St Kitts Colourful Past

St Kitts may be a beautiful holiday destination, but it also has a colourful past and a heritage created by the nation's indigenous people and Europeans and Africans. The island is located in between Puerto Rico and Trinidad and Tobago, and was originally volcanic.

Columbus spotted the island in 1493, but long before this it was inhabited by indigenous Indians called Siboney who left very few traces behind. They were eventually overtaken by the Arawaks who were a group of farmers, who were in turn overtaken by the Carib Indians who were warriors. When the Europeans eventually began to arrive on St Kitts, the Carib Indians waged war against them.

The first British settlers arrived in 1623, while the first French settlers arrived around 1627. The two groups lived in relative harmony for a while and fought the Carib Indians and Spanish attacks together.

Unfortunately the harmony didn't last, and cumulated in a war which would last more than 100 years. In 1782 St Kitts and Nevis came under permanent British control after a bitter battle on Brimstone Hill. Once they regained control, the British began establishing sugar plantations which were originally maintained by Irish servants before being cultivated by African slaves.

A large percentage of the island's population is of African descent, and this influence is seen throughout their culture in celebrations, art, food and music. Eventually the sugarcane industry became unprofitable and has been replaced by tourism. It is now becoming one of the top luxury destinations in the world, and also has a growing reputation for eco-tourism.