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Bermuda
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bermuda //, in full
The Islands of Bermuda, also referred to as
the Bermudas or the
Somers Isles,
[5][6][7][8] is a
British Overseas Territory in the
North Atlantic Ocean, located off the
east coast of the United States. Its nearest
landmass is
Cape Hatteras,
North Carolina, about 1,030 kilometres (640 mi) to the west-northwest. It is about 1,239 kilometres (770 mi) south of
Cape Sable Island,
Nova Scotia, and 1,770 kilometres (1,100 mi) northeast of
Miami. Its
capital city is
Hamilton.
Bermuda was discovered in 1505 by
Spanish sea captain
Juan de Bermúdez, after whom the islands are named. He claimed the apparently uninhabited islands for the
Spanish Empire.
Although he paid two visits to the archipelago, Bermúdez never landed
on the islands because he did not want to risk trying to sail past the
dangerous
reef surrounding them. Subsequent Spanish or other visitors are believed to have released the
feral pigs that were abundant on the island when European settlement began. In 1609, the
Virginia Company, which had established
Virginia and
Jamestown
on the American continent two years earlier, established a settlement
founded in the aftermath of a hurricane, when the crew of the sinking
Sea Venture steered it on the reef so they could get ashore.
It was first administered as an extension of Virginia by the Company until 1614, before its successor, the
Somers Isles Company,
took over until 1684. At that time, the company's charter was revoked
and the Crown took over administration. The islands became a British
colony following the
1707 unification of the parliaments of Scotland and England, which created the
Kingdom of Great Britain. After
Newfoundland became part of Canada in 1949, Bermuda became the oldest (and, since the return of
Hong Kong to China in 1997, the most populous) remaining British Overseas Territory. Its first capital,
St. George's, was established in 1612. It is the oldest continuously-inhabited, English-speaking town in the New World.
[9]
Bermuda's economy is based on offshore
insurance and reinsurance, and tourism—the two largest
economic sectors.
[9][10] Bermuda had one of the world's highest
GDP per capita
for most of the 20th century and several years beyond. Recently, its
economic status has been affected by the global recession. It has a
subtropical climate.
[11] Bermuda makes up the eastern- and northernmost point of the so-called
Bermuda Triangle, a region of sea in which, according to
legend,
a number of aircraft and surface vessels have disappeared under
supposedly unexplained or mysterious circumstances. The island is in the
hurricane belt and prone to severe weather.
Geography
Bermuda is a group of low-lying islands located in the Atlantic Ocean, near the western edge of the
Sargasso Sea, roughly 580
nautical miles (1070 km, 670 mi) east-southeast of
Cape Hatteras on the
Outer Banks of
North Carolina and roughly 590 nautical miles (1100 km, 690 mi) southeast of
Martha's Vineyard of
Massachusetts. It is 898.2 nautical miles (1663.5 km, 1033.7 mi) from
Miami,
Florida, and 667.374 nautical miles (1235.976 km, 768 mi) from
Cape Sable Island, in
Nova Scotia,
Canada. The island lies due east of
Fripp Island,
South Carolina. It has 103 km (64 mi) of coastline. The two
incorporated municipalities in Bermuda are the
City of Hamilton and the
Town of St George. Bermuda is divided into nine parishes, which have some localities called villages, such as
Flatts Village and
Somerset Village.
View from the top of Gibb's Hill Lighthouse
Although usually referred to in the singular, the territory consists of 181
[citation needed] islands, with a total area of 53.3 square kilometres (20.6 sq mi). The largest island is
Main Island,
sometimes called Bermuda. Compiling a list of the islands is often
complicated, as many have more than one name (as does the entire
archipelago, which has also been known historically as
La Garza,
Virgineola, and the
Isle of Devils.
Somers Isles is often rendered "Somers Islands", or mistaken for
"Summer Isles"). Despite its small land mass, place names are repeated;
there are, for example, two islands named
Long Island, three bays named
Long Bay
(on Somerset, Main, and Cooper's islands), two Horseshoe Bays (one in
Warwick, on the Main Island, the other at Morgan's Point, formerly
Tucker's Island), there are two roads through cuttings called
Khyber Pass (one in Warwick, the other in St. George's Parish), and
St George's Town is located on
St George's Island within
St George's Parish (each known as
St George's). There is a
Hamilton Parish in addition to the City of Hamilton (which is in
Pembroke Parish).
-
-
Topographic map of Bermuda
Climate
Residential scene in Bermuda
Bermuda has a
humid subtropical climate[11][12] on the border of
tropical climate. It is warmed by the nearby
Gulf Stream, due to the
westerlies,
which carry warm, humid air eastwards over Bermuda, helping to keep
winter temperatures above freezing. The climate is humid and, as a
result, the summertime heat index can be high, even though mid-August
temperatures rarely exceed
30 °C (86 °F). Winters are mild and windy, with average daytime temperatures in January and February around
20 °C (68 °F), although
cold fronts bring Arctic
air masses
that can result in rapid temperature drops. Atlantic winter storms,
often associated with these cold fronts, can produce powerful, gusting
winds and heavy rain. Factoring in the
wind chill, the
felt air temperature in winter can fall below freezing,
0 °C (32 °F), even though the actual temperature rarely drops below
10 °C (50 °F). The lowest temperature recorded between 1949 and 1999 was
6.7 °C (44 °F), in February 1950.
[13]
Bermuda is within the
hurricane belt.
Located along the Gulf Stream, it is often directly in the path of
hurricanes recurving in the westerlies, although they usually begin to
weaken as they approach the island. The island's small size means that
direct
landfalls of hurricanes are rare. The last hurricane to cause significant damage to Bermuda was
category 3 Hurricane Fabian on 5 September 2003.
The only source of fresh water in Bermuda is rainfall, which is
collected on roofs and catchments (or drawn from underground lenses) and
stored in tanks. Each dwelling usually has at least one of these tanks
forming part of its foundation.
The average annual temperature of the sea is
73.1 °F (22.8 °C), from
65.4 °F (18.6 °C) in February to
82.8 °F (28.2 °C) in August.
