Historically a British Territory, the Turks and Caicos Islands are located near the Bahamas and have a diverse and storied history. The Island’s official anthem is “God Save the Queen”, reflecting its strong ties to British culture.
As a Caribbean island, the Arawak native Americans were the original inhabitants of the Islands. Early colonial visitors were led by Juan Ponce de Leon of Spain, who encountered the natives in the 16th century. Over the course of the Colonial Era, the French and British increased their influence in the area, although it was not formally colonized at that time.
In the apex of commercial trade in the Caribbean, the lack of a formal colonial authority led a variety of pirates and traders to inhabit the island. When it came under French control in the 18th century, the focus shifted toward colonial cotton exports. As British influence increased in the area, while French colonies waned, the British took control over the Islands, along with the Bahamas, at the turn of the 19th century.
At the center of a growing moral debate, a famous incident occurred in 1841 when a Spanish Trouvadore ship accidentally landed on the shores of the islands, which were part of the British Empire. Since slavery was illegal in the Empire, the passengers became tradesmen on the island and were at the center of what would become a world wide debate over the trade. During the middle of the century, the islands began to develop their own local government, independent of Britain. A dual tradition of local and British culture continues to this day.