{"id":9476,"date":"2022-05-15T04:00:38","date_gmt":"2022-05-15T11:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/?p=9476"},"modified":"2022-05-15T08:36:42","modified_gmt":"2022-05-15T15:36:42","slug":"turks-and-caicos-islands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/turks-and-caicos-islands\/","title":{"rendered":"Turks and Caicos Islands"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/h2>\n

The\u00a0Turks and Caicos Islands are a\u00a0British Overseas Territory<\/a>\u00a0consisting of the larger\u00a0Caicos Islands\u00a0and smaller\u00a0Turks Islands, two groups of\u00a0tropical islands<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0Lucayan Archipelago<\/a>\u00a0of the\u00a0Atlantic Ocean<\/a>\u00a0and northern\u00a0West Indies<\/a>.<\/sup>\u00a0They are known primarily for tourism and as an\u00a0offshore financial center<\/a>. The resident population was 31,458 in 2012,<\/sup>\u00a0of whom 23,769 lived on\u00a0Providenciales<\/a>\u00a0in the Caicos Islands; July 2020 estimates put the population at 55,926.<\/sup>\u00a0It is the third largest of the British overseas territories by population.<\/p>\n

The Turks and Caicos Islands lie southeast of\u00a0Mayaguana<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0Bahamas<\/a>\u00a0island chain, northeast of\u00a0Cuba<\/a>, and north of the island of\u00a0Hispaniola<\/a>\u00a0(Haiti<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Dominican Republic<\/a>).\u00a0Cockburn Town<\/a>, the capital since 1766, is situated on\u00a0Grand Turk Island<\/a>\u00a0about 1,042 kilometres (647\u00a0mi) east-southeast of\u00a0Miami<\/a>, United States. The islands have a total land area of 430 square kilometres (170 sq mi).<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Turks and Caicos on the Globe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Turks and Caicos Islands were inhabited for centuries by native Amerindian peoples. The first recorded European sighting of the islands occurred in 1512.<\/sup>\u00a0In the subsequent centuries, the islands were claimed by several European powers, with the\u00a0British Empire<\/a>\u00a0eventually gaining control. For many years the islands were governed indirectly through\u00a0Bermuda<\/a>, the\u00a0Bahamas<\/a>, and\u00a0Jamaica<\/a>. When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the islands received their\u00a0own governor<\/a>, and have remained a separate autonomous\u00a0British Overseas Territory<\/a>\u00a0since.<\/p>\n

History:<\/h2>\n

Pre-colonial era:<\/span><\/h3>\n

The first inhabitants of the islands were the\u00a0Arawakan-speaking<\/a>\u00a0Ta\u00edno people<\/a>, who most likely crossed over from\u00a0Hispaniola<\/a>\u00a0some time from AD 500 to 800. Together with Ta\u00edno who migrated from\u00a0Cuba<\/a>\u00a0to the southern Bahamas around the same time, these people developed as the\u00a0Lucayan<\/a>.<\/sup> Around 1200, the Turks and Caicos Islands were resettled by Classical Ta\u00ednos from Hispaniola.<\/p>\n

European arrival<\/span>[<\/span>edit<\/a>]<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

It is unknown precisely who the first European to sight the islands was. Some sources state that\u00a0Christopher Columbus<\/a>\u00a0saw the islands on his voyage to the Americas in 1492.<\/sup>\u00a0However other sources state that it is more likely that\u00a0Spanish<\/a>\u00a0conquistador<\/a>\u00a0Juan Ponce de Le\u00f3n<\/a>\u00a0was the first European in Turks and Caicos, in 1512.<\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0In any case, after 1512 the Spanish began capturing the Ta\u00edno and Lucayans as workers in the\u00a0encomienda<\/a><\/i>\u00a0system<\/sup> to replace the largely depleted native population of Hispaniola. As a result of this, and the introduction of diseases to which the native people had no immunity, the southern Bahama Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands were completely depopulated by about 1513, and remained so until the 17th century.<\/sup><\/p>\n

