History History

Like the rest of the West Indies, its settlement dates back to the^4th millennium BC, with the migration of peoples from Central and South America. Their livelihood is based on fishing, wild plant gathering and underwater hunting. They used shells, bones and stone for their subsistence activities. These nomadic populations moved from island to island in canoe-like craft.

From 500 BC onwards, a new wave of settlers from South America spread to the Lesser Antilles. These communities, known as Saladoids, were more sedentary, developed agriculture, notably cassava, and exploited the interior by hunting small animals. Pottery made its appearance. Traces of their presence can be seen in Le Moule, Saint-François, Trois-Rivières and Marie-Galante.

The Arawaks (or Taïnos) arrived between 300 and 700 BC. Originally from the Orinoco region, they lived in communities in riverside villages until the ^8th century. Then came the navigating Indians, the Caribs or Kalinagos, also from Venezuela. The latter were more conquerors, gaining the upper hand over the peaceful Arawaks while sparing the women, resulting in a mixture of language and customs. The name Karukera, meaning "island of beautiful waters", comes from this community, which reigned unchallenged on the island until the arrival of Christopher Columbus.

The ensuing colonization turned into genocide, as the natives were decimated by diseases imported from the Old Continent and fighting with the new arrivals who wanted to subjugate them.

On April 17, 1492, the Genoese cartographer and sailor Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was appointed admiral by Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon. After a longer than expected voyage (35 days), which became historical, he arrived in the night of October 12, 1492 at the head of three ships(La Pinta, La Niña and La Santa Maria) and 90 men, to the islands known today as the Bahamas (in San Salvador), called Guanahani by the locals. Afterwards, he headed for Cuba and then Haiti, which he named Hispaniola ("the Spanish island"). Although these islands have different characters, the whole of their population will be called Tainos by "these arrivals from beyond the seas", the phonetic expression close to the indigenous words used to welcome them.

During his second voyage to the Americas, Christopher Columbus landed in Guadeloupe on the beach of Sainte-Marie, north of Capesterre Belle-Eau. A memorial has been erected in Sainte-Marie on the presumed site of the landing. The island was then populated by natives known as Kalinagos, renamed Caribs by the colonists. The Kalinagos nicknamed the land "Karukéra", meaning "island of beautiful waters". Christopher Columbus renamed it "Guadalupe", in reference to the Spanish monastery of Santa-Maria de Guadalupe.

The two worlds discover each other, but the encounter quickly turns into a disaster for the natives. Colonization, which had begun with the arrival of Columbus's fleets, was underway. From 1492 to 1502, barely ten years after the discovery of the Americas, the native population of the Greater Antilles declined, until it disappeared completely by the ^mid-17th century, decimated by new diseases imported from the Old Continent (influenza, smallpox, etc.), by fighting and punitive expeditions, by mass deportations and assimilation, and of course by slavery. The original inhabitants of the Lesser Antilles held out longer, as numerous documents attest, but they too disappeared in the ^19th century, victims of a veritable genocide.

In the first half of the 16th century, the administration of the new continent was hazardous because it depended entirely on the first Spanish settlers, who were no choirboys... Christopher Columbus died in 1506. The priorities being mainly commercial, the "small spaces" like Guadeloupe or Martinique do not interest the Spaniards. They preferred the Greater Antilles and part of the continent, following the papal decision that made Spain the sole master of the region. The island of Hispaniola, the first Spanish colony, became an important rear base in the Caribbean, and the first real relay of the Iberian expansion towards the continent. Spain focused on specific areas, neglecting large areas or leaving territories hostile to the natives. Their conversion into slaves proved to be a difficult task, so the conquistadors opted for a radical solution that they already knew: to help themselves in Africa. In Guadeloupe, the importation of slaves began later (1644).

After the island of Saint-Christophe (now Saint Kitts), the Compagnie des Isles d'Amérique sent Charles Liénard and Jean Duplessis, sieur d'Ossonville, to colonize one or more uninhabited islands, such as Guadeloupe, Martinique or Dominica. The first settlers arrived in Martinique in 1635. Judging it inhospitable, they settled in Guadeloupe. They first settled in Sainte-Rose and then moved to Basse-Terre and Capesterre Belle-eau. Poorly organized, the expedition encountered many difficulties, including famine and epidemics. The colonists observe the "savages", learn their know-how and discover the cultivation of manioc, sweet potatoes, yams... The indigenous goods are very quickly coveted and the colonists go on the attack! These conflicting episodes perfectly reflect the colonial mentality of the beginning. In 1616, Charles Houël, sieur de Petit Pré (1616-1682), became the governor of Guadeloupe. He welcomed a contingent of women in order to marry them to the candidate colonists

The planter (or "maître case") is at the top of the social pyramid. He is the owner of an agricultural area, which he farms through the intermediary of a commander (a trusted man) or a manager and a certain number of slaves or hired hands (the "36 months"). He lived on the "plantation" from which he ran his business. A distinction is generally made between African blacks, who work in the fields, and Creoles born on the island, who do domestic chores. The term nègre marron (brown negro ) was used to describe a runaway slave. Colonists who do not belong to the coveted planter class are called "petit-blanc" (pejorative) or "petit-habitant". Because of their limited means, they are often confused with hired hands.