[14]
| [hide]Climate data for Hamilton – capital of Bermuda |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Year |
| Record high °C (°F) |
25.4
(77.7) |
26.1
(79.0) |
26.1
(79.0) |
27.2
(81.0) |
30
(86.0) |
32.2
(90.0) |
33.1
(91.6) |
33.9
(93.0) |
33.2
(91.8) |
31.7
(89.0) |
28.9
(84.0) |
26.7
(80.0) |
33.9
(93.0) |
| Average high °C (°F) |
20.4
(68.7) |
19.9
(67.8) |
20.3
(68.6) |
21.6
(70.8) |
24.1
(75.4) |
27
(80.6) |
29.2
(84.6) |
29.8
(85.7) |
28.8
(83.8) |
26.3
(79.4) |
23.6
(74.5) |
21.4
(70.6) |
24.4
(75.9) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) |
18.2
(64.8) |
17.7
(63.9) |
18
(64.4) |
19.3
(66.7) |
22
(71.6) |
24.9
(76.8) |
26.7
(80.0) |
27.2
(80.9) |
26.2
(79.1) |
23.9
(75.0) |
21.2
(70.1) |
19
(66.2) |
22
(71.6) |
| Average low °C (°F) |
16.1
(60.9) |
15.5
(59.9) |
15.7
(60.2) |
16.9
(62.5) |
19.9
(67.8) |
22.8
(73.0) |
24.1
(75.3) |
24.5
(76.1) |
23.5
(74.3) |
21.4
(70.6) |
18.7
(65.7) |
16.5
(61.7) |
19.6
(67.3) |
| Record low °C (°F) |
7.8
(46.0) |
6.7
(44.0) |
7.2
(45.0) |
8.9
(48.0) |
12.8
(55.0) |
17.8
(64.0) |
20
(68.0) |
20
(68.0) |
18.9
(66.0) |
14.4
(58.0) |
12.4
(54.3) |
10
(50.0) |
6.7
(44.0) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) |
128.5
(5.06) |
115.3
(4.54) |
110
(4.33) |
87.9
(3.46) |
82.8
(3.26) |
130.3
(5.13) |
114.6
(4.51) |
130.8
(5.15) |
129.3
(5.09) |
161.3
(6.35) |
105.4
(4.15) |
114.3
(4.50) |
1,409.7
(55.5) |
| Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.01 inch) |
17 |
15 |
15 |
12 |
10 |
12 |
13 |
14 |
15 |
16 |
13 |
17 |
171 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours |
155 |
145 |
155 |
240 |
248 |
270 |
279 |
279 |
240 |
186 |
180 |
124 |
2,501 |
| Source: Bermuda Weather Service,[14] weather2travel.com[15]for data of sunshine hours |
| [show]Climate data for Hamilton – capital of Bermuda |
Flora and fauna
Young Bermuda cedar at Ferry Reach.
When discovered, Bermuda was uninhabited and mostly dominated by forests of
Bermuda cedar, with
mangrove marshes along its shores. Only 165 of the island's current 1000
vascular plant species are considered
native, and of those 15, including the cedar, are
endemic.
Many species of palm trees have been introduced to Bermuda.
Coconut palms
are found on Bermuda making it the furthest north location for the
natural growth of this species. While coconuts grow on Bermuda, the lack
of heat does not usually allow them to properly set fruit.
The only
indigenous mammals of Bermuda are five species of bats, all of which also occur in the eastern United States—
Lasionycteris noctivagans,
Lasiurus borealis,
Lasiurus cinereus,
Lasiurus seminolus and
Perimyotis subflavus.
[17] Other commonly known fauna of Bermuda includes its national bird, the
Bermuda Petrel or Cahow. It was rediscovered in 1951 after having been thought extinct since the 1620s, and is important as an example of a
Lazarus species. The government has a program to protect it, including restoration of a habitat area. The
Bermuda Rock Skink
was long thought to have been the only indigenous land vertebrate of
Bermuda, discounting the marine turtles that lay their eggs on its
beaches. Recently through genetic DNA studies, scientists have
discovered that a species of
terrapin,
previously thought to have been introduced, predated the arrival of
humans in the archipelago. As this species spends most of its time in
brackish ponds, some question whether it should be classified as a land
vertebrate to competes with the skink's unique status.
History
Pre-settlement
Bermuda was discovered in 1505 by Spanish explorer
Juan de Bermudez.
[18] It is mentioned in
Legatio Babylonica, published in 1511 by historian
Pedro Mártir de Anglería,
and was also included on Spanish charts of that year. Both Spanish and
Portuguese ships used the islands as a replenishment spot to take on
fresh meat and water. Legends arose of
spirits and devils, now thought to have stemmed from the calls of raucous birds (most likely the
Bermuda Petrel, or
Cahow)
and the loud noise heard at night from wild hogs. Combined with the
frequent storm-wracked conditions and the dangerous reefs, the
archipelago became known as the
Isle of Devils. Neither Spain nor Portugal tried to settle it.
Settlement by the English
For the next century, the island is believed to have been visited
frequently, but not settled. After the failure of the first two English
colonies in Virginia, a more determined effort was initiated by King
James I of England (James VI of Scotland), who granted a Royal Charter to the
Virginia Company.
It established a colony at
Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. Two years later, a
flotilla of seven ships left England under the Company's Admiral, Sir
George Somers, and the new Governor of Jamestown, Sir
Thomas Gates, with several hundred settlers, food and supplies to relieve the colony of Jamestown.
[19] Somers had previous experience sailing with both Sir
Francis Drake and Sir
Walter Raleigh. The flotilla was broken up by a storm. As the flagship, the
Sea Venture,
was taking on water, the Admiral of the company, drove it on the reef
and gained the shores safely with smaller boats - all the 150 passengers
and a dog survived. They stayed 10 months, starting a new settlement
and building two small ships to sail to Jamestown. (William
Shakespeare's play
The Tempest is thought to have been inspired by
William Strachey's account of this shipwreck.)
[20] The island was claimed for the English Crown, and the charter of the Virginia Company was later extended to include it.
In 1610, all but three of the survivors of the
Sea Venture sailed on to Jamestown. Among them was
John Rolfe, whose wife and child died and were buried in Bermuda. Later in Jamestown he married
Pocahontas, a daughter of the powerful
Powhatan, leader of a large confederation of
Algonquian-speaking tribes. In 1612 intentional settlement of Bermuda began with the arrival of the ship
Plough.
St George's was settled that year and designated as Bermuda's first
capital. It is the oldest continually inhabited English town in the
New World.
[9]
In 1615, the colony was passed to a new company, the
Somers Isles Company, named after the admiral who saved his passengers from the
Sea Venture.
[21][22] Many Virginian place names refer to the archipelago, such as Bermuda City, and
Bermuda Hundred. The first British coins to circulate in North America were struck in Bermuda.
Company colony
Because of its limited land area, Bermuda has had difficulty with
over-population. In the first two centuries of settlement, it relied on
steady human emigration to keep the population manageable. Before the
American Revolution more than ten thousand Bermudians (over half of the total population through the years) gradually emigrated, primarily to the
American South.
As Great Britain displaced Spain as the dominant European imperial
power, it opened up more land for colonial development. A steady trickle
of outward migration continued. With seafaring the only real industry
in the early decades, by the end of the 18th century, at least a third
of the island's manpower was at sea at any one time.
