PRINCES OF THE CARIBBEAN™

PRINCES OF THE CARIBBEAN ™

A prince is a male ruler ranked below a king and above a duke or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. Prince is also a title of nobility, often hereditary, in some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess. The English word derives, via the French word prince, from the Latin noun princeps, from primus (first) + capio (to seize), meaning "the chief, most distinguished, ruler, prince". Furthermore, certain religious offices may be considered of princely rank, and/or imply comparable temporal rights. The Prince-Popes, Pope, Hereditary Prince-Cardinals, Cardinals, Prince-Lord Bishops, Prince Bishops, Lord Bishops, Prince-Provost, and Prince-abbots are referred to as Princes of the Church. Also in Christianity, Jesus Christ is sometimes referred to as the Prince of Peace. Some monarchies used a specific princely title for their heirs, such as Prince of Asturias in Spain and Prince of Brazil in Portugal.

Most people have very little knowledge of the rich history of the Antilles that historically spans a short period of time. However, with the voyages of the vikings, Templar Knights, Christopher Columbus, Conquistadors, and then scores of admirals, corsairs, explorers, etc. the new world and its waters quickly became bustling with activity.

Further, what did Princes have to do with it?

First, the Prince of Popes, Alexander VI on May 4, 1493 issued The Papal Bull "Inter Caetera," which played a central role in the Spanish conquest of the New World. The document proffered Spain’s strategy to ensure its exclusive right to the lands discovered by Columbus the previous year. It established a demarcation line one hundred leagues west of the Azores and Cape Verde Islands and assigned Spain the exclusive right to acquire territorial possessions and to trade in all lands west of that line. All others were forbidden to approach the lands west of the line without special license from the rulers of Spain. This effectively gave Spain, in their mindset, a monopoly on the lands in the New World.

After Columbus, Spain, Portugal, and France moved quickly to establish a presence in the New World, while other European countries moved more slowly. The English did not attempt to found colonies until many decades after the explorations of John Cabot, and early efforts were failures—most notably the Roanoke Colony which vanished about 1590. John Cabot, "another Genoese like Columbus", led an expedition on commission to another European nation, in his case, England. Cabot planned to depart to the west from a northerly latitude where the longitudes are much closer together, and where, as a result, the voyage would be much shorter. He to had an expectation of finding an alternative route to China.

The British colonization of the Americas (including colonization by both the English and the Scots) began in 1607 in Jamestown, Virginia, and reached its peak when colonies had been established throughout the Americas. The English, and later the British, were among the most important colonizers of the Americas, and their American empire came to rival the Spanish American colonies in military and economic might. Three types of colonies were established in the English overseas possessions in America of the 17th century and continued into the British Empire at the height of its power in the 18th century. These were 1. charter colonies, 2. proprietary colonies, and 3. royal colonies. A group of 13 British American colonies collectively broke from the British Empire in the 1770s through a successful revolution, establishing the modern United States.

A proprietary colony was a type of British colony mostly in North America and the Caribbean in the 17th century. In the British Empire, all land belonged to the ruler, and it was his prerogative to divide and govern. James Hay, 1st Earl of Carlisle by 1612 was a director of the Virginia Company. He was Knighted and taken into favour by James VI of Scotland, brought into England in 1603, treated as a "prime favourite" and made a gentleman of the bedchamber. He was a patentee and councillor of the plantation of New England, and showed great interest in the colonies. Carlise also had an interest in the Caribbean. On 2 July 1627 Earl of Carlisle, a Scot and British noble, obtained from the king a grant of all the Caribbean Islands, including Barbados, this being a confirmation of a former concession given by James I. A colonial plantation venture on Barbados was led in 1628 by Marmaduke Roydon, a prominent City of London merchant and one of Carlisle's major creditors.

The appointed island governor of St. Christopher's first English settlement, Sir Thomas Warner, acting in the title of the Earl of Carlisle, gave permission to Anthony Hilton in 1625 to settle Nevis and appointed him its lieutenant governor. An earl is a member of the nobility similar to a prince. The title is Anglo-Saxon in origin, and means "chieftain", particularly a chieftain set to rule a territory in a king's stead. Earl of Carlisle is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England, the first creation came in 1322. The second creation came in 1622 when James Hay, 1st Viscount Doncaster, was made Earl of Carlisle. He was a great favorite of James I.

The settlement of Barbados, destined to be the other sugar plantation colony, was established as a proprietary colony and funded by Sir William Courten, a City of London merchant who acquired the title to Barbados and several other islands. Courten's title was transferred back to James Hay, 1st Earl of Carlisle, in what was called the "Great Barbados Robbery." Carlisle then chose as governor Henry Hawley, who established the House of Assembly in 1639, in an effort to appease the planters, who might otherwise have opposed his controversial appointment.

Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, KG, PC, FRS (1619 – 1682) was a noted German soldier, admiral, scientist, sportsman, colonial governor and amateur artist during the 17th century. He first came to prominence as a Cavalier cavalry commander during the English Civil War.

On 9 May 1652, Prince Rupert's squadron set sail from the Cape Verde Islands for the West Indies . Rupert's flagship was the Swallow, his brother Prince Maurice was in the Defiance. Other ships in the squadron were the Honest Seaman, the John, the Sarah and one of the prizes recently taken in the Cape Verde Islands. During the crossing of the Atlantic, the squadron went off-course after chasing a ship that eventually succeeded in escaping, and finally arrived at a deserted spot on the west coast of St Lucia in the Windward Islands on 29 May. After replenishing water supplies, the Royalists sailed north to the French colony of Martinique, where Rupert and Maurice were warmly welcomed by the governor. On Martinique, Rupert learned of Sir George Ayscue's success in securing Barbados and other English colonies in the Americas for the Commonwealth.

With no secure Royalist base in the Caribbean, Rupert's squadron sailed north from island to island in search of prizes. One was taken at Montserrat and another from under the guns of the fort at Nevis, where Rupert's secretary was killed. On 8 June, 1653 the squadron arrived at St Christopher's Island (now St Kitts) which was partitioned between England and France with Governor Poincy ruling under the Knights of St. John. The English colonists warned Dutch merchants that their goods would be confiscated if they traded with the Royalists. However, Rupert anchored in the French part of the island and sold his prize cargoes to the Governor. On 20 June, the squadron sailed to the Virgin Islands. Eventually he returned to Paris in June 1654 having quarrelled with Charles and Hyde over the disposal of the proceeds of his voyages, particularly over Charles' refusal to pay off the debts that Rupert had run up at Toulon in the King's service during 1650-1. Rupert went to Germany where he lived in obscurity for several years.