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A Brief History of Anguilla
The first inhabitants of Anguilla were the Ciboney who arrived well before the time of Christ, and they were long gone by the time the Arawaks arrived in 200 A.D. The fierce Caribs followed about 900 years later and were still on Anguilla when Columbus arrived in 1493. The Caribs called the island Malliouhana and the Spaniards later named it Anguilla, the eel, because of its long narrow shape.
The first to try to settle the island were the Dutch who built a fort here in 1631, unfortunately nobody had been able to find any evidence of this colony. In 1650, an eclectic group of Englishmen, landless farmers and freed indentures servants from St. Kitts settled on Anguilla and turned it into a haven for pirates, smugglers, and rogues. French forces twice attacked the island, but both times English warships arrived in time to defend the islanders. However it was the Caribs were finally successful in driving off the colonists in 1656.
In 1688, a group of Irish sailors arrived on Anguilla from St. Kitts and their descendants still live on the island today in Island Harbour. In 1825 the British government decided to administer to the affairs of Anguilla from their seat in St. Kitts, over 60 miles away. This relationship lasted until 1967 when Britain offered her Caribbean islands their independence. The residents of Anguilla, tired of St. Kitts’ rule, banished the St. Kitts policeman from the island in a semi-revolution of sorts, setting up their own government on Anguilla Day, May 30. The British sent an ambassador to rectify the situation, but he was unsuccessful in his efforts. British paratroopers landed on Anguilla in 1969 in what has been described as the Bay of Piglets and instead of finding mobs of angry rebels, the 300 paratroopers found residents singing “God Save The Queen.” A group of policeman from London followed and remained for 3 years as Anguilla rebuilt her own police force. Anguilla was granted independence in 1982 and remains a Crown Colony today.
© Stephen J. Pavlidis 2010