Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda is a country comprising three islands in the eastern Caribbean (Antigua, Barbuda, and uninhabited Redonda) and a number of smaller islands (including Great Bird, Green, Guiana, Long, Maiden, Prickly Pear, and York Islands. They lie in the middle of the Leeward Islands

Antigua was named by Christopher Columbus in 1493 in honor of St Maria La Antigua of Seville.

It became a British colony in 1667 and stayed under British rule until independence in 1981.

Antigua in 1823

Lord Horatio Nelson was stationed in Antigua between 1784 and 1787. Back then the West Indies island was known for rampant tropical diseases and earned the nickname "the graveyard of Englishmen." Nelson himself described it as a "dreadful hole" and a "vile place",

The national flag of Antigua and Barbuda was adopted on February 27, 1967 to mark the achievement of self-government. The flag was designed by a high school teacher named Reginald Samuel, who won a national competition to design a new flag for the islands.

The design of the flag features a combination of four colors: red, blue, yellow and white. The red symbolizes the energy and life of the people, the blue represents hope and the Caribbean Sea, and the yellow and white represents the sand and the surrounding islands. The flag also features the rising sun, which represents a new era in the country's history. 

Antigua and Barbuda became an independent state within the Commonwealth of Nations on November 1, 1981, with Elizabeth II as the first Queen of Antigua and Barbuda.

Most of Barbuda was devastated in early September 2017 by Hurricane Irma, which brought winds with speeds reaching 295 km/h (185 mph). The storm damaged or destroyed 95% of the island's buildings and infrastructure and nearly everyone on Barbuda was evacuated to Antigua.

Antigua is Spanish for "ancient" and barbuda is Spanish for "bearded".

The island of Antigua was originally called Wadadli, which means approximately "our own" by Arawaks and is locally known by that name today.

Antigua is the largest of the Leeward Islands. It has a circumference is about 87 kilometres (54 miles) and it has an area of 281 km² (108 square miles). 

The permanent population numbers is approx 95,900 (2018 est.), with 97% being resident on Antigua.

The capital and largest port and city is St. John's on Antigua, with Codrington being the largest town on Barbuda.

Cricket is the national sport. Famous West Indian cricketers that hail from the islands include Sir Vivian Richards, Andy Roberts, Curtly Ambrose and Richie Richardson

Antigua is the only known habitat of the Antiguan Racer, the rarest snake in the world with a population of about 200.

Source Daily Mail