Pre-European
Colonization
The area of the Guianas, bounded by the rivers of the Orinoco, Amazon, Rio Negro and the Atlantic Ocean, is believed to have been settled before 900 AD by Warrau Indians, and later by the Arawak and Carib tribes. However, there is no evidence from these times of a very advanced civilization.
Christopher Columbus sailed off the Guianas in 1489 and the 1595 voyage of Sir Walter Raleigh to the New World led to subsequent accounts of El Dorado, the city of gold, which is beleived to be in or around what is now Guyana.
European Colonization - 17th to 19th Century
The Dutch established a settlement in Essequibo around 1616 at the mouth of the Mazaruni River where they built Fort Kyk-Over-Al (Kijk-Over-Al). In 1621, The merchants of Zeeland and other merchants united to form the West India Company and took over control of Essequibo. The Dutch established a second settlement, Berbice, east of Essequibo in 1627. The West India Company was reorganized and a new company, Nova Zeeland, emerged in 1657.
The cultivation of sugar cane began in 1658 along the Pomeroon River in Essequibo under the supervision of the Nova Zeeland Company and sugar was exported shortly thereafter. Sugar has been and continues to be one of the major exports of Guyana.
A third settlement, Demerara, situated between Essequibo and Berbice was established by the Dutch in 1741 and the three settlements were granted the status of Colony by 1773. The Dutch imported African slaves to work on their plantations during the early years of the colonies.
In 1763, Cuffy led a rebellion at Plantation Magalenenburg in the Colony of Berbice, beginning on February 23, against the harsh and inhumane treatment of slaves.
The British took control of the colonies, Essequibo, Berbice and Demerara, in 1781 and the military administrator, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Kingston, established Fort St. George as his headquarters in a part of the region presently known as Georgetown.
The British rule was short-lived and in 1782 the French and Dutch collaborated to sieze control of the colonies. The French demolished Fort St. George and built their own centre, called Longchamps (La Nouvelle Ville). The Dutch regained control of the colonies in 1784 and renamed the centre Stabroek.
The jurisdiction of the West India Company was transferred to the Estates' General in 1791 and in 1792 the United Colony of Demerara and Essequibo was established by the Dutch with the Colony of Berbice as a separate entity.
The British were once again in control of the colonies in 1796 and continued to hold them up to 1966, except for a brief interruption from 1802 to 1803. The Dutch were given control of the colonies in 1802 under the Treaty of Amiens.
The first constitution of the colonies, promulgated by the Dutch in 1792, was abolished by the British in 1812. During the same year, the centre Stabroek was renamed George Town in honour of the British Monarch, George IV. The British became the sole possessors of the United Colony and the Colony of Berbice in 1815 under the terms of the Treaty of Vienna.
On August 18, 1823, slaves on the East Coast of Demerara stopped working, siezed the arms of the Europeans and held them in captivity. The revolt began at Plantation Success and in the following two days spread up the East Coast to plantations as far east as Mahaica and between Success and Georgetown in the west.
The rebellion ended on August 20 following an engagement between British troops and the slaves during which an estimated 200 slaves were killed when the troops opened fire on them. The rebellion started because the slaves were of the impression that the Europeans were withholding their freedom which was granted to them by the King of England.
The United Colony (Essequibo and Demerara) and the Colony of Berbice became the Colony of British Guiana in 1831. The names, Essequibo, Demerara and Berbice, are still used today for the three Counties of Guyana. Sir Benjamin D'Urban, was appointed the first Governor of British Guiana. In 1834, Parliament Building also known as Public Buildings, home of the Republic's Parliament, was completed.
Slavery was abolished in British Guiana under the Emancipation Act in 1834 and replaced by a period of Appenticeship during which persons registered as slaves, six years old and upwards, were required to serve their former masters. Apprenticeship was abolished in 1838.
Following the abolishion of slavery, the British brought indentured labourers from Germany (1834), Portugal (May 3, 1835), India (May 5, 1838) and China (January 12, 1853) to work on the plantations.
During the early years of their freedom, the former African slaves purchased parcels of land and established villages in the coastal region, e.g., Buxton (1840) and Victoria (1839) on the East Coast of Demerara, and Queenstown (1838) on the Essequibo Coast.
