Saint Kitts and Nevis - Saint Kitts und Nevis

Saint Kitts and Nevis lies in the Caribbean.

background

The islands were discovered by Columbus on November 12, 1493 on his second voyage. He gave the northern island its name San Cristobal, he called the southern one Nuestro Senora de Las Nievas. He never landed on either of the two islands. But even the Spaniards after Columbus were not interested in these insignificant islands, so they remained untouched habitat of the indigenous indigenous population for over 100 years. Their name was the island Liamuiga, "fertile land".

These two northern islands of the Lesser Antilles are something like the front door to the southern Caribbean. In 1622 an attempt by the two captains failed Thomas Painton and Sir Robert Thomas Warner to conquer land on the north coast of South America. On the way back to England they landed on the island of Saint Christopher, where Warner spent several months. On his return he got permission from King Charles I and the financial support from the London merchant Ralph Merrifield to return with some settlers there to grow tobacco. In 1623 Thomas Warner landed with 15 other settlers at what is today Old Road Town called. Saint Christopher is referred to as the British mother colony in the Caribbean.

Other European seafaring nations such as France also wanted to share in the wealth of the New World. In October 1624, a French privateer ship under the leadership of Pierre Belain d´Esnambuc Serious damage in a battle with Spaniards in the waters off St. Kitts. Thomas Warner gave the French permission to repair their ship on land. During that time they were also allowed to clear land and plant tobacco. While the Carib Indians had welcomed the appearance of the English in a friendly manner, they saw themselves threatened by the additional French. They called on tribal brothers from other islands and attacked the English and the French. These also allied and by 1626 all Indians were expelled from the island. A treaty was negotiated between the two nations, entered into force on May 13, 1627 and carried out until 1662. In it the French got land in the north and south of the island, the English got the middle part. The isthmus with the salt lake in the far south remained neutral and was used by both nations.

In 1628 Thomas Warner began colonizing the neighboring island of Nevis. Pierre Belain d´Esnambuc founded the place Basseterre. The d´Esnambuc, sponsored by the French Cardinal Richelieu, was appointed governor. In the same year he founded the trading company Company de Saint-Christophe. Their aim was to promote colonization and achieve maximum profit. For the same reason he sent settlers to the islands south of in 1632 Antigua, came through it Guadeloupe and Martinique French owned in 1635. When d´Esnambuc died a year later, the knight became Lonvilliers de Poincy his successor; Sir Thomas Warner died in 1648. One of his descendants was Charles Warner, who owned large lands on the island Dominica acquired.

Spain initially watched this settlement without doing anything. After the Indians were killed or driven from the island and more and more non-Spanish settlers populated the islands, countermeasures were planned. Every year a fleet of arms, wheat and equipment sailed from Spain to the colonies in Central America. In 1629 received the escort fleet of 35 ships with 7,500 soldiers under the leadership of Don Fadrique de Toledo the order to destroy the settlements on St. Kitts on the way to Cartagena and Veracruz. The island population resisted unsuccessfully. 700 settlers were captured and sent back to Europe. Another 400 were able to hide in the center of the island and start working in the fields again after leaving Toledo.

Tobacco and cotton were initially the main crops on the island, in 1638 around 225 tons of tobacco were sold to Europe. In 1648 Dutch religious refugees brought sugar cane seedlings from Brazil with to St. Kitts. In the following years, large parts of the island were cleared and sugar cane plantations were built everywhere.

In 1666, the friendly behavior between the English and French on the island changed as a result of the Second Dutch War, in which the English and French in Europe were hostile to each other. At Old Road Town there was the first fighting between the two nations. As a result, the English built Fort Charles there as the first fortified structure on the island. In 1689 the French managed to occupy the island. The following year the English landed under the leadership of Sir Timothy Thornhill in Frigate Bay. They drove the French troops west along the coast, where they holed up in Fort Charles. Sir Thornhill had a cannon set up on Brimstone Hill and shot at Fort Charles on the coast from there, the French had to surrender.

It was not until 1713 in the Treaty of Utrecht that the British were finally granted the island. By 1726, all of the former French lands on the island were auctioned in lots of 80 hectares. In the ten years between 1721 and 1730, over 10,000 "negro slaves" were brought to the island for plantation work.

In 1724 3,000 whites and 10,500 slaves lived on the island, in 1775 there were only 1,880 whites but 20,500 slaves. Between 1710 and 1770 sugar production increased from 1,000 to 10,000 tons.

In January 1782 a French fleet with 8,000 soldiers landed in the Bay of Basseterre. 600 East Yorkshire Royal Scots and 350 militiamen withdrew to Brimstone Hill, where they were besieged by the French and forced to surrender. At the same time, there were naval battles between the British fleet, led by Admiral Samuel Hood, and the French. Of Barbados from he attacked the fleet of de Grasse with a fleet of 22 ships and damaged many French ships.

A year later, in the Treaty of Versailles, France and Spain fully recognized British property rights. During the Napoleonic Wars, the island was briefly occupied again by the French in 1805.

In 1843 the islands were struck by an earthquake, which one also caused St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) and Saint Vincent still felt.

The abolition of slavery in 1834 brought little relief to the colored population. The ruling plantation owners did not provide any land for the 20,000 former slaves, so they were still tied to their old masters. In addition, 1,500 Portuguese workers left the island between 1840 and 1850 Madeira recruited, but few stayed there beyond their contract period.

In 1854 cholera broke out on the island. 4,000 islanders died from the disease. The next catastrophe occurred in January 1880. In the center of the island, 88 cm of rain fell in a single day. This “great flood” cost the lives of over 350 people.

