Jamaica is an island of the Greater Antilles, situated in the Caribbean Sea. It is approximately 620 kilometres (385 mi) northeast of the Central American mainland. It contains the colony of Port Royal. Formerly a Spanish possession known as Santiago, it became the British Crown colony of Jamaica in 1655.
In 1657 Jamaica became a base of operations for english buccaneers, pirates and privateers, including Captain Henry Morgan. Port Royal was an infamous pirate locale, though this was countered through the efforts of individuals such as Commodore James Norrington and Lord Cutler Beckett of the East India Trading Company. Beckett set himself up in Jamaica, and from there spearheaded a war against piracy across the Seven Seas.
Behind the scenes
- Jamaica appears in Tim Powers' novel, On Stranger Tides, which was used as the basis for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
