When God wanted to give us a glimpse of paradise, he caused the waters to rise over much of that island plain in the Caribbean, which extended 60 miles to the North, 40 miles to the East and 190 miles to the West, leaving only its peaks, which Columbus named the Virgin Islands.

By Verna Penn Moll

Little has changed for several millennia. An authoritative regional conservationist once described them as "small, fragile, often unique, sometimes mysterious… they represent for mankind, a precious, natural and psychological resource." You are invited to experience this exceptional natural beauty, which so overwhelmed Jean Michael Cousteau (the marine advocate and founder of Ocean Futures Society) that he signed a partnership agreement with the BVI Government in May 2003 to become the BVI ambassador for promoting of the marine environment.

Whether you prefer the land or the sea, come and discover the mystic charm of our islands. You'll delight in the rich marine life, fine yachting marinas, mouth-watering cuisine, historic forts and magnificent coastal views.

The Virgin State
The BVI is located 60 miles east of Puerto Rico between latitude 18.25 degrees north and longitude 64.37 degrees west, and 15 miles from St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands (until 1917, known as the Danish West Indies).

About 50,000 years ago, all the Virgin Islands, except St. Croix, USVI, was one great plain. When the waters of the great glaciers melted, the sea level rose about 120 miles covering the plain, leaving only its peaks that form the islands. Geologically they remained much the same for several millennia, although there was some change biologically. Amerindians who moved up to the Islands from South America about 3,000 years ago killed off the larger animals for food, and Europeans devastated the large trees in the mid-17th century.

Twelve islands are inhabited now. The capital city, Road Town, is on Tortola (21.5 square miles, with 80 percent of the population). The next most populous islands are Virgin Gorda (8.5 square miles), Anegada (15.2 square miles), Jost Van Dyke (3.2 square miles), Peter Island, Marina Cay and Guana Island. They are all hilly and of volcanic origin, except for Anegada, the most northerly, which is low lying and of coral origins.

Each island has its own captivating charm. Anegada, for instance, is one of the largest unspoiled islands in the Caribbean and has a globally important coral reef system. It is home to many plants found nowhere else in the world. It's also a regionally important area for nesting birds and foraging sea turtles. So significant, in fact, that the Darwin Initiative - a UK government programme that aims to promote biodiversity conservation and implementation of the Biodiversity Convention - is conducting a new project assessing the Coastal Biodiversity of Anegada. It will document and monitor the birds, plants and sea turtles of Anegada; provide institutional strengthening and capacity building; and promote the uniqueness of Anegada.

Guana Island hosts an interesting scientific research programme every year in October. The results are important for natural resource preservation and species conservation in the BVI. Meanwhile, Necker Island's biological make-up has remained unchanged for several millennia. It is home to at least two species of bats, 26 species of birds and several species of reptiles.

The Virgin Islands' peaks made such an impression on Columbus in 1493 that he named them Las Once Mil Virgenes, after the legendary 11,000 virgins who St. Ursula (a British princess) was supposed to have led to their martyrdom near Cologne in Germany. He was met by Amerindians whose forebearers had lived there for centuries and were followed by European pirates and settlers, enslaved Africans and Lebanese merchants - all of who have influenced the history, economy and culture of the Islands. Colonial wars, inter-Caribbean migration and interaction with North America have also left their mark.

Amerindians/Pre-Columbians travelled from the Orinoco Basin, South America, in dugout canoes around 600 B.C. They introduced many of the fruits and vegetables we enjoy today, such as pineapple and sweet potato; they smoked tobacco, spun cotton, fired pottery, and gave us words like 'hammock' and 'barbecue'. Cassava bread made in their traditional way is still much sought after in Road Town's Saturday market. Knowledge of their agricultural and boating skills and religious practices has been increased by the uncovering of an Amerindian village in Belmont, Tortola, including the remnants of a ball court and the discovery of decorated pottery and finely-carved shells.

Immigrants Arrive
The islands' lack of level land made them unattractive for agriculture, but during the 16th and 17th centuries, adventurers and pirates emerged from the numerous sheltered bays and coves to attack Spanish merchant ships carrying gold to Europe. Several islands still bear names like Deadman's Chest, Thatch and Bellamy and tales of hidden treasure abound on Norman and Peter Islands. The channel between many of them and Tortola is named after Sir Francis Drake who passed through it in 1595. The Dutch built a fort at Soper's Hole, West End in 1648 but were driven out by the English in 1666 and again in 1672, when the islands were annexed by Britain and a permanent settlement was established.

John Hawkins first brought enslaved Africans to the islands in 1652. While they worked and managed the sugar and cotton plantations throughout Tortola, the colonists built forts and batteries around the island to protect the estates and Road Harbour. In addition to trading sugar, cotton, rum, molasses and indigo with England and the American colonies, the planters prized Tortola for its timber and fresh water, and Beef Island and Salt Island for their salt. The English made Spanish Town on Virgin Gorda their capital, but the first Lieutenant Governor, John Pickering, transferred the seat of government in 1741 to Fat Hogs Bay, Tortola, a Quaker settlement. He was not long in the post, as his pacifist beliefs conflicted with demands to defend the islands against the Spanish.