On the commercial side, business was not going well. France was not doing well and Richelieu's company went bankrupt in 1648. So they sold "the goods". All the islands of the company were to be sold. The Compagnie des Isles d'Amérique went bankrupt and the islands were up for sale: in 1648 Charles Houël bought the Guadeloupe archipelago with his brother-in-law. The first French colonists settled in Les Saintes.

The islands of the Saintes have a military importance because of their strategic location and are the site of several battles at sea.

On August 15, 1666, France was victorious over the English fleet. The English, badly beaten by the passage of a cyclone, were badly beaten by the troops of the Saintes garrison. August 15 became the day of the patronal feast of the Saintes celebrated every year.

Better known as Father Labat, this botanist and explorer was a Dominican missionary. As such, he was the chronicler of the first years of colonization of the West Indies. Author of the famous book Nouveaux Voyages aux îles françaises d'Amérique, he is considered the "father" of rum: in order to cure a fever, he elaborated a brandy that would become the recipe for rum. The Rhum du Père Labat which bears his name is produced on the island of Marie-Galante.

Jean-Baptiste Colbert had the Compagnie des Indes occidentales established. The islands, including Guadeloupe, revert to the Crown.

The West India Company went bankrupt and was dissolved, but the Exclusif was maintained: France maintained a commercial monopoly with its colonies.

Established by Colbert and promulgated in 1685 under the aegis of Louis XIV, this civil code for the use of settlers in the French West Indies comprises 60 articles. The status, or rather the lack of legal status, of slaves is largely detailed in it, and will give rise to other later versions. The substance remains the same: the massive use of men and women for sugar cane plantations was to be regulated for the "good of public order" and was not to give rise to any familiarity with slaves. While in metropolitan France voices were already being raised against this system, in the colonies anything was allowed. The "commodification" of man appears to be the most violent feature of the Black Code.

Period during which Guadeloupe was occupied many times by the English.

Gabriel de Clieu, governor of Martinique, introduces coffee to the islands.

Under Louis XVI (1774-1791), finances were at their lowest ebb, but this did not prevent the king from providing financial support to the thirteen American colonies fighting for independence from England. France sought to take its revenge on England after the Seven Years' War (1756-1763), and the Treaty of Paris, signed on February 19, 1763, put an end to this world-wide war between Great Britain, Prussia and Hanover on the one hand, and France, Austria, Sweden, Saxony, Russia and Spain on the other. It divided the colonies and, among other things, granted French possessions to Great Britain

It took place from 9 to 12 April 1782 between the English fleet led by Admirals Samuel Hood and George Rodney and the French fleet led by the Count of Grasse. France's objective was to take possession of Jamaica, then an English colony

The Count de Grasse left Martinique for Jamaica on April 7, 1782 with his 35 ships of the line and 100 transport ships. The English fleet set out in pursuit and, equipped with faster ships, quickly caught up with them. The Comte de Grasse took refuge near Guadeloupe, in the lee of Dominica, and put himself in battle order to face the enemy. The French eventually found themselves caught between the British ships and the coast of the island of Dominica. The two fleets then clashed for their possessions; the English were victorious, inflicting heavy losses on the French, but they did not escape unscathed. The Count of Grasse surrendered with his flagship, leaving the rest of the fleet to flee. Although still composed of 40 ships, the French fleet, deprived of its commander, did not pursue the project of invading Jamaica. This French defeat ensured English supremacy in the wars of conquest and occupation that opposed the various maritime powers of the time

The battle of the Saintes was the last battle in these waters, because in 1783, France, England and Spain signed a peace treaty that delimited the border between their different colonies. The signing of the Treaty of Versailles (1783) allowed the French to take back the Tobago archipelago and the island of Saint Lucia. This treaty was signed on the same day as the Treaty of Paris which put an end to the American War of Independence. The English occupied the Saintes again from 1794 to 1802. The Saintes became definitively French in 1816.

Guadeloupe set up a colonial Assembly to protect itself from the Revolution.

Guadeloupe sends five deputies to the Constituent Assembly.

The envoy of the Legislative Assembly, Jean Baptiste Raymond Lacrosse, arrives in Guadeloupe with the tricolour flag.

