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That time the Black Caribs took over a Carribean Island
Some Hidden Indigenous History, They Hide from you ...
Chase McGhee
September 20, 2024
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The history of the Black Caribs of St. Vincent is a testament to the dynamic cultural and ethnic interactions in the Caribbean during the seventeenth century. The Black Caribs trace their roots to the encounter between Carib Indians and Africans who were brought to the region due to the growth of sugar plantations and the transatlantic slave trade. While accounts of their origins may vary, some sources suggest that a ship carrying enslaved Africans to Barbados was shipwrecked near St. Vincent. These Africans encountered the Carib Indians, eventually leading to the creation of a distinct community known as the Black Caribs. Over time, the Africans adopted the Carib language and cultural practices, leading to two politically separate groups on the island: the Red Caribs (or Yellow Caribs) on the leeward side and the Black Caribs on the windward side of St. Vincent.
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The Black Caribs' population grew rapidly during the eighteenth century, in part due to natural increase and their interactions with the Red Caribs and fugitive slaves. When the British gained control of St. Vincent from the French in 1763, the Black Caribs far outnumbered the Red Caribs. Tensions between the Black Caribs and the British culminated in two wars. The first Carib War and the Second Carib War. For decades the Black Caribs wreaked havoc on the British, regularly attacking and burning down British settlements. After one unprovoked attack by the Black Caribs Head Englishman and Governor of Dominica, Sir William Young, began to view Saint Vincent as the Black Caribs own “independent state”, in which they were “the original, and rightful possessors of.”
It wasn’t until 1796 that the British finally gained control of the island with a decisive victory and even then, they lived in fear. This fear in the following years would cause the British to initiate a plan to deport the Black Caribs thousands of miles away from St. Vincent. Many Black Caribs perished during this forced migration, with some managing to evade deportation and remain in St. Vincent. However, thousands of them found new homes along the eastern coast of Central America, particularly in Belize, Nicaragua, and surrounding regions. Today, these communities maintain a strong connection to their origins and cultural identity, increasingly identifying themselves as Garifuna and Garinagu rather than Black Carib, reflecting their complex history and enduring heritage.
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