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58-558: At the time of the 2010 census, Unitedville had a population of 971 in 2010. This represents roughly 1.5 % of the district's total population. This was a 64% increase from 593 people recorded in the 2000 census. In terms of ethnicity, 53.3% were Creole , 32.1% Mestizo , 4.8% Caucasian , 4.6% Mixed , 1.5% East Indian , 1.0% African , 0.8% Garifuna , 0.4% Asian and 0.4% Ketchi Maya and 0.8% others. 17°12′46″N 88°56′12″W  /  17.21278°N 88.93667°W  / 17.21278; -88.93667 This article about

116-518: A "corsair" by the governor of Panama. Nevertheless, these rough men had little concern for legal niceties, and exploited every opportunity to pillage Spanish targets, whether or not a letter of marque was available. Many of the letters of marque used by buccaneers were legally invalid, and any form of legal paper in that illiterate age might be passed off as a letter of marque. Furthermore, even those buccaneers who had valid letters of marque often failed to observe their terms. The legal status of buccaneers

174-726: A disastrous hurricane in 1931, led to development of Belize's first trade unions. From that organizing, they developed the first political party, the People's United Party (PUP). Creoles continue to lead the nation in politics. But conditions in Belize City worsened after another major hurricane in 1961 . Shortly thereafter large scale emigration began (and continues) to the United States and England. From those countries, working individuals sent back money to assist families left behind. Attempts to unite Creoles for development, such as

232-751: A new, syncretic Creole culture. By most accounts, the slaves in Belize led a better life than most in the West Indies, but were still mistreated. Many escaped to neighboring Spanish colonies, or formed small maroon settlements in the forest. These slaves reputedly assisted in the defense of the fledgling settlement for much of the late 18th century, particularly in the 1798 Battle of St. George's Caye . This history has been debated and generates controversy in Belize. The Creoles settled where they had work: mainly in Belize Town (now Belize City ) and along

290-438: A summary fashion, and many ended their lives by "dancing the hempen jig", a euphemism for hanging. Public executions were a form of entertainment, and people came out to watch them as they would for a sporting event today. Newspapers reported details such as condemned men's last words, the prayers said by the priests, and descriptions of their final moments in the gallows. In England, most executions took place at Execution Dock on

348-402: A thick stew with cocoyam and tripe, and a wide variety of dishes made with fish. Coconut milk and oil are common ingredients, though they have become increasingly rare and expensive. A plague of "lethal yellowing" killed most of the coconut trees in the 1990s. In Belize , cassava was traditionally made into "bammy," a small fried cassava cake related to Garifuna cassava bread. The cassava root

406-583: A variety of pies. Buccaneer Buccaneers were a kind of privateer or free sailors particular to the Caribbean Sea during the 17th and 18th centuries. First established on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, their heyday was from the Restoration in 1660 until about 1688, during a time when governments in the Caribbean area were not strong enough to suppress them. Originally

464-449: A wide range of physical features, ranging from dark skin and kinky hair, to fair skin and blonde hair, with many gradations in between. The term Creole denotes an ethnic culture rather than any narrow standard of physical appearance. In Belize, Creole is the standard term for any person of at least partial Black African descent who is not Garinagu , or any person who speaks Kriol as a first or sole language. Thus, immigrants from Africa and

522-458: Is an unusual Creole dance that survives from colonial times. In that period, slaves met in different parts of Belize City in "tribes," based on their African region of origin, to celebrate the Christmas holidays. Traditionally the group would form a big circle in the night around a full moon in the center of a square. One person at a time would go in the middle of the ring to dance. The male dance

580-533: Is different from that of the female because it is a fertility dance. The dance marks the time when girls and boys who are considered sexually mature may dance in public as part of their passage to adulthood. From colonial days, music and dance have been an essential part of the Creole culture, as they were in contributing cultures. Drum-led dancing was a major part of Christmas and other celebrations in Creole communities. A style of music called Brukdown originated from

638-560: Is doubtful many buccaneers got off with just a time in the pillory. However, a pirate who was flogged could very well spend some time in the pillory after being beaten. "The most common shaming punishment was confinement in the pillory often with symbols of their crimes." After the threat began to abate, literature brought buccaneers to glory as example of virility and self-reliance. Daniel Defoe ’s works like Robinson Crusoe (1719), Captain Singleton (1720), and A General History of

