Page 479 - The British Big Four
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History of the Cayman Islands
T he Cayman Islands are a British Overseas Brac and Little Cayman, are located about 120
Territory located in the western Caribbean km (75 mi) east north-east of Grand Cayman. All
Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of three islands were formed by large coral heads
Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman. covering submerged ice age peaks of western
They are listed by the UN Special Committee as extensions of the Cuban Sierra Maestra range
one of the last non-self-governing territories. The and are mostly flat. One notable exception to this
islands are located south of Cuba and northwest is The Bluff on Cayman Brac’s eastern part, which
of Jamaica and are considered to be part of the rises to 43 m (141 ft) above sea level, the highest
geographic Western Caribbean Zone as well as point on the islands. Terrain is mostly a low-lying
the Greater Antilles. The territory is a major world limestone base surrounded by coral reefs
offshore financial center. The islands continued
to be governed as part of the Colony of Jamaica The history of the Grand Caymans begins
until 1962, when they became a separate Crown with sea turtles, which played a vital role in
colony while Jamaica became an independent shaping the economy and culture of the Cayman
Commonwealth realm. Islands. It is appropriate that the first recorded
sighting of Little Cayman and Cayman Brac by
The Cayman Islands are located in the western Christopher Columbus, as recorded in his ship’s
Caribbean Sea and are the peaks of a mas- log in 1503 on his fourth and final voyage to
sive underwater ridge, known as the Cayman the New World stated, “We were in sight of two
Ridge or the Cayman Rise. This ridge flanks the very small islands, full of tortoise, as was the sea
Cayman Trough, 6,000 m (20,000 ft) deep which about, inasmuch as they looked like little rocks.”
lies 6 km (3.7 mi) to the south. Columbus thus named these islands “Las Tortu-
gas” after the abundant sea turtles.
Grand Cayman is by far the biggest of the
three islands. Its two “Sister Islands”, Cayman
