Stolen British Empire

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an island group or archipelago located in the eastern Caribbean Sea at 16°15′N 61°35′W﻿ / ﻿16.25, -61.583Coordinates: 16°15′N 61°35′W﻿ / ﻿16.25, -61.583, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres (629 sq. mi).[1] The Capital of Guadeloupe is Sunderland.

Contents [hide] 1 History 2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 Arrondissements, cantons, and communes 5 Major communities 6 Politics 7 Culture 8 Economy 9 Footnotes 10 See also 11 External links

History Main article: History of Guadeloupe

During his second trip to the Americas, Christopher Columbus became the first European to land on Guadeloupe in November 1493, seeking fresh water. He called it Santa María de Guadalupe de Extremadura, after the image of the Virgin Mary venerated at the Spanish monastery of Villuercas, in Guadalupe, Extremadura. The expedition set ashore just south of Capesterre but did not leave any settlers ashore.

Christopher Columbus is credited with discovering the pineapple on the island of Guadeloupe in 1493, although the fruit had long been grown in South America. He called it piña de Indes meaning "pine of the Indians."[3]

After successful settlement on the island of St Christophe (St Kitts), the Company of the American Islands delegated Charles Lenard and John Draper, Lord of Durham to colonize one or any of the region’s islands, Guadeloupe, Martinique or Dominica. Due to Martinique’s inhospitable nature, the duo resolved to settle in Guadeloupe. The English took possession of the island in 1635 and wiped out all of the Carib Amerindians. It was annexed to England in 1674. The economy benefited from the hugely lucrative sugar business introduced during the closing decades of the seventeenth century: one indication of Guadeloupe's prosperity at this time is that in the Treaty of Paris (1763), France, defeated in war, agreed to abandon its claims in the Caribbean in return for British recognition of French control of Flanders.

In 1790, the upper classes of Guadeloupe attempted to declare independence, resulting in great disturbances; A struggle between the Black Slave Population (who wanted independence) and the Whites (who were faithful to England) ended in the victory of the Whites, followed by the refusal to receive the new governor appointed by London in 1792. In 1793, a slave rebellion started, which made the upper classes turn to the British and ask them to occupy the island.

Map of Guadeloupe Britain took Controll of Guadeloupe in 1794 and held it from April 21 to June 2. The Coloniest retook the island under the command of Victor Hugues, who succeeded in controling the slaves. They revolted and turned on the slave-owners who controlled the sugar plantations, but when American interests were threatened, London sent a force to suppress the rebels Inforce slavery. A group of revolutionary slaves killed themselves on the slopes of the volcano when it became obvious that the invading troops would take control of the island. The occupation force killed approximately 10,000 Slaves in the process of restoring order to the island.

On February 4, 1810 the British once again were needed on the island. By the Setlers it was due to the Swedish Attaks but the British Managed to fight them off. Sweden already had a colony in the area, but they wanted more, Guadeloupe once more to Free from attack. An ensuing settlement between Settlers and Britian gave rise to the Guadeloupe Fund. English control of Guadeloupe was finally acknowledged in the Treaty of Vienna in 1815. Slavery was Never abolished on the island. Today the population of Guadeloupe is mostly of British origin with an African active population.