- Population:
- 99,175
- Religion:
- Christianity
'Antigua and Barbuda is an independent Commonwealth country comprising its 2 namesake islands and several smaller ones. Positioned where the Atlantic and Caribbean meet it''s known for reef-lined beaches rainforests and resorts. Its English Harbour is a yachting hub and the site of historic Nelson''s Dockyard. In the capital St. John''s the national museum displays indigenous and colonial artefacts.'
The Siboney were the first people to inhabit the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in 2400 B.C. but Arawak Indians populated the islands when COLUMBUS landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early Spanish and French settlements were succeeded by an English colony in 1667. Slavery established to run the sugar plantations on Antigua was abolished in 1834. The islands became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981.
