Youth and Education

As a young man, his father George I sent him to England to be educated. On his return voyage, in 1776, he met and was evangelized by the famous Abolitionist Olaudah Equiano

Olaudah Equiano

Olaudah Equiano also known as Gustavus Vassa, was a prominent African involved in the British movement towards the abolition of the slave trade. His autobiography depicted the horrors of slavery and helped influence British lawmakers to abolish the slave trade through the Slave Trade Act of 1807...

(Gustavas Vassa), though Equiano did not think his preaching was very successful. He was crowned in March 1777 by the English Superintendent James Lawrie.

Political Situation

Because of his youth, his uncle Isaac ruled effectively as a regent and bore the title "Duke-Regent." George always had difficulty with his subordinates, to the north his General Tempest gave him trouble, to the south the Admiral Brinton aligned himself with Spain, which in turn sought to use the connection to overthrow George and break the English alliance. Ultimately, however, George was able to defeat both contenders.

Alliance with Britain

Thanks to his education and the political alignment of the Miskito Kingdom against Spain and the support that England gave him, George was considered a stable ally of the British. Although there was a considerable number of Englishmen and their African slaves residing within his territory, an Anglo-Spanish treaty of 1786 required that all Englishmen be withdrawn, which they were, over 2,600 counting their slaves, to settle in Belize.
He was a friend of the English and prepared to ally with them against the Spanish. In 1798, as Anglo-Spanish hostilities threatened the English commercial interests and settlements in the Bay of Honduras and Belize, the English proposed arming him to attack the Spanish, in the hopes that it would divert Spanish attention from Belize. In 1800, two of his officials, "Admiral St. John and Colonel Wyatt" where entertained at public expense; and George himself visited Belize not long afterward. He was engaged in cattle trade at times with British subjects, shortly after his death, the government of British Honduras was looking into cattle he had recently sent to provision the garrison. He was said to have been poisoned by his brother Stephen.