ST. BARTHELEMY ISLAND

Personally, I like this island and will sure pay a visit to it one day because of their best dishes and beautiful beaches. St Barthelemy is an overseas of collectivity of France in the Caribbean. It abbreviated to St Barth in French and St. Barts in English. The capital of St. Barts is Gustavia, it is only the Caribbean island that was a Swedish colony for any significant length of time before the end of the Napoleonic Wars. Before the Treaty of  Paris, Guadeloupe came under the Swedish rule for a year, because of that the Swedish national arms and the Three Crowns still appearing the island's coat of arms. However, the country's cuisine, and culture are clearly French.

In the early period, the island was called "Ouanalao" , it is believed that the island was not inhabited permanently due to its poor water sources and soil. The first European to encounter the island was Christopher Columbus in 1493. By 1648 the island was settled by French, encouraged by Phillippe de Longvilliers de Pioncy, the lieutenant-governor of French West India Company, and initially comprised about 50-60 settlers. In 1656 the settlers was attacked by Caribs and briefly abandoned.  Five years later, it was bought by the French West India Company along with the orders other possessions in the Caribbean. In 1674 the company was dissolved and the islands became part of the French Kingdom and added to the colony of Guadeloupe. 

In the 19th century, the last legally owned slaves in the Swedish colony of St. Barthelemy were granted their Freedom by the state on 9 October 1847. The people of the island became French citizens with full right on 19 March 1946. With some few economic prospects on the islands many men from St. Barthelemy took jobs on Saint Thomas to support their families. Organized tourism and hotels began in earnest the 1960s and developed in the 1970s onwards. St Barts gained their political independence from France ad Guadeloupe. I am really surprised because I was born a year before they gained their independence.  

The climate change in St. Barts is good for growing fruits, salts, cotton, and livestock. Also, tourism is one of their main source of income.  They have a carnival celebrated earlier before Ash Wednesday. They have cuisines like West Indian cuisine, steamed vegetables with fresh fish in the common dishes which comes with spring roll of shrimp and bacon, fresh grilled lobster, Chinese noodle salad with coconut milk, and grilled beef fillet and many more. Fun Fact; the island was named by Christopher Columbus for his younger brother Bartholomew Columbus in 1493. 

I would like to adopt St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Barthelemy, and Martinique

Esinu Marfo