the appointment of a Superintendent in 1786. Twelve years later
during the war with Spain a Spanish flotilla, making the last and greatest attempt to overthrow the British settlement, was defeated at the Battle of St George's Cay. In 1862 the first Lieutenant
Governor was appointed under the Governor of Jamaica and in 1884
the first full Governor. But Belize retained, as it does to this
day the unique privilege of enacting its own sonstitution:
history has thus taught Belize a certain independence of attitude towards constitution making.
4.
During a visit to Belize last year (described in my despatch of 14 June 1973) Mr Anthony Kershaw, then Parliamentary Under Secretary at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, was presented by
Belize Ministers with a request for devolution of further con- stitutional powers. There was also a proposal to change the
legislature from a bicameral to a unicameral system, but this is
- a matter largely for the politicians of Belize to settle: it
poses little difficulty of principle for Britain and needs no
comment here. The areas in which Ministers looked for a further
shift of power away from the Governor were the police, the civil
service and external affairs. The suggestion about external
affairs was ill defined; but we have since then offered Reliz:
Ministers a specific delegation of powers in relation to the
Caribbean Community and the Letters Patent have been amended
accordingly. I do not think any further response is required
on that point. For the rest no formal answer has been returned
to the proposals, nor has one been asked for. But it may be
prudent to consider the stance we should adopt toward such demanus
if, as I expect, they are reiterated at or after the general
election which is due to be held later this year.
3.
CONFIDENTIAL AND PERSONAL
15.