A map of British Guiana showing its boundaries, prepared by the German Robert Hermann Schomburgk, was published in 1840 and this marked the beginning of the border dispute with Venezuela, which is still unresolved [follow the link Border Issues at the top of this page for articles on the history of the border dispute]. An earlier map [large image, 137KB] of British Guiana, compiled by Captain J.E. Alexander in 1832, did not show the boundary between the countries. In 1842, George Town became the city of Georgetown by "Royal" warrant.
The fires of April 3 and July 5, 1848 destroyed all of the wooden buildings on Water Street in Georgetown. The railroad extending from Georgetown to Plaisance, on the East Coast of Demerara, was opened in 1848. It was built by the Demerara Railway Company and was the first of its kind on the continent of South America. The East Coast Railway was later extended to Rosignal under a contract approved by the Government in 1890.
The Franchise Ordinance of 1849 rescinded the right to vote granted to women by Governor Carmichael in 1812. Gold was discovered on the bank of a tributary of the Cuyuni River in 1857 and the first Mining Regulations were passed in 1886. Diamond mining began later in the Upper Mazaruni at Putareng Creek. Gold production reached a record high of 138,528 ounces in 1893-94.
Construction of the sea wall was started following the flooding of the Kingston to Ogle area in 1853 and the first segment up to the Round House was completed in 1860. On April 24, 1870, Barrington Brown, a geologist, became the first European to see the Kaieteur Falls.
The falls has a 741-foot (226 m) single drop and is named after the Potamona Chief, Kaie, who according to Amerindian legend, paddled his canoe over the edge to appease his Gods. Brown and James Sawkins, also a geologist, were assigned to survey the Colony. They left the Colony in 1871 after completing surveys of the Corentyne, Berbice and Mazaruni rivers.
The British Guiana Constitution Ordinance of 1891 abolished the College of Electors and retained the structure of the Combined Court (Court of Policy and Financial Representatives) implemented by the Dutch in 1796. However, members of the Combined Court had to be elected from the constituencies and were required to have franchise income, whereas previously some of the members were nominated to the Combined Court.
A competition for a Challenge Cup between cricket teams from Barbados, British Guiana and Trinidad was established during the later part of the 19th century. Cricket matches were played on the ground of the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC), commonly known as Bourda, as early as 1883, between Trinidad and GCC, and later, in 1895 and 1897, between GCC and visiting teams from Britain. Cricket is one of the national sports of Guyana and Bourda is the only international cricket ground that is below sea level.
Road to Independence - 1900 to 1965
The rice industry evolved during the final years of the 19th century and the exportation of rice began by 1905. Rice is still one of the major exports of Guyana. British troops were used in 1905 to restore order following the outbreak of riots in protest against poor living conditions. The unrest began in Georgetown and later spread to Plantation Ruimveldt.
In 1912, The Demerara Railway Company extended the West Coast Railway, which it had started in the 1890s, to Parika.
The first aeroplane was flown in British Guiana in March 1913. The components of the aeroplane were brought to the Colony by George Schmidt and assembled at a race course in Bel Air Park.
The Demerara Bauxite Company obtained leases from the Government in 1914 and the mining of bauxite began the same year. Britain outlawed indentured labour in 1917 and bauxite mining operations began at Mackenzie City, now Linden.
The British Guiana Labour Union was founded by Hubert Critchlow in 1919. The Government purchased the assets of the Demerara Railway Company in 1922. The railway services were scrapped by the Government after independence.
During 1928, a new constitution came into effect and British Guiana became a Crown Colony under the control of the Governor. The Combined Court was replaced by the Legislative Council, with the majority of its members being appointed. The vote was also restored to women.
The economic and social conditions led to disturbances in the British Territories of the Caribbean during the late 1920s and early to mid 1930s. A series of riots and strikes occurred in British Guiana between 1928 and 1936. Thus, the Moyne Commission was sent to the region to report on the situation. However, the Second World War broke out and the commission's findings and recommendations were not published until 1945.
