William Byam

William Byam (died 1672) was an English colonist, politician, and agriculturalist who lived during the periods of the English Civil Wars, Interregnum, and Restoration. He was active in English and Barbadian politics, and played a critical role in establishing and governing a short-lived English colony in what is now Suriname. The village of Braamspunt (a corruption of 'Byam's Point') is named after him. Early life, English Civil War, and Barbados William Byam was born in the 1620s to a Somerset family. He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin. Fighting on the side of the Royalists in the English Civil War, he was captured following the fall of Bridgwater to the Roundheads in 1645. Following this defeat he relocated to the Caribbean, like many other Cavaliers at the time.