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696-612: Is grated, rinsed well, dried, salted, and pressed to form flat cakes about 4 inches in diameter and 1/2-inch thick. The cakes are lightly fried, then dipped in coconut milk and fried again. Bammies were usually served as a starchy side dish with breakfast, with fish dishes, or alone as a snack. Cassava Pone (Plastic Cake) is a traditional Belizean Creole and pan- West Indian cassava flour cake, sometimes made with coconuts and raisins. Other common desserts include Sweet Potato Pone, Bread Pudding, stretch-mi-guts (a kind of taffy), tableta (coconut crisp), wangla (sesame) and powderbun, as well as

754-638: The Congo , and Angola . Other slaves were taken from the Wolof , Fula , Hausa and Kongo peoples. The Igbo (known as Eboe or Ibo) seem to have been particularly numerous; one section of Belize Town was still known as Eboe Town in the first half of the 19th century. At first, many slaves maintained African ethnic identifications and cultural practices. Gradually, however, they combined some of their cultures, as well as adapting to elements of Europeans ones; in this process of creolization, their descendants created

812-600: The English and Scottish log cutters, known as the Baymen who trafficked them. Over the years they have also intermarried with Miskito from Nicaragua , Jamaicans and other Caribbean people , Mestizos , Europeans , Garifunas , Mayas , and Chinese and Indians . The latter were brought to Belize as indentured laborers. Majority of Kriols trace their ancestry to several of the aforementioned groups. The Belize Kriol language, developed initially by interaction among

870-467: The French Revolution , the buccaneer companies were run on lines in which liberty , equality and fraternity were the rule. In a buccaneer camp, the captain was elected and could be deposed by the votes of the crew. The crew, and not the captain, decided whether to attack a particular ship, or a fleet of ships. Spoils were evenly divided into shares; the captain received an agreed amount for

928-593: The Nine Years' War (1688-1697) they were no longer an important factor. Until about 1688 the governments were not strong enough, and did not consistently attempt, to suppress the buccaneers. In January 1684, Havana responded to the attacks by the buccaneers of the Bahamas in the event known as the Raid on Charles Town . In the 1690s, the old buccaneering ways began to die out, as European governments began to discard

986-604: The River Thames in London . In the cases of more famous prisoners, usually captains, their punishments extended beyond death. Their bodies were enclosed in iron cages (for which they were measured before their execution) and left to swing in the air until the flesh rotted off them—a process that could take as long as two years. The bodies of captains such as William "Captain" Kidd , Charles Vane , William Fly , and Jack Rackham ("Calico Jack") were all treated this way. It

1044-649: The United Black Association for Development , have met mixed results. As part of the September celebrations, the annual Creole Festival is held on the grounds of the House of Culture. The festival is notable as part of an effort by Belize's Creole population to assert itself as a distinct group, rich with its own traditions. Maypole is a celebration that includes a maypole, a tall wooden pole, decorated with several long colored ribbons suspended from

1102-544: The Africans and Europeans, was historically spoken only by them. The Creoles constituted the majority of the population until the 1980s and became synonymous with the Belizean national identity. In the 21st century, Creoles are found predominantly in urban areas, such as Belize City , and in most coastal towns and villages. Until the early 1980s, Belizean Creoles constituted close to 60% of the population of Belize . But,

1160-515: The Caribbean Arawak word buccan , which refers to a wooden frame on which Tainos and Caribs slowly roasted or smoked meat, commonly manatee . The word was adopted into French as boucan , hence the name boucanier for French hunters who used such frames to smoke meat from feral cattle and pigs on Hispaniola . English colonists anglicised boucanier to buccaneer . About 1630, French interlopers were driven away from

1218-655: The Central American coast from the 16th century and earlier, and were also used by the Spanish further down the coast. By 1724, the British too were acquiring slaves from Jamaica and elsewhere to cut logwood and later mahogany . The earliest reference to African slaves in the British settlement of Belize appeared in a 1724 Spanish missionary's account, which stated that the British recently had been importing them from Jamaica and Bermuda . The Europeans sexually abused

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1276-524: The Dutch colonies of St. Eustatius and Tobago . In 1666, however, when the French joined the Dutch in the war, the weakness of this policy was proved. The English hoped to capture the French plantations of St. Kitts , where there were new settlers of both nations, and so they declined to make a new agreement for neutrality. They made what was intended to be a surprise attack, but was an ignominious failure, and

1334-463: The English settlers in the island had to surrender unconditionally. More than 8,000 of them were shipped away, and their property was seized by the French. Lord Willoughby , the able governor of Barbados, got together an expedition for a counter-stroke, but his fleet was broken up by a hurricane in which he perished. The French captured one island after another. In 1667 naval ships from England regained