The U.S. military constructed an air field at Atkinson (now called Timehri), south of Georgetown on the right bank of the Demerara River, under the Lend-Lease Act 1941. The air field is the site of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri, formerly known as Timehri International Airport.
In 1945, the British Guiana (Constitution) Amendment Order in Council provided for women to become members of the Legislative Council. Subsequently, the franchise income was reduced significantly thereby increasing the number of adults eligible to vote, except for housewives who had no income.
General elections were held on November 27, 1947 under limited adult suffrage. The British Guiana Labour Party (BGLP) which was formed by Dr. Jung Bahadur Singh won 6 of the 14 seats in the Legislative Council. Dr. Cheddi Jagan was elected to the Council as an independent candidate. Janet Jagan and Frances Stafford, the first women to compete for seats in the Legislature, were defeated.
Five sugar workers were killed by Police on June 16, 1948 during a strike at Enmore on the East Coast. They were protesting a field system that would have resulted in the loss of wages. The five dead workers became immortalized as the Enmore Martyrs.
A 15-year franchise was granted to the British Guiana United Broadcasting Company by the Government in 1950 resulting in the establishment of two commercial broadcasting stations, Radio Demerara and the British Guiana Broadcasting Service.
The Waddington Constitution Commission visited British Guiana in 1950 and recommended universal adult suffrage which was introduced in 1952. The first general elections under adult suffrage were held in 1953. The People's Progressive Party (PPP) led by Dr. Cheddi Jagan won 18 of the 24 seats on the Legislative Council. Three of the representatives on the Council, Jessica Burnham, Janet Jagan and Jane Phillips-Gay, were the first women to be elected to the Legislature.
The British Government suspended the British Guiana Constitution about six months after the 1953 elections and sent troops into the capital Georgetown. Some members of the PPP were held in detention while others were restricted to their residential areas.
The Governor, Sir Alfred Savage, installed an Interim Government on January 4, 1954, under the British Guiana (Constitution) (Temporary Provisions) Order in Council 1953 comprised of a Speaker, three ex-officio members, and twenty-four nominated members.
In 1955, Forbes Burnham and his supporters split from the PPP. General elections were held in 1957, this time under a limited constitution, and the PPP group led by Dr. Cheddi Jagan won 9 of the 14 seats while the PPP group led by Fores Burnham won 3 seats in the Legislative Council. The PPP group of Dr. Jagan formed the Administration with Dr. Jagan as the Chief Minister. The group led by Forbes Burnham was named the People's National Congress (PNC) following the 1957 General Elections.
Three other parties, besides the PPP and PNC, emerged during the 1950's. They are the National Democartic Party (NDP) which contested the 1953 general elections under the leadership of John Fernandes, the Guyana Independence Movment (GIM) led by Jai Narine Singh, and the National Labour Force (NLF) led by Lionel Luckoo. The NDP was renamed the United Democratic Party (UDP) before the 1957 general elections and the UDP merged with the PNC in 1958.
Constitutional talks held in London with the British Government in 1960 resulted in a new constitution in 1961 with internal self-government. The general elections of 1961 were contested by the PPP, PNC and a third party, the United Force (UF), led by Peter d'Aguiar. The PPP was once again victorious and Dr. Jagan was appointed Premier.
In 1961, the PPP Government nationalized the Demerara Electricity Company and the University of Guyana was opened in 1963.
Political unrest dominated the period 1962 to 1964. The 1962 budget of the PPP Government, drafted with the advise of Dr. Nicholas Kaldor, resulted in protests and strikes, leading to the major riot of February 16, 1962.
In 1963, the PPP Government attempted to introduce a Labour Relations Bill which triggered the General Strike beginning on Arpil 18 and ending eighty days later on July 6. The strike ended with the withdrawal of the Bill. The Governor, Sir Ralph Grey, called out British troops to restore order during the strikes and riot. Businesses and homes were burnt and about 180 persons were killed during the unrest which continued into 1964.
There has been much speculation regarding the role of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the affairs of British Guiana during the period of political unrest. The online version of a recently released U.S. State Department document shed some light on the allegations.