European Settlement:<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
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\"\"<\/a>
Raking salt on a 1938 postage stamp of the islands<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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From the mid 1600s <\/span>Bermudian<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>salt<\/a>\u00a0collectors began seasonally visiting the islands, later settling more permanently with their African slaves.<\/span><\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0For several decades around the turn of the 18th century, the islands became popular\u00a0<\/span>pirate<\/a>\u00a0hideouts.<\/span><\/sup>\u00a0During the\u00a0<\/span>Anglo-French War (1778\u20131783)<\/a>\u00a0the French\u00a0<\/span>captured the archipelago<\/a>\u00a0in 1783, however it was later confirmed as British colony with the\u00a0<\/span>Treaty of Paris (1783)<\/a>. After the\u00a0<\/span>American War of Independence<\/a>\u00a0(1775\u20131783), many\u00a0<\/span>Loyalists<\/a>\u00a0fled to British Caribbean colonies, also bringing with them African slaves.<\/span><\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0They developed\u00a0<\/span>cotton<\/a>\u00a0as an important cash crop, but it was superseded by the development of the salt industry, with the labor\u00a0done by African slaves forcibly imported from Africa or the other Caribbean islands and their descendants, who soon came to outnumber the European settlers.<\/sup><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In 1799, both the Turks and the Caicos island groups were annexed by Britain as part of the\u00a0Bahamas<\/a>. <\/sup>The processing of\u00a0sea salt<\/a>\u00a0was developed as a highly important export product from the\u00a0West Indies<\/a>\u00a0and continued to be a major export product into the nineteenth century.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

19th century:<\/span><\/h3>\n

In 1807, Britain prohibited the slave trade and, in 1833,\u00a0abolished slavery<\/a>\u00a0in its colonies.<\/sup>\u00a0British ships sometimes intercepted slave traders in the Caribbean, and some ships were wrecked off the coast of these islands. In 1837, the\u00a0Esperan\u00e7a,<\/i> a Portuguese slaver, was wrecked off East Caicos, one of the larger islands. While the crew and 220 captive Africans survived the shipwreck, 18 Africans died before the survivors were taken to Nassau. Africans from this ship may have been among the 189 liberated Africans whom the British colonists settled in the Turks and Caicos from 1833 to 1840.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The 1852 lighthouse on Grand Turk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In 1841, the\u00a0Trouvadore<\/a><\/i>, an illegal Spanish slave ship, was wrecked off the coast of East Caicos. All of the 20 man crew and 192 captive Africans survived the sinking. Officials freed the Africans and arranged for 168 persons to be\u00a0apprenticed<\/a>\u00a0to island proprietors on Grand Turk Island for one year. They increased the small population of the colony by seven per cent.<\/sup>\u00a0The remaining 24 were resettled in\u00a0Nassau, Bahamas<\/a>. The Spanish crew were also taken there, to be turned over to the custody of the Cuban consul and taken to Cuba for prosecution.<\/sup>\u00a0An 1878 letter documents the “Trouvadore Africans” and their descendants as constituting an essential part of the “labouring population” on the islands.<\/sup>\u00a0In 2004, marine\u00a0archaeologists<\/a>\u00a0affiliated with the Turks and Caicos National Museum discovered a wreck, called the “Black Rock Ship”, that subsequent research has suggested may be that of the\u00a0Trouvadore<\/i>. In November 2008, a cooperative marine archaeology expedition, funded by the United States\u00a0NOAA<\/a>, confirmed that the wreck has artefacts whose style and date of manufacture link them to the\u00a0Trouvadore<\/i>.<\/sup><\/p>\n

In 1848, Britain designated the Turks and Caicos as a separate colony under a\u00a0council president<\/a>.<\/sup>\u00a0In 1873\u20134, the islands were made part of the\u00a0Jamaica<\/a>\u00a0colony;<\/sup>\u00a0in 1894, the chief colonial official was restyled\u00a0commissioner<\/a>. In 1917, Canadian Prime Minister\u00a0Robert Borden<\/a>\u00a0suggested that\u00a0the Turks and Caicos join Canada<\/a>, but this suggestion was rejected by British Prime Minister\u00a0David Lloyd George<\/a> and the islands remained a dependency of Jamaica.<\/p>\n

20th and 21st centuries:<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/div>\n

On 4 July 1959 the islands were again designated as a separate colony, the last commissioner being restyled\u00a0administrator<\/a>. The governor of Jamaica also continued as the governor of the islands. When Jamaica was granted independence from Britain in August 1962, the Turks and Caicos Islands became a\u00a0Crown colony<\/a>.<\/sup> Beginning in 1965, the governor of the Bahamas was also governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands and oversaw affairs for the islands.<\/p>\n

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Sharlene Cartwright-Robinson, former and first female Premier of Turks and Caicos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the Turks and Caicos received their own governor (the last administrator was restyled).<\/sup>\u00a0In 1974, Canadian\u00a0New Democratic Party<\/a>\u00a0MP\u00a0Max Saltsman<\/a>\u00a0tried to use his private member’s bill C-249, “An Act Respecting a Proposed Association Between Canada and the Caribbean Turks and Caicos Islands” that proposed that Canada form an association with the Turks and Caicos Islands; however, it was never submitted to a vote.<\/sup>\u00a0Since August 1976, the islands have had their own government headed by a chief minister (now premier), the first of whom was\u00a0J. A. G. S. McCartney<\/a>. Moves towards independence in the early 1980s were stalled by the\u00a0election<\/a>\u00a0of an anti-independence party in 1980 and since then the islands have remained British territory.<\/sup>\u00a0Local government was suspended from 1986 to 1988, following allegation of government involvement with drug trafficking which resulted in the arrest of Chief Minister\u00a0Norman Saunders<\/a>.<\/sup><\/p>\n

