegk.com/worldatlas/dominica.php

http://www.jkersten.topcities.com/hollandpage/dominica.htm