Marie-Gallant

Administration

Since the beginnings of colonization, Marie Galante was always attached administratively to the district of Point with Clown (Guadeloupe) except the revolutionary period of 1793/1794. She was republican whereas the remainder of the Guadeloupe was still royalist.

In 1994, its three communes were constituted in Communauté of communes, the first created in a overseas department. Its chief town is Large-Borough , the two other communes being Saint-Louis and Capesterre .

Demography

Marie Galante counted in 1946 30.000 inhabitants. Strongly marked by the massive exodus of its young people towards the Guadeloupe and France, the island did not count any more but in 1999 than 12.400 inhabitants. This fall of the population is related to the slow anguish of the sugar economy for this period.

Geography

Some call Marie-Gallant the Grande Wafer because of its round form 15 km in diameter. The island is undulating substrate calcareous, sprinkled by the trade wind but such a subjected to the Cyclone S and the earthquakes.

The northern coast, vis-a-vis the Large-Ground, is characterized by a high cliff. A fault called the Bar separates the northern quarter from the remainder of the island. To the west, vis-a-vis the Low-Ground, beaches and Mangrove S extend along the Caribbean Sea. The rivers of Saint-Louis and the Old man-Extremely run out there after having crossed the insular plate since the heart of Marie-Gallant. In the east and the south, the plate becomes dull to rock inclined escarpées towards a littoral plain. This one skirts the Atlantique from which it is protected by a coral barrier, the Cayes .

Environment

Part of the animal and vegetable inheritance terrestrial was degraded following the human activities. Except in the west, fringing Récif S still shelter many marine species. They are developed little. In the west of the island a coral bench is present at 20 meters basic approximately. Herbaria of Phanérogame S navy populate the sandy funds littoral, in a discontinuous way.

History

At the 3rd century, the Arawak S were installed on the island, which they called Touloukaéra . The the Caribbean occupied it at the 9th century and gave him for name Aïchi or Aulinagan , ground with Coton. The Amerindian populations cultivated also Manioc and had learned the use of the medicinal plants. They also lived of fishing. One found in caves and the vestiges of their villages of the Céramiques, the Pétroglyphes and the religious objects.
Then the island was baptized on November 3rd 1493 Maria Galanda , at the time of the second voyage of Christophe Colomb, thus taking the name of its caravel which would have approached it with Anse Ballet .
about fifty French colonists was installed in 1648 near the locality Old man-Extremely , by the governor Charles Houël. In 1653, a second strong east builds with Large-Borough . The population suffered from difficult living conditions and undergoes the attacks of the Caribbean until in 1660, year when a peace treaty was signed with Low-Ground between autochtones and colonists.
During this second half of the 17th century, the first slaves were brought of Africa to Marie-Gallant to cultivate the plantations. In 1671, the black population constituted 57% of the inhabitants. Of the exiled Jewish Dutchmen of the Brésil also settled, while bringing their farming techniques of the cane to sugar.
In 1676, a Dutch fleet removed the population and plundered its installations. After the repopulation of the island, its new inhabitants were tackled three other times by the Dutchmen.
Of 1692 with 1816, English and French disputed the island with five recoveries. During this period, Marie-Gallant of 1792 with was independent 1794.
In 1790, out of 11.500 Galandais, 9.400 were slaves.
In 1838, a fire devastated Large-Borough, and in 1843, the island was touched by an earthquake.
the revolts of slaves and the intervention of the French abolitionists led in 1848. With Marie-Gallant, the final abolition of the Esclavage was celebrated during 3 days and 3 nights around the pond with the punch with the Habitation Dugout . But these events did not mark the end of colonial violences. At the time of the legislative elections of 1849, the police force repressed, with the dull Rouge , freed which was opposed to the fraud organized by the large growers. 1920 will have to be awaited so that descendants of slaves become owners of a sugar refinery to Marie-Gallant.
In 1865, a cyclone then the cholera struck the island and its population. In 1902, a second fire devastated Large-Borough. Cyclones still touched the island in 1928 and 1995.

Economy & Culture

The colonial economy developed on the island the cultures of the Tabac, of the Indigo, the Café and the Coton. But as of the 17th century, the growers made Canne with sugar a very important source of revenue. It was maintained at the 19th century and 20th century, adapting to the abolition of slavery and the great sugar crisis.

This culture of the cane, Marie-Gallant a nickname inherited: the island with the hundred mills . One counted in 1818 a little more than one hundred of Moulin S, which made it possible to crush the cane. The juice which was drawn by it was transformed into Sucre or Rhum. The mills were originally actuated by oxen, then windmills appeared starting from 1780, in their turn competed with by mills with vapor starting from 1883.

The 19th century saw disappearing the economic organization from the Ancien Mode. Gradually, all the small sugar refineries were restructured in sugar factories. In 1885, 5 sites gathered the activity. In 1931, 18 distillings and 4 factories sugar were in production. The large plantations made place with small farms, organized at the 20th century around co-operatives. But agriculture is subjected in all the French West Indies to a strong international competition. At this beginning of 21e century, 1 sugar refinery ( factory of Large Handle ) and 3 distillings ( Bellevue , Rod , Poisson ) remain with Marie-Gallant. The agricultural white rum which is produced there is the subject of a label of origin. The biological sugar production could also be a new axis of development, but the current context of stop of the European subsidies makes dubious the future agricultural and thus economic of Marie-Gallant and its inhabitants.

Old economy, one can still see many vestiges. This historical richness is development: some 70 turns including 2 restored mills ( Mill of Bézard ), colonial dwellings and old sugar refineries ( Dwelling Murat ). A network of paths makes it possible to the hikers to discover the island and its population.

Thus Marie-Gallant she in her turn knows, like the other islands of Guadeloupe, the economic transfer which the tourist activity allows. But the development of these services is based here on a policy of nature conservation and inheritance, whether it is précolombien, colonial or contemporary. The Marie-Galantais preserve a picturesque lifestyle thus combining modernity and authenticity. Whereas the island has beaches among most famous of the archipelago, hotel industry is discrete there. On the other hand, of the international artists each year at the time of the Creole Festival Blues during the weekend of Pentecost are found there.

Famous characters

In 1645, Constant of Aubigné was the governor, discrete, of Marie-Gallant. His/her daughter Francoise d' Aubigné accompanied it. Several years afterwards, it was going to become Madam de Maintenon but, of its stay in the Antilles, will remain to him the nickname of Belle Indian .

Charles-François Bonneville, born on March 13rd, 1803 in Brancourt (Aisne) was mayor and general adviser of Large Borough of 1854 to 1860. Also president of the Room of Agriculture, he is the craftsman of the revival of the culture of cotton long silk which he tries out on the Thibault dwelling. (source: Daily life with Gallant Marie - Philippe and Jacqueline Nucho-Troplent - Editions Harmattan)

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