Constitutional talks opened in London on October 23, 1963 with the leaders of the three political parties and their advisors in attendance. The British decided that independence would be delayed and that elections would be held in 1964 under a new electoral system known as Proportional Representation. This new electoral system was presented by Duncan Sandys, the British Secretary of State for the Colonies, who was asked to provide a solution following a deadlock between the Guyanese Leaders.
During the first half of 1964, violence erupted following a strike called by the Guiana Agricultural Workers' Union (GAWU) in an attempt to gain recognition by the Sugar Producers' Association (SPA). The violence was restricted mainly to the sugar estates in the County of Demerara and the stike ended in July 1964.
As a result of the racial hostility and strife associated with the disturbances of the early 1960s, the Governor made Regulations under the Constitution of British Guiana to prevent actions which would excite hostility or ill-will against persons because of their race. Independent Guyana retained these Regulations in its Constitution.
In the December 1964 general elections, the PPP obtained the highest percentage of the votes, followed closely by the PNC, with the UF running a distant third. The Governor, Sir Richard Luyt, called on Forbes Burnham leader of the PNC, who was supported by the UF, to form the Government. Thus, Forbes Burnham became the Premier of British Guiana.
The Special Service Unit (SSU) was renamed the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) in 1965 under the command of a British Officer, Colonel Ronald Pope. A Guyanese, Major Clarence Price, replaced Colonel Pope as the head of the GDF in 1966.
Early Years of the Nation - 1966 to Present
British Guiana
became an independent State on May 26, 1966, within the British
Commonwealth of Nations, under the Guyana Independence
Act 1966 of the British Parliament. The new State adapted
the name Guyana which is derived from an Amerindian
word meaning Land of many waters.
Forbes Burnham was appointed the first Prime
Minister and Peter d'Aguiar became the first Deputy
Prime Minister of the new State. Governor
General Sir Richard Luyt, Chancellor
of the Judiciary Sir Kenneth Stoby and Ministers of
the Government took their respective oaths of offices on the
morning of May 26, 1966.
Guyana joined the United Nations in 1966. Sir Richard Luyt
was succeeded by a Guyanese, Sir David Rose, as the Governor
General.
Prime Minister Forbes Burnham reported to the nation on October
14, 1966 that Venezuelans were occupying the Guyana portion
of Ankoko Island at the confluence of the Cuyuni and Wenamu
Rivers.
Suriname occupied the New
River Triangle in December 1967. The Guyana Defense
Force acted decisively and secured the entire area.
On the eve of the December 1968 general elections, the UF
ministers in the PNC-UF coallition Government resigned. However
the PNC won the elections and Forbes Burnham continued as
Prime Minister of Guyana.
In January of 1969, shortly after the December 1968 elections,
ranchers living in the Rupununi District, with the assistance
of some Amerindians, were involved in an uprising which was
crushed by soldiers of the Guyana Defence Force who were flown
into the area.
On February 23, 1970 Guyana was proclaimed the Co-operative
Republic of Guyana within the British Commonwealth of
Nations. February 23 was selected to coincide with the anniversary
of the beginning of the Berbice Slave Revolt of 1763 which
was led by Cuffy, a national hero. The office of Governor
General was abolished and Arthur Chung was sworn in as the
Ceremonial
President of the Republic for a six-year term and
then was re-elected for a second six-year term in 1976.
In the years shortly after the change to a Co-operative Republic,
foreign-owned companies were nationalized. They included the
Demerara Bauxite Company, Ltd. or Demba as it was known locally
(1971), Reynolds Metals Company (1974), Reynolds (Guyana)
Mines (1975) and Booker McConnell Ltd. (1976) which owned
about 85% of the lands and mills associated with the nation's
sugar production.
The PNC won the general elections held on July 10, 1973 and
once again, as in 1968, there were charges of "rigged elections".
However, Forbes Burnham continued as Prime Minister of the
Co-operative Republic of Guyana. The National Service Program,
a one-year period of training for all Guyanese between the
ages of 18 and 25 years, began in 1974.
In 1974 Forbes Burnham announced the doctrine of Paramountcy
of the Party, commonly known as the Declaration of
Sophia, following a Congress of the PNC at Sophia. Under
the declaration, all organs of the State were considered as
agencies of the ruling PNC and subject to its control.
