Anguilla is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom (British Overseas Territory Anguilla). It is located in the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. The territory consists of the main island of Anguilla, which has the same name, together with several small, uninhabited coral islands. The name is derived from the Italian word anguilla for "eel" and refers to the elongated shape of the main island. Snake Island was also used as an alternative name. The Arawak called the island Malliouhana, the "arrow-shaped sea serpent".
The main island is 26km long and a maximum of 6km
wide, the highest elevation is Crocus Hill at 66m above sea level. The
name Anguilla comes from French and means "eel", a reference to the
shape of the island. Originally there was dense rainforest there 4,000
years ago, today it has little rainfall and is only covered by thin dry
forest. This climate and the unfavorable soil conditions make
agriculture almost impossible. The majority of the island consists of
limestone, with only small remains of volcanism. The western half has
beautiful beaches, the eastern part is characterized by karst hills, and
there are lagoons and salt lakes along the entire coastal area. The
beautiful beaches are mostly without any trees to provide shade. On
Anguilla you can find a few small but expensive hotels, some of which
also stand out due to their unusual architecture.
Dog Island,
uninhabited, 16.5km northwest of Road Bay, 2.9km long, 1.3km wide, 29.5m
above sea level, partly rocky coast with strong currents, only for
experienced divers, diving area up to 80 feet deep. On the north side
there is a large sandy beach - Savannah Bay, the south coast is a little
flatter. There are wild goats and seabirds on the island. East Cay, 175m
northwest of Dog Island, measures 250m x 100m, 8m above sea level. Mid
Cay, 375m northeast of Dog Island, measures 250m x 100m, 16m above sea
level, rocky. West Cay is very flat, lies 1,250m west of Dog Island,
measures 180m x 115m.
Prickly Pear Cays, uninhabited, 10km northwest
of Road Bay. The two cays are separated by a 125m wide strip of water.
The eastern island is 1,050m long, 550m wide, 11.5m above sea level,
with a sandy beach in the northeast. The western island is 1,350m long,
375m wide, 16m above sea level, rocky, popular with sharks, the diving
area is 30 - 70 feet deep. Catamarans and sailing boats leave Road Bay
daily at 10 a.m.
Sandy Island, 2.6km northwest of Road Bay, Road
Point. This island is 200m long, 50m wide, 1.5m above sea level, there
is an hourly motorboat connection from 10 a.m. There is a Bar-Be-Que bar
under coconut palms; the diving area is 30 - 70 feet deep.
Scrub
Island is uninhabited today. It is located in the northeast, 550m
northeast of Windward Point, 3.1km long, 1.4km wide, 24.5m above sea
level with several large salt lakes and lagoons. To the west of the
island is Scrub Bay with 600m of beach, to the east, deeply cut
Deadman's Point with 200m of beach, to the south Souse Bay with 100m of
beach. Ruins of a former hotel, remains of a runway with a plane wreck.
In Road Bay and Island Harbour you can rent boats when the wind
conditions are good and the sea is calm.
Seal Island, 9km
northwest of Sandy Ground, is 550m long, 75m wide, 3.5m above sea level.
There is a regular ferry connection to the neighboring island of
Saint Martin, which is only 10km away.
Sombrero
This island is
located 65 km from Anguilla in the middle of the Anegada Passage, one of
the main entrances for ships from Europe to the Caribbean Sea. Sombrero
is about 1.5 km long, 400 m wide and of volcanic origin. Its shape
resembles a sombrero hat. There are only a few saltwater-resistant plant
species, three species of lizards and seabirds that breed there.
Around 1800, phosphate began to be sold from the island to America.
Around 1840, shipping traffic in this passage increased significantly.
In 1842, the British Royal Mail Parcel Company opened a regular
steamship service to its trading partners. The request to build a
lighthouse fell on deaf ears until one of its own freighters sank on the
Horse Shoe Reef of ANEGADA. When the "Rhone" was lost on its way to
TORTOLA in 1867, construction of a lighthouse began. The wrought iron
tower with a spiral staircase in the center was 48m high and was put
into operation on January 1, 1868. The lighting system was renewed in
1931. By the end of the 1990s, the tower was so corroded that a new
building was decided upon. In September 2001, a new lighthouse at a
height of 51m went into operation. This is powered by solar energy and
does not require a permanent lighthouse keeper.
The Valley - capital with around 1,440 inhabitants (2006).
Blowing Point
Island Harbour
Sandy Ground
South Hill
West End
The population consists mainly of descendants of African slaves and
mulattoes, but in the fishing village of Island Harbour in particular
there are also many white people of Irish descent, whose ancestors
invaded the island in 1698.