In 1871, Saint Christopher and Nevis were incorporated into the Union of the Leeward Islands. Since 1882, both islands have formed a state union with one citizenship.

The drop in sugar prices forced many islanders to look for work on the surrounding islands. Others tried their luck in the only town on the island, Basseterre. As a result, around half of the island's population lived there in 1890. The aftermath of the global economic crisis also had its consequences on St. Kitts in the early 1930s, with riots repeatedly resulting in deaths. The British colonial administration initially only sent the gunboat HMS Leander to Basseterre. In 1932 the Worker's League was founded, which basically saw itself as a party and from which the Nevis Labor Party later emerged. In 1938 the average daily wage was between 32 and 36 cents. As early as 1935 this had led to a general strike among agricultural workers.

When in 1940 the union St. Kitts-Nevis Trade and Labor Union was founded, the plantation owners lost their absolute claim to power. However, decisive reforms did not take place until after 1952, when the constitution was changed and the composition of the government was reformed in the following years.

In February 1967, St. Kitts and Nevis became an autonomous state associated with Great Britain. Independence was planned for 1980. In the same year the conservative St. Kitts Labor Party, which had ruled for 30 years, lost the general election with only 4 out of 9 seats. The alliance of People's Action Movement and Nevis Reformation Party then enforced complete independence on September 19, 1983, against the will of the SKLP, without a referendum and without new elections.

The main crop on the island was sugar cane until 2005. But since the year 2000 this industry has lost a lot of its importance. In 2005, sugar processing at Saint Kitts was completely stopped. Since then, efforts have been made to attract foreign investors, a changed agricultural policy and the expansion of tourism. From this point of view, the expansion of the road to the southeast end of the island can be seen. The 10.5 km long Dr. Kennedy Simmonds Highway was completed in 1992 and leads to Banana Bay.

In 1998, the leadership of the island of Nevis once again pushed through a referendum on the secession and independence of the island. The required majority of 66.67% was only just missed with 61.6%. Political problems are inevitable in the future as well due to this tight election result. Especially since the Concerned Citizens Movement had made its future dependent on this choice.

Regions

The country consists only of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis.

• Saint Kitts is the larger of the two islands. It is of volcanic origin, as evidenced by three volcanic cones that are separated from each other by deep gorges.
• Nevis is a round island and only separated from the larger island of Saint Kitts by a 4 km wide sea channel. Only about a quarter of the population lives on this island. The highest point on the island is Mount Nevis at 1,090 m.

getting there

Entry requirements

Tourists from EFTA countries only need a valid passport and a return or onward ticket for a stay of up to three months. The passport must be valid for another six months upon entry. All other travelers must apply for an eVisa (2021: US $ 100). With the printed out one receives the visa from the border officer on arrival.

Exit regulations

When leaving the country, all persons over 12 years of age have to pay an airport tax of 60 EC dollars or 22 US dollars.

Foreign exchange regulations

The import of foreign currencies is unlimited, the import of EC $ must be declared by customs, the export may not exceed the value of the import.

By boat

There are two harbors on each of the two islands.

• Bird Rock Deep Water Harbor, Basseterre, cargo port
• Port Zante, Basseterre, the new pier for cruise ships, right next to it a mini marina and the ferry pier to Nevis
• Charlestown Harbor, three piers for the ferry to Saint Kitts and for fishing
• Nevis Deep Water Harbor, cargo port, a good 4 km south of Charlestown

By plane

Each of the two islands has its own airport.

• Robert Llewllyn Bradshaw International Airport, Basseterre
• Vance Winkworth Amory Airport, Newcastle

mobility

There are some intercity buses on both islands, there are rental cars and taxis, attention: Left-hand traffic.

language

English is spoken on the islands, mixed with a local dialect.

kitchen

Good soups are also prepared on this archipelago. Often, especially on Saturdays, there are some simple cooking utensils on the beach or riverside and men cook soup and later sell it on the roadside. Bull Foot Soup contains bull's feet, onions, tomatoes, peppers, pumpkin and spices. Chicken Feet Soup contains onions, tomatoes, lentils, plantains and of course chicken feet. Manish water is cooked from a whole goat's head, served with plantains and noodles.

public holidays

• January 1st | New Year | New Year
• January 2nd | Carnival Day | Carnival day
• Good Friday | Good Friday April 2, 2021
• Easter Monday | Easter Monday
• 1st Monday in May | Labor Day | Labor Day
• 2nd Saturday in June | Queen's birthday
• Whit Monday | Whit Monday May 24th 2021
• 1st Monday in August | Emancipation Day | Liberation Day
• September 16 | National Hero's Day | Day of Folk Heroes
• September 19 | Independence Day | Independence day
• December 25th | Christmas | Christmas
• December 26th | Boxing Day | Christmas holiday

health

There are privately practicing doctors and dentists. International health insurances are not recognized, treatments are to be paid in cash in US dollars.

literature

• Caribbean - Lesser Antilles, APA Guide, Langenscheidt KG, Munich, 1st edition 1999/2000, ISBN 3-8268-2330-3
• Leeward Islands, K. C. Nash, Hunter Travel Guides, USA, 3rd Edition, 2008, ISBN 978-1-58843-642-9

Maps

• The Map of St. Kitts & Nevis, scale 1: 50,000, with a map of Basseterre and Charlestown in a scale of 1: 12,500, Ordnance Survey, Series E703 (D.O. p. 443), Edition 1-D. O. S. 1979

Web links

• Tourist Board: http://stkittstourism.kn
• Nevis Tourism Authority: http://nevisisland.com