The archipelago's limited land area and resources led to the creation of what may be the earliest conservation laws of the
New World. In 1616 and 1620 acts were passed banning the hunting of certain birds and young tortoises.
[23]
In 1649, the
English Civil War raged and King
Charles I
was beheaded in Whitehall, London. In Bermuda, related tensions
resulted in civil war on the island; it was ended by militias. The
majority of colonists developed a strong sense of devotion to the Crown.
Dissenters, such as
Puritans and independents, were pushed to
the Bahamas.
[24]
Bermuda Gazette of 12 November 1796, calling for
privateering against Spain and its allies; it has advertisements for crew for two privateer vessels.
In the 17th century, the Somers Isles Company suppressed
shipbuilding, as it needed Bermudians to farm in order to generate
income from the land. Agricultural production met with limited success,
however. The Bermuda cedar boxes used to ship tobacco to England were
reportedly worth more than their contents.
[citation needed] The colony of Virginia far surpassed Bermuda in both quality and quantity of
tobacco
produced. Bermudians began to turn to maritime trades relatively early
in the 17th century, but the Somers Isles Company used all its authority
to suppress turning away from agriculture. This interference led to the
islanders demanding, and receiving, the revocation of the Company's
charter in 1684, the Company was dissolved.
Maritime economy
Bermudians rapidly abandoned agriculture for shipbuilding, replanting farmland with the native juniper (
Juniperus bermudiana, called
Bermuda cedar) trees that grew thickly over the whole island. Establishing effective control over the
Turks Islands,
Bermudians deforested their landscape to begin the salt trade. It
became the world's largest and remained the cornerstone of Bermuda's
economy for the next century.
Bermudian sailors and merchants relied on more than export of salt, however. They vigorously pursued whaling,
privateering,
and the merchant trade. Vessels sailed the normal shipping routes, but
were required to engage an enemy vessel no matter the size or strength.
As a result many ships were destroyed.
The
Bermuda sloop became highly regarded for speed and maneuverability. The Bermuda sloop
HMS Pickle, one of the fastest vessels in the
Royal Navy, carried the news of the victory at
Trafalgar and the death of
Admiral Nelson to England.
Bermuda and the American War of Independence
American independence
led to great changes for Bermuda. Prior to the war, with no useful
landmass or natural resources, Bermuda was largely ignored and left to
its own devices by the London government. By being so deeply involved in
trade, Bermuda merchants and financiers had played roles out of
proportion to the colony's size in relation to the development of the
Triangle Trade, and the trans-Atlantic English and British empires.
Its people were settlers and founders of new colonies, especially in
the American South. Its merchant fleet and a web of expatriate Bermudian
merchants dominated trade through a number of American
Atlantic Seaboard ports and the West Indies. Bermudians fished for cod on the
Grand Banks off
Newfoundland, and were involved in the lumber industry in
Central America. Most importantly, they dominated the North American salt trade with
de facto control of the
Turks Islands.
Had Bermuda not been so remote from the American coastline, and the
Royal Navy not enjoyed supremacy on that part of the Atlantic, it would
almost certainly have been the fourteenth colony to join the rebellion.
The close economic, family, and historical ties ensured Bermudians were
strongly sympathetic with the rebels at the start of the War. They
supplied the rebels illegally with ships, salt and gunpowder. As the war
progressed, economic realities caused Bermudians to seize
opportunities; they turned to privateering against the Americans.
The end of the war, however, was to cause profound change in Bermuda,
though some of those changes would take decades to crystallise.
Following the war, with the build up of Naval and military forces in
Bermuda, the primary leg of the Bermudian economy became defence
infrastructure. Even after tourism began later in the 19th century,
Bermuda remained, in the eyes of London, a base more than a colony. The
Crown strengthened its political and economic ties to Bermuda, and the
colony's independence on the world stage was diminished.
The war had removed Bermuda's primary trading partners, the American
colonies, from the empire, and dealt a harsh blow to Bermuda's merchant
shipping trade. This also suffered due to the deforestation of Bermuda,
as well as the advent of metal ships and steam propulsion, for which it
did not have raw materials. During the course of the following
War of 1812,
the primary market for Bermuda's salt disappeared as the Americans
developed their own sources. Control of the Turks had passed to the
Bahamas in 1619.
By the end of the 19th century, except for naval and military
facilities, Bermuda was considered a quiet, rustic backwater. It had
been superseded in the development of the English-speaking Atlantic
world.
Fortress Bermuda
An illustration of the Devonshire Redoubt, Bermuda, 1614.
After the
American Revolution, the
Royal Navy began improving the harbours. In 1811, it started building the
large dockyard on
Ireland Island,
in the west of the chain, to serve as its principal naval base guarding
the western Atlantic Ocean shipping lanes. To guard it, the
British Army built up a large
Bermuda Garrison, and heavily fortified the archipelago.
During the
War of 1812 between Britain and the United States, the British attacks on
Washington, D.C. and the Chesapeake
were planned and launched from Bermuda, where the headquarters of the
Royal Navy's North American Station had recently been moved from
Halifax, Nova Scotia. In 1816, James Arnold, the son of
Benedict Arnold, fortified Bermuda's Royal Naval Dockyard against possible U.S. attacks.
[25] Today, the National Museum of Bermuda, which incorporates the
"Maritime Museum", occupies the
Keep of the Royal Naval Dockyard, including the Commissioner's House, and exhibits artefacts of the base's military history.
As a result of Bermuda's proximity to the southeastern U.S. coast, during the American Civil War
Confederate States blockade runners
used it as a base for runs to the South to evade Union naval vessels
and deliver much needed war goods from England. The old Globe Hotel in
St George's, which was a centre of intrigue for Confederate agents, is
preserved as a public museum.
Anglo-Boer War
During the
Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902), 5,000
Boer prisoners of war were housed on five islands of Bermuda. They were located according to their views of the war. "Bitterenders" (Afrikaans:
Bittereinders),
who refused to pledge allegiance to the British Crown, were interned on
Darrell's Island and closely guarded. Other islands such as Morgan's
Island held 884 men, including 27 officers; Tucker's Island held 809
Boer prisoners, Burt's Island 607, and Port's Island held 35.
[26]
The New York Times reported an attempted mutiny by Boer prisoners of war en route to Bermuda and that martial law was enacted on Darrell's Island,
[27] in addition to the escape of three Boer prisoners to mainland Bermuda,
[28] a young Boer soldier stowed away and sailed from Bermuda to New York on the steamship
Trinidad.[29]
The most famous prisoner was
Fritz Joubert Duquesne, who escaped from Bermuda during the
First World War, settled in the USA and became a spy for
Imperial Germany. He claimed to have sabotaged and sunk
HMS Hampshire, on which
Lord Kitchener, the head of the British Army, died in 1916.
