Saint Vincent and the Grenadines — map and facts

About Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a small island nation in the southern Windward Islands of the eastern Caribbean. It consists of the main island of Saint Vincent and a chain of smaller islands and cays collectively known as the Grenadines, which stretch southward toward Grenada. The capital and largest city is Kingstown on Saint Vincent, home to approximately 25,000 people. The country's total population is around 110,000. It is an independent constitutional monarchy with the British monarch as head of state, represented by a governor-general. The country gained independence on 27 October 1979 and is a member of CARICOM and the Commonwealth. The economy has traditionally relied on banana cultivation, but following the decline of preferential export arrangements, tourism and offshore financial services have grown. The Grenadines are a popular yachting and sailing destination, particularly the islands of Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, and Union Island. Saint Vincent was among the last Caribbean islands to be colonised, partly due to fierce Carib resistance.

Geography and Landscape

Saint Vincent covers approximately 344 square kilometres, while the Grenadines add another 45 square kilometres spread across numerous small islands and cays. Saint Vincent is a rugged, volcanic island dominated by La Soufrière volcano in the north, which rises to 1,234 metres and is the highest point in the eastern Caribbean. La Soufrière has erupted several times in recorded history, with major eruptions in 1902, 1979, and most recently in April 2021, when tens of thousands of residents were evacuated from the north of the island. The central and southern parts of Saint Vincent are also hilly and densely vegetated. The Colonarie and Yambou rivers are the main watercourses. Mesopotamia Valley in the south is fertile and productive. The Grenadines are lower and flatter, with sandy beaches, coral reefs, and calm turquoise waters. Bequia is the largest of the Grenadines at around 18 square kilometres. The Tobago Cays, a small cluster of uninhabited islets surrounded by reef, form a marine park within the Grenadines.

History

Saint Vincent was inhabited by the Arawak people and then the Island Caribs, who called it Hairouna. Columbus sighted the island on 22 January 1498, Saint Vincent's Day. European attempts to settle the island in the seventeenth century were vigorously resisted by the Caribs. The French established a settlement at Barrouallie in 1719 and developed sugar plantations using enslaved African labour. African survivors of a shipwreck near Bequia intermingled with the Caribs to form a distinct community known as the Black Caribs, or Garifuna. Britain gained control under the Treaty of Paris in 1763. The Second Carib War of 1795–1797, led by the Garifuna chief Chatoyer — the country's only national hero — ended in defeat, and around 5,000 Garifuna were deported to Roatán off the coast of Honduras. Emancipation came in 1834. The island became part of the British Windward Islands colony. It gained autonomy as an Associated State in 1969 and full independence on 27 October 1979 under Prime Minister Milton Cato. Ralph Gonsalves has served as prime minister since 2001.