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82-495: The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation is a private foundation founded in 1926 by Charles Stewart Mott of Flint, Michigan . Mott was a leading industrialist in Flint through his association with General Motors . The foundation administers funds through four programs: Civil society , Environment , Flint Area, and Pathways out of Poverty , and it also funds special exploratory projects. It supports nonprofit programs throughout

164-442: A supporting organization . Private foundations are subject to 1.39% excise taxes found in section 4940 through 4945 of the internal revenue code. Once a charity becomes a private foundation, it retains that status unless it follows the difficult termination rules of section 507. Every organization that qualifies for tax exemption as an organization described in section 501(c)(3) is a private foundation unless it falls into one of

246-719: A corporation, the foundation gave a large number of shares to the Mott Children's Health Center, a Flint charitable medical organization founded in 1939, to be below the 35% limit. In June 2017, the foundation's 91st year, the Mott Foundation had surpassed over $ 1 billion in grants dispersed. In November 2018, the CEO, William White announced his immediate retirement and replacement by Ridgeway White as successor. White died in October 2019, aged 82. This article about

328-675: A disaffected faction of the PLP to form a new party, the Free National Movement (FNM), a centre-right party which aimed to counter the growing power of Pindling's PLP. The United Kingdom Government gave the Bahamas its independence by an Order in Council dated 20 June 1973. The Order came into force on 10 July 1973, on which date Prince Charles delivered the official documents to Prime Minister Lynden Pindling . This date

410-577: A local name of unclear meaning. First attested on the c. 1523 Turin Map, Bahama originally referred to Grand Bahama alone but was used inclusively in English by 1670. Toponymist Isaac Taylor argues that the name was derived from Bimani ( Bimini ), which Spaniards in Haiti identified with Palombe , a legendary place where John Mandeville 's Travels said there was a fountain of youth . The Bahamas

492-468: A philanthropic or charitable organization in the United States is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Michigan-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Private foundation Unlike a charitable foundation , a private foundation does not generally solicit funds from the public or have the legal requirements and reporting responsibilities of

574-524: A political force in the capital. European Americans were outnumbered by the African-American slaves they brought with them, and ethnic Europeans remained a minority in the territory. The Slave Trade Act 1807 abolished slave trading to British possessions, including the Bahamas. The United Kingdom pressured other slave-trading countries to also abolish slave-trading, and gave the Royal Navy

656-434: A registered non-profit or charitable foundation. Not all foundations engage in philanthropy; some private foundations are used for estate planning purposes. One of the characteristics of the legal entities existing under the status of "Foundations" is a wide diversity of structures and purposes. Nevertheless, there are some common structural elements that are the first observed under legal scrutiny or classification. Some of

738-489: A specific purpose. A private foundation may have diverse purposes, including collective, familiar, or the purpose of passive administration of funds. Normally, the supervision of a private foundation is done by the county government where the foundation has its domicile, however, large foundations must be registered by the County Administrative Board (CAB), which must also supervise the administration of

820-485: A total land area of 10,010 km (3,860 sq mi). Nassau , capital city of the Bahamas, lies on the island of New Providence ; the other main inhabited islands are Grand Bahama , Eleuthera , Cat Island , Rum Cay , Long Island , San Salvador Island , Ragged Island , Acklins , Crooked Island , Exuma , Berry Islands , Mayaguana , the Bimini islands, Great Abaco and Great Inagua . The largest island

902-496: Is Andros . All the islands are low and flat, with ridges that usually rise no more than 15 to 20 m (49 to 66 ft). The highest point in the country is Mount Alvernia (formerly Como Hill) on Cat Island at 64 m (210 ft). The country contains three terrestrial ecoregions: Bahamian dry forests , Bahamian pine mosaic , and Bahamian mangroves . It had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 7.35/10, ranking it 44th globally out of 172 countries. In

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984-539: Is controlled by a single donor or family through a board that is made up of a majority (more than 50%) of directors at non-arm's length. It is a legally registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency. A public foundation is governed by a board that is made up of a majority of directors at arm's length. A private foundation is not allowed to engage in any business activity, but it can operate its own charitable program. The Canada Revenue Agency designates