1392-506: The European governments asserted their authority, the buccaneers first became separated by nationalities and then in time were suppressed altogether, leaving behind only dispersed bands of pirates. English settlers occupying Jamaica began to spread the name buccaneers with the meaning of pirates. The name became universally adopted later in 1684 when the first English translation of Alexandre Exquemelin 's book The Buccaneers of America

1450-695: The Indian Ocean, the east coast of North America, or West Africa as well as in the Caribbean. Sometimes the buccaneers held more or less regular commissions as privateers, and they always preyed upon the Spaniards; but often they became mere pirates and plundered any nation. As a rule, the buccaneers called themselves privateers, and many sailed under the protection of a letter of marque granted by British, French or Dutch authorities. For example, Henry Morgan had some form of legal cover for all of his attacks, and expressed great indignation at being called

1508-659: The Pacific. They had not been long on their journey when the Anglo-Spanish treaty of 1680 was signed, which at last stipulated for a real peace beyond the Line and indirectly recognised the right of the English to trade in West Indian waters. When the buccaneers returned by way of Cape Horn in 1682, the survivors found themselves treated as pirates. The French, within a very few years, also controlled their buccaneers, and in

1566-524: The Spanish on the coast of Cuba. They called this activity buccaneering. Their principal station was Tortuga, but from time to time they seized other strongholds, like Providence, and they were welcomed with their booty in ports like Port Royal in Jamaica . At first they were international. In 1663 it was estimated that there were fifteen of their ships with nearly a thousand men, English, French, and Dutch, belonging to Jamaica and Tortuga. As time went on and

1624-509: The West Indies who have settled in Belize and intermarried with locals may also identify as Creole. The concept of Creole as mixed race has embraced nearly any individual who has Afro-European ancestry combined with any other ethnicity, including Mestizo or Maya. When the National Kriol Council began standardizing the orthography for Kriol, it decided to promote the spelling Kriol only for the language but to continue to use

1682-421: The all-night "brams" or parties thrown by Creole families; these focused on both social commentary and hijinks. Brukdown is a genre of Belizean music . Wilfred Peters , Brukdown's most well-known contemporary performer and innovator, is regarded as a Belizean national icon. The music is a mixture of European harmonies , African syncopated rhythms and call-and-response format, and lyrical elements from

1740-491: The banks of the Belize River in the original logwood settlements, including Burrell Boom , Bermudian Landing , Crooked Tree , Gracie Rock , Rancho Dolores , Flowers Bank , and Belmopan . There were also substantial numbers in and around the plantations south of Belize City and Placencia . Many Creoles were involved in the trade in live sea turtles , and other fisheries. During the 19th century, they spread out to all

1798-640: The centres of international strife throughout the eighteenth century although by that time it was regulated in the same way as in Europe, and had become inseparable from the European wars. During the Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1665, de Ruyter attacked Barbados with a strong squadron, and the English had no choice but to base their defence on the buccaneers whom the governor of Jamaica had previously been trying to suppress. They were unmanageable and destroyed where they conquered, but they mastered

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1856-452: The city the most prosperous in the Caribbean. There were even Royal Navy officers sent to lead the buccaneers, such as Christopher Myngs . Their activities went on irrespective of whether England happened to be at war with Spain or France. Among the leaders of the buccaneers were two Frenchmen, Jean-David Nau, better known as François l'Ollonais , and Daniel Montbars , who destroyed so many Spanish ships and killed so many Spaniards that he

1914-568: The command of the sea and made various conquests, but the Peace of Breda re-established the status quo in March of that year. Henry Morgan was knighted in 1674 and became lieutenant-governor of Jamaica. In the late 1670s there was a succession of raids on Spanish ports. In 1680 a party made its way across the Isthmus of Panama and, sailing in captured Spanish ships, pillaged the coasts and commerce of

1972-761: The decline as youths adopt the cultures of the outside world. Among the main staples of a Creole dinner are rice and beans with some type of meat, for example stewed chicken, baked chicken, stewed pork, stewed beef etc.; salad, whether potato, vegetable, or coleslaw; seafoods, including fish, conch, lobster; some game meats, including iguana, deer, peccary and gibnut; and ground foods such as cassava, potatoes, cocoa and plantains. Fresh juice or water are typically served, occasionally replaced by soft drinks and alcoholic beverages (homemade wines made from sorrel, berries, cashew, sorosi, grapefruit and rice are especially common). Breakfasts usually include Creole bread and Kriol bun, johnny-cakes and frycakes (also called fry jacks). Since

