Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, << `grehn` uh DEENZ, >> is a small island country in the Caribbean Sea about 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Venezuela. The country consists of the island of St. Vincent and about 100 small islands of the Grenadine chain, including Bequia, Canouan, Mayreau, Mustique, and Union. It has a total land area of 150 square miles (389 square kilometers) and a population of about 112,000.
Britain (later the United Kingdom) ruled St. Vincent and the Grenadines from 1783 to 1979, when the islands became an independent nation. Kingstown, on the southern coast of St. Vincent, is the capital and largest city. The basic unit of money is the East Caribbean dollar.
Government.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a constitutional monarchy and a member of the Commonwealth of Nations (see Commonwealth of Nations ). A prime minister runs the government with the aid of a Cabinet. A one-house Parliament makes the country’s laws. It consists of elected representatives and senators appointed by the governor general, a representative of the British monarch. The head of the political party with the most seats in Parliament serves as prime minister.
People.
Most of the country’s people are descendants of enslaved Africans. The Africans were kidnapped and brought to the islands by British and French settlers to work on plantations. About half of the people live in urban areas, and the rest live in rural localities.
English is the official language of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. However, many people chiefly speak a patois (dialect) that is a mixture of African languages, English, and French. About half the people are Anglicans. Other religious groups include Methodists and Roman Catholics.
Land and climate.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a mountainous country that was formed by volcanic eruptions. Tropical vegetation covers much of the land. La Soufrière, an active volcano on the northern end of St. Vincent, is the country’s highest point. It rises 4,048 feet (1,234 meters). Notable eruptions occurred at La Soufrière in 1902, 1979, and 2021. Temperatures in the country seldom rise above 90 °F (32 °C) or fall below 65 °F (18 °C). The annual rainfall ranges from 60 inches (150 centimeters) on the southeast coast of St. Vincent to 150 inches (381 centimeters) in the island’s central mountains.
Economy.
Agriculture and tourism are the most important economic activities in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Bananas are the leading agricultural product and a leading export. The country also grows arrowroot, coconuts, and spices. Hundreds of thousands of tourists visit the islands, especially the Grenadines, each year.
History.
Indigenous (native) Arawak people were the first inhabitants of what is now St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Carib people from South America conquered the Arawak about 1300. Britain took control of the islands in 1783 and gave them their current name. Until 1783, the Carib, British, and French had fought one another for the islands. During the struggle, the British and French had taken Africans, enslaved them, and forced them to work on plantations. The Carib continued to fight the British until the mid-1790’s, when their revolt was crushed. Slavery was abolished in St. Vincent and the Grenadines in 1833.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines gradually gained freedom from the United Kingdom. The islands became an independent country on Oct. 27, 1979. In December 1979, police put down a minor revolt on Union Island by a group that wanted more power in the country’s new government. In 1983, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and several other Caribbean nations joined the United States in an invasion of Grenada to overthrow a Marxist government there. See Grenada (History and government) for details.