1066-575: Is derived from the Lucayan name Bahama ('large upper middle island'), used by the Indigenous Taíno people for the island of Grand Bahama . Tourist guides often state that the name comes from the Spanish baja mar ('shallow sea'). Wolfgang Ahrens of York University argues that this is a folk etymology . Alternatively, Bahama may have been derived from Guanahaní ,

1148-604: Is now celebrated as the country's Independence Day . It joined the Commonwealth of Nations on the same day. Sir Milo Butler was appointed the first governor-general of the Bahamas (the official representative of Queen Elizabeth II ) shortly after independence. Shortly after independence, the Bahamas joined the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank on 22 August 1973, and later

1230-530: Is one of only two countries whose official names start with the article "the"—the other being The Gambia . The usage likely arose because the name also refers to the islands, a geographical feature that would take a definite article. The first inhabitants of the Bahamas were the Taíno people, who moved into the uninhabited southern islands from Hispaniola and Cuba around the 800s–1000s AD, having migrated there from mainland South America ; they came to be known as

1312-858: Is part of the Lucayan Archipelago , which continues into the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Mouchoir Bank , the Silver Bank , and the Navidad Bank . The Bahamas Platform, which includes the Bahamas, Southern Florida, Northern Cuba, the Turks and Caicos, and the Blake Plateau , formed about 150 Ma , not long after the formation of the North Atlantic. The 6.4 km (4.0 mi) thick limestones , which predominate in

1394-478: Is the modern-day Bahamas, lies at the northern part of the Greater Antilles region and was believed to have been formed 200 million years ago when they began to separate from the supercontinent Pangaea . The Pleistocene Ice Age around 3 million years ago, had a profound impact on the archipelago's formation. The Bahamas consists of a chain of islands spread out over some 800 km (500 mi) in

1476-567: Is the most widespread. The Bahamas is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy , with King of the Bahamas Charles III as head of state represented locally by a governor-general . Political and legal traditions closely follow those of England and the Westminster system . The Bahamas is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and shares its head of state with some other Commonwealth realms . The prime minister

1558-674: The Enterprise , which went into Bermuda in 1835; and 38 from the Hermosa , which wrecked off Abaco Island in 1840. The most notable case was that of the Creole in 1841: as a result of a slave revolt on board, the leaders ordered the US brig to Nassau. It was carrying 135 slaves from Virginia destined for sale in New Orleans . The Bahamian officials freed the 128 slaves who chose to stay in

1640-742: The Atlantic Ocean . It contains 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and 88% of its population. The archipelagic country consists of more than 3,000 islands, cays , and islets in the Atlantic Ocean, and is located north of Cuba and northwest of the island of Hispaniola (split between the Dominican Republic and Haiti) and the Turks and Caicos Islands , southeast of the U.S. state of Florida and east of

1722-556: The Bimini Road ("pavements of Atlantis"), limestone crust , caves due to the lack of rivers, and sea caves . Several blue holes are aligned along the South Andros Fault line. Tidal flats and tidal creeks are common, but the more impressive drainage patterns are formed by troughs and canyons such as Great Bahama Canyon with the evidence of turbidity currents and turbidite deposition. The stratigraphy of

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1804-563: The Carolinas in North America. They rented the islands from the king with rights of trading, tax, appointing governors , and administering the country from their base on New Providence. Piracy and attacks from hostile foreign powers were a constant threat. In 1684, Spanish corsair Juan de Alcon raided the capital Charles Town (later renamed Nassau ), and in 1703, a joint Franco-Spanish expedition briefly occupied Nassau during

1886-527: The Confederate States . The early decades of the 20th century were ones of hardship for many Bahamians, characterised by a stagnant economy and widespread poverty. Many eked out a living via subsistence agriculture or fishing. In August 1940, the Duke of Windsor (formerly King Edward VIII) was appointed Governor of the Bahamas . He arrived in the colony with his wife . Although disheartened at

1968-583: The Cretaceous period, and perhaps as early as the Jurassic ; today the total thickness under the Great Bahama Bank is over 4.5 kilometres (2.8 miles). As the limestone was deposited in shallow water, the only way to explain this massive column is to estimate that the entire platform has subsided under its own weight at a rate of roughly 3.6 centimetres (2 inches) per 1,000 years. The Bahamas

