Most students today understand that the Carolinas were colonized by the English who had come to the Charleston area by way of Caribbean trade routes, primarily Barbados. The story of Barbados is as unique as the island itself. Like the United States, Barbados is an amalgam of international cultures. However, for close to 300 years, Barbados remained a commonwealth of the United Kingdom, only gaining its independence from Britain in 1966.
Barbados was inhabited by Amerindian peoples for about three thousand years before the arrival of European settlers. The English settled in Barbados in 1627, seeking wealth, and escape from the turmoil of the English Civil War. These settlers brought slaves and indentured servants with them, and began looking for a crop they could mass produce, export, and profit from.
