An Enduring Story
From the earliest days, hardy Bermudians were adept at turning adversity to advantage.

By Teddy Tucker

"A regular Sarey Bassett day," you're apt to hear Bermudians exclaim when summer temperatures spike.

The phrase harks back to 21 June 1730, a hot day indeed for Sarah Bassett, who was burned at the stake after a court convicted her of attempting to poison her master. Later, legend has it, authorities discovered a purple-blue iris growing in the midst of Bassett's ashes. Today the distinctive Bermudiana blooms throughout the islands.

Bermuda's long history is peppered with tales of colourful characters like Sarey Bassett. That's what makes the islands so appealing to a growing number of history-loving tourists.

"It seems that our stories of Bermuda's past rate highly with our clients," says Kay Latter, who owns Byways Bermuda tour company with her husband Ray Latter. "Tourists just can't seem to get enough of them."

Bermuda legends may vary in content, but they seem to share a common theme: Hope often is born of despair.

Consider the good that came from Bermuda's disastrous beginning. Centuries before Bermuda made its mark on the world as a centre of international finance, mariners avoided the treacherous, reef-fringed islands, so much so that the chain was known in nautical circles as the Isles of Devils.

In those days, no one thought of colonising Bermuda, least of all the 150 adventurers who set sail from Plymouth, England aboard the Sea Venture in June 1609. Among those hardy souls bound for the new settlement at Jamestown, Virginia were Admiral Sir George Somers and New World chronicler William Strachey.

But by late July, the ship had sailed smack-dab into a hellborn hurricane. It was a catastrophe that would change the lives of the colonists and the history of the world.

"Windes and seas were as mad as fury and rage could make them," Strachey wrote. "The sea swelled above the clouds and gave battle unto heaven."

The ship foundered in monstrous waves for nearly 36 agonising hours. Waterlogged biscuits clogged the pumps as crewmembers frantically attempted to plug holes in planks with food rations and anything else at hand. "Try to imagine what that must have been like," suggests Kay Latter. "Everyone was on their knees praying. They must have been terrified."

And then there was a miracle. The battered ship lodged between two reefs and Somers spotted land just three-quarters of a mile away. The colonists may have been castaways in the Isles of Devils, but even that forbidding destination now looked like heaven.

What did the survivors find there? No people to help them. Only feral hogs left by earlier Spanish explorers who quickly determined that they wanted nothing to do with the lonely Atlantic outpost.

For the beleaguered English colonists, life was "incredibly rough," says Tim Rogers, a historian who leads Bermuda walking tours. "Four hundred years ago, those settlers had to make due with so little."

In terms of creature comforts, that's true. But food was abundant in the islands. All you had to do was catch it.

"You could walk in the water and the fish would nibble your toes," Latter says. "The settlers also discovered that if they waved a lantern it would attract cahows, the plump, tasty birds that thrived here. You could club them right out of the air in front of you."

A century before, the shrieks of those birds gave Bermuda its devilish moniker. Their eerie calls must have sent chills up the spine of Spanish mariner Juan de Bermudez, who lent his name to the islands after he landed here in 1505.

"The reefs were dangerous and there was a lack of fresh water," Rogers says. "The European powers wanted nothing to do with Bermuda."

That's ironic, when you consider that in the last 100 years, Bermuda has developed a worldwide reputation as a vacation hot spot. Even in the earliest days of the tourism boom, visitors dubbed the archipelago a slice of paradise.

And why not? With its historic sites and modern-day amenities, Bermuda offers something for everyone.

The first thing you'll notice about Bermuda is that the islands have strong ties to the English motherland. The wreck of the Sea Venture, in fact, made headlines back home and is said to have inspired William Shakespeare to pen The Tempest.

Shipwreck survivors founded the Towne of St. George, where they lived until they could build the Deliverance and Patience, which transported them to Virginia in 1610. Two years later, the crown formed the Bermuda Company and set out to settle the new colony. St. George's served as the islands' political hub, commercial centre and first capital city.

By the end of the 17th century, English settlers had established small communities around Flatts, Crow Lane, Riddell's Bay and Mangrove Bay, and democracy was in full flourish. So was the fear of witches and witchcraft.

Witches and Wrecks

As in other colonies, Britain had warned Bermudians to watch out for sorcerers, wizards, witches, spell casters and "whoever hath or seemeth to have any consultation with the divell."

Jeane Gardiner was the first Bermudian known to be charged with "divell" consulting. She was put to death on 26 May 1651 after a court found her guilty of "cramping" Tomasin, "a mulatto woman who was struck blind and dumb for two hours."

