{"id":650,"date":"2012-07-10T14:35:43","date_gmt":"2012-07-10T18:35:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/barbados.org\/blog\/?p=650"},"modified":"2013-05-16T14:50:14","modified_gmt":"2013-05-16T18:50:14","slug":"barbados-uk-ties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/barbados.org\/blog\/barbados-uk-ties\/","title":{"rendered":"Barbados-UK Ties"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Barbados-UKBarbados has a distinctly British heritage.\u00a0The first English ship touched the islands shores in May 1625 and Barbados was claimed in the name of King James I.<\/p>\n

The English returned as settlers 2 years later and Barbados flew the British flag until becoming an independent nation in 1966. This was quite unusual as there was fierce competition between the European colonial powers – English, Spanish, French and Dutch – \u00a0for the highly prized Caribbean islands. In fact, most of our neighbouring Caribbean islands changed hands on numerous occasions.<\/p>\n

The influence of the British can be seen today\u00a0throughout Barbados, in our language, governance, architecture, place names,\u00a0past-times\u00a0and behaviour.<\/p>\n

To defend the island from invasion, the British built\u00a0forts and signal stations<\/strong>\u00a0across the island. Many of the military buildings were centered around The Garrison on the south-west coast of the island. Several of these remain today as part of the\u00a0UNESCO World Heritage Site<\/strong>\u00a0– “Historic Bridgetown and Its Garrison<\/a>“. There is a “Changing of the Sentry’ weekly at the Main Guard.<\/p>\n

The Parliament of Barbados<\/strong> is the 3rd oldest in the entire Commonwealth (only Britain and Bermuda are older) and the island continues to practice the Westminster style<\/strong> of government.<\/p>\n

\"StatueJust outside of Parliament Buildings is a bronze statue of Lord Horatio Nelson<\/a><\/strong>, erected in 1813\u00a0by the settlers of the day in recognition of Lord Nelson’s bravery. This statue predates Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square, London by\u00a0nearly 30 years!<\/p>\n

A much more modern testament to Barbados-UK ties is the Barbados Concorde Experience<\/a><\/strong>!\u00a0Concorde had only four regular destinations: London, Paris, New York and Barbados. In\u00a0recognition of the role that the island played in Concorde\u2019s success, a Concorde – one of only 20 ever built – was\u00a0loaned to Barbados by\u00a0British Airways.<\/p>\n

HM Queen Elizabeth II<\/strong> is the Head of State of Barbados. To celebrate her Diamond Jubilee, a UK-style street parade was held in St. Lawrence Gap Barbados complete with British music and food.<\/p>\n

Many place-names<\/strong> in Barbados are clearly British, some in honour of British royalty and some perhaps in fond remembrance of home. Examples include:<\/p>\n