Lord Kitchener's brother, Lt. Gen. Sir
Walter Kitchener, had been the
Governor of Bermuda from 1908 until his death in 1912. His son, Major Hal Kitchener, bought
Hinson's Island
with his partner, Major Hemming), another First World War aviator. The
island had formerly part of the Boer POW camp, housing teenaged
prisoners from 1901 to 1902.
Economic and political development
In the early 20th century, as modern transport and communication
systems developed, Bermuda became a popular destination for American,
Canadian and British tourists arriving by sea. The United States 1930
Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act
enacted protective tariffs. It cut off Bermuda's once-thriving
agricultural export trade to the US and encouraged its development of
tourism as an alternative.
Hamilton Harbour in the mid-1920s.
After several failed attempts, in 1930 the first aeroplane reached Bermuda. A
Stinson Detroiter seaplane flying from
New York,
it had to land twice in the ocean: once because of darkness and again
to refuel. Navigation and weather forecasting improved in 1933 when the
Royal Air Force established a station at Bermuda and operated float planes from the harbour in coordination with the British fleet. In 1936
Luft Hansa began to experiment with seaplane flights from
Berlin via the Azores with continuation to New York City.
[30]
In the late 1930s,
Imperial Airways and
Pan American World Airways began operating scheduled flying-boat airline services from New York and
Baltimore to
Darrell's Island, Bermuda. In 1948, regularly scheduled commercial airline service by land-based aeroplanes began to
Kindley Field (now
L.F. Wade International Airport),
helping tourism to reach its peak in the 1960s–1970s. By the end of the
20th century, international business had supplanted tourism as the
dominant sector of Bermuda's economy (see
Economy of Bermuda).
The S.S.
Queen of Bermuda in Hamilton Harbour, December 1952 / January 1953.
The S.S.
Queen of Bermuda departing the island in December 1952 / January 1953.
The Royal Naval Dockyard, and the attendant military garrison,
continued to be important to Bermuda's economy until the mid-20th
century. In addition to considerable building work, the armed forces
needed to source food and other materials from local vendors. Beginning
in
World War II, U.S. military installations also were located in Bermuda (see "Military" section below and
Military of Bermuda).
Universal adult suffrage and the development of a two-party political
system occurred in the 1960s. Before universal suffrage, adopted as
part of Bermuda's Constitution in 1967, voting was dependent on a
certain level of property ownership. (see "Politics" section, below, and
Politics of Bermuda). On 10 March 1973, the Governor of Bermuda
Richard Sharples was assassinated by local
Black Power militants during a period of civil unrest.
Parishes and municipalities
Bermuda is divided into nine
parishes and two incorporated
municipalities.
Bermuda's nine parishes are:
Bermuda's two incorporated municipalities are:
Bermuda's two informal villages are:
Jones Village (in Warwick), Cashew City (St. George's), Claytown (Hamilton), Middle Town (Pembroke) and
Tucker's Town (St. George's) are neighborhoods; Dandy Town and North Village are sports clubs, and Harbour View Village is a small
public housing development.
Politics
State organisation
Executive authority in Bermuda is vested in
the monarch and is exercised on her behalf by the
Governor. The governor is appointed by the Queen on the advice of the
British Government. The current governor is
George Fergusson; he was sworn in on 23 May 2012.
[31] There is also a Deputy Governor (currently David Arkley
JP).
[32]
Defence and foreign affairs are carried out by the United Kingdom,
which also retains responsibility to ensure good government. It must
approve any changes to the Constitution of Bermuda. Bermuda is
classified as a British Overseas Territory, but it is the oldest British
colony. In 1620, a Royal Assent granted Bermuda limited
self-governance; its
Parliament is the fifth oldest in the world, behind the
Parliament of the United Kingdom, the
Tynwald of the
Isle of Man, the
Althing of
Iceland, and
Sejm of
Poland.
[33] Of all of these, it is the only one that has been in continuous existence since 1620.
The State House, the home of Bermuda's
parliament between 1620 and 1815,
Sessions House, current home of the House of Assembly and the Supreme Court.
The Constitution of Bermuda came into force on 1 June 1967; it was amended in 1989 and 2003. The head of government is the
premier. A cabinet is nominated by the premier and appointed officially by the governor. The legislative branch consists of a
bicameral parliament modelled on the
Westminster system. The
Senate
is the upper house, consisting of 11 members appointed by the governor
on the advice of the premier and the leader of the opposition. The
House of Assembly,
or lower house, has 36 members, elected by the eligible voting populace
in secret ballot to represent geographically defined constituencies.
Elections must be called at no more than five-year intervals. The
most recent took place on December 17, 2012. Following this election, the
One Bermuda Alliance took power, with
Craig Cannonier succeeding
Paula Cox, of the
Progressive Labour Party, as
Premier.
[34][35]
There are few accredited diplomats in Bermuda. The United States
maintains the largest diplomatic mission in Bermuda, comprising both the
United States Consulate and the
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Services at the
L.F. Wade International Airport.
The current U.S. Consul General is Robert Settje, who took office in
August 2012. The United States is Bermuda's largest trading partner
(providing over 71% of total imports, 85% of tourist visitors, and an
estimated $163 billion of U.S. capital in the Bermuda
insurance/re-insurance industry), and an estimated 5% of Bermuda
residents are U.S. citizens, representing 14% of all foreign-born
persons). The American diplomatic presence is an important element in
the Bermuda political landscape.
Role in international relations
As a British Overseas Territory, Bermuda does not have a seat in the
United Nations; it is represented by Britain in matters of
foreign affairs. To promote its economic interests abroad, Bermuda maintains representative offices in cities such as London
[36] and
Washington D.C.[37]
Bermuda's proximity to the US had made it attractive as the site for
summit conferences between British Prime Ministers and U.S. Presidents.
The first summit was held in December 1953, at the insistence of Prime
Minister
Winston Churchill, to discuss relations with the
Soviet Union during the
Cold War. Participants included Churchill, U.S. President
Dwight D. Eisenhower and French Premier
Joseph Laniel.
In 1957, a second summit conference was held. The British Prime Minister,
Harold Macmillan,
arrived earlier than President Eisenhower, to demonstrate they were
meeting on British territory, as tensions were still high regarding the
previous year's conflict over the
Suez Canal. Macmillan returned in 1961 for the third summit with President
John F. Kennedy. The meeting was called to discuss Cold War tensions arising from construction of the
Berlin Wall.
[38]
The most recent summit conference in Bermuda between the two powers
occurred in 1990, when British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher met U.S.
President George Bush.
[38]
Direct meetings between the President of the United States and the
Premier of Bermuda have been rare. The most recent meeting was on 23 June 2008, between Premier
Ewart Brown and President
George W. Bush.
