Culture of Tortola. Places to visit - old town, temples, theaters, museums and palaces

Tortola has quite a rich past. The island was inhabited in the 1st-century AD by the Arawaks, who lived here quietly until the beginning of the 15th century. Then they were first conquered by the Caribbean, a very aggressive tribe from the Lesser Antilles. Christopher Columbus visited the island in 1493. Spaniards made Tortola their patrimony but did not settle here. Later, it was the time when Danes, British, French, Dutch, and, of course, pirates visited the island. The territory constantly passed from hand to hand, and the process of conquest of the indigenous population of the island was almost completely destroyed. Unfortunately, all the material evidence of ancient culture was destroyed during those times. That is why only a few dozen artefacts remained from the heritage of the Arawaks.

In 1648, people from Holland tried to settle the island, but after two decades, in 1672, the territory was captured by England. The planters came here to grow sugar cane and brought slaves from Africa. Local plantations brought a good income to the owners. After the abolition of slavery, contractors from India and Portugal were invited as workers to grow sugarcane. British built a network of fortifications in the 17th century to defend their possessions from pirates. Fort George and Fort Charlotte have reached our days in good condition. These quite massive buildings are now slowly destroyed because of time, but you can still see the size of the fortifications.

Fort Burt was built in 1666 and it is still in good condition. It was reconstructed in 1953, and in 1967 there was opened a hotel in its building. The hotel still functions and visitors come here. It is a nice place for those who want not only to explore the fortification but also live here. You can feel yourself in another era by visiting Callwood Distillery. This is quite small in size rum production works on the same technologies which were used in the production of the most popular alcoholic beverage centuries ago. You will be told and shown all stages of rum production during an hour excursion, which takes place in English. Here you can learn a lot about the history of the preparation of rum on Tortola. After the excursion, you will be offered to taste local rum, and you can buy the products of the plant. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

You can learn about the life of planters and their workers by visiting Josiah's Bay local plantation. Of course, no one grows sugar cane here today, but you can see quite well-preserved outbuildings, a manor house and workers ' barracks. Anyone can see the conditions under which both hired workers and landowners lived, thanks to partially restored interiors. By the way, those who love art will also like it here. There is an art gallery in one of the buildings of the plantation, which exhibits works by contemporary artists and old paintings brought here from the Old World.

There are many churches on the island. Most of them are concentrated in the capital, Road Town. Here, for example, you can see the Roman Catholic Church of St. William. Externally, it is not the most majestic building in the colonial style, but the interior decoration will amaze you with its beauty. Moreover, it accurately conveys the spirit of colonial Christianity. In addition, there are still held sermons and liturgies, which can be attended by anyone. The main thing is not to break the established rules of conduct. Do not pass by the Church of St. Michael.

Artifacts from pre-Columbian times are kept in the local folk Museum. In addition to all kinds of statues, weapons and clothing items there are many exhibits related to the sea and sailors. Do not miss the opportunity to visit the Old Government House. All the rulers of the island since its settlement by the British sat in this monumental building. You can admire old colonial architecture during a walk along the Old Main Street, which has not changed much since its construction in the 17th century. Mount Healthy's Wind Mill, built in the 18th century is another interesting local building.