In 2002 the islands were re-designated a British Overseas Territory, with islanders gaining full British citizenship.<\/sup>\u00a0A new\u00a0constitution<\/a>\u00a0was promulgated in 2006; however in 2009 Premier\u00a0Michael Misick<\/a>\u00a0resigned in the face of corruption charges, and the United Kingdom took over direct control of the government.<\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0A new\u00a0constitution<\/a> was promulgated in October 2012 and the government was returned to full local administration after the November 2012 elections.<\/sup><\/p>\n

In 2010 the leaders of\u00a0The Bahamas<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Turks and Caicos Islands<\/a>\u00a0discussed the possibility of forming a\u00a0federation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the 2016 elections, Rufus Ewing’s\u00a0Progressive National Party<\/a>\u00a0(PNP) lost for the first time since they replaced\u00a0Derek Hugh Taylor’s<\/a>\u00a0government in 2003. The\u00a0People’s Democratic Movement<\/a>\u00a0(PDM) came to power with\u00a0Sharlene Cartwright-Robinson<\/a>\u00a0as Premier.<\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0She was replaced by\u00a0Washington Misick<\/a>\u00a0after the Progressive National Party won the\u00a02021 general elections<\/a>.<\/sup><\/p>\n

Geography:<\/span><\/h2>\n
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Map of the Turks and Caicos Islands<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The two island groups are in the North Atlantic Ocean, southeast of\u00a0the Bahamas<\/a>, northeast of\u00a0Cuba<\/a>, about 160 kilometers (99 mi) north of\u00a0Hispaniola<\/a>, and about 1,000 kilometers (620 mi) from Miami in the United States.\u00a0The territory is\u00a0geographically<\/a>\u00a0contiguous to the Bahamas, both comprising the\u00a0Lucayan Archipelago<\/a>, but is politically a separate entity. The Caicos Islands are separated by the\u00a0Caicos Passage<\/a>\u00a0from the closest Bahamian islands,\u00a0Mayaguana<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Great Inagua<\/a>. The nearest foreign landmass from the Turks and Caicos Islands is the Bahamian island of\u00a0Little Inagua<\/a>, about 30 miles from\u00a0West Caicos<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The eight main islands and more than\u00a022 smaller islands<\/a> have a total land area of 616.3 square kilometers (238.0 square miles),[a]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0consisting primarily of low, flat\u00a0limestone<\/a>\u00a0with extensive\u00a0marshes<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0mangrove<\/a>\u00a0swamps<\/a> and 332 square kilometers (128\u00a0sq\u00a0mi) of beach front. The tallest peaks in the islands are\u00a0Blue Hills<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0Providenciales<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Flamingo Hill<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0East Caicos<\/a>, both at a modest 48m.<\/sup>\u00a0The weather is usually sunny (it is generally regarded that the islands receive 350 days of sun each year<\/sup>) and relatively dry, but suffers frequent\u00a0hurricanes<\/a>.<\/sup>\u00a0The islands have limited natural\u00a0fresh water<\/a>\u00a0resources; private cisterns collect rainwater for drinking. The primary natural resources are\u00a0spiny lobster<\/a>,\u00a0conch<\/a>, and other shellfish.<\/p>\n

The two distinct island groups are separated by the Turks Island Passage.<\/p>\n

Economy:<\/h2>\n

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Cruise terminal at Grand Turk island<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The economy of Turks and Caicos is dominated by tourism, offshore finance and fishing.<\/sup><\/sup>\u00a0The\u00a0US dollar<\/a>\u00a0is the main currency used on the islands.<\/p>\n

Historically the\u00a0salt<\/a>\u00a0industry, along with small\u00a0sponge<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0hemp<\/a> exports, sustained the Turks and Caicos Islands (only barely, however; there was little population growth and the economy stagnated). The economy grew in the 1960s, when American investors arrived on the islands and funded the construction of an airstrip on Providenciales and built the archipelago’s first hotel, “The Third Turtle”.\u00a0A small trickle of tourists began to arrive, supplementing the salt-based economy.\u00a0Club Med<\/a> set up a resort at Grace Bay soon after. In the 1980s, Club Med funded an upgrading of the airstrip to allow for larger aircraft, and since then, tourism has been gradually on the increase.<\/p>\n

In 2010\/2011, major sources of government revenue included Import Duties (43.31%), Stamp Duty on Land Transaction (8.82%), Work Permits and Residency Fees (10.03%) and Accommodation Tax (24.95%). The territory’s gross domestic product as of late 2009 is approximately US$795 million (per capita $24,273).<\/p>\n

