Though a victory was won, the Battle of St George's Caye was not by itself decisive. Nor did it bring any change to the life of the slaves: even though they had fought valiantly alongside the Baymen, their owners expected them to go back to cutting mahogany - and also enabled them to claim that the slaves were willing to fight on behalf of their masters. Emancipation came no earlier than elsewhere in the British Empire. What the battle did show, however, was that the strength of the Spanish Empire was waning, while British power was expanding. Spain never again attempted to gain control of Belize, and the battle created the conditions for the settlement to become an integral part of the British Empire, with Britain gradually assuming a greater role in its government. Government House, built in Belize Town (later City) in 1814, housed the Superintendent (always an army officer) until 1862, when Belize became the colony of British Honduras , after which it served as home to the Governor, head of government under British colonial policy.