Bermuda History

Bermuda is an archipelago consisting of seven main islands and many smaller islands and islets lying about 1,050 kilometers (650 mi.) east of North Carolina. The main islands--with hilly terrain and subtropical climate--are clustered together and connected by bridges; they are considered to be a geographic unit and are referred to as the Island of Bermuda.

Bermuda was discovered in 1503 by a Spanish explorer, Juan de Bermudez, who made no attempt to land because of the treacherous reef surrounding the uninhabited islands. In 1609, a group of British colonists led by Sir George Somers was shipwrecked and stranded on the islands for 10 months.

Their reports aroused great interest about the islands in England, and in 1612 King James extended the Charter of the Virginia Company to include them. Later that year, about 60 British colonists arrived and founded the town of St. George, the oldest continuously inhabited English-speaking settlement in the Western Hemisphere. Representative government was introduced to Bermuda in 1620, and it became a self-governing colony.

Due to the islands' isolation, for many years Bermuda remained an outpost of 17th-century British civilization, with an economy based on the use of the islands' cedar trees for shipbuilding and the salt trade. Hamilton, a centrally located port founded in 1790, became the seat of government in 1815.

Slaves from Africa were brought to Bermuda soon after the colony was established. The slave trade was outlawed in Bermuda in 1807, and all slaves were freed in 1834. Today, about 60% of Bermudians are of African descent.

In the early 20th century, Bermuda's tourism industry began to develop and thrive; Bermuda has prospered economically since World War II. Internal self-government was bolstered by the establishment of a formal constitution in 1968; debate about independence has ensued, although a 1995 independence referendum was defeated.
source: State Department Background Notes 1996