Bermuda's witch hunt lasted only until the end of the century. Then, thankfully, Bermudians began to focus on more productive pursuits: smuggling, piracy and privateering, or "liberating" ships of their cargo, as Rogers puts it.

Bermuda's early economy had been based largely on agriculture. Although onions grew well, the islands were not suited for plantations. Because so many ships wrecked amongst Bermuda's treacherous reefs, it was only natural that islanders would make the most of the situation.

To avoid paying taxes on the looted cargo, many privateers hid their plunder in lonely coves near Flatts and other areas. To rein in the tax evaders, Bermuda officials moved the capital to Hamilton in the central part of the island in 1815.

"Hamilton was built to collect taxes more efficiently," Rogers explains, "yet today, ironically, it's considered a tax haven for international businesses and investors."

Although Bermuda always has maintained a strong alliance with England, it also has had a long relationship with the United States. During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress imposed a trade embargo on Britain and its colonies, seriously threatening Bermuda's ability to acquire provisions. Bermuda sent representatives to the rebel colonies, begging exclusion from the embargo. The Americans agreed, as long as Bermuda would supply gunpowder to the breakaway colonies.

On Aug. 14, 1775, islanders raided one of the largest gunpowder storehouses in St. George's. Under cover of darkness, they rolled 100 barrels of powder to Tobacco Bay, and then rowed them out to the two American ships waiting to run the ammunition to the fledgling states. Eventually the powder made its way to Boston, where George Washington's men used it to oust the British from the city.

Just a few years later, however, Bermuda was no friend to the United States. The English ships that attacked Washington, D.C., during the War of 1812, sailed from Bermuda's Royal Naval Dockyard.

Come the U.S. Civil War, Bermuda once again played a pivotal role. Bermuda, like other English colonies, abolished slavery in 1834. But because of its proximity to Virginia and North Carolina, Bermuda found itself allied with Confederate merchants. During the war, Bermudians made a fortune running Union blockades for the Confederacy.

"During the American Civil War, it was just crazy in St. George's," says Alison Outerbridge, who leads tours of the historic town. "There was nowhere to put your head down to sleep. There was so much money here, and so many luxury items we hadn't seen before."

Welcome Visitors

A few years later, in 1874, tourism took off in Bermuda after steamships began travelling from New York to the islands. In 1883, Queen Victoria's daughter, Princess Louise, visited Bermuda. She was so impressed with the islands' charm and beauty, that she urged her friends to vacation here as well. Islanders were grateful for the princess's recommendations. The owners of the Pembroke Hotel, in fact, renamed it The Princess in her honour. Soon visitors were pouring into the islands and many, including American author Mark Twain, echoed the praises of Princess Louise.

World War II marked a busy time for Bermuda. During the first year of the war, England appealed to the United States for assistance. In 1941, the House of Commons enacted the Land Lease Agreement, which gave England 50 U.S. destroyers and permitted America's Air Force to operate base facilities in Bermuda. The agreement was to have lasted until 2040, but base operations ceased in 1995 and the property was returned to the Bermuda government.

But Bermuda was more than a base during the war. It was here that mail between Europe and the United States was opened and studied for encoded messages. The Princess Hotel was command central for 100 British censors, who steamed open letters removed from refuelling ships and planes. The operation uncovered several German spies in the United States and helped authorities to rescue a collection of 270 Impressionist paintings stolen by the Nazis in France.

After the war, Bermuda's business sector grew steadily. Because of low taxation rates and favourable business policies, many British, American and Canadian firms established headquarters in Bermuda. Today insurance and reinsurance industries in particular are heavily represented in the islands. But tourism is just as important to Bermuda's economy — and much of that tourism focuses on history.

"Our island positively bristles with historic sites," as Latter says. "The tourists we have met have allowed us to share our passion for this tiny island and its enormous history, and for that we are grateful."

DID YOU KNOW? Bermuda is shaped like a fishhook. About 600 miles east of North Carolina, the archipelago is composed of scores of islands that are volcanic in origin. Bermuda's "mainland" is made up of the seven largest islands, which are linked by bridges.

DID YOU KNOW? Bermuda is the oldest British colony. In 1995, 73 percent of Bermuda's voting population "no" to independence.

DID YOU KNOW? Bermuda's signature roofs are stepped to enable rainwater to collect in tanks beneath the houses. Whitewashed roofs are made of Bermuda slate and timber.

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