Place Information
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Saint Barthélemy, officially the Collectivity of Saint Barthélemy (French: Collectivité de Saint-Barthélemy), is an overseas collectivity of France. To the northwest lies St. Martin, to the southwest Saba, to the south St. Eustatius and St. Kitts, and ultimately to the southeast Barbuda. It has an area of 21 km² and a population of 8,398 (census 2006). Its capital is Gustavia, which is also its main harbor. Also known as Saint Barth in French, or St. Barts in English, the collectivity is one of the four territories among the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean that comprise the French West Indies, along with Guadeloupe, Martinique and St. Martin. It is the only one to have historically been a Swedish colony. The Swedish influence can still be found in architecture and street names. The language, cuisine and culture are distinctly French. History
Saint Barthélemy was first claimed by France, in 1648. It was sold to Sweden in 1784, which sold it back to France in 1878. Slavery was practiced in Saint-Barthélemy under the "Ordinance concerning the Police of Slaves and free Coloured People" of 1787. The last legally owned slaves in the Swedish colony of Saint-Barthélemy were bought free by the state on 9 October 1847. The Swedish period left its mark in the names of many of the streets and the town (in honor of King Gustav III), and the presence of Sweden's national arms, the Three Crowns in the island's coat of arms, along with the Maltese cross, the Fleur-de-lis, the mural crown, two pelicans, and the island's supposed Amerindian name "OUANALAO". Research Tips
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