Editing Bridgetown (section)

== History ==
Although the island was totally abandoned or uninhabited when the British arrived, one of the few traces of indigenous pre-existence on the island was a primitive bridge constructed over the [[Constitution River|Careenage]] area's swamp at the centre of Bridgetown. It was thought that this bridge was created by a people indigenous to the [[Caribbean]] known as the [[Tainos]]. Upon finding the structure, the British settlers began to call what is now the Bridgetown area ''Indian Bridge''. Scholars widely believe that the Tainos were driven from Barbados to the neighbouring island of [[Saint Lucia]], during an invasion by the [[Kalinagos]], another indigenous people of the region. Eventually after 1654 when a new bridge was constructed over the Careenage by the British, the area became known as ''The Town of Saint Michael'' and later as ''Bridgetown'', after Sir [[Tobias Bridge]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

Bridgetown is the only city outside the present United States that [[George Washington]] visited. ([[George Washington House (Barbados)|George Washington House]], the house where he stayed, is included within the boundaries of the [[Garrison Historic Area]].) Two of Washington's ancestors, Jonathon and Gerrard Hawtaine, were early planters on the island. Their grandmother was Mary Washington of Sulgrave, Northamptonshire, England. In 2011, historic buildings in Bridgetown were designated as a protected area by UNESCO.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Guard our heritage|author=Staff writer|url=http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=editorial&NewsID=18426|newspaper=[[The Barbados Advocate]]|date=29 June 2011|access-date=3 July 2011|quote=The World Heritage Committee (WHC) determined that historic Bridgetown and its Garrison fulfil the following roles: 1) "exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design; 2) bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilisation which is living or which has disappeared; 3) be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history".|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326082214/http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=editorial&NewsID=18426|archive-date=26 March 2012}}</ref>

=== Early settlement ===
[[File:Pg013 Title The history of Barbados by Sir Robert H. Schombourgk.jpg|thumb|[[Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson|Lord Nelson]] statue [[Bridgetown, Barbados]] in 1848, removed in 2020]]
[[File:Pg012 Bridgetown in Barbados (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Bridgetown, Barbados]] in 1848]]

English settlement of Bridgetown began on 5 July 1628<ref name="Historic Bridgetown settlement" /> under [[Charles Wolverstone]], who brought with him 64 settlers to these lands formally [[Proprietary colony#Proprietary colonies in the Caribbean|claimed]] by [[James Hay, 1st Earl of Carlisle|James Hay, the Earl of Carlisle]]. Wolverstone had been sent by a group of London merchants, headed by Sir [[Marmaduke Rawdon]]. They had been granted a lease<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Carrington |first1=Sean |last2=Fraser |first2=Henry |title=A~Z of Barbados Heritage |year=2003 |publisher=Macmillan Caribbean |isbn=0-333-92068-6 |pages=185–186 |chapter=Settlement of Barbados }}<!--|access-date=1 January 2010 --></ref> to {{convert|10000|acre|ha}} of land by the Earl of Carlisle in settlement of debts. Wolverstone granted each of the settlers {{convert|100|acre|ha}} of land on the northern side of the Careenage waterway for the purpose of general settlement.<ref name="Historic Bridgetown settlement">{{Cite book |last1=Alleyne |first1=Warren |title=Historic Bridgetown |year=1978 |publisher=[[Barbados National Trust|The Barbados National Trust]] |pages=7, 8 |chapter=I "The Beginning" }}</ref> The southern shore on Needham's Point was claimed by Carlisle's agents in October 1628. In 1631, many acres of land directly facing [[Carlisle Bay]] were passed to [[Henry Hawley (governor)|Henry Hawley]], the new Governor; but after reports of his dishonest behaviour he was arrested and [[Rendition (law)|forcibly returned]] to England in 1639. An investigation by a commission in 1640 found that much of Hawley's land transactions were legitimate and properly showed{{clarify|date=January 2019}} these lands (including the town site) as being attributed to the Earl of Carlisle. Bridgetown was built with a street layout resembling early English medieval or market towns, with its narrow serpentine street and alley configuration. It is estimated that between 1627 and 1807, approximately 387,000 enslaved Africans were sent to Barbados.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC - History - British History in depth: Slavery and Economy in Barbados |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/empire_seapower/barbados_01.shtml |access-date=2025-02-18 |website=www.bbc.co.uk |language=en-GB |quote=It is estimated that between 1627 to 1807, some 387 000 Africans were shipped to the island against their will, in overcrowded, unsanitary ships, which made the Middle Passage a synonym for barbaric horror.}}</ref>

=== From town to city ===
{{See also|Districts of Barbados#City of Bridgetown}}
In 1824, Barbados became the seat of the Anglican [[Diocese of Barbados]] and the [[Leeward Islands]]. The St Michael's Parish Church became a cathedral, so that Bridgetown became a [[City status in the United Kingdom|city]]. In 1842, Barbados, Trinidad, Tobago, Grenada, Saint Vincent, and Saint Lucia were split into separate dioceses by [[Royal Letters Patent]] which also decreed that the Town of Bridgetown should be called the City of Bridgetown.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=20146 |date=30 September 1842 |page=2631 }}</ref>

From 1800 until 1885, Bridgetown was the main seat of Government for the former British colonies of the [[Windward Islands]]. During this period, the resident [[Governor of Barbados]] also served as the [[Colonial heads of the Windward Islands|Colonial head of the Windward Islands]]. After the Government of Barbados officially exited from the Windward Islands union in 1885, the seat was moved from Bridgetown to [[St. George's, Grenada|St. George's]] on the neighbouring island of [[Grenada]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

[[File:Bridgetown coa.gif|right|thumb|The coat of arms of Bridgetown]]
In December 1925, a committee sought to petition the King for a Royal Charter of Incorporation to provide local government in the city, proposed to consist of a mayor, 8 aldermen, 12 common councillors, a town clerk, a head-borough or chief constable, and such other officers as would be deemed necessary. It was proposed that the island's [[Barbados House of Assembly|House of Assembly]] should seek to incorporate the city instead of using a [[Royal Charter]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

This proposal did not succeed, but in 1958 the Local Government Act was passed in Barbados. This provided a separate administration for the city, with a mayor; 6 city aldermen; and 12 city councillors, four for each of the three wards in the city.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

On 20 September 1960, the [[College of Arms]] in London granted arms to the City of Bridgetown. The armorial bearings were designed by the late Neville Connell, the then director of the Barbados Museum and Historical Society, and H. W. Ince, the Honorary Secretary of the Society.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}

[[Districts of Barbados|Local government]] in Barbados did not last long. In April 1967, the Local Government Councils were dissolved and replaced by an Interim Commissioner for Local Government. The Corporation of Bridgetown thus ceased to exist, and its records and paraphernalia were deposited in both the Government Department of Archives and Barbados Museum and Historical Society.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Alleyne |first=Warren |year=1978 |title=Historic Bridgetown |publisher=[[Barbados National Trust|The Barbados National Trust]] |location=Barbados}}</ref> Today, Bridgetown and surrounding constituencies are administered by members of the Barbadian parliament.{{Citation needed|date=October 2023}}