2050-671: The Eleutheran Adventurers , settled on the island of Eleuthera . The Bahamas became a British crown colony in 1718, when the British clamped down on piracy . After the American Revolutionary War , the Crown resettled thousands of American Loyalists to the Bahamas; they took enslaved people with them and established plantations on land grants. Enslaved Africans and their descendants constituted

2132-647: The Flint Cultural Center in 1958, this annual contribution was shifted to the cultural center. In 1968, the Genesee County park system was started with the purchase of vacant land funded by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation with a stipulation that a parks commission be formed. Mott transferred U.S. Sugar shares to the foundation. In 1969 with a law passed limiting what private family foundations could hold of

2214-576: The Florida Keys . The capital is Nassau on the island of New Providence . The Royal Bahamas Defence Force describes the Bahamas' territory as encompassing 470,000 km (180,000 sq mi) of ocean space. The Bahama islands were inhabited by the Arawak and Lucayans , a branch of the Arawakan - speaking Taíno , for many centuries. Christopher Columbus was the first European to see

2296-661: The Gulf Stream . This resulted in the drowning of the Blake Plateau, the separation of the Bahamas from Cuba and Florida, the separation of the southeastern Bahamas into separate banks, the creation of the Cay Sal Bank , plus the Little and Great Bahama Banks . Sedimentation from the "carbonate factory" of each bank, or atoll , continues today at the rate of about 20 mm (0.79 in) per kyr . Coral reefs form

2378-509: The Lucayan people . An estimated 30,000 Lucayans inhabited the Bahamas at the time of Christopher Columbus ' arrival in 1492. Columbus' first landfall in what was to Europeans a "New World" was on an island he named San Salvador (known to the Lucayans as Guanahani ). While there is a general consensus that this island lay within the Bahamas, precisely which island Columbus landed on is a matter of scholarly debate. Some researchers believe

2460-735: The Spanish attacked Nassau during the War of the Quadruple Alliance . In 1729, a local assembly was established giving a degree of self-governance for British settlers. The reforms had been planned by the previous Governor George Phenney and authorised in July 1728. During the American War of Independence in the late 18th century, the islands became a target for US naval forces. Under the command of Commodore Esek Hopkins , US Marines ,

2542-820: The United Bahamian Party (UBP) representing the English-descended Bahamians (known informally as the "Bay Street Boys") and the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) representing the Black-Bahamian majority. In 1958, the first marine protected area in the Bahamas, the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park was established. A new constitution granting the Bahamas internal autonomy went into effect on 7 January 1964, with Chief Minister Sir Roland Symonette of

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2624-574: The United Nations on 18 September 1973. Politically, the first two decades were dominated by Pindling's PLP, who went on to win a string of electoral victories. Allegations of corruption, links with drug cartels and financial malfeasance within the Bahamian government failed to dent Pindling's popularity. Meanwhile, the economy underwent a dramatic growth period fuelled by the twin pillars of tourism and offshore finance , significantly raising

2706-557: The War of the Spanish Succession . During proprietary rule, the Bahamas became a haven for pirates , including Blackbeard ( circa 1680–1718). To put an end to the " Pirates' republic " and restore orderly government, Britain made the Bahamas a crown colony in 1718, which they dubbed "the Bahama islands" under the governorship of Woodes Rogers . After a difficult struggle, he succeeded in suppressing piracy. In 1720,

2788-557: The standard of living on the islands. The Bahamas' booming economy led to it becoming a beacon for immigrants, most notably from Haiti . In 1992 , Pindling was unseated by Hubert Ingraham of the FNM. Ingraham went on to win the 1997 Bahamian general election , before being defeated in 2002 , when the PLP returned to power under Perry Christie . Ingraham returned to power from 2007 to 2012, followed by Christie again from 2012 to 2017. With economic growth faltering, Bahamians re-elected

2870-475: The "retaining walls" of these atolls, within which oolites and pellets form. Coral growth was greater through the Tertiary , until the start of the ice ages , and hence those deposits are more abundant below a depth of 36 m (118 ft). In fact, an ancient extinct reef exists half a kilometre seaward of the present one, 30 m (98 ft) below sea level. Oolites form when oceanic water penetrate

2952-492: The 84,000 private foundations that filed with the IRS in 2008, approximately 66% have less than $ 1 million in assets, and 93% have less than $ 10 million in assets. In aggregate, private foundations in the U.S. control over $ 628 billion in assets and made more than $ 44 billion in charitable contributions in 2007. The following foundations are set up under civil law legal systems: The Austrian Private Foundation (Privatstiftung)