Prior to this, the leaders of Bermuda and the United States had not met
at the White House since a 1996 meeting between Premier David Saul and
President
Bill Clinton.
[39]
Asylum offered to four former Guantánamo detainees
On 11 June 2009, four
Uyghurs who had been held in
extrajudicial detention in the United States
Guantánamo Bay detention camp, in
Cuba were deported to Bermuda.
[40][41][42][43] The four men were among 22 Uyghurs who claimed to be refugees, who were captured in 2001 in Pakistan after fleeing the
American aerial bombardment of Afghanistan. They were accused of training to assist
Taliban's
military. They were cleared as safe for release from Guantánamo in 2005
or 2006. But U.S. domestic law prohibited deporting them back to China,
their country of citizenship, because the U.S. government determined
that China was
likely to violate their human rights.
In September 2008, the men were cleared of all suspicion and Judge
Ricardo Urbina in Washington ordered their release. However, domestic
opposition to their admittance to the United States was very strong
[citation needed] and, until Bermuda and
Palau agreed to accept them in June 2009, the U.S. failed to find a home for them.
The secret bilateral discussions that led to prisoner transfers
between the U.S. and the devolved Bermuda government sparked diplomatic
ire from the United Kingdom, which was not consulted on the move despite
Bermuda being a British territory. The British Foreign Office issued
the following statement: "We've underlined to the Bermuda Government
that they should have consulted with the United Kingdom as to whether
this falls within their competence or is a security issue, for which the
Bermuda Government do not have delegated responsibility. We have made
clear to the Bermuda Government the need for a security assessment,
which we are now helping them to carry out, and we will decide on
further steps as appropriate."
Despite lying nearer to the United States and to Canada, to both of
which it historically had political and trade links, than the Caribbean,
Bermuda became an associate member of the
Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in 2003.
[44][45]
This is a
socio-economic bloc of nations in or near the Caribbean Sea. Other outlying member states include the Co-operative Republic of
Guyana and the Republic of
Suriname in South America, along with
Belize in Central America. The
Turks and Caicos Islands, an associate member of CARICOM, and the Commonwealth of
The Bahamas,
a full member of CARICOM, are in the Atlantic, but near to the
Caribbean. Other nearby nations or territories, such as the United
States, are not members (although the US Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico has
observer status, and the
United States Virgin Islands
announced in 2007 they would seek ties with CARICOM). Bermuda, at
roughly a thousand miles from the Caribbean Sea, has little trade with,
and little economically in common with, the region, and joined primarily
to strengthen cultural links.
Among some scholars,
[who?]
"the Caribbean" can be a socio-historical category, commonly referring
to a cultural zone characterised by the legacy of slavery (a
characteristic Bermuda shares with the Caribbean and the USA) and the
plantation system (which did not exist in Bermuda). It embraces the
islands and parts of the neighboring continent—and may be extended to
include the Caribbean Diaspora overseas.
[46]
Although Bermuda began as an extension of Virginia and has long had
close ties with the US Atlantic Seaboard and Canadian Maritimes as well
as the UK, the last century has seen considerable immigration from the
West Indies
(the last century and a half has also seen continued immigration from
Portuguese Atlantic islands, although these immigrants faced greater
difficulties in making their immigration permanent, as they lacked
British citizenship, mostly spoke no English, and required renewal of
work permits in order to remain beyond an initial period. From the 1950s
onwards, immigration laws were relaxed, allowing increased immigration
from Britain and Canada, which many Black politicians accused the
government of using as a ploy to counter the West Indian immigration
that had already been continuing for decades, and which had resulted in a
shift of the balance of Blacks to Whites in Bermuda).
The PLP, the party in government when the decision to join CARICOM
was made, has been dominated for decades by West Indians (the prominent
roles of West Indians among Bermuda's black politicians and labour
activists predating party politics in Bermuda, as exemplified by Dr.
E. F. Gordon),
[47] and the descendants of West Indians (such as Dame
Lois Browne-Evans),
and places a strong emphasis on Bermuda's connection with the West
Indies, though many Bermudians, Black or White, without West Indian
forebears objected strenuously (despite the political power achieved by
West Indian-Bermudians, West Indians have long been subjected to the
animosity of ethnic-Bermudians, Black and White, who derided them as
"jump-ups").
Opinion polls conducted by Bermudian newspapers,
The Royal Gazette and
The Bermuda Sun,
showed clear majorities of Bermudians as opposed to joining CARICOM.
The UBP, which had been in Government from 1968 to 1998, objected on the
basis that joining CARICOM was detrimental to Bermuda's interests:
Other than large-scale West Indian immigration to Bermuda throughout the
20th century, Bermuda's trade with the West Indies is negligible, its
primary economic partners being the USA, Canada, and UK (there are not
even direct air or shipping links); CARICOM is moving towards a single
economy, which Bermuda would not be able to form part of without
disastrous effects on its own economy; the Caribbean islands are
generally competitors to Bermuda's already ailing tourism industry;
participation in CARICOM would involve considerable investment of money
and the time of government officials that could more profitably be spent
elsewhere.
[48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59]
[show]
Foreign relations in the Americas
|
|
Military
The First
Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps Contingent, raised in 1914. By the war's end, the two Bermuda contingents had lost over 75% of their combined strength.
Remembrance Day Parade, Hamilton, Bermuda.
Once known as "the Gibraltar of the West" and "Fortress Bermuda", the
defence of Bermuda remains the responsibility of the British
government. For the first two centuries of settlement, the most potent
armed force operating from Bermuda was its merchant shipping fleet,
which turned to
privateering at every opportunity. After the
American Revolutionary War, Bermuda became the Royal Navy's Western Atlantic headquarters, before which the Bermuda government had maintained
militia
for the defence of the colony. Once the Royal Navy established a base
and dockyard defended by regular soldiers, however, these militias
became superfluous and were disbanded following the
War of 1812. At the end of the 19th century, the colony did raise
volunteer units to form a reserve for the
military garrison.
Due to its isolated location in the
North Atlantic Ocean, Bermuda was vital to the Allies' war effort during both
world wars
of the 20th century, serving as a marshalling point for trans-Atlantic
convoys, as well as a naval air base. By the Second World War, both the
Royal Navy's
Fleet Air Arm and the
Royal Air Force were operating
Seaplane bases on Bermuda.
In May 1940, the U.S. requested base rights in Bermuda from the United Kingdom, but British Prime Minister
Winston Churchill was initially unwilling to accede to the American request without getting something in return.