A religous cult
known as the People's Temple of Christ, led by James (Jim)
Warren Jones, an American, arrived in Guyana in 1974, with
the permission of the PNC Government, to set up an agricultural
community near Port Kaituma in the Northwest District which
was later known as Jonestown.
On November 18, 1978, the members of the People's Temple committed
mass suicide following the murder of United States Congressman
Leo Ryan and some members of his party, who were investigating
allegations that American citizens were being held against
their will by Jim Jones. More than 700 persons died in the
tragedy.
A group known as the Working
People's Alliance (WPA) emerged in 1973 and later
became a political party in 1979. The group included intellectuals
and politicians from the major ethnic groups. Dr. Walter Rodney,
who was informally identified as the leader of the party,
was assassinated in July 1980. The WPA boycotted the 1980
general elections in protest of Dr. Rodney's killing.
In 1976, the Government took over the educational system and
promised free education from kindergarten to university. The
Anglican and Catholic churches which owned most of the denominational
schools opposed the Government's decision. The right to free
education was later included in the Constitution of 1980 (Article
27).
The PNC government postponed the general elections that were
to be held before 1979. On July 21, 1978, the National Assembly
passed a resolution that resulted in the preparation of the
Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana. The Constitution
was passed in the National Assembly on February 14, 1980.
Under the new constitution, the Ceremonial President was abolished
and the Head of the Government assumed the post of Executive
President with supreme executive authority. The Republic
of Guyana was divided into ten Regions under Article
72 paragraph (1) of the 1980 Constitution. Each region
has an administrative body known as the Regional Democratic
Council [follow the link Admin. Regions
under Country Information at the top of the page for more
information on the Regions].
The PNC won the general elections held in 1980 and Forbes
Burnham became the first Executive President of the Republic.
Desmond Hoyte succeeded Forbes Burnham as the second Executive
President of the Republic following his death in 1985.
The general elections held in December 1985 were won by the
PNC amidst claims of yet another "rigged elections" and Desmond
Hoyte continued as Executive President until the general elections
of October 5, 1992. President
Desmond Hoyte offered an area of pristine rain forest in
Guyana for research leading to the development of techniques
for sustainable and equitable utilization of forest resources.
This offer was made at the 1989 Commonwealth Heads of Government
Meeting in Malaysia and led to the establishment of the
Iwokrama
International Rain Forest Programme.
During September of 1991, Omai Gold Mines Limited
was granted a mining permit to extract gold from their mine
site near Omai River, a tributary of the Essequibo River.
The October 1992 general elections were monitored by a team
of international observers and the People's Progressive
Party/Civic joint slate was victorious. Dr.
Cheddi Jagan became the third Executive President
and Samuel Hinds of the Civic component of the joint slate
was sworn in as Prime Minister.
Commercial production at the Omai Gold Mine began on January
15, 1993 and yielded 207,000 ounces of gold
that year. A major environmental disaster occurred at Omai
Gold Mine on August 19, 1995, when a large quantity of cyanide-
and copper-laden tailings water spilled into the Omai River.
On March 14, 1996 the National Assembly passed the Iwokrama
International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development
Act. Samuel
Hinds became the fourth Executive President following
the death of Dr. Jagan on March 6, 1997 and Janet
Jagan was appointed Prime Minister.
Queen's
College, the oldest secondary school in Guyana,
was partially gutted by a fire which started around 10:00
pm on Sunday, November 16, 1997. The fire destroyed the
central portion of the building. The school, which opened
on August 5, 1844, became a government institution in 1876
and was moved to the Camp Road and Thomas Road location
in 1951.
The People's Progressive Party/Civic joint slate was declared
the winner of the December 1997 general elections inspite
of the claims of irregularities by the People's National
Congress. Janet Jagan was sworn in as the fifth Executive
President of the Republic in a secret/private ceremony and
Samuel Hinds was appointed Prime Minister.
Guyana
Airways Corporation (GAC) was taken over by Guyana
Airways 2000 Inc. as a result of a privitization deal
between the Government of Guyana and Aviation Investment
Inc. The new company was registered April 9, 1999. GAC was
originally registered as a private company, British Guiana
Airways Ltd., on May 27, 1938.
