Tobago – Wars and Treaties 1764 to 1814 (An Analytical History of Tobago Book 9)

Categories: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Description

In 1781, Tobago returned to the limelight of war after almost two decades of stability and growth. France sided with North American colonists against Britain all through that continent’s War of Independence. As a consequence of that, The American Revolutionary War entered the Caribbean as France and Britain moved to take hold of each other’s possessions in the region. Tobago became one of the vital targets.

Tobago changed hands four times between 1781 and 1803, before The Third Treaty of Paris permanently placed the island in British hands in 1814. Also, Tobago’s rising prosperity had not gone unnoticed by pirates, privateers and the newly independent USA. In 1777, privateers sacked the Windward end of the island and in 1778, the us attempted to go into conflict in the Caribbean by dispatching a fleet with orders to capture Tobago.

PRIVATEERS SACK QUEEN’S BAY AND BETSY’S HOPE

Tobago continued to export sugar, rum and molasses frequently after its initial shipment of 84 tons of sugar in 1770. In 1777, the harbor and estates at Queen’s Bay and Betsy’s Hope in the Roxborough area were sacked by privateers. This marked the first in a series of disruptions on the island since 1762.

According to one account, on a moonless night in March 1777, a schooner manned by a group of privateers came ashore at Queen’s Bay. With the force of arms, the privateers took everything of value that used to be readily to be had. This raid used to be especially successful because the settlers on the island were taken by surprise and no resistance used to be forthcoming.

Among their bounty, the privateers took a sloop belonging to a Queen’s Bay planter by the name of Mr. Hackett. That sloop used to be loaded with goods and plenty of African sailors, who were a valuable commodity at that time. The privateers then moved onto an estate at Betsy’s Hope which used to be owned by a planter named Mr. Campbell. Here they captured another sloop loaded with 30 hogsheads of sugar at the side of other commodities and six African crew members. These raiders were never caught or identified, but they’re speculated to have been privateers or pirates.

Related products

Home » Shop » Books » Subjects » Arts and Photography » History and Criticism » History » Europe » Great Britain » England » Tobago – Wars and Treaties 1764 to 1814 (An Analytical History of Tobago Book 9)

Recent Products