Belize Vacation

Belize History

About twenty years later, relations disintegrated between Europeans and the Mayans, and Belize history took a turn for the worse. Pedro de Alvrarado was sent to conquer them in the Yucatan. He had been a lieutenant of Hernan Cortes, who conquered the Aztecs. De Alvarado wasn't very successful, however, in Belize. Around this time, which was 1520, there were around 400,000 peole living in Belize. 80 percent of the Belize mayans died from war or new germs, brought by the Europeans.

Of course learning about the demise of Mayan civilization might not be the high point of your Belize vacation! But just a little background before you travel can make your Belize vacation a richer experience, especially if you are planning to take a tour of some Mayan ruins.

From the mid-sixteenth century onwards, more and more Europeans arrived to settle in Belize. They established their first colonial settlement in 1638 on the Bay of Honduras. The settlers were pirates and adventurers from Britain. They lived in very rudimentary camps and the leader was a pirate named Wallace. Some believe that a mispronunciation of his name became Belize and hence the name of the country that was soon to be. But others argue that the Mayan word belix, meaning muddy water, is where the name came from. Make it a point to ask your tourguide on your Belize vacation, and see what he says!

Fast forwarding a few more centuries to the 1700s, we find the Spanish attacking the British colonies in Belize but never were successful. Belize became a de-facto colony of the U.K. By the 1800s, Belize was called British Honduras. The British supplied arms and ammo to the rebelling Mexican Mayans against the United States in 1847. In 1860, Mexico's Colonel Acereto and three thousand of his men took Can-Santa-Cruz and a war of extermination was carried out. Belize became a Crown colony in 1862.

The 1900s witnessed workers' uprisings in the entire Caribbean region, which brought the beginning of the end of the colonial rule. The 1930s and 1940s saw the liberation of many countries. Belize was encouraged by the independence movement of India in 1947. Belize was the last British colony in the Americas and in 1973 adopted its name again, Belize. Vacation here and you can discover a rich history that extends from the pre-colombian era through the 20th century independence.

More recently, Hurricane Hattie of 1961 took a large toll on Belize and the capitol was moved inland. Three years later Belize became a self-governing colony. Guatemala disputed the borders and the independence and did not recognize Belize until 1992. Checking travel advisories before your Belize vacation, you will find that this is the only tension in anotherwise peaceful and stable country.

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