2030-467: The demographics of the country have changed markedly. Because of the combined effects of immigration to Belize of people from other Central American countries, and emigration of an estimated 85,000 Creoles, most to the United States, in the early 21st century the Creoles make up only about 25% of the population of Belize. As a result of centuries of mixed-race ancestry, persons identifying as Creole express

2088-399: The districts, particularly Dangriga and Monkey River , as the colony grew. Their sense of pride led to occasional clashes with authority, such as the 1894 currency devaluation riots, which foreshadowed greater conflicts to come. In the 20th century, the Creoles took the lead in organizing development of the settlement. Riots in 1919 and 1934, combined with terrible conditions resulting from

2146-415: The end of the 17th century, the buccaneers' attacks began to disrupt France and England's merchant traffic with Spanish America , such that merchants who had previously regarded the buccaneers as a defence against Spain now saw them as a threat to commerce, and colonial authorities grew hostile. This change in political atmosphere, more than anything else, put an end to buccaneering. A hundred years before

2204-565: The female slaves, resulting in numerous mixed-race children. In the second half of the eighteenth century, the slave population hovered around 3,000, making up about three-quarters of the total population. Most slaves, even if they were brought through West Indian markets, were born in Africa, primarily from Ghana ( Ga and Ewe people, Ashanti - Fante ), around the Bight of Benin and Bight of Biafra ; Nigeria ( Yoruba , Igbo , Efik );

2262-523: The geography of Belize is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Belizean Creole people Belizean Creoles , also known as Kriols , are a Creole ethnic group native to Belize . Belizean Creoles are primarily mixed-raced descendants of enslaved West and Central Africans who were brought to the British Honduras (present-day Belize along the Bay of Honduras ) as well as

2320-414: The island of Hispaniola and fled to nearby Tortuga . French buccaneers were established on northern Hispaniola as early as 1625, but lived at first mostly as hunters rather than robbers; their transition to full-time piracy was gradual and motivated in part by Spanish efforts to wipe out both the buccaneers and the prey animals on which they depended. The buccaneers' migration from Hispaniola's mainland to

2378-401: The late 20th century, Creoles have adopted foods from other groups, particularly "Spanish" dishes made with tortillas. A more general national Belizean cuisine has developed and adopted traditional foods brought by the many Central American immigrants. Creoles in general eat a relatively balanced diet. The bile up (or boil up) is described above. Other important Creole foods are cowfoot soup,

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2436-578: The more defensible offshore island of Tortuga limited their resources and accelerated their piratical raids. According to Alexandre Exquemelin , the Tortuga buccaneer Pierre Le Grand pioneered the settlers' attacks on galleons making the return voyage to Spain. The Spaniards also tried to drive them out of Tortuga, but the buccaneers were joined by many more French, Dutch , and English adventurers who turned to piracy. They set their eyes on Spanish shipping, generally using small craft to attack galleons in

2494-402: The name applied to the landless hunters of wild boars and cattle in the largely uninhabited areas of Tortuga and Hispaniola . The meat they caught was smoked over a slow fire in little huts the French called boucans to make viande boucanée – jerked meat or jerky – which they sold to the corsairs who preyed on the (largely Spanish) shipping and settlements of the Caribbean. Eventually

2552-434: The native peoples of the area. In its modern form, brukdown is a rural folk music, associated especially with the logging towns of the Belizean interior. Traditional instruments include the banjo , guitar , drums , dingaling bell, accordion and a donkey's jawbone , played by running a stick up and down the teeth. Brukdown remains a rural, rarely recorded genre. This music and the social gatherings associated with it are on

2610-440: The old state of affairs in which, even when they were at peace with Spain and Portugal in Europe, there was 'no peace beyond the Line '. The West Indies were beyond the range of the European international system. Sometimes this was for their advantage but on the whole, with the intermingled possessions, trade rivalries, and disputes about territorial rights, the local conditions led to conflicts. The West Indies continued to be one of

2668-454: The point that, eventually, most victims would surrender, hoping they would not be killed. When buccaneers raided towns, they did not sail into port and bombard the defences, as naval forces typically did. Instead, they secretly beached their ships out of sight of their target, marched overland, and attacked the towns from the landward side, which was usually less fortified. Their raids relied mainly on surprise and speed. The sack of Campeche

