History and culture of Cura? ao

The earliest inhabitants of Cura? ao were Arawaks in India. The Europeans who landed on the island for the first time were members of the expedition led by Spanish explorer Alonso de ojeda in 1499. The Spanish slaughtered the Arawaks. 1634, the island was occupied by the Dutch. The Dutch West India Company is in a company called Schottegat? S-chot-te-gat) built Wilhelmstad, the capital of the island, on the shore of Xiaowan. Cura? ao was obviously ignored by the colonists because it lacked gold and other things that the colonists were interested in. However, the natural harbor of the capital has quickly become a trading place for dealing with ideas. Commerce and shipping became the most important economic activities in Cura? ao, and Cura? ao began to play a key role in the Atlantic slave trade, the most complicated international trade network in history. 1662, the Dutch West India Company turned Cura? ao into a slave trade center. Dutch merchants bought slaves from Africa and took them to a trade zone called "Asin Tuo". From there, slaves were trafficked and transported to many destinations in South America and the Caribbean. The number of slaves traded here is amazing.

The slave trade made Cura? ao rich, and many colonial buildings were built on the island, which still stand there today.

The architecture of Cura? ao combines the architectural styles of Dutch and Spanish colonies. A large number of historical buildings inside and outside Williamstad make Cura? ao a UNESCO World Heritage List. Wu Di (the remains of a former plantation) and West African-style "kas di pal'i maishi" (the former residence of slaves) are all over the island, some of which have been restored and opened to tourists.

In the18th century and19th century, the British and the French occupied Cura? ao briefly respectively, thus increasing the spoken language on the island. In addition, Cura? ao people actively participated in political activities in some areas, such as the wars of independence in Venezuela and Colombia. 1863, the Dutch abolished slavery. The economic difficulties at the end of slavery led many Cura? ao people to migrate to other islands, such as working in sugar cane plantations in Cuba.

19 14, oil was discovered in menegrande, maracaibo basin, which completely changed the fate of cura? ao. Royal Dutch Shell Group and the Dutch government have built a huge oil refinery in the former slave market, which has brought a lot of employment opportunities to local residents and attracted immigrants from neighboring countries. Cura? ao is an ideal oil refining site, because it is far from social unrest in South America and close to the maracaibo Basin oil field. It also has a natural port where large oil tankers can dock. Shell has undoubtedly made this place rich again. With the flow of population, a large number of houses have been built here. However, the society of Cura? ao has also begun to appear contradictions. Dissatisfaction and antagonism in the community of Cura? ao are increasing day by day, and finally reach the peak: riots and protests broke out on May 30th. 1969. The social movement with intensified civil strife has made local blacks gain greater influence in the political process. The island has also formulated policies to develop tourism and attract corporate assets at low tax rates to avoid various difficult situations. In the mid-1980s, Shell sold the refinery to a local government-owned consortium at a symbolic price. Since then, local discussions have focused not only on changing the constitutional situation, but also on finding new sources of income. The government consortium recently sold its shares in the refinery to Venezuela's state-owned Venezuelan oil company. In recent years, Cura? ao is trying to expand the development of local tourism with its unique history and relics.

In recent years, the economy of Cura? ao has declined and the number of immigrants to the Netherlands has surged. In order to stop the immigration tide, a series of actions by the Netherlands led to the deterioration of relations between the two sides. At present, Cura? ao has more immigrants from neighboring Caribbean islands, Latin American countries and the Netherlands than people who have moved out.