Decree on the Abolition of Slavery (Convention). The English occupy Guadeloupe, but Jean-Baptiste Victor Hugues retakes possession of the island and introduces the guillotine.

Napoleon I restored slavery.

It represents the symbol of resistance to the re-establishment of slavery. As a colonel in the French army, he is in charge of the protection of Guadeloupe against possible invaders. But in 1802, Bonaparte wanted to re-establish the slavery that had been abolished since 1794. He decided to leave the army to organise the resistance and took the lead of a group. Delgrès, with 300 men, reached the heights of Matouba in Basse-Terre. They were pursued by the 1,800 men of Richepance, sent by Bonaparte. Seeing themselves lost, Delgrès and his troop decided to die together and exploded themselves with all the powder still in their possession on 28 May to the cry of "Live free or die".

Prohibition of the slave trade. It will not be respected until 1831.

The island was hit very severely and a fire ravaged Pointe-à-Pitre, killing about 3,000 people. With the reconstruction, Guadeloupe enters the industrial era. The first two sugar factories appear. There will be 11 in 1863.

The decree for the abolition of slavery was signed on 27 April 1848 under the impetus of Victor Schœlcher. The abolition of slavery is celebrated on 27 May (public holiday) in Guadeloupe and Saint-Martin, and on 9 October in Saint-Barthélemy. The event is celebrated on a different day depending on the date of application of the decree on each island (22 May in Martinique, 10 June in French Guiana). Louisy Mathieu, an ex-slave, is elected representative of Guadeloupe (Second Republic).

The Colonial Bank (Bank of Guadeloupe, now the Bank of the French West Indies, BDAF) is created.

After the abolition of slavery, the owners needed labor. They brought in workers from India ("engagés") with a minimum 5-year contract. But the terms of the contract were not respected: they were poorly fed and lacked health care, leading to high mortality rates. This negligence led to the breakdown of the agreement between France and England. After 96 voyages, Indian immigration to Guadeloupe and Martinique was suspended in 1887. The last voyage took place in 1885 with 461 recruits. In 33 years, some 42,000 Indians arrived in Guadeloupe.

Representation of the colonies in the National Assembly, in the Chamber of Deputies, then in the Senate. Numerous reforms are launched in France (secularism, free education, etc.) and are echoed in Guadeloupe.

The Carnot high school is created in Pointe-à-Pitre.

Earthquake, Pointe-à-Pitre is partially destroyed.

Hégésippe Jean Légitimus, one of the founders of the Socialist Party, is President of the General Council.

Like Martinique, Governor Emile Merwart's Guadeloupe is affected by the 1914-1918 war. The two islands provide reinforcements in men: 25 000 combatants, of which more than 6 000 for Guadeloupe (1 027 dead). The first conscripts left in October 1913. On the front, the "Poilus from overseas" were everywhere, even in the famous battle of the Dardanelles. Military service is introduced in the colonies

The war enabled Guadeloupe to export rum on a massive scale until 1922.

After the First World War, Guadeloupe returned to an unfavourable economic context. The optimism triggered by the rum trade quickly faded and world sugar prices collapsed due to overproduction. It is at this same period that banana cultivation begins. The first plantations date back to 1922, in Gourbeyre and Saint-Claude.

Devastating cyclone with raging seas and very violent winds: the dead are counted in their hundreds, the wounded are scattered over the island, crops destroyed, Basse-Terre is swept away. Pointe-à-Pitre was drowned and suffered serious damage.

Constant Louis Sylvain Sorin, Vichist governor, arrives in Guadeloupe. He will leave in July 1943. Marked by a local war effort and restrictions, this period of governance is called " An tan sorin "(In Sorin's time).

The appointment of a High Commissioner for the West Indies in 1943 marked the end of the Vichy regime and the liberation of the territory. The communists and socialists, winners of the elections, support the departmentalization law. It was promulgated on 19 March 1946. Guadeloupe becomes an overseas department (DOM).

As a movement of workers and peasants in the sugar industry arose, it was violently repressed by the police (4 dead and 14 injured among the island's inhabitants).

Charles de Gaulle visits Guadeloupe from May 3 to 4. The President of the Republic presents decrees aimed at strengthening the consultation powers of the General Councils in the overseas departments.

The Bureau des migrations des départements d'outre-mer (BUMIDOM) is set up to organize migration flows to France.

Period marked by independence troubles.

Creation of the regional daily newspaper France-Antilles.

Workers are on strike for a 2% raise. But bloody clashes between strikers and the forces of law and order resulted in between 7 and 87 deaths (a toll that is still uncertain at the moment!).

Inauguration of the Raizet airport in Pointe-à-Pitre.