3034-562: The Atlantic Ocean, located to the east of Florida in the United States, north of Cuba and Hispaniola and west of the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands (with which it forms the Lucayan archipelago ). It lies between latitudes 20° and 28°N , and longitudes 72° and 80°W and straddles the Tropic of Cancer . There are some 700 islands and 2,400 cays in total (of which 30 are inhabited) with

3116-446: The Bahamas forest cover is around 51% of the total land area, equivalent to 509,860 hectares (ha) of forest in 2020, which was unchanged from 1990. In 2020, naturally regenerating forest covered 509,860 hectares (ha) and planted forest covered 0 hectares (ha). Of the naturally regenerating forest 0% was reported to be primary forest (consisting of native tree species with no clearly visible indications of human activity) and around 0% of

3198-405: The Bahamas a warm and winterless climate. As with most tropical climates, seasonal rainfall follows the sun, and summer is the wettest season. There is only a 7 °C (13 °F) difference between the warmest month and coolest month in most of the Bahama islands. Every few decades low temperatures can fall below 10 °C (50 °F) for a few hours when a severe cold outbreak comes down from

3280-469: The Bahamas from Florida. Bahamians were even known to recognise the freedom of enslaved people carried by the ships of other nations which reached the Bahamas. Today Black Bahamians make up 90% of the population of 400,516. The country gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1973, led by Sir Lynden O. Pindling . It shares its monarch with the other Commonwealth realms . The Bahamas has

3362-581: The Bahamas from outside the British West Indies would be manumitted." This led to a total of nearly 300 enslaved people owned by US nationals being freed from 1830 to 1835. The American slave ships Comet and Encomium used in the United States domestic coastwise slave trade , were wrecked off Abaco Island in December 1830 and February 1834, respectively. When wreckers took the masters, passengers and slaves into Nassau, customs officers seized

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3444-486: The Bahamas, date back to the Cretaceous . These limestones would have been deposited in shallow seas, assumed to be a stretched and thinned portion of the North American continental crust . Sediments were forming at about the same rate as the crust below was sinking due to the added weight. Thus, the entire area consisted of a large marine plain with some islands. Then, at about 80 Ma, the area became flooded by

3526-510: The Bahamas, including 2,000 from New York and at least 1,033 Europeans, 2,214 African descendants, and a few Native American Creeks from East Florida . Most of the refugees resettled from New York had fled from other colonies, including West Florida , which the Spanish captured during the war. The government granted land to the planters to help compensate for losses on the continent. These Loyalists, who included Deveaux and also Lord Dunmore , established plantations on several islands and became

3608-506: The FNM in 2017, with Hubert Minnis becoming the fourth prime minister. In September 2019, Hurricane Dorian struck the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama at Category 5 intensity, devastating the northwestern Bahamas. The storm inflicted at least US$ 7 billion in damages and killed more than 50 people, with 1,300 people missing after two weeks. The COVID-19 pandemic reached the Bahamas on 15 March 2020. In September 2021,

3690-669: The Future, Afterschool Alliance , Kentucky Child Now , Flint Institute of Arts and Focus: HOPE . It is a member of the Network of European Foundations for Innovative Cooperation (NEF) and the European Foundation Centre. In June 1926, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation was founded by C.S. Mott. Starting in 1928, the foundation made annual gifts to the Flint Institute of Arts. With the establishment of

3772-632: The North American mainland, however there has never been a frost or freeze recorded in the Bahamian Islands. Only once in recorded history has snow been seen in the air anywhere in the Bahamas. This occurred in Freeport on 19 January 1977, when snow mixed with rain was seen in the air for a short time. The Bahamas are often sunny and dry for long periods, and average more than 3,000 hours or 340 days of sunlight annually. Much of

3854-456: The Taíno died from smallpox alone. As a result of these depredations the population of the Bahamas was severely diminished. The English had expressed an interest in the Bahamas as early as 1629. However, it was not until 1648 that the first English settlers arrived on the islands. Known as the Eleutherian Adventurers and led by William Sayle , they migrated from Bermuda seeking greater religious freedom. These English Puritans established