[60] In September 1940, as part of the
Destroyers for Bases Agreement, the United Kingdom granted the U.S. base rights in Bermuda. Bermuda and
Newfoundland
were not originally included in the agreement, but both were added to
it, with no war material received in exchange. However, one of the terms
of the agreement was that the airfield the U.S. Army built would be
used jointly by the U.S. and the UK (which it was for the duration of
the war, with RAF Transport Command relocating there from
Darrell's Island
in 1943). Construction began in 1941 of two airbases consisting of
5.8 km² (2¼ sq mi, 1,400 acres) of land, largely reclaimed from the sea.
For many years, Bermuda's bases were used by
U.S. Air Force transport and refuelling aircraft and by
U.S. Navy aircraft patrolling the Atlantic for enemy submarines, first
German and, later,
Soviet. The principal installation,
Kindley Air Force Base on the eastern coast, was transferred to the U.S. Navy in 1970 and redesignated
Naval Air Station Bermuda.
As a naval air station, the base continued to host both transient and
deployed USN and USAF aircraft, as well as transitioning or deployed
Royal Air Force and
Canadian Forces aircraft.
The original
NAS Bermuda
on the west side of the island, a seaplane base until the mid-1960s,
became the Naval Air Station Bermuda Annex and provided optional
anchorage and/or dockage facilities for transiting U.S. Navy,
U.S. Coast Guard and
NATO vessels, depending on size.. An additional U.S. Navy compound known as Naval Facility Bermuda (NAVFAC Bermuda), a
SOSUS
station, was located to the west of the Annex near a Canadian Forces
communications facility. Although leased for 99 years, U.S. forces
withdrew in 1995, as part of the wave of base closures following the end
of the
Cold War.
Canada, which had operated a war-time naval base,
HMCS Somers Isles,
on the old Royal Navy base at Convict Bay, St George's, also
established a radio-listening post at Daniel's Head, in the West End of
the islands during this time.
In the 1950s, after the end of World War II, the Royal Naval dockyard and the military garrison were closed. A small
Royal Navy supply base,
HMS Malabar,
continued to operate within the dockyard area, supporting transiting
Royal Navy ships and submarines until it, too, was closed in 1995, along
with the American and Canadian bases.
Bermudians served in the British armed forces during both
World War I and World War II. After the latter, Major-General
Glyn Charles Anglim Gilbert,
Bermuda's highest ranking soldier, was instrumental in developing the
Bermuda Regiment. A number of other Bermudians and children of
Bermudians had preceded him into senior ranks, including Bahamian-born
Admiral
Lord Gambier, and Bermudian-born
Royal Marines Brigadier Harvey, who, when promoted to that rank at age 39, following his wounding at the
Anzio landings, became the youngest-ever Royal Marine Brigadier. The
Cenotaph
in front of the Cabinet Building (in Hamilton) was erected in tribute
to Bermuda's Great War dead (the tribute was later extended to Bermuda's
Second World War dead) and is the site of the annual
Remembrance Day commemoration.
Today, the only military unit remaining in Bermuda, other than
naval and army cadet corps, is the
Bermuda Regiment,
an amalgam of the voluntary units originally formed toward the end of
the 19th century. Although the Regiment's predecessors were voluntary
units, the modern body is formed primarily by conscription in which
balloted males are required to serve for three years, two months
part-time, once they turn 18.
Economy
Since switching from the
Bermudian pound in 1970, Bermuda's currency has been the
Bermudian dollar, which is
pegged
to the US dollar similar to Hong Kong. US notes and coins are used
interchangeably with Bermudian notes and coins within the islands for
most practical purposes; however, banks levy an exchange rate fee for
the purchase of US dollars with Bermudian dollars.
[61] Bermudian notes carry the image of
Queen Elizabeth II.
The Bermuda Monetary Authority is the issuing authority for all
banknotes and coins, as well as being responsible for the regulation of
financial institutions. There is a permanent exhibition of Bermuda notes
and coins at the Royal Naval Dockyard Museum.
According to the Bermuda Government's Economic Statistics Division, Bermuda's
GDP was $5.85 billion in 2007, or $91,477 per-capita, giving Bermuda the highest GDP per capita in the world.
[3]
The affordability of housing has become a prominent issue during
Bermuda's business peak in 2005 but has softened with the decline of
Bermuda's real estate prices. The
CIA World Factbook lists the average cost of a house in June 2003 as $976,000,
[62] while real estate agencies have claimed that this figure had risen to between $1.6 million
[63] and $1.845 million by 2007,
[64] though such high figures have been disputed.
[65]
Bermuda is an
offshore financial centre, which results from its minimal standards of business regulation/laws and direct
taxation
on personal or corporate income. Bermuda has one of the highest
consumption taxes in the World and taxes all imports in lieu of an
income tax system. Bermudas's consumption tax is equivalent to local
income tax to local residents and funds necessary Governmental and
infrastructural costs to live in a civilized society. The local tax
system depends upon import duties, payroll taxes and
consumption taxes.
The legal system is derived from that of the United Kingdom, with
recourse to English courts of final appeal. However, foreign private
individuals cannot easily open bank accounts or subscribe to mobile
phone or internet service.
[66]
Having no corporate income tax, Bermuda is a popular tax avoidance
location. Google, for example, is known to have shifted over $10 billion
in revenue to its Bermuda subsidiary utilising the "Double Irish" and
"Dutch Sandwich" tax avoidance strategies, reducing its 2011 tax
liability by $2 billion.
[67]
Government employment, off-shore business and tourism are the largest sectors of Bermuda's economy.
[9]
However, in September 2009, it was reported that a growing number of
companies were moving from Bermuda to Ireland as part of a search for "a
more stable environment".
[68]
Large numbers of leading international insurance companies operate in Bermuda.
[69]
Those internationally owned and operated businesses that are physically
based in Bermuda—of which there are around four hundred—are represented
by the Association of Bermuda International Companies (ABIC). In total,
over 15,000 exempted or international companies are currently
registered with the
Registrar of Companies in Bermuda most of which hold no office space or employees.
There are four hundred securities listed on the stock exchange, of
which almost three hundred are offshore funds and alternative investment
structures attracted by Bermuda's regulatory environment. The Exchange
specialises in listing and trading of capital market instruments such as
equities, debt issues, funds (including hedge fund structures) and
depository receipt programmes.
The BSX is a full member of the
World Federation of Exchanges and is located in an
OECD
member nation. It also has Approved Stock Exchange status under
Australia's Foreign Investment Fund (FIF) taxation rules and Designated
Investment Exchange status by the UK's Financial Services Authority.
Tourism is Bermuda's second largest industry, with the island
attracting over one-half million visitors annually, of whom more than
80% are from the United States. Other significant sources of visitors
are from Canada and the United Kingdom. Tourists arrive either by cruise
ship or by air at
L.F. Wade International Airport, the only airport on the island.
[70]
Demographics
Bermuda's 2010 Census put Bermuda's population at 64,237. The ethnic
makeup of Bermuda is 54% black, 31% white, 8% multiracial, 4% Asian, and
4% other races.
