British West Indies

British West Indies was a colony in Caribbean (Mesoamerica and Caribbean) that lasted from 1624 to 1983 CE, about 359 years. Its people spoke Germanic languages (Gothic, Frankish, English, German, Dutch, Norse).

English and later British islands, beginning with St Kitts in 1624 and Barbados in 1627. Sugar plantations worked by enslaved Africans made them Britain's richest colonies until slavery ended in 1834.

See British West Indies on the interactive timeline

Facts

Dates

1624 to 1983 CE

Duration

359 years

Type

Colony

Region

Caribbean, Mesoamerica and Caribbean

Language family

Germanic

Events in Mesoamerica and Caribbean during its time

• 1697 Fall of Nojpetén
• 1791 Haitian Revolution begins
• 1810 Grito de Dolores
• 1847 Caste War of Yucatán begins
• 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
• 1910 Mexican Revolution
• 1914 Panama Canal opens
• 1959 Cuban Revolution

Neighbours in Mesoamerica and Caribbean

• New Spain 1521 to 1821 CE
• Haiti 1804 CE to the present
• Spanish Cuba 1511 to 1898 CE
• Captaincy General of Santo Domingo 1493 to 1821 CE
• Colony of Jamaica 1655 to 1962 CE
• Captaincy General of Guatemala 1543 to 1821 CE
• Mexico 1823 CE to the present
• Saint-Domingue 1697 to 1804 CE
• Cuba 1959 CE to the present
• Federal Republic of Central America 1823 to 1841 CE

Elsewhere in the world at the same time

• Republic of Venice c. 697 to 1797 CE, Europe
• Swahili city-states c. 800 to 1700 CE, Central and Southern Africa
• Holy Roman Empire 962 to 1806 CE, Europe
• Ethiopian Empire (Solomonic dynasty) 1270 to 1974 CE, North and West Africa
• Ottoman Empire 1299 to 1922 CE, Europe
• Ottoman Empire 1299 to 1922 CE, Middle East
• Portuguese Empire 1415 to 1999 CE, Europe
• Kingdom of Kongo c. 1390 to 1914 CE, Central and Southern Africa
• Mali Empire c. 1235 to 1670 CE, North and West Africa
• Ayutthaya Kingdom 1351 to 1767 CE, Southeast Asia

Questions