3936-403: The UBP becoming the first Premier. In 1967, Lynden Pindling of the PLP became the first black Premier of the Bahamian colony; in 1968, the title of the position was changed to Prime Minister . In 1968, Pindling announced that the Bahamas would seek full independence. A new constitution giving the Bahamas increased control over its own affairs was adopted in 1968. In 1971, the UBP merged with

4018-425: The US Navy occupied Nassau in 1776, before being evacuated a few days later. In 1782 a Spanish fleet appeared off the coast of Nassau, and the city surrendered without a fight . Later, in April 1783, on a visit made by Prince William of the United Kingdom (later to become King William IV ) to Luis de Unzaga at his residence in the Captaincy General of Havana, they made prisoner exchange agreements and also dealt with

4100-454: The United States and, on a limited basis, internationally. In 2022, the foundation had year-end total assets of $ 3.7 billion and made 385 grants totalling $ 190.6 million. In 2006, the foundation had year-end total assets of $ 2.6 billion and made 545 grants totalling $ 107.3 million. Some organizations that the foundation has funded are the Kettering University , Public/Private Ventures , The Nature Conservancy , University of Michigan , Jobs for

4182-423: The United States argued that the United Kingdom should not treat its domestic ships that came to its colonial ports under duress as part of the international trade. The United States worried that the success of the Creole slaves in gaining freedom would encourage more slave revolts on merchant ships. During the American Civil War of the 1860s, the islands briefly prospered as a focus for blockade runners aiding

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4264-422: The United States, is a charitable organization described in the Internal Revenue Code by section 509. A private foundation is necessarily a 501(c)(3) exempt organization (or a former such entity). It is defined by a negative definition: by what it is not. A private foundation is not a public charity , as described in section 170(b)(1)(A) (i) through (vi). Neither is it a section 509(a)(2) organization, nor

4346-467: The United States, there are several restrictions and requirements on private foundations, including: Violations of these provisions give rise to taxes and penalties against the private foundation and, in some cases, its managers, its substantial contributors, and certain related persons. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest private foundation in the U.S. with over $ 38 billion in assets. Most private foundations are much smaller. Out of

4428-413: The above must be, in most jurisdictions, expressed in the document of establishment. Others may be provided by the supervising authority at each particular jurisdiction. The following foundations are set up under common law legal systems : In Canada , the Canada Revenue Agency is a branch of the Canadian government which regulates all foundations. Under Canadian law, since 1967, a private foundation

4510-446: The action of rainwater, called eolianite . Most islands have ridges ranging from 30 to 45 m (98 to 148 ft), though Cat Island has a ridge 60 m (200 ft) in height. The land between ridges is conducive to the formation of lakes and swamps. Solution weathering of the limestone results in a "Bahamian Karst " topography. This includes potholes , blue holes such as Dean's Blue Hole , sinkholes , beachrock such as

4592-447: The application as a "charitable organization", a "public foundation", or a "private foundation", depending on its structure, its source of funding and its operation. The Income Tax Act requirements are different, depending on the type of charity ( Income Tax Act , R.S.C. 1985 (5th supp.) c. 1, para. 149.1(4)(a)). Foundations were first introduced in The Bahamas in December 2004 following the Foundations Act. A private foundation, in

4674-426: The categories specifically excluded from the definition of that term (referred to in section 509(a)). In addition, certain nonexempt charitable trusts are also treated as private foundations. Organizations that fall into the excluded categories are institutions such as hospitals or universities and those that generally have broad public support or actively function in a supporting relationship to such organizations. In

4756-474: The condition of Government House, they "tried to make the best of a bad situation". He did not enjoy the position, and referred to the islands as "a third-class British colony". He opened the small local parliament on 29 October 1940. The couple visited the "Out Islands" that November, on Axel Wenner-Gren 's yacht, which caused controversy; the British Foreign Office strenuously objected because they had been advised by United States intelligence that Wenner-Gren

4838-408: The first permanent European settlement on an island which they named Eleuthera , Greek for free . They later settled New Providence , naming it Sayle's Island. Life proved harder than envisaged however, and many – including Sayle – chose to return to Bermuda. To survive, the remaining settlers salvaged goods from wrecks . In 1670, King Charles II granted the islands to the Lords Proprietors of