[2]
Native Bermudians made up 67% of the population, compared 29%
non-natives, however, 79% of residents had Bermudian status. A
significant segment of the white population is of Portuguese ancestry
(10%), the result of immigration from Portuguese islands (especially the
Azores) during the past 160 years.
[71]
Some islanders, especially in
St David's,
trace their ancestry to Native Americans, and many more may be ignorant
of such ancestry. Hundreds were shipped to Bermuda, possibly from as
far as Mexico
[citation needed]. The best known examples were the
Algonquian peoples who were exiled from the
New England colonies and sold into slavery in the 17th century, notably in the aftermaths of the
Pequot War, and
King Philip's War.
Several thousand
expatriate workers, principally from the UK, Canada, the West Indies,
South Africa
and the U.S., also reside in Bermuda, primarily engaged in specialised
professions such as accounting, finance, and insurance. Others are
employed in various trades, such as hotels, restaurants, construction,
and landscaping services. Of the total workforce of 38,947 persons in
2005, government employment figures stated that 11,223 (29%) were
non-Bermudians.
[72]
Education
The Bermuda Education Act 1996 requires that only three categories of schools can operate in the Bermuda Education system:
- An aided school has all or a part of its property vested in a
body of trustees or board of governors and is partially maintained by
public funding or, since 1965 and the desegregation of schools, has
received a grant-in-aid out of public funds.
- A maintained school has the whole of its property belonging to the Government and is fully maintained by public funds.
- A private school, not maintained by public funds and which
has not, since 1965 and the desegregation of schools, received any
capital grant-in-aid out of public funds. The private school sector
consists of six traditional private schools, two of which are religious
schools, and the remaining four are secular with one of these being a
single gender school and another a Montessori school.
Also, within the private sector there are a number of home schools
which must be registered with the government and receive minimal
government regulation. The only boys' school opened its doors to girls
in the 1990s and in 1996, one of the aided schools became a private
school.
Warwick Academy, one of the oldest schools in the western hemisphere is in the parish of Warwick, Bermuda.
Prior to 1965, the Bermuda school system was racially segregated and
when the desegregation of schools was enacted in 1965, two of the
formally maintained "white" schools and both single-sex schools opted to
become private schools. The rest became part of the public school
system and were either aided or maintained.
At present there are 26 schools in the Bermuda Public School System,
18 of which are primary schools, five are middle schools, two senior
schools and one special school. There is also an Alternative Programme
provided for students with behavioural challenges who cannot function in
the public mainstream. There are one aided primary schools, two aided
middle schools and one aided senior school.
For higher education, the
Bermuda College offers various
associate degrees and other certificate programmes.
[73] Bermuda does not have any four-year colleges or universities.
In May 2009, Bermudian Government's application was approved to become a contributory member of the
University of the West Indies
(UWI). Bermuda's membership is slated to allow Bermudian students to
enter the University at an agreed upon subsidised rate possibly as early
as the 2009/2010 school year. UWI also agrees that their Open Campus
(online degree courses) would become open to Bermudian students in the
future, with Bermuda becoming the 13th country to have access to the
Open Campus.
[74][75]
Health care
![[icon]](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg/20px-Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png) |
This section requires expansion. (December 2012) |
The
Bermuda Hospitals Board operates the
King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, located in
Paget Parish, and the
Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute, located in
Devonshire Parish.
[76]
Culture
Bermuda's culture is a mixture of the various sources of its
population; Native American, Spanish-Caribbean, English, Irish, and
Scots cultures were evident in the 17th century, and became part of the
dominant British culture. English is the primary and official language.
Due to 160 years of immigration from Portuguese Atlantic islands
(primarily the
Azores, though also from
Madeira and the
Cape Verde Islands), a portion of the population also speak Portuguese. There are strong British influences, together with
Afro-Caribbean ones.
A second wave of immigration from the West Indies was sustained
throughout the 20th century; the more recent arrivals have primarily
come from English-speaking countries but they also bring other aspects
of their cultures. This new infusion of West Indians has both
accelerated social and political change, and diversified Bermuda's
culture.
The first notable, and historically important, book credited to a Bermudian was the
History of Mary Prince, a
slave narrative by
Mary Prince. It is thought to have contributed to the abolition of slavery in the
British Empire.
Ernest Graham Ingham,
an expatriate author, published his books at the turn of the 19th and
20th centuries. In the 20th century, numerous books were written and
published locally, though few were directed at a wider market than
Bermuda. (The latter consisted primarily of scholarly works rather than
creative writing). The novelist
Brian Burland has achieved a degree of success and acclaim internationally.
Bermuda's proximity to the United States, as well as its origin as part of
Virginia,
means that many aspects of US culture are reflected in, or incorporated
into, Bermudian culture. Many non-Bermudian writers have also made
Bermuda their home, or have had homes here, including
A. J. Cronin and
F. Van Wyck Mason, who wrote on Bermudian subjects.
Actors such as
Oona O'Neill,
Earl Cameron,
Diana Dill,
Lena Headey,
Will Kempe, and most famously,
Michael Douglas and
Catherine Zeta-Jones, grew up here or have lived here as adults. Other native or resident film and television figures in Bermuda include producer
Arthur Rankin, Jr., and cartoonist and
Muppet man,
Michael Frith.
Arts
West Indian musicians introduced
calypso music
when Bermuda's tourist industry was expanded with the increase of
visitors brought by post-Second World War aviation. While calypso music
appealed more to the visitors than to the locals,
reggae has been embraced by many Bermudians since the 1970s with the influx of
Jamaican immigrants.
Gombey dancers from Bermuda, at 2001 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, DC.
Bermuda's early literature consisted of non-Bermudian writers commenting on the island. These included
John Smith's The Generall Historie of Virginia, New-England, and the Summer Isles (1624), and
Edmund Waller's poem, "Battle of the Summer Islands" (1645).
[77][78]
Music and dance are important in Bermuda. Noted musicians have included local icons
The Talbot Brothers, who performed for many decades both in Bermuda and the United States, and appeared on the
Ed Sullivan Show ; jazz pianist
Lance Hayward, singer-songwriter
Heather Nova and her brother
Mishka;
tenor Gary Burgess, classical musician and conductor
Kenneth Amis and, more recently, dancehall artist
Collie Buddz.
The dances of the colourful
Gombey
Dancers, seen at many events, are strongly influenced by African,
Caribbean, Native American and British cultural traditions. In summer
2001 they performed in
Washington, DC at the
Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the Mall. (See photo.)
Bermudian
Gina Swainson was crowned "
Miss World" in 1979.
Bermuda hosts an annual international film festival, which shows many
independent films. One of the founders is film producer and director
Arthur Rankin, Jr., co-founder of the
Rankin/Bass production company.
