-A brief trip into the past. Let’s go back about 2000 BC, just after the last ice-age. Our island was primarily inhabited by Amerindians, until 550 BC when the Arawak Indians arived and took over. They changed the islands name to “Oualichi”, (the island of women), and bought with then knowledge od the stars, of the plants, and navigation skills. They were very similar to the Mayar civilization. It wasn’t until the 14th century, when the tranquility of the island was shatterd. The Caribs were more savage, killing the Arawak men and putting their women into slavery. They renamed the island, “Soualiga”, or the island of salt. The famous Spaniard, Christopher Columbus, on his third trip to the Caribbean, "discovered" our island anew and named it after the saints day "Saint Martin". It was november 11th 1493. He didn't even step foot on the island, just sailed past ! The Europeans finally decided to make the island theirs in 1630 when the island started a long history wiped out, as the Spanish, Dutch, French and English fought for control of the island, rich in salt. A very much sought commodity for them. Finally, on 23rd March 1648, the "treaty of Partition" was signed by the French and Dutch. The French were to keep the northern, the Dutch, the Southern. As on neighbouring island slavey came to Saint-Martin. Africans were made to work in cotton and sugar-cane fields, and in the harvest of coffee and tobacco. Life was hard, as the island had poor soil and no fresh water except for rain water. With the abolition of slavery in the mid 19th century the fields were abandoned as the Europeans returned to their homelands. The slaves were free ! Salt continued to be harvested, and exported right up until the 1960's. It was the tourist trade that was to be the future of our island. With the building of the first airport in 1943, Saint-Martin started to open up to the world, and slowly became the tourist mecca it is today.
Discovered by Christopher Colombus in 1493, and baptized according to his brother Barthélemy, Saint Barth was colonized first in 1648 by natives of the close island of Saint-Kitts. This first colonization was not a great success and in 1651, the island was sold to the order of Malta. Five years later, a raid of the Caribbean Indians destroyed the colony massacring all the colonists. Their head was planted on spades along the beach of Lorient to discourage other visitors. In 1763, the island was once more colonized, this time by French sailors of Normandy and Brittany. This colony succeeded. French buccaneers were well, and improved there the economic conditions thanks to significant booties brought back from Spanish galions. Monbars the Exterminator, a famous buccaneer of noble French origin, is known to have made of Saint Barth his home port. It is reported that its treasure is always hidden in one of the splits of the Anse of the Governor, or is buried in the sand of Saline. Gradually, the buccaneers became small merchants, tradesmen, fishermen and farmers. The island was however too small, too rocky, and too dry to take part in the sugar economy of the larger islands. Apart from a short attack by the English in 1758, Saint Barth remained French until 1784, where it was suddenly sold to Sweden by one of the ministers of Louis XIV in exchange of commercial laws in the Swedish port of Gothenburg. As a free port of Swedish right, Saint Barth was used as a center of trade and supply for the various factions in the colonial war during the 18th century. When a captain made spoils of war or plundered a colony, he could come and sell its spoils in Saint Barth, and restock by the same occasion. Warehouses overflowing of goods enclosed the port which itself sheltered ships of all countries, and a tradition of trade and construction was born at this time, which still exists today. However, this boom ended quickly, with the end of hostilities, and the sailing ships were replaced by motor ships. France became again purchaser of the island in 1878. The statute of free port has been preserved until today, like some Swedish memories in the shape of buildings, of a cemetery, some street names and of course, the name of the port and capital, Gustavia. In 1946, Martinique and Guadeloupe, including Saint Barth, became French departments with all the rights and duties of the departments of France. In 1967, Great Britain left the majority of its West-Indian possessions because they became a too heavy burden to carry, without hope of improvement. Sugar is not any more a lucrative product, and increasing populations ask more and more public services without the local profits being able to face it. That year, France increased the amount of its assistance in the islands, and it did not stop increasing since then. During the twenty last years, the resident population of Saint Barth has more than doubled. Less natives leave the island and a growing number of French and foreigners come and settle there.
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