Old Providence
| Providence Island colony | |
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| Colony | |
Isla Santa Catalina from Isla de Providencia. The bay between the two forms the main harbor.
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 Providence Island colony
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| Coordinates: 13°20′56″N 81°22′29″W / 13.348889°N 81.374722°WCoordinates: 13°20′56″N 81°22′29″W / 13.348889°N 81.374722°W | |
| Country | England |
| Founded by | Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick |
| Capital | New Westminster |
The Providence Island colony was established in 1631 by English Puritans on what is now the Colombian Department of Isla de Providencia, about 200 kilometres (120 mi) east of the coast of Nicaragua. Although intended to be a model Puritan colony, it also functioned as a base for privateers operating against Spanish ships and settlements in the region. In 1641, the Spanish overran and destroyed the colony.
Isla de Providencia, the adjacent Santa Catalina island, and four smaller islands lie within a wide lagoon surrounded by a massive coral reef. They are the visible part of a stratovolcano that rises from the sea floor, extinct for the last four million years. The total area of the islands is 18 square kilometres (6.9 sq mi). Providencia is 6.5 by 4 kilometres (4.0 by 2.5 mi). Santa Catalina island to the north is 1.5 by 1.25 kilometres (0.93 by 0.78 mi). Providencia has a central peak 360 metres (1,180 ft) high, from which spines run down to the sea enclosing fertile valleys. Temperatures are around 29 °C (84 °F) all year. Easterly trade winds are normal during all seasons, bringing the most rain in the autumn. Summers are relatively dry. The surrounding coral reefs make the approach difficult for those who do not know the waters. The two larger islands were once one, called Santa Catalina by the Spanish, but in the late seventeenth century, buccaneers cut a neck of land between them to make a secure retreat on what is now the small island of Santa Catalina.
The island was known to French and Dutch pirates, but apparently was first visited by English ships in 1628. In that year, the Puritan Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick, sent three privateer ships to the West Indies. They reached San Andrés, to the south of Santa Catalina, and landed thirty men there to plant tobacco for snuff.Sussex Camock, with his bark Warwicke & Somer Islands, remained on San Andreas. Daniel Elfrith returned to England via Bermuda to report the discovery. Elfrith told the governor of Bermuda, his son-in-law Philip Bell, of their findings. In March 1629, Bell wrote to his cousin Sir Nathaniel Rich announcing the discovery of the two islands. Bell's letter described the island as "lying in the heart of the Indies & the mouth of the Spaniards." Thus it was an excellent base for privateering against the Spanish ships. Bell considered that the island would also provide excellent revenue from tobacco and other crops. Leading members of the company included the Earl of Warwick, his brother Henry Rich, 1st Earl of Holland and their cousin Sir Nathaniel Rich, William Fiennes, Lord Saye and Sele, and Robert Greville, Lord Brooke.
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Wikipedia