4920-464: The forest area was found within protected areas. For the year 2015, 80% of the forest area was reported to be under public ownership , 20% private ownership and 0% with ownership listed as other or unknown. According to the Köppen climate classification , the climate of the Bahamas is mostly tropical savannah climate or Aw , with a hot and wet season and a warm and dry season. The low latitude, warm tropical Gulf Stream , and low elevation give

5002-425: The foundation. The main legal instruments governing private foundations in Sweden are those that regulate foundations in general: the Foundation Act (1994:1220) and the Regulation for Foundations (1995:1280). The Bahamas The Bahamas ( / b ə ˈ h ɑː m ə z / bə- HAH -məz ), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas , is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of

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5084-485: The founder and beneficiaries are non-residents of Mauritius. A foundation in the Netherlands (Stichting) is a legal person created through a legal act. This act is usually either a notarised deed (or a will) that contains the articles of the foundation which must include the first appointed board. Foundation legislation was last reformed in 1998, giving rise to the Netherlands Antilles Private Foundation (Stichting Particulier Fonds). The Nevis Multiform Foundation

5166-425: The fourteenth-largest gross domestic product per capita in the Americas . Its economy is based on tourism and offshore finance. Though the Bahamas is in the Lucayan Archipelago, and not on the Caribbean Sea , it is often considered part of the wider Caribbean region. The Bahamas is a full member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) but is not part of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy . The name Bahamas

5248-418: The islands consists of the Middle Pleistocene Owl's Hole Formation , overlain by the Late Pleistocene Grotto Beach Formation, and then the Holocene Rice Bay Formation. However, these units are not necessarily stacked on top of each other but can be located laterally. The oldest formation, Owl's Hole, is capped by a terra rosa paleosoil , as is the Grotto Beach, unless eroded . The Grotto Beach Formation

5330-614: The islands for the Crown of Castile , before proceeding to explore the larger isles of the Greater Antilles . The 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas theoretically divided the new territories between the Kingdom of Castile and the Kingdom of Portugal , placing the Bahamas in the Spanish sphere; however they did little to press their claim on the ground. The Spanish did however exploit the native Lucayan peoples, many of whom were enslaved and sent to Hispaniola for use as forced labour. The slaves suffered harsh conditions and most died from contracting diseases to which they had no immunity ; half of

5412-480: The islands, making his first landfall in the " New World " in 1492 when he landed on the island of San Salvador . Later, the Spanish shipped the native Lucayans to Hispaniola and enslaved them there, after which the Bahama islands were mostly deserted from 1513 until 1648, as nearly all native Bahamians had been forcibly removed for enslavement or had died of diseases which Europeans had brought with them from Europe. In 1649, English colonists from Bermuda , known as

5494-457: The islands. The Creole case has been described as the "most successful slave revolt in U.S. history". These incidents, in which a total of 447 enslaved people belonging to US nationals were freed from 1830 to 1842, increased tension between the United States and the United Kingdom . They had been co-operating in patrols to suppress the international slave trade. However, worried about the stability of its large domestic slave trade and its value,

5576-438: The majority of the population from this period on. The slave trade was abolished by the British in 1807. Although slavery in the Bahamas was not abolished until 1834, the Bahamas became a haven of manumission for African slaves, from outside the British West Indies, in 1818. Africans liberated from illegal slave ships were resettled on the islands by the Royal Navy , while some North American slaves and Seminoles escaped to

5658-526: The natural vegetation is tropical scrub and cactus and succulents are common in landscapes. Tropical storms and hurricanes occasionally impact the Bahamas. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew passed over the northern portions of the islands, and Hurricane Floyd passed near the eastern portions of the islands in 1999. Hurricane Dorian of 2019 passed over the archipelago at destructive Category 5 strength with sustained winds of 298 km/h (185 mph) and wind gusts up to 350 km/h (220 mph), becoming

5740-410: The preliminaries of the Treaty of Paris (1783) , in which the recently conquered Bahamas would be exchanged for East Florida , which would still have to conquer the city of St. Augustine, Florida in 1784 by order of Luis de Unzaga; after that, also in 1784, the Bahamas would be declared a British colony. After US independence, the British resettled some 7,300 Loyalists with their African slaves in

