A brief history of Trinidad & Tobago

Named for the tobacco cultivated by the original Carib population, Tobago existed separately from Trinidad for centuries. While the explorer Christopher Columbus sighted the island in 1498, he did not land and no attempts were made to colonize Tobago.

But long before European powers expressed interest in the island's strategic harbour and fertile soil, it was the centre of battles for control between the Carib population and other Amerindian tribes.

Later, in the 17th century, English, French, Dutch and even Courlanders (Latvians) fought to control the strategic island and it changed hands more than 30 times.

During British rule in the late 1600s, sugar, cotton and indigo plantations were established and thousands of Africans were brought to Tobago as slave labour. In 1781 the French invaded, but by 1814 the island was ceded to Britain.

In 1889, during a period of economic decline, Britain annexed the smaller Tobago to Trinidad as an administrative ward. The islands achieved independence from England in 1962 and became the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in 1976.

The base of Tobago's early economy was agriculture, but this was ravaged by severe hurricanes in 1847 and 1963.

Today the island is serene, yet the many forts and batteries that dot Tobago's landscape hint at a thrilling past.

Fierce slave revolts, bitter battles for control between European powers, attacks on European settlers by the Amerindian Indians who inhabited the island and pirates are all part of Tobago's rich history.

In 1629 an expedition of Dutchmen established a settlement which was annihilated by disease and the Amerindians. More settlers were sent in 1632 but an attack by the Spaniards four years later drove them out.

English Puritans also attempted to settle in Tobago, but many were killed by the Amerindians and the survivors driven out.

Excerpt from www.gotrinidadandtobago.com

To learn more about Tobago's vibrant history please see the following books:

History of the People of Trinidad & Tobago by Dr Eric Williams

Introduction to the History of Trinidad and Tobago by Dr Bridget Brereton