The Anglican Church was established
at the beginning of the 18th century, 40% of the population belong to
it, 33% are Methodists, Baptists and Adventists each have 7% followers
and just 3% belong to the Catholic Church.
Towards the end of the last ice age, when the North American
continent was still covered with a layer of ice two to three kilometers
thick, the water level was 30 - 40 meters lower than it is today. At
that time, the present-day islands of Anguilla, Saint Martin and Saint
Barthélemy formed a single island with an area of around 4,650 km².
The water temperature at that time was 3°C - 5 °C, the air temperature
5°C - 10°C lower than today.
Around 2000 BC In the 4th century
AD, peaceful Arawak Indians came from the South American mainland to the
Lesser Antilles islands. The salty beach lakes were covered with
mangroves and there were alligators. The Indians lived from fishing and
grew corn, cassava and cotton. Archaeologists have found remains of
their settlements at Meads Bay and Island Harbour. They are thought to
belong to the pre-ceramic period because they had no knowledge of
pottery. In the 4th century AD, the island was resettled by Carib
Indians from Saladero, Venezuela. They farmed and brought their seeds
with them in ceramic vessels. In the middle of the 6th century, larger
settlements were established at Rendezvous Bay, Meads Bay, Island
Harbour and Sandy Ground. In the 10th century, Indians from Puerto Rico,
the Dominican Republic and Haiti settled on Anguilla. Between the 10th
and 12th centuries, the island became a centre of religious ceremonies
and petroglyphs (stone monuments) were erected. The finds of
pre-Columbian cultures are in the archaeological museum in The Valley.
The Indians called the island Malliouhana.
In 1564, the island
was discovered by a French expedition fleet led by René Laudonnière. The
first sources of European settlement report Dutchmen, who built a fort
on the island. This was destroyed by the Spanish in 1633. The Spanish
also occupied nearby Sint Maarten. It was not until 1650 that a larger
contingent of English and Catholic Irish came to Anguilla. However, the
island was so dry and had such poor soil that there were hardly any
plantations and very few slaves. In 1656, all the settlers were murdered
by Carib Indians and their huts were destroyed. In 1666, a French
invasion fleet attacked the island with a crew of 300 men.
In
1671, Anguilla became a British colony along with Antigua, Barbuda,
Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1688 the inhabitants had to flee
to Antiuga again from French attackers. Ownership changed again in the
following century. In 1744, over 300 Anguillans occupied the French part
of the island of Saint Martin. On May 21, 1745, two French frigates with
a crew of 700 men landed in Crocus Bay, but Governor Hodge and 150
soldiers were able to repel them. In November 1796, the French were more
successful. They landed in Rendezvous Bay with the two warships "Le
Desius" and "La Vaillante"; South Hill and The Valley were destroyed.
Only when the British warship "Lapwing" from Saint Kitts intervened in
the battle did the French withdraw.
In 1815, the unified Leeward
Islands administration was dissolved and the individual islands were
divided into two new groups. Anguilla, Nevis, Saint Kitts and the Virgin
Islands formed a group in 1825 with the administrative headquarters on
Saint Kitts.
In 1834, 300 whites, 300 "free" coloreds and 2,354
slaves lived on the island.
In 1838, slavery was abolished on the
island, after the former slaves had been granted more freedom four years
earlier. As a result, the country's weak sugar industry collapsed
completely. The white planters sold their land to the freed slaves and
returned to England. In the following years, drought and famine
threatened the island, so that the British administration drew up plans
to evacuate the entire population to British Guyana. Petitions were
repeatedly made to the British overseas administration and to the Queen,
opposing the administration from Saint Kitts. This ultimately led to the
establishment of "The Vestry", a type of local government. In
particular, the taxation of dogs, old buildings and barren land was
denounced. In 1872, Anguilla, Nevis and Saint Kitts formed a colony
again, with the administrative headquarters on Saint Kitts. This was
done without consideration for the interests of the island population
and was only to the advantage of the colonial administration. Ten years
later, the proposal was made to merge Anguilla and Barbuda into one
colony. This was rejected by the Colonial Office in London for financial
reasons. While there were large sugar plantations on Saint Kitts and
Nevis that provided prosperity, Anguilla remained the poorhouse of the
colony. The population had to look for work on other islands. At the
beginning of the 20th century, the country experienced a brief period of
economic growth thanks to the cotton industry. In 1904, 125 hectares
were planted with cotton. In the 1910-11 harvest period, 67,315 kg were
exported. The First World War brought a severe drop in exports and a
weevil then destroyed all the seeds. In 1936, another petition was made
to the Royal West Indies Commission demanding the end of administration
from Saint Kitts. But it was not until 1956 that the administration of
the British Leeward Islands was dissolved and replaced by the West
Indies Federation. The federation broke up in 1962. On February 27,
1967, there was another merger with Saint Kitts & Nevis and Anguilla was
again on the losing side. There was no electricity, no piped water, no
telephone, no paved roads, no industry or port facilities on the island.