Eruption of the Soufrière. Nearly 75,000 inhabitants of Basse-Terre are evacuated to Grande-Terre.

Hurricane David.

Creation of the Regional Council of Guadeloupe. The adoption of the decentralisation law then established the region as a territorial collectivity, making Guadeloupe one of the 26 French regions.

The cyclone passed over Guadeloupe on September 17. Wind gusts exceeded 300 km/h, destroying large parts of the archipelago. Over 60% of the sugar cane harvest and 100% of the banana crop were destroyed.

Repairs will cost over 4 billion francs. Some 25,000 people were left homeless and 35,000 affected. The human toll was high, with 107 people injured and between 7 and 11 killed (different sources).

A 14 km underwater pipeline is being built to bring fresh water from Guadeloupe to the Désirade.

On the island of Marie-Galante, Saint-Louis, Capesterre and Grand-Bourg have formed a community of communes, the first in the French overseas departments.

Election of Lucette Michaux-Chevry as President of the Region of Guadeloupe.

Celebration of the 150th anniversary of the abolition of slavery.

Signed jointly by the presidents of the regional councils Lucette Michaux-Chevry, Alfred Marie-Jeanne (Martinique) and Antoine Karam (Guyana), the declaration aims to make public the negative record of these three departments. Bananas are at the centre of the trade battle between the United States and Europe.

The French government recognises trafficking and slavery as a crime against humanity.

The Guadeloupian economy is in crisis: tourism is affected by the effect of September 11 and banana production has been hit.

Referendum on the institutional future: the "no" vote wins with 72.98% of the votes and an abstention rate of 49.66%. The reform proposed the creation of a single territorial authority to replace the region and the department. This single assembly would have benefited from competences in terms of cultural and sports policy, transport, taxation and town planning.

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake woke up Guadeloupe at 7.41 a.m. Its epicentre was located between Les Saintes and Dominica. There was one victim (a girl) in Trois-Rivières and significant damage in Les Saintes.

Guadeloupe answers "yes" with 58.6% (low participation of 30%). The management committee of the European Commission is releasing a total of 110 million euros in aid for Caribbean bananas.

Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy broke away from Guadeloupe and became overseas collectivities.

Hurricane Dean (category 3) devastated part of the banana plantations. Its effects are much more devastating on Martinique.

On January 20, the Lyannaj Kont Pwofitasion (LKP) collective, made up of trade unions and some 40 associations, launched a general strike that brought the island's economy to a complete standstill for 44 days. It was one of the longest social movements ever seen in the French West Indies. Martinique joined Guadeloupe on February 5. On March 4, LKP spokesman Élie Domota signed the "Bino Accord", named after the trade unionist killed during the strike.

Heavy flooding in the Pointe-à-Pitre area. Legislative elections bringing to the National Assembly 4 deputies of the left-wing majority.

Victorin Lurel is appointed Minister for Overseas France in the government of Jean-Marc Ayrault (Socialist). He is replaced as President of the Regional Council by Josette Borel-Lincertin, elected on 3 August 2012.

On the day of the commemoration of the abolition of slavery in mainland France, French President François Hollande inaugurates the ACTe Memorial, the Caribbean center of memory of the slave trade and slavery, in the presence of heads of state from the Caribbean and Africa.

Ary Chalus becomes the 6th President of the Regional Council by obtaining 57.52% of the votes in the second round against the outgoing President, Victorin Lurel.

Hurricane Maria passes through, rated category 5. Two dead and two missing at sea, as well as extensive damage to the island's banana plantations and vegetation.

Ary Chalus (LRM) was re-elected for a second term at the head of the Regional Council with 72.43% of the votes in the second round

In 2021, following the introduction of compulsory vaccinations for healthcare workers and the application of the health pass, the LKP, initiator of the social conflict that had lasted 44 days in 2009, launched a new call for a general strike from November 15, 2021, in support of the healthcare workers and also to take up the 2009 platform of demands concerning the high cost of living, the chlordecone scandal, the lack of water, the high unemployment rate... The movement led to numerous road blockades, looting, ransacking of shops, fires and violent clashes with the police over several nights. Although the movement lost steam as the months went by, the demands remained valid.

At the start of the 2024 school year, rising inflation reignited the spark. Several demonstrations took place in Martinique, along with riots. The violence spread to Guadeloupe and led to roadblocks, prompting the prefecture to impose a curfew.

Food prices are 42% higher in Guadeloupe than in mainland France (INSEE 2023).

Pointe-à-Pitre-Le Raizet airport has been renamed "Guadeloupe-Maryse Condé airport", in tribute to the writer who died in April 2024, and was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize for Literature in 2018. This is the administrative name; the commercial name remains Guadeloupe-Pôle Caraïbes.