Miskito

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For the insect, see mosquito

The Miskito are a Native American people in Central America. Their territory expands from Cape Cameron, Honduras, to Rio Grande, Nicaragua. There is a native Miskito language. However, there are large groups of speakers of the Miskito creole English, Spanish, Rama and others. The creole English came about through frequent contact with the British. Many are Christians.

There are few (if any) pure-blooded Miskito alive today, as over the centuries, escaped slaves have sought refuge with them, and also intermarried with them. Their territory is very inaccessible, and therefore they were little affected by the Spanish conquest of the area.

Traditional Miskito society is highly structured, with a defined political structure. There was a king but he did not have total power. That power was split between him, a governor, a general, and by the 1750s, an admiral. Historical information on kings is often obscured by the fact that many of the kings were semi-mythical.

Spanish settlers first began to arrive in Miskito land in 1787, but the Miskito continued to dominate the area because of their numbers and the experienced military. The Miskito never felt controlled by the Nicaraguan government, and many Miskito today don't consider themselves Nicaraguans.

Due to British economic interest in Central America (particularly British Honduras, now called Belize), the Miskito were able to acquire guns and other modern weapons. After Nicaragua was created, combined Miskito-Zambo raiders began to attack Spanish settlements in Honduras, often to rescue enslaved Miskitos before they were shipped to Europe, but often also to enslave other Amerindians to sell to the British to work in Jamaica. They also enslaved women from other tribes. These raids continued well after any animosity between Britain and Spain ended. The Miskito, for a long time, considered themselves superior to other tribes of the area, whom they referred to as "wild". It is thought by historians that the Miskito sought a British identity; indeed, European dress was popular among the Miskito, and the Miskito kings even had English names.

Due to the allowance of polygamy and the added number of women from these slave raids, the Miskito population boomed.

Their political structure allowed the Miskito people to retain their independence all through Spanish rule and through the Federation of Central American States. However, they were absorbed into Nicaragua in 1894.

1 History
- 1.1 Rulers
2 See also
3 External reference

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History

Image:Bez názvu1.bmp The Miskito Nation came into being as a state sometime before 1625. Its first recorded king was Oldman, son of an unnamed king of the Miskitos. First contact with the British was made in the reign of the father of King Oldman, who sent him to Britain where Oldman received an audience with King Charles I.

The Miskito King and the British concluded a formal Treaty of Friendship and Alliance in 1740 followed by the appointment of a resident Superintendent in 1749. A protectorate was established over the Miskito Nation.

The kingdom of Miskito served during the American Revolutionary War by attacking Spanish colonies and gained several victories alongside the British. However, at the conclusion of the peace in 1783, Britain had to relinquish control over the coast. The British withdrawal was completed at the end of June 1787. Despite the withdrawal, Britain maintained an unofficial protectorate over the kingdom, often intervening to protect Miskito interest against Spanish encroachments.

From the middle of the nineteenth century onwards, British interest in the region began to wane. The state ceased to exist in 1894 when it was occupied by Nicaragua. It was restored by the British in July that same year but reoccupied by Nicaragua in August.

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