Around the mid-18th century, the capital was finally moved to the more central settlement that had grown up behind the larger, strategically situated safe haven of Road Harbour. Town houses, merchant quarters and warehouses were built along Road Town's one long central road, known as Main Street, and it became a busy trading centre, particularly during the American War of Independence. Some remarkable artefacts from that era were recovered while Road Harbour was being dredged in 1969. They are the remains of H.M.S. Nymph lost in 1783, and are now displayed in the V.I. Folk Museum, a gingerbread house overlooking Main Street. The harbour was made a free port by the Tortola Free Port Act of 1802, and it later became a rendezvous for convoys of merchant ships as the Napoleonic wars dragged on.

Proud Virgin Islanders
The days of prosperity were short-lived after the slave trade was abolished throughout the British Empire in 1807. Significantly, Arthur Hodge, a planter near Hodges Creek, was executed in 1811 for causing the death of one of his slaves.

War, violent hurricanes and severe drought brought hardship to every aspect of the plantation economy before Britain finally abolished slavery in 1834, which destroyed its very basis. The roofless ruins of St. Philips Church ("The African Church") at Kingstown, are the most visible remains of a community built in 1833 to house 300 slaves freed by a British Royal Naval ship that intercepted an American slaving vessel after the slave trade was abolished.

Early Virgin Islanders proudly boast that by granting freedom and land to all their slaves in 1780, the Quaker owners of the Nottingham estate in Long Look created the first free black community in the West Indies. Even as early as 1823, slaves owned 41 percent of the land. After 1834, the freed slaves purchased the unprofitable plantations deserted by their white owners. Today, 66 percent of the land is owned by Virgin Islanders.

It's said that Queen Victoria gave the inhabitants of Anegada title to the whole island. Major changes in land ownership in Anegada and Long Look have since given property lawyers an abundance of work, and there are still unresolved land disputes today.

A Walk in History
The influence of the plantation era is evident in the many historic ruins of forts, sugar mills and great houses around the islands. There are more than 60 historic sites in Road Town alone. It has been proposed that the entire length of Main Street - from Government House to the top of the town (below Joe's Hill Road) - be designated an historic quarter where some of the old ruins could be made into a series of indoor and outdoor museums.

Road Town was devastated by hurricanes in 1819, 1867 and 1924 and by fire in 1853 during an uprising against an additional cattle tax. However, the old prison (reconstructed in 1859), the fire proof building whose interior was lined with aluminium, and the first floor of the old Administration Office (currently the main Post Office) survived and still stand on Main Street. Modern wood and stone structures - some housing stores, restaurants and other businesses - have been built on old foundations, but several early 20th century buildings retain their old West Indian charm. The Anglican and Methodist churches on either side of the old prison were rebuilt in the 19th century. St. George's (Anglican/Episcopalian) Church was redesigned in 2003.

Old Government House Museum, located on Waterfront Drive, is now open for tours Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. It stands alongside the wall of an old fort on the site of its 1899 predecessor, which was destroyed by a hurricane in 1924. Governors, administrators and commissioners lived there from 1926 to 1999. Tours last about 45 minutes. The museum shop carries West Indian maps, prints, books and pottery. Cold drinks are available and a café on the back terrace will soon serve drinks and light refreshments. Plans are also underway to make the back terrace available for weddings, seminars and meetings. Visit the website at www.oghmuseum.org for more information.

The new Government House, residence of the Governor, is adjacent to the old one and was completed in December 2003. There is a reception area between the old and new structures that emblematically links the past with the present. The new House assumes the traditional role of hosting official functions, social activities and royal visits. Thomas Macan, the present governor, and his wife, Mrs. Janet Macan, have already hosted several charity fundraising events.

Throughout their colonial history, (British) Virgin Islanders have been encouraged to join different economic and political unions, but have stubbornly emerged from each attempt with greater responsibility for their own home affairs. The early colonists were granted propriety government in 1666 and constitutional government in 1773. Around 1902 social conditions deteriorated, and many Virgin Islanders migrated to the United States, the USVI and Puerto Rico. Others went to work in the sugar fields of the Dominican Republic.

Demands by Virgin Islanders for greater self-government culminated in an historic protest march along Main Street to Government House in 1949. Representative Government was restored and a new legislature was elected in 1950. The new Government set out to strengthen trade and commerce with the USVI, to develop the livestock industry and improve public services.

The BVI is now a vigorous associate member of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), and in 2002 the United Kingdom granted Virgin Islanders the non-reciprocal right to full British citizenship, giving them privileges within the European Union. However, they still retain family, economic and cultural ties with the United States and USVI. They proudly proclaim, "We're different," demonstrated on BVI postage stamps, which display both the Queen's head and U.S. currency.

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