Open Post- Fun Facts About Martinique

Early inhabitants of Martinique were Arawak and Carib people from South America.

The island was called Madinina (Island of Flowers) by the Caribs.

Christopher Columbus sighted Martinique in 1493 and visited the island in 1502.

French settlers arrived in Martinique in 1635; the island was claimed by France.

Slaves were introduced to the French West Indies in 1636.

In the mid seventeenth century sugarcane replaced tobacco as the main crop in Martinique.

Martinique was officially annexed by France in 1674.

The French colony of Guadeloupe became a dependency of Martinique. In 1775 it was decided to administer Guadeloupe and Martinique separately.

Martinique came under brief periods of English rule in the eighteenth century and early nineteenth century.

Apart from the brief occupations by the British, Martinique remained a French possession.

Victor Schoelcher, the French abolitionist, contributed to the end of slavery in the French colonies in 1848.

Martinique became a Department of France in 1946. The further status of Region was granted in 1974.

Presentation Day 2

What island?

Barbados

British Virgin Islands

Guadeloupe

St. Lucia

What did you learn?

A lot of famous artists go to studios in Barbados to record

Sailing festival -April Regatta, BVI Music Festival, festivals throughout the summer pretty much

Formally known as Karukera

Leakage revenue not going directly to the country 

Typical natives are typically unemployed during the tourist free seasons

What would you have liked to learn?

I would have liked to learn more of the American influence on music in Barbados

More of the history of the British Virgin Islands

More of the relationship between Guadeloupe and Martinique

What should presenters do?

Not read directly from the slide, speak in complete sentences, elaborate on main points, speak to the class instead of the board 

Map of British Virgin Islands

Guadeloupe woman

Leakage Diagram

Map of Barbados

Presentation Day 1

What islands or countries?

Anguilla

Costa Rica

Haiti

Grenada

Dominica

Dominican Republic

What did you learn?

Festival every first Monday and Friday, influenced by British, African, Indian, French, Dutch culture

Top 50 countries that is financially stable, 82% of land used for cash crops, brought slaves in for bananas, population slowly decreasing, people don’t leave their families until late in life when they can support themselves financially

Debt paying for the slave revolt, didn’t finish paying until ~1947

History of corrupt leaders, aids in how much Haiti struggles now 97% of proceeds to Haiti went to administrative fees

Grenada called Spice Island because of the amount of exports it does, Number 2 exporter of nutmeg in the world, main religion in Roman Catholicism , Americans led the revolution in the 1970’s, American’s came in to stop communism and start democracy

Serious pollution problem on the beaches which is affecting their tourism, poor people live in tents and can’t afford proper sanitation so they dump trash outside of their tent, dumping trash in large areas (man-made landfills)

Dominicans don’t feel as though they are of black descent 

What would you have liked to learn?

Origin of the festival, more of the history, how you actually play cricket, why is the pollution problem so bad in Dominica compared to other countries like America? Is it less developed?

What should presenters not do?

Less use of space fillers, read directly from the slide, mumble at the end of a sentence when they aren’t confident in what they’re saying

Haiti

Grenada Flag

Anguilla

Costa Rica

Located in the heart of the Caribbean islands, Martinique is one of the islands in the Lesser Antilles group. Its eastern coastline borders the Atlantic Ocean while its western coast is flanked by the Caribbean sea. Although the island is 4,350 miles away from France, it is presently a department of France, but things were not always this way...

Christopher Columbus discovered the island in 1493 when the indigenous Arawak and Carib Indians occupied the area, but Spain had little interest in the territory. On September 15, 1635, Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc, French governor of the island of St. Kitts, landed on Martinique with 150 French settlers. D'Esnambuc claimed Martinique for the French King Louis XIII and established the first European settlement at what we now know as St. Pierre. The British invaded and occupied the island from 1794 to 1815 which allowed Martinique to avoid the backlash of the French Revolution. By the time that the island was returned to France in 1815, France was beginning to enter into a period of stability, but shortly after France began to reoccupy the island, the sugar industry fell through and the plantation owners lost a lot of their political influence which caused the abolitionist movement to gain momentum. A French abolitionist writer of the time by the name of Victor Schoelcher convinced the provisional government of France to sign the 1848 Emancipation proclamation which would abolish slavery in the French West Indies. On May 8, 1902, Mont Pelée erupted and destroyed the capital of St. Pierre and killed the 30,000 people living there. The capital was then moved to Fort-de-France.

Like other countries in the Caribbean, Martinique has its own version of Carnival which is a four day event beginning just before Lent and ending on the first day of Lent. This is a high-energy event with parades, singing, drums, and other festivities. Martinique's culture blends French and Caribbean influences. Today, Martinique has a higher standard of living than most other Caribbean countries and is one of the most developed countries in the Lesser Antilles. The city of St. Pierre was often referred to as "The Paris of the Lesser Antilles" because of its heavy French influence. This influence also means that the majority of the population is Roman Catholic, but the Quimbois religion is also prevalent. It dates back to when the African slaves were first brought to Martinique. The official language of the island is French, but a Creole patois is widely used in addition.