The Shadow Minister of Telecommunications and Transport outlines the development of Bermuda’s history in sustaining international relations.
Sen. the Hon. Bob Richards, in
Hamilton. Senator Richards was appointed Telecommunications Minister in 1997. He has also served as the Bermuda Government Leader in the Senate. He is currently Shadow Minister of Telecommunications and Transport.
The control of foreign affairs is a power reserved to the British Government by the 1968 Bermuda Constitution. This has always been the case with Britain’s overseas territories.
Having said this, Bermuda has played a significant role in international affairs over the course of its history, beginning with the so called gunpowder incident when the 13 American colonies were at war with Britain, seeking their independence. On this occasion Bermudians secretly sent a shipment of gunpowder to aid General George Washington’s army which was in desperate need. While Bermuda remained loyal to the Crown it was expedient to aid our neighbour to the west with whom we engaged in much trade. On another occasion, during
the War of 1812, Bermuda was staging ground for the British expeditionary force that attacked and burned Washington D.C. Later during the American Civil War, low fast steam ships – called blockade runners – sailed from Charleston,
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South Carolina to unload and pick up supplies in Bermuda. Union naval vessels lurked off our shores
Sen. the Hon. Bob Richards
waiting to intercept them. Bermuda played a key role during the Second World War when relations between the U.S. and U.K. improved in the 20th century. The famous Lend Lease Agreement between the two nations provided Great Britain vital naval vessels and aircraft, and the U.S. a string of military bases in the Americas in British
held territories. (Although not an official quid pro quo) Bermuda was probably the most strategic location because within our tiny 20 square miles area, the U.S. obtained two bases, one naval the other air force. These bases were so important to the U.S. that they were used long after the conflict through the cold war, only to be decommissioned in the 1990’s. The historically pivotal role Bermuda played in relations between the U.S. and Great Britain during times of conflict also translated into times of peace. Bermuda played host to several post WWII conferences between the U.S., U.K., Canada and France. Leaders such as Winston Churchill, Dwight D. Eisenhower and Charles De Gaulle, held high level talks on our shores. In the 1990’s, George Bush, Margaret Thatcher and John Major also conferred in Bermuda. In the post-war era Bermuda remained a loyal, steady place and there was little local support for independence. Poverty was low