Benque Viejo
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Benque Viejo del Carmen ("Benque") is the westernmost
town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...
in
Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...
, by road west and south of
Belize City Belize City is the largest city in Belize. It was once the capital city, capital of the former British Honduras. According to the 2022 census, Belize City has a population of 63,999 people. It is at the mouth of the Haulover Creek, which is a ...
, at the
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
n border.
San Ignacio San Ignacio (the Spanish language name of St. Ignatius (disambiguation), St. Ignatius) is a common toponym in parts of the world where that language is or was spoken: Argentina * San Ignacio, Argentina, Misiones Province * San Ignacio Miní, a ...
lies 13 km to the east and
Melchor de Mencos Melchor de Mencos is a municipality in the Petén Department of Guatemala with population 23,813. It is situated on the eastern border with Belize, and is the only major border crossing from Guatemala to Belize. The city was established in April 1 ...
just across the border. The
Mopan River The Mopan River is a river in Central America spanning the Petén Department of Guatemala and the Cayo District of Belize. It merges with the Macal River at Branch Mouth, Belize, forming the Belize River, which ultimately discharges into the Car ...
runs along the town's north and west edges.


Early development

Pre-Colonial & Maya Influence before the arrival of Spanish-speaking settlers, the
Maya civilization The Maya civilization () was a Mesoamerican civilization that existed from antiquity to the early modern period. It is known by its ancient temples and glyphs (script). The Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writin ...
had already been present in the area for centuries. The nearby Xunantunich ruins, just a few kilometers from Benque, suggest that this region was part of a thriving Maya trade and ceremonial hub. The Mopan and Yucatec Maya likely lived in scattered settlements along the
Mopan River The Mopan River is a river in Central America spanning the Petén Department of Guatemala and the Cayo District of Belize. It merges with the Macal River at Branch Mouth, Belize, forming the Belize River, which ultimately discharges into the Car ...
, using the fertile land for farming.


Arrival of Mestizo and Maya refugees (mid- to late-1800s)

The modern town of Benque Viejo del Carmen was established in the mid-to-late 19th century by Mestizo and Maya refugees fleeing the
Caste War of Yucatán The Caste War of Yucatán or ''ba'atabil kichkelem Yúum'' (1847–1915) began with the revolt of Indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous Maya peoples, Maya people of the Yucatán Peninsula against Hispanic populations, called ''Yucatecos''. Th ...
(1847–1901). This war was a violent conflict in Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, where the indigenous Maya rebelled against Spanish and Mestizo rule. Many Yucatec Maya and Mestizo families sought safety in
British Honduras British Honduras was a Crown colony on the east coast of Central America — specifically located on the southern edge of the Yucatan Peninsula from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony — renamed Belize from June 1973
(now Belize), settling in areas like
San Ignacio San Ignacio (the Spanish language name of St. Ignatius (disambiguation), St. Ignatius) is a common toponym in parts of the world where that language is or was spoken: Argentina * San Ignacio, Argentina, Misiones Province * San Ignacio Miní, a ...
, Corozal,
Orange Walk Orange walks, or Orange marches, are a series of parades by members of the Orange Order and other Protestantism, Protestant Fraternal organization, fraternal societies, held during the summer months in various Commonwealth of Nations, Commonw ...
, and Benque Viejo del Carmen. During the same period, some Mopan Maya were also fleeing forced labor and military conscription in
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
. They crossed into western Belize, where the British colonial government gave them temporary protection, allowing them to settle along the Mopan River.


Early economy and growth

The early settlers of Benque primarily engaged in agriculture, logging, and trade. Chicle tapping (harvesting sap from sapodilla trees for chewing gum production) became a major industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Many men from Benque worked as chicleros, tapping trees in the dense forests of western Belize. The
Mopan River The Mopan River is a river in Central America spanning the Petén Department of Guatemala and the Cayo District of Belize. It merges with the Macal River at Branch Mouth, Belize, forming the Belize River, which ultimately discharges into the Car ...
played a key role in trade, providing a natural route for transporting goods such as corn, beans, livestock, and timber. Benque’s location near the Guatemalan border also encouraged cross-border trade, a tradition that continues today.