5822-485: The private foundation to beneficiaries. The Liechtenstein Family Foundation (Stiftung) was first introduced in 1926 and updated by the Act Reforming the Persons and Companies Act in 2008 which included a new Act on Foundations. They are allowed to pursue non-commercial and/or private benefit purposes. Private Benefit Family Foundation pays no taxes. The Mauritius Foundation was introduced following 'The Foundations Act' of 2012. Such entities are tax exempt as long as

5904-577: The right to intercept ships carrying slaves on the high seas. Thousands of Africans liberated from slave ships by the Royal Navy were resettled in the Bahamas. In the 1820s during the period of the Seminole Wars in Florida, hundreds of North American slaves and African Seminoles escaped from Cape Florida to the Bahamas. They settled mostly on northwest Andros Island , where they developed

5986-481: The ruling Free National Movement lost to the opposition Progressive Liberal Party in a snap election , as the economy struggled to recover from its deepest crash since at least 1971. On 17 September 2021, the chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Phillip "Brave" Davis was sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Bahamas to succeed Hubert Minnis. The landmass that makes up what

6068-500: The shallow banks, increasing the temperature about 3 °C (5.4 °F) and the salinity by 0.5 per cent. Cemented ooids are referred to as grapestone. Additionally, giant stromatolites are found off the Exuma Cays . Sea level changes resulted in a drop in sea level, causing wind blown oolite to form sand dunes with distinct cross-bedding . Overlapping dunes form oolitic ridges, which become rapidly lithified through

6150-448: The site to be present-day San Salvador Island (formerly known as Watling's Island), situated in the southeastern Bahamas, whilst an alternative theory holds that Columbus landed to the southeast on Samana Cay , according to calculations made in 1986 by National Geographic writer and editor Joseph Judge , based on Columbus' log. On the landfall island, Columbus made first contact with the Lucayans and exchanged goods with them, claiming

6232-773: The slaves and British colonial officials freed them, over the protests of the Americans. There were 165 slaves on the Comet and 48 on the Encomium . The United Kingdom finally paid an indemnity to the United States in those two cases in 1855, under the Treaty of Claims of 1853, which settled several compensation cases between the two countries. Slavery was abolished in the British Empire on 1 August 1834. After that British colonial officials freed 78 North American slaves from

6314-495: The strongest tropical cyclone on record to impact the northwestern islands of Grand Bahama and Great Abaco. It was generally believed that the Bahamas were formed approximately 200 million years ago, when Pangaea started to break apart. In current times, it endures as an archipelago containing over 700 islands and cays, fringed around different coral reefs . The limestone that comprises the Banks has been accumulating since at least

6396-610: The village of Red Bays. From eyewitness accounts, 300 escaped in a mass flight in 1823, aided by Bahamians in 27 sloops , with others using canoes for the journey. This was commemorated in 2004 by a large sign at Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park . Some of their descendants in Red Bays continue African Seminole traditions in basket making and grave marking. In 1818, the Home Office in London had ruled that "any slave brought to

6478-555: Was a "full-scale riot". Ziegler said that the Duke blamed the trouble on "mischief makers – communists " and "men of Central European Jewish descent, who had secured jobs as a pretext for obtaining a deferment of draft". The Duke resigned from the post on 16 March 1945. Modern political development began after the Second World War . The first political parties were formed in the 1950s, split broadly along ethnic lines, with

6560-677: Was a close friend of the Luftwaffe commander Hermann Göring of Nazi Germany. The Duke was praised at the time for his efforts to combat poverty on the islands. A 1991 biography by Philip Ziegler, however, described him as contemptuous of the Bahamians and other non-European peoples of the Empire. He was praised for his resolution of civil unrest over low wages in Nassau in June 1942, when there

6642-598: Was introduced in 2005. The Panama Private Interest Foundation was introduced following the Law 25, June 12, 1995. The Saint Kitts Foundation was introduced following the Foundation Act of 2003. The Seychelles Foundation was introduced following the Foundation Act of 2009. A private foundation in Sweden (Stiftelse) is formed by a letter of donation from a founder donating funds or assets to be administered for

6724-557: Was last reformed under the Private Foundation Act in September 1993. The Austrian private foundation is considered a legal person having beneficiaries rather than shareholders or proprietors and may be established for any purpose. There are three levels of taxation related to Austrian private foundations: taxation of asset transfers, ongoing taxation of the private foundation's income; and taxation of distributions from

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