Overview
The British Virgin Islands (BVI), officially known as the Virgin Islands, is a British Overseas Territory located in the Caribbean. It sits to the east of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and northwest of Anguilla. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and form part of the Leeward Islands within the Lesser Antilles.
Geography and Main Islands
The British Virgin Islands comprise approximately 60 tropical Caribbean islands with a total area of about 150 square kilometers (58 square miles). The four main islands are Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, and Jost Van Dyke, along with more than 50 smaller islands and cays. About 16 of the islands are inhabited.
Tortola is the largest island, measuring approximately 20 kilometers (12 miles) long and 5 kilometers (3 miles) wide. It is home to Road Town, the capital of the territory. The highest point in the British Virgin Islands is Mount Sage on Tortola, which reaches 521 meters in elevation. Most of the islands are volcanic in origin with hilly, rugged terrain, except for Anegada, which is geologically distinct as a flat island composed of limestone and coral. Forest cover comprises around 24% of the total land area.
Population
According to the 2010 Census, the islands had a population of 28,054, with 23,491 living on Tortola. Current estimates place the population at approximately 35,802 as of July 2018. British Virgin Islanders are British Overseas Territories citizens and, since 2002, also British citizens.
Climate
The British Virgin Islands experience a tropical savanna climate moderated by trade winds. Temperatures remain relatively consistent throughout the year. In Road Town, typical daily maximum temperatures are around 32°C (89.6°F) in summer and 29°C (84.2°F) in winter, while typical daily minimums are around 26°C (78.8°F) in summer and 23°C (73.4°F) in winter.
Annual rainfall averages approximately 1,150 millimeters (45.3 inches), with higher amounts in hilly areas and lower amounts along the coast. The wettest months are typically September to November, while February and March are generally the driest months. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June to November, and hurricanes occasionally impact the islands.
History
Pre-Columbian and Early European Period
The Virgin Islands were likely first settled by the Arawak people from South America between 100 BC and AD 200, though evidence suggests Amerindian presence dating back to around 1500 BC. The Arawaks inhabited the islands until the late pre-Columbian period.
Christopher Columbus made the first European sighting of the Virgin Islands during his second voyage to the Americas in 1493, naming them "Santa Úrsula y las Once Mil Vírgenes" (Saint Ursula and the 11,000 Virgins) after the legend of Saint Ursula. This name was later shortened to "the Virgin Islands." The Spanish Empire claimed the islands by discovery in the early 16th century but never settled them.
Colonial Period and European Control
Following the Spanish discovery, the English, Dutch, French, Spanish, and Danish all competed for control of the region, which became notorious as a pirate haven. There is no recorded native Amerindian population in the British Virgin Islands during this period; most either fled to safer islands or were killed by 1596.
The Dutch established a permanent settlement on Tortola by 1648. The English captured Tortola from the Dutch in 1672, and subsequently annexed Anegada and Virgin Gorda in 1680. These islands remained under British control thereafter. Meanwhile, the nearby islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, and Saint Croix (now the US Virgin Islands) came under Danish control during the period of 1672–1733.
Sugar Economy and Slavery
The British introduced sugar cane as the main crop and source of foreign trade, bringing large numbers of enslaved people from Africa to work on the sugar cane plantations. The islands prospered economically until the middle of the nineteenth century, when the abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1834, combined with disastrous hurricanes and the growth of the European and American sugar beet crop, significantly reduced sugar cane production and triggered a period of economic decline.
Modern Era
In 1917, the United States purchased the Danish Virgin Islands for $25 million and renamed them the United States Virgin Islands. Economic linkages with these US islands prompted the British Virgin Islands to adopt the US dollar as its currency in 1959.
The British Virgin Islands were administered as part of the British Leeward Islands or with St. Kitts and Nevis under a British government administrator. The islands gained separate colony status in 1960 and became autonomous in 1967 under a new Chief Minister position. Since the 1960s, the islands have diversified from their agriculture-based economy toward tourism and financial services, becoming one of the wealthiest areas in the Caribbean. The constitution was amended in 1977, 2004, and 2007, granting greater local autonomy.
Economy
The economy of the British Virgin Islands is overwhelmingly dominated by tourism and financial services. The territory is known internationally as a leading hub for tax evasion and concealment of assets.
Name and Etymology
The official name of the territory is simply the "Virgin Islands," though the prefix "British" is often used. While it is commonly believed that "British" was added to distinguish it from the neighboring American territory, which changed its name from the "Danish West Indies" to "Virgin Islands of the United States" in 1917, local historians have disputed this origin. Historical records and publications dating from between February 1857 and September 1919 refer to the territory as the British Virgin Islands.
Government publications continue to begin with "The territory of the Virgin Islands," and territorial passports simply refer to the "Virgin Islands." In 1968, the British Government issued a memorandum requiring that postage stamps display "British Virgin Islands" rather than simply "Virgin Islands," a practice that continues today. Various public and quasi-public bodies continue to use the name "British Virgin Islands" or "BVI" in their official designations.
Hurricane Irma
On September 6, 2017, Hurricane Irma struck the British Virgin Islands, causing extensive damage, particularly on Tortola, and killing four people. The UK government sent troops with medical supplies and aid, while HMS Ocean was dispatched to provide more extensive assistance. The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency declared a state of emergency in response to the disaster.