British Virgin Islands — map and facts

About British Virgin Islands

The British Virgin Islands is a British Overseas Territory situated in the northeastern Caribbean Sea, forming the eastern portion of the Virgin Islands archipelago, with the U.S. Virgin Islands to the west. The territory consists of around 60 islands, cays, and rocks, of which the main inhabited islands are Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, and Jost Van Dyke. The capital is Road Town, located on Tortola. The total population is approximately 31,000. The territory is governed by an appointed Governor representing the British Crown, alongside an elected House of Assembly and Premier. The British Virgin Islands is one of the world's leading offshore financial centres, with a highly developed sector of company incorporations, trusts, and financial services that generates the vast majority of government revenue. Tourism—particularly sailing and yachting—forms the second pillar of the economy. The U.S. dollar is used as the official currency.

Geography and Landscape

The British Virgin Islands lies at the northeastern end of the Lesser Antilles, separated from Puerto Rico by the Anegada Passage. Tortola is the largest island, covering about 55 square kilometres, with a rugged volcanic spine rising to 521 metres at Mount Sage. Virgin Gorda is the second largest and features The Baths, a dramatic coastal area of enormous granite boulders forming grottos and pools. Anegada is unique among the main islands in being a low-lying coral atoll rather than a volcanic island, and is fringed by an extensive reef that has caused numerous historic shipwrecks. Jost Van Dyke, though small, is celebrated for its beach bars and relaxed atmosphere. The surrounding waters—part of the Sir Francis Drake Channel—are considered among the finest sailing grounds in the world, with steady trade winds and protected anchorages between islands. The climate is tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds.

History

The islands were inhabited by the Arawak and later the Carib peoples before European contact. Christopher Columbus sighted the archipelago in 1493 during his second voyage, naming the group Las Once Mil Vírgenes. Spanish, Dutch, and British interests competed for the islands through the 17th century. The Dutch established a permanent settlement on Tortola in 1648, and Britain seized the island in 1672, formally incorporating it as a British colony. Sugar plantations worked by enslaved Africans became the economic foundation of the islands through the 18th century. Emancipation in 1834 brought the decline of the plantation economy. The islands went through an extended period of economic stagnation before offshore finance began to transform them in the 1980s. The British Virgin Islands became a major centre for company incorporations from the 1990s onward. The islands were devastated by Hurricane Irma in 2017 but have substantially recovered.