Religious and cultural influence

As the town grew, so did its Catholic identity. The settlers built the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, which became the center of religious and social life. The church was named after the Virgin of Mount Carmel, the town’s patron saint. The annual Fiesta de la Virgen del Carmen, celebrated every July, remains one of Benque’s most important cultural events. Traditional marimba music, dances, and festivals became an essential part of Benque’s cultural heritage, heavily influenced by
Mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...
and Guatemalan traditions.


Formal recognition and growth in the 20th Century

By the early 1900s, Benque had become a well-established town with schools, churches, and local businesses. It was officially recognized as a town in 1904, solidifying its place in Belize’s history. The town continued to develop, and its economy remained tied to agriculture, forestry, and cross-border commerce.


Benque today

Despite its small-town charm, Benque has grown into a lively border community with a strong Belizean-Guatemalan cultural blend. The
Mopan River The Mopan River is a river in Central America spanning the Petén Department of Guatemala and the Cayo District of Belize. It merges with the Macal River at Branch Mouth, Belize, forming the Belize River, which ultimately discharges into the Car ...
, once a key trade route, is now a scenic spot for visitors and locals. The town is still known for its Catholic traditions, marimba music, and historical importance in Belize’s western region.


Historical background

Benque was first settled by
Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...
from Flores, El Petén,
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
. It grew as a lumber camp on the Mopan River that flowed into the Belize River, to the coast at Belize Town. The Mayas had been catechized by Spanish Catholic missionaries, leading to the predominance of the Catholic church in Benque, which holds the earliest
Baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...
al records in
Cayo District Cayo is a district located in the west part of Belize, and it contains the capital, Belmopan. It is the most extensive, second-most populous and third-most densely populated of the six districts of Belize. The district's capital is the town of S ...
from
Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
Fr. Bavastro in May 1865. In 1877 the town was served by Manuel Ignacio Santa Cruz Loidi, a
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
priest and military leader in the unsuccessful effort to defeat the liberals in Spain's
Third Carlist War The Third Carlist War (), which occurred from 1872 to 1876, was the last Carlist War in Spain. It is sometimes referred to as the "Second Carlist War", as the earlier Second Carlist War, "Second" War (1847–1849) was smaller in scale and relative ...
. During the 1880s Fr. Jose Maria Pinelo, a refugee from Petén during the presidency of Manuel Barillas, visited Benque, remaining from 1887 to 1889. In the 1890s the population was about 500. In 1904 a permanent Catholic residency was established by Jesuit Fr. William “Buck” Stanton. Then in 1913, at the persuasion of Jesuit Fr. Versavel, the Pallottine sisters came from Germany and served first in Benque. Mother (Saint)
Katharine Drexel Katharine Drexel, SBS (born Catherine Mary Drexel; November 26, 1858 – March 3, 1955) was an American Catholic religious sister, and educator. In 1891, she founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, a religious congregation serving Black ...
subsidized their convent from her inheritance. On the night of 16 November 1937 a fire destroyed the Church of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and Fr. Kuenzel undertook to build the new church. In 1950, Kuenzel persuaded the Town Board to name the new football field after Corporal Marchalleck through whose "self-sacrificing interest and persevering efforts hefootball campus came as if by magic out of what was hitherto useless tropical bush.". St. Joseph Convent on the street of that name was completed in 1952. On 18 January 1961 Fr. Sontag, Jesuit pastor in Benque, was found murdered at his desk in the rectory, with a machete the likely weapon. The perpetrator and motive remain a mystery. In 1963 a Catholic primary school building of reinforced concrete was built. The next year the Jesuits handed the parish over to the diocesan clergy, with Fr. Herbert Panton its first native pastor. The Catholic community
SOLT Solt (Croatian: ''Šolta'')Hrvatski glasnik br.35/2007.
Prvo mjesto na međunarodnome ...
increased its presence in Belize from the early 1990s, beginning in Benque. Deacon Cal Cathers of SOLT founded BRC printing in Benque to improve the quality of elementary school textbooks in Belize, with his grandson Daryl Rene Calvin Cathers to implement and encourage further development for humble town.