The health, sanitation and educational facilities were inadequate.
On May 30, 1967, a revolution broke out in Anguilla due to the catastrophic living conditions. The governor's building was set on fire. The police unit from Saint Kitts was disarmed and sent back by plane. Prime Minister Bradshaw had a state of emergency declared from Saint Kitts. So-called peace talks took place in December under the mediation of the governments of Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad; as a result, the high-ranking British administrative official Tony Lee was appointed Supreme Administrator of the island for a year on January 8, 1968. The following year brought no positive results in the political crisis. On January 9, 1969, Tony Lee left Anguilla. On February 6, 1969, a vote resulted in 1,739 votes to 4 in favor of independence. On March 19, 400 British paratroopers and special forces of the "Red Devils" landed in Sandy Ground as invasion troops. Tony Lee again became the island's administrator. A commission of inquiry was set up and again recommended remaining with Saint Kitts, but this was rejected by the population. In 1971, Anguilla became an independent administrative unit, in 1976 a constitution was drawn up, and since December 19, 1980 the country has been contractually linked to Great Britain. In 1989, Brian Canty, previously Deputy Governor of Bermuda, was appointed the new island governor.
The East Caribbean Dollar (EC-$) is not only used in Anguilla, but in many former British colonies; only Barbados, Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Trinidad & Tobago have their own currency. It is pegged to the USD at a fixed rate: 1 USD = 2.70 EC-$.
Unemployment rate: 8% (1999)
Inflation: 2.3% (2001)
Agriculture: Of the 8,100 hectares of agricultural land that are
privately owned, only 1,200 hectares are used. Fruit and vegetables are
grown and consumed in the country. Agriculture accounts for 4% of the
GNP.
Education: 95% of the population can read and write.
Road
construction: there are 105km of roads, 65km of which are paved.
Tourism: overnight guests, 44,000 (1997), day visitors, 69,037 (1993).
In 1995, tourism generated US$51.0 million. In April 2002, 13,140
visitors came by ferry and 4,494 by plane, so everything is manageable
and not mass tourism.
Economic growth: 3.1% (1999), the European
Union has provided a total of 20 million US dollars in financial
support.
Airplane
The only international airport is Clayton J. Lloyd
International Airport (formerly Wallblake Airport), which is located on
the outskirts of the capital. In 1941, during World War II, a grass
runway was built here as an emergency landing site for American
aircraft. Between 1967 and 1974, a 1,097m long asphalt runway was built.
In 1990, the 16m high control tower was built.
The long-standing
flight connection from Antigua was discontinued in 2017, but there are
still regular helicopter flights from Antigua to Anguilla. There are
also other connections to San Juan (Puerto Rico), St. Thomas (US Virgin
Islands) and Sint Maarten.
Ship
From St. Martin (F) you can
not only see Anguilla with the naked eye, it is also very close by
Caribbean standards, so you can almost swim there. Consequently, it is
also one of the few (if not almost the only!!) island that can be
reached by a regular ferry service every half hour (journey time 20
minutes)!
From Marigot/Saint Martin (F) on the 'Front de Mer'
there is a ferry terminal, appropriately in the extension of the "rue
d'Anguille"
First you have to enter your personal details
including passport number in the ship's manifest, then pay the departure
tax (departure tax / taxe de départ) of 2€ or 2 US$, then you board the
ferry. Price for the 20-minute crossing: 10 US$, payable on board. (You
can also pay with € or EC$)
Traffic drives on the left! But the cars are not right-hand drive
(like in Great Britain), they all drive on the left.
The speed limit:
20 miles in town, 30 miles outside town, a maximum of 40 miles is
permitted on isolated stretches, but you shouldn't drive any faster.
There are no place or street signs or road markings!!
No billboards
or advertising boards either.
There are no buses. Only taxis or
rental cars.
Most people arrive in Blowing Point Harbour, the ferry port of
Anguilla. There is a proper passport control and immigration here, and
many people have their bags/suitcases checked. After clearance, you
leave the small ferry building annexed to the Customs Office and you are
in Anguilla.
A small counter of the Anguilla Tourist Board at the
exit, where you can immediately pick up a free map. Next, a handful of
taxi drivers rush towards you, wanting to take you somewhere.
The
prices are set by the government, and all taxi drivers walk around with
a badge from the Government of Anguilla. At first I wanted to walk the 2
miles to Sandy Ground, but this is not advisable due to the scorching
heat and the lack of any street signs and trees to provide shade.