Janet Jagan resigned as President because of ill health
and Bharrat
Jagdeo was sworn in as the sixth executive President
of Guyana on August 11, 1999. Under the A Team
formula agreed to by the PPP and the Civic, Prime Minister
Samuel Hinds resigned and Bharrat Jagdeo was appointed Prime
Minister paving the way for Jagdeo's appointment to the
Presidency as stipulated in the Constitution of Guyana.
Samuel Hinds was then reappointed Prime Minister.
Sources of Information
A list of references used to compile the information in this document is presented below. |
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February-April Issue, p. 26-29.
Allsopp, R., 1997. The Jagan-Burnham era, Guyana Review, vol.5, no.59, p. 32-37. (Internet
document).
Ananse, K., 1997. African-Guyanese and national independence, Emancipation, No. 4, p. 3-6.
Dalton, H.G., 1855. The History of British Guiana, vol. I, 1668-1781, Longman, Brown, Green and
Longmans, London, 518pp.
Daly, V.T., 1974. The making of Guyana, Macmillan Education Ltd., London, 218pp.
Deodat, R., 1996. A pathway to the past, in El Dorado, The Inflight Magazine of Guyana Airways,
4th Issue, p. 6-10.
Francis, W. and Mullin, J., eds., 1923. The British Guiana Handbook 1922. "The Argosy" Co., Ltd.,
Georgetown, British Guiana, 300pp.
Granger, D., 1995. The city of Georgetown, in El Dorado, The Inflight Magazine of Guyana Airways,
February-April Issue, p. 4-6.
Granger, D., ed., 1997. Buxton, Ithaca, Manchester, Queenstown, Victoria in Emancipation, No. 4,
p. 24-31.
Hope, K.R., 1985. Guyana: politics and development in an emergent socialist state, Mosaic Press,
New York, 136pp.
Irving, B., ed., 1972. Guyana: a composite monograph, Inter American University Press, Hato Rey,
Puerto Rico, 87pp.
Jagan, C., 1966. The west on trial, International Publishers, New York, 471pp.
Joseph, C.L., 1998. A persistent threat to Guyana's territorial integrity, (Internet document).
Kirke, H., 1898. Twenty-five years in British Guiana, Sampson Low, Marston & Company Ltd.,
London, 364pp.
Manley, R.H., 1979. Guyana Emergent: the post-independent struggle for nondependent
development, Schenkman Publishing Co., Cambridge, Massachusetts, 159pp.
McGowan, W.F., 1998. The Demerara Revolt, 1823, Free Press, Georgetown, Guyana 34pp.
Merrill, T., ed., 1992. Political and social changes in the 1900s, Federal Research Division, Library
of Congress, Washington, D.C., (Internet document).
Mitchell, W.B., Bibbiana, W.A., DuPre, C.E., and others, 1969. Area handbook for Guyana - 1969
(DA Pam 550-82), U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 378pp.
Morrison, A., 1998. Justice: the struggle for democracy in Guyana 1952-1992, Red Thread Women's
Press, Georgetown, Guyana, 419pp.
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(Internet document).
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1668-1781, J. Thomson, Georgetown, Demerara, 312pp.
Rodway, J., 1893. History of British Guiana, from the year 1782 to the present time, vol. II,
1782-1833, J. Thomson, Georgetown, Demerara, 308pp.
Rodway, J., 1894. History of British Guiana, from the year 1668 to the present time, vol. III,
1833-1893, J. Thomson, Georgetown, Demerara, 285pp.
Schomburgk, R.H., 1840. A description of British Guiana, geographical and statistical: exhibiting its
resources and capabilities together with the present and future condition and prospects of the
colony, Simpkin, Marshall and Co., London, 155pp.
Simms, P., 1966. Trouble in Guyana: an account of people, personalities and politics as they were
in British Guiana, George Allen & Unwin Ltd., London, 198pp.
Singh, C., 1988. Guyana: politics in a plantation society, Praeger Publishers, New York, 161 pp.
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Journal, vol. 111, p. 13-26.
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