Demographics

At the time of the 2010 census, Benque Viejo del Carmen had a population of 6,148. Of these, 93.4% were
Mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...
, 2.4% Mixed, 1.5% Creole, 0.7% Asian, 0.5%
Garifuna The Garifuna people ( or ; pl. Garínagu in Garifuna) are a people of mixed free African and Amerindian ancestry that originated in the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent and traditionally speak Garifuna, an Arawakan language. The Garifuna ...
, 0.4%
Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...
, 0.3%
Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Common meanings *Anything from the Caucasus region or related to it ** Ethnic groups in the Caucasus ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus re ...
, 0.3% Mopan Maya, 0.2%
Yucatec Maya Yucatec Maya ( ; referred to by its speakers as or ) is a Mayan languages, Mayan language spoken in the Yucatán Peninsula, including part of northern Belize. There is also a significant diasporic community of Yucatec Maya speakers in San Fra ...
, 0.1% Ketchi Maya and 0.1% African.Population & Housing Census 2010
/ref> During the first years of the 21st century Benque experienced a rapid boom in population. In 2010 its population, mostly of
Maya Maya may refer to: Ethnic groups * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Mayan languages, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (East Africa), a p ...
or
Mestizo ( , ; fem. , literally 'mixed person') is a term primarily used to denote people of mixed European and Indigenous ancestry in the former Spanish Empire. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also refer to people who are culturall ...
descent, was 5,824 (2,906 males and 2,918 females); households numbered 1,415 with average size 4.1." MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS OFFICIAL RESULTS 4th MARCH 2015
Belize Elections and Boundaries Commission The Belize Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) is the primary electoral body in Belize. It supervises all local and national elections. The commission also establishes the boundaries of Belize's electoral divisions. Formation and duties The ...
. (accessed 16 March 2015)
In terms of languages spoken (multiple answers allowed), 97.0% spoke
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
, 69.9% English, 7.4% Creole, 0.6%
Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
or
Cantonese Cantonese is the traditional prestige variety of Yue Chinese, a Sinitic language belonging to the Sino-Tibetan language family. It originated in the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) and its surrounding Pearl River Delta. While th ...
, 0.5%
Garifuna The Garifuna people ( or ; pl. Garínagu in Garifuna) are a people of mixed free African and Amerindian ancestry that originated in the Caribbean island of Saint Vincent and traditionally speak Garifuna, an Arawakan language. The Garifuna ...
, 0.3%
Yucatec Maya Yucatec Maya ( ; referred to by its speakers as or ) is a Mayan languages, Mayan language spoken in the Yucatán Peninsula, including part of northern Belize. There is also a significant diasporic community of Yucatec Maya speakers in San Fra ...
, 0.2% Ketchi Maya, 0.2% Mopan Maya, 0.1%
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
and 0.3% other languages; 0.1% could not speak. Benque has long been the place where tourists and merchants cross to Melchor and purchase Maya textiles. Now Guatemalan youth cross the border each day to receive a secondary education in English. Benque offers primary and secondary education,
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
s, an annual fiesta, and is
home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
to a Belize Premier Football League team. The
ancient Maya The Maya civilization () was a Mesoamerican civilization that existed from antiquity to the early modern period. It is known by its ancient temples and glyphs (script). The Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing ...
ruins of
Xunantunich Xunantunich () is an Ancient Maya archaeological site in western Belize, about 70 miles (110 km) west of Belize City, in the Cayo District. Xunantunich is located atop a ridge above the Mopan River, well within sight of the Guatemala border – w ...
are nearby. Film director Caleb Botton used the town as the backdrop for ''7 Days in Carmel'' which featured Benque's
Holy Week Holy Week () commemorates the seven days leading up to Easter. It begins with the commemoration of Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, marks the betrayal of Jesus on Spy Wednesday (Holy Wednes ...
processions. As of May 2015, the mayor is Heraldo "Rancha" Ramcharan Jr. of the United Democratic Party, which also controls the town council.


References

{{Coord, 17, 04, N, 89, 08, W, region:BZ_type:city, display=title Populated places in Cayo District Cayo West Belize–Guatemala border crossings