As
the Petit Futé travel guide warned: there is not much to see on
Anguilla, you only go for the peace and quiet and the incredibly white
beaches and picturesque bays.
Off to the beach, about 1 mile north of
The Valley you get to the water:
Crocus Bay is the destination, about
a mile north of The Valley. Indeed, white, deserted dream beaches.
Next to Crocus Bay, the Little Bay with rock walls up to 180 feet high
and 'around the corner' Flat Cap Point.
The range of goods is clearly all US goods and packaging.
Paying
with USD is conveniently possible everywhere on Anguilla, so you don't
need to exchange money for the few hours you're staying, but to your
surprise you get the change in the local currency: East Caribbean Dollar
(EC-$), also called "bi-wi's" (derived from British West Indies)
The
coins, like stamps, make good souvenirs. In the 'Anguilla Drugstore &
T-Shirts' (sounds awkward, but that's the name of the shop...) you can
buy postcards (EC-$ 1.35 or USD 0.50 each). Here you could also get
change in USD.
The restaurants mainly offer fish dishes, lobster and chicken.
Lobster is available in season from 25 US $. As a starter you usually
get a well-seasoned vegetable soup. Tropical fruits are often offered
for dessert. But there are also steaks, pizza, hamburgers, sandwiches,
baguettes and ice cream. The most popular is Carib Beer, but you can
also get Heineken beer.
Restaurant prices, as of winter 2008/09:
Calamari 14 US $, curry goat 18 US $, fish, fried 18 US $, mashed
potatoes 4 US $, hamburger 10 US $, hamburger with cheese 11 US $,
chicken 1/2 BBQ 20 US $, Lobster per pound (454 grams) US $35, Pizza
with vegetables US $12, Pizza with lobster US $18, Pizza with cheese US
$10, Pizza pepperoni US $16, French fries US $4-6, Rice & beans US $4,
Ribs US $14, Salad US $4, Salad, mixed US $10, Salad with shrimp US $18,
Salad with chicken US $14, Salad Caesar US $16, Sandwich with fish US
$14, Sandwich with chicken US $12, Sandwich with lobster US $20, Steak,
grilled US $25
You won't find any loud discos or bars on Anguilla. Only the resorts
and hotels offer evening entertainment, but even this is not aimed at a
"young audience".
People come to Anguilla for the peace and
seclusion.
Everyone knows everyone, there is no crime. Nevertheless, the same rule applies everywhere in the world: don't take any chances.
Don't eat unpeeled fruit and stay out of the sun between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Tropically hot. Eternal summer.
In 1822, a severe cyclone was
recorded on the island. In 1898 and 1922, further storms caused only
minor damage. In 1950, 411 houses were destroyed or damaged by cyclone
Janet, and in 1955, 626 houses and several ships were affected by
cyclone Alice. In 1960, the entire island was devastated by cyclone
Donna. In 1979, Frederick destroyed crops and domestic animals. In 1984,
several ships were sunk by cyclone Klaus.
In September 1995,
tropical cyclone Luis left a trail of destruction through the Caribbean.
On Sunday, September 3, the people of Anguilla were warned of the coming
storm. On Monday, safety measures began across the entire island. On
Tuesday night, at around 1:30 a.m., the power was turned off for safety
reasons, shortly before the hurricane passed over the island. It reached
wind speeds of over 320 km per hour and lasted 33 hours. There was
severe damage to buildings and nature, overturned cars, power poles and
buses, destroyed planes and stranded ships, but fortunately there were
no fatalities. Just ten days later, heavy rains as a result of hurricane
Marilyn caused a rapid revival of nature. At the end of September, 68%,
at the end of October, 95% of all power lines were restored, and by
Christmas all telephone lines had been restored. The damaged restaurants
were rebuilt in a more beautiful way, hotels were renovated. New
plantings made the inferno forgotten within six months. Today, hardly a
ruined house remains to bear witness to the numerous destructions.
In 1998, hurricane Georges passed by the island. As a result of this
hurricane, torrential rains caused major damage to agriculture.
There is no rush and no hurry. Everyone is nice to each other and says hello. Always smile back.
Many public telephones are operated with phone cards. Phone cards are
available from Cable & Wireless, at the airport, at the ferry terminal
and in many supermarkets.
You can also make calls with credit cards,
info tel. 1 800 744-2000.
Cable & Wireless, Wallblake Road, The
Valley, Tel. 497-2223, Fax 497-2501, opening hours: Monday to Friday
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 9
a.m. to 1 p.m.
General Post Office, The Valley, Tel. 497-2528, Fax
497-5455. There is a special counter for stamp collectors. Opening
hours: Monday to Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.