Blog Post #3: Saint Barthélemy

 The island of Saint Barthélemy is a Caribbean island that is part of the overseas collectivity of France. The French overseas collective are islands that were once French colonies or outposts that now operate as semi-autonomous nations, meaning they make their own local laws but are still bound to the federal laws of France. Many of these islands still use the French flag as their own national flag Saint Barthélemy being one of them.

The island is believed to be uninhabited, due to a lack of water sources and poor soil, until 1493 when Christopher Columbus arrived making him the first European to land there, naming the island after his brother Bartholomew Columbus. He passed through the island occasionally but never officially colonized the island, that achievement was claimed by the French is 1648. The island was abandoned in 1656 due to an attack on the new settlement by the Caribs and was later purchased by the French West India Company in 1660 but by 1674 the company dissolved and the island became part of the French Kingdom.

The lack of natural resources was still a prevalent problem after colonization making the island unsuccessful economically and it no longer seemed cost effective to keep the island prompting King Louis XVI to trade the island to Sweden in 1784. This puts 
Saint Barthélemy in a class all on its own as the only island in the Caribbean that ever had a prevalent Swedish presence, and they used the island as a free port for trading. This bolstered the economy of the island as the island itself didn’t create tradable natural resources but it was located in a convenient place for European trading. But after a huge hurricane in 1852, the once thriving economy began to struggle once again prompting Sweden to return the island back to the French in order to save costs and the French have owned the Island ever since. 

In 1946 the people of the island became official French Citizens and the economy began to flourish as they built out the tourism sector which they still rely on to this day as many Caribbean islands do. The French influence is still seen there today as the national language of the island is French and they celebrate all the French holidays. Interestingly though, while the food is primarily French Cuisine the music of the island is more representative of its geographical location. Every year in January they host the Saint Barthélemy Music Festival with performances from many calypso and reggae artists.

Islands For Adoption:

• Saint Barthélemy
• Guadelupe
• Grenada
  
  

References: 

CIA. Saint Barthelemy, Central Intelligence Agency, 8 Feb. 2021, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/saint-barthelemy/.

“History of Saint Barthélemy.” Lonely Planet, 2015, www.lonelyplanet.com/st-barthelemy/history.