Cayman Islands History

Originals

There had been no record of who the real first settlers of the islands were. However, the first visitor on record is Sir Francis Drake and the first inhabitant was named Isaac Bodden, the island's version of Mowgli (Jungle Book). He's the root of the tree of island settlers on record, followed by pirates, Spanish conquistadors, some sailors from shipwrecks, and slaves. The two most common races are African and British.

Why the Brits?

Because they were the first to see the islands and the first ones to declare they were theirs. The Brits took control of the island for some time. Gradually, they brought pieces of their culture and had them assimilated by the original people until they finally decided to let them go. Legend said, it was not mere decision but due to gratitude to something the settlers did, something that had to do with "The Wreck of the Ten Sail" incident in the 1790s.

After the Brits

So the Brits freed Cayman Islands, but it didn't exactly mean liberation for the Cayman citizens. They remained as a dependency of Jamaica. This only broke in 1962 when the country opted to become a direct dependency to the British Crown. This had been a better choice for it allowed the country to govern itself. Like a butterfly out of the cocoon, the islands slowly underwent changes for development, changes that up to now are being enjoyed.