2726-462: The policy of "no peace beyond the Line ". Buccaneers were hard to control; some even embroiled their colonies in unwanted wars. Notably, at the 1697 joint French-buccaneer siege of Cartagena , led by Bernard Desjean, Baron de Pointis , the buccaneers and the French regulars parted on extremely bitter terms. Less tolerated by local Caribbean officials, buccaneers increasingly turned to legal work or else joined regular pirate crews who sought plunder in

2784-490: The same way. These new powers had appropriated and secured territories in the area and needed to protect them. Buccaneers who did not settle down on agriculture or some other acceptable business after the so-called Golden Age of Piracy proved a nuisance to them, too. Spanish anti-pirate practices became thus a model for all recently arrived colonial governments. Some expanded them. When caught by anti-pirate English authorities, 17th and 18th century buccaneers received justice in

2842-399: The ship, plus a portion of the share of the prize money , usually five or six shares. Crews generally had no regular wages, being paid only from their shares of the plunder, a system called " no purchase, no pay " by Modyford or "no prey, no pay" by Enqueueing. There was a strong esprit among buccaneers. This, combined with overwhelming numbers, allowed them to win battles and raids. There

2900-551: The spelling Creole to refer to the people in English. According to local research, the Belizean Creoles descended from unions between polyglot buccaneers and European settlers who developed the logwood trade in the 17th century, and the African slaves whom they kidnapped and used as enslaved laborers to cut and ship the logwood. The National Kriol Council of Belize says that black slaves had been used as workers on

2958-541: The term was applied to the corsairs and (later) privateers themselves, also known as the Brethren of the Coast . Although corsairs, also known as filibusters or freebooters , were largely lawless, privateers were nominally licensed by the authorities – first the French, later the English and Dutch – to prey on the Spanish, until their depredations became so severe they were suppressed. The term buccaneer derives from

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3016-748: The top. This is similar to Palo de Mayo or Maypole in RAAS region in Nicaragua . There is no definite answer as to how the custom reached Nicaragua. Many historians note that there are many differences in the celebration and that it came from the Nicaraguan Creoles who inhabited Nicaragua's Caribbean coast; other historians believe it came indirectly from Jamaica . Maypoles were historically also part of traditional British customs in England. The traditional fire sambai of Gales Point Manatee

3074-756: The vicinity of the Windward Passage . With the support and encouragement of rival European powers, they became strong enough to sail for the mainland of Spanish America , known as the Spanish Main , and sacked cities. Perhaps what distinguished the buccaneers from earlier Caribbean sailors was their use of permanent bases in the West Indies. During the mid 17th century, the Bahama Islands attracted many lawless people who had taken over New Providence . Encouraged by its large harbour, they were joined by several pirates who made their living by raiding

3132-414: Was also, for some time, a social insurance system guaranteeing compensation for battle wounds at a worked-out scale. Buccaneers initially used small boats to attack Spanish galleons surreptitiously, often at night, and climb aboard before the alarm could be raised. Buccaneers were expert marksmen and would quickly kill the helmsman and any officers aboard. Buccaneers' reputation as cruel pirates grew to

3190-474: Was called "the Exterminator". Another noted leader was Welshman Henry Morgan , who sacked Maracaibo , Portobello , and Panama City , stealing a huge amount from the Spanish. Morgan became rich and went back to England, where he was knighted by Charles II . While the buccaneers were powerful it was not only hostility to Spain, but also lack of authority, that prevented the other states from ending

3248-402: Was considered the first such raid and many others that followed replicated the same techniques including the attack on Veracruz in 1683 and the raid on Cartagena later that same year. Spanish authorities always viewed buccaneers as trespassers and a threat to their hegemony in the Caribbean basin, and over the second half of the 17th century, other European powers learned to perceive them in

3306-443: Was published. Viewed from London , buccaneering was a budget way to wage war on England's rival, Spain. The English crown licensed buccaneers with letters of marque , legalising their operations in return for a share of their profits. The buccaneers were invited by Jamaica's Governor Thomas Modyford to base ships at Port Royal. The buccaneers robbed Spanish shipping and colonies, and returned to Port Royal with their plunder, making

3364-444: Was still further obscured by the practice of the Spanish authorities, who regarded them as heretics and interlopers, and thus hanged or garroted captured buccaneers entirely without regard to whether their attacks were licensed by French or English monarchs. Simultaneously, French and English governors tended to turn a blind eye to the buccaneers' depredations against the Spanish, even when unlicensed. But as Spanish power waned toward

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