[79]
Bermuda watercolours painted by local artists are sold at various
galleries. Hand-carved cedar sculptures are another specialty. One such
7 ft (2.1 m) sculpture, created by Bermudian sculptor Chesley Trott, is
installed at the airport's baggage claim area. In 2010, his sculpture,
The Arrival, was unveiled near the bay to commemorate the freeing of slaves from the American brig
Enterprise in 1835. Local artwork may also be viewed at several galleries around the island.
Alfred Birdsey was one of the more famous and talented water colourists; his impressionistic landscapes of
Hamilton,
St George's and the surrounding sailboats, homes, and bays of Bermuda are world-renowned.
Local resident Tom Butterfield founded the Masterworks Museum of
Bermuda Art in 1986, initially featuring works about Bermuda by artists
from other countries. He began with pieces by American artists, such as
Winslow Homer,
Charles Demuth, and
Georgia O'Keefe,
who had lived and worked here. He has increasingly supported the
development of local artists, arts education, and the arts scene.
[80] In 2008, the museum opened its new building, constructed within the Botanic Gardens.
[81]
Main sights
One of Bermuda's pink-sand beaches at Astwood Park.
Bermuda's pink sand beaches and clear,
cerulean
blue ocean waters are popular with tourists. Many of Bermuda's hotels
are located along the south shore of the island. In addition to its
beaches, there are a number of sightseeing attractions. Historic St
George's is a designated
World Heritage Site.
Scuba divers can explore numerous
wrecks and
coral reefs
in relatively shallow water (typically 30–40 ft or 9–12 m in depth),
with virtually unlimited visibility. Many nearby reefs are readily
accessible from shore by
snorkellers, especially at
Church Bay.
Bermuda's most popular visitor attraction is the Royal Naval
Dockyard, which includes the Bermuda Maritime Museum. Other attractions
include the
Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo,
[82]
Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute, the Botanical Gardens and
Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art, lighthouses, and the Crystal Caves
with
stalactites and underground saltwater pools.
It is not possible to rent a car on the island; public transport is available or visitors can hire
scooters for use as private transport.
Sports
Many sports popular today were formalised by British
Public schools
and universities in the Nineteenth Century. These schools produced the
civil servants and military and naval officers required to build and
maintain the
British empire,
and team sports were a vital tool for training their students to think
and act as part of a team. Former public schoolboys continued to pursue
these activities, and founded organisations such as the
Football Association
(FA). Today's association of football with the working classes began
when the FA changed its rules to allow professional players in 1885.
They soon displaced the amateur ex-Public schoolboys. Bermuda's role as
the primary Royal Navy base in the Western Hemisphere, with an army
garrison to match, ensured that the naval and military officers quickly
introduced the newly formalised sports to Bermuda, including cricket,
football,
Rugby football, and even
tennis and
rowing (rowing did not adapt well from British rivers to the stormy Atlantic, and the officers soon switched to
sail racing, founding the
Royal Bermuda Yacht Club). Once these sports reached Bermuda, they were eagerly adopted by Bermudians.
Bermuda's national cricket team participated in the
Cricket World Cup 2007 in the West Indies. Their most famous player is a 130 kilograms (290 lb) police officer named
Dwayne Leverock. But
India defeated Bermuda and set a record of 413 runs in a
One-Day International (ODI) and therefore Bermuda were knocked out of the World Cup. Also very well-known is
David Hemp, a former captain of
Glamorgan in
English first class cricket.
The annual "Cup Match" cricket tournament between rival parishes St
George's in the east and Somerset in the west is the occasion for a
popular national holiday.
In 2007, Bermuda hosted the 25th
PGA Grand Slam of Golf. This 36-hole event was held on 16–17 October 2007, at the
Mid Ocean Club in Tucker's Town. This season ending tournament is between only four golfers—the winners of the
Masters,
U.S. Open,
British Open and
PGA Championship. The event returned to Bermuda again in 2008 and 2009. Bermudian Quinn Talbot was once the World one-armed golf champion.
The Government announced in 2006 that it will provide substantial financial support to Bermuda's cricket and
football teams. Bermuda's most prominent footballers include
Clyde Best,
Shaun Goater,
Reggie Lambe,
Sam Nusum,
Ralph Bean and
Nahki Wells. In 2006, the
Bermuda Hogges
were formed as the nation's first professional football team in order
to raise the standard of play for the Bermuda national football team.
The team plays in the
United Soccer Leagues Second Division.
Sailing,
fishing and
equestrian sports are popular with both residents and visitors alike. The prestigious
Newport–Bermuda Yacht Race is a more than 100-year old tradition. In 2007, the 16th biennial
Marion-Bermuda yacht race occurred. A sport unique to Bermuda is racing the
Bermuda Fitted Dinghy.
International One Design racing also originated in Bermuda.
[83]
At the
2004 Summer Olympics,
Bermuda competed in sailing, athletics, swimming, diving, triathlon and
equestrian events. In those Olympics, Bermuda's Katura
Horton-Perinchief made history by becoming the first black female diver
to compete in the Olympic Games. Bermuda has had one Olympic medallist,
Clarence Hill, who won a bronze medal in boxing. Bermuda also competed in Men's
Skeleton at the
2006 Winter Olympics in
Turin, Italy. Patrick Singleton placed 19th, with a final time of 1:59.81.
Jillian Teceira competed in the Beijing Olympics in 2008. It is also tradition for Bermuda to march in the Opening Ceremony in
Bermuda shorts, regardless of the summer or winter Olympic celebration. Bermuda also competes in the biennial
Island Games, which it will host in 2013.
Bermuda has developed a proud
Rugby Union
community. The Bermuda Rugby Union team won the 2011 Caribbean
championships—defeating Guyana in the final—they previously beat The
Bahamas and
Mexico
to take the crown. Rugby 7's is also played, with four rounds scheduled
to take place in the 2011–2012 season. The Bermuda 7's team competed in
the 2011 Las Vegas 7's, defeating the
Mexican
team. There are four clubs on the island: (1) Police (2) Mariners (3)
Teachers (4) Renegades. There is a men's and women's competition—current
league champions are Police (Men) (winning the title for the first time
since the 1990s) and Renegades (women's). Games are currently played at
Warwick Academy. Bermuda u/19 team won the 2010 Caribbean
Championships.
The
New York Yankees of
Major League Baseball held
Spring Training in Bermuda in 1913. Yankee owner
Frank J. Farrell was said to be so pleased with the experience that he considered moving the Yankee training camp to Bermuda permanently.
[84][85]
Representation in other media
- Lucinda Spurling's documentary, The Lion and the Mouse: The Story of America and Bermuda (2009), explores numerous aspects of the relationship between the countries.[86]
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