The primary agricultural products include limited amounts of maize,\u00a0beans<\/a>,\u00a0cassava<\/a>\u00a0(tapioca<\/a>) and\u00a0citrus fruits<\/a>. Fish and conch are the only significant export, with some $169.2 million of\u00a0lobster<\/a>, dried and fresh\u00a0conch<\/a>, and conch shells exported in 2000, primarily to the United Kingdom and the United States. In recent years, however, the catch has been declining. The territory used to be an important trans-shipment point for South American narcotics destined for the United States, but due to the ongoing pressure of a combined American, Bahamian and Turks and Caicos effort this trade has been greatly reduced.<\/p>\n

The islands import food and beverages, tobacco, clothing, manufacture and construction materials, primarily from the United States and the United Kingdom. Imports totaled $581 million in 2007.<\/p>\n

Transportation:<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Providenciales Airport<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Providenciales International Airport<\/a>\u00a0is the main entry point for the Turks and Caicos Islands, with\u00a0JAGS McCartney International Airport<\/a>\u00a0serving the capital Cockburn Town on Grand Turk Island. Altogether, there are\u00a0seven airports<\/a>, located on each of the inhabited islands. Five have paved runways (three of which are approximately 2,000\u00a0m (6,600\u00a0ft) long and one is approximately 1,000\u00a0m (3,300\u00a0ft) long), and the remaining two have unpaved runways (one of which is approximately 1,000\u00a0m (3,300\u00a0ft) long and the other is significantly shorter).<\/sup><\/p>\n

The islands have 121 kilometers (75 miles) of highway, 24 km (15 mi) paved and 97 km (60 mi) unpaved. Like the\u00a0United States Virgin Islands<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0British Virgin Islands<\/a>, the Turks and Caicos Islands\u00a0drive on the left<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The territory’s main international ports and harbors are on Grand Turk<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Providenciales<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The islands have no significant railways. In the early twentieth century\u00a0East Caicos<\/a>\u00a0operated a horse-drawn railway to transport\u00a0sisal<\/a> from the plantation to the port. The 14-kilometre (8.7-mile) route was removed after sisal trading ceased.<\/p>\n

Flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands:<\/h2>\n

The current flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands was adopted on 7 November 1968, and modified in 1999. Prior to this, the islands had several different flags either proposed or utilized.<\/p>\n

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Flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nevertheless, the\u00a0Turks and Caicos Islands<\/a>\u00a0did not form a separate colony for the vast majority of this time. Instead, the islands were a\u00a0dependency of Jamaica<\/a>\u00a0until 1959. In 1959, the islands became a separate colony but until 1962 and the\u00a0independence of Jamaica<\/a>, the\u00a0Governor of Jamaica<\/a>\u00a0remained the\u00a0Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands<\/a>. Between 1962 and 1965 the Administrator of the Turks and Caicos Islands reported directly to London and then between 1965 and 1973, the administrator was subordinate to the\u00a0Governor of the Bahamas<\/a>, who was also Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands. In 1973, when\u00a0The Bahamas<\/a> became independent, the position of administrator became governor.<\/p>\n

The flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands features a\u00a0blue ensign<\/a>\u00a0with the\u00a0Union flag<\/a>\u00a0in the canton, defaced with the\u00a0coat of arms of the Turks and Caicos Islands<\/a> in the center-right. The coat of arms, which was granted on 28 September 1965, takes the shape of a yellow shield which contains a\u00a0conch<\/a>\u00a0shell,\u00a0lobster<\/a>, and a\u00a0Melocactus<\/a><\/i>. The Melocactus, which is visually similar to the traditional Turkish\u00a0fez<\/a>, give the islands the first half of their name.<\/p>\n

Whether the lobster on the coat of arms should have eight or ten legs has been disputed. It has been suggested that the original version of the flag showed ten legs, as would be accurate due to the decapod nature of lobsters, and that the first pair of smaller legs were hidden under the antennae and were subsequently missed in later drawings. It is thought that the lobster present on the coat of arms is a\u00a0Caribbean Spiny Lobster<\/a>\u00a0(panulirus argus<\/i>), which does indeed have ten legs.<\/sup><\/p>\n

The current flag was modified in 1999 when a white outline was added to the shield and the badge height was increased to approximately half of the hoist width.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The current flag of the Turks and Caicos Islands was adopted on 7 November 1968, and modified in 1999. Prior to this, the islands had several different flags either proposed or utilised.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9685,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"default","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[32,59,5,6,7,29,41,60,13],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9476"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9476"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9679,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9476\/revisions\/9679"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9685"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.smoketreemanor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}