Nevis
| Nevis | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Waters | Caribbean Sea | |
| Archipelago | Leeward Islands | |
| Geographical location | 17 ° 9 ′ 10 ″ N , 62 ° 35 ′ 21 ″ W | |
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| surface | 93 km² | |
| Highest elevation |
Nevis Peak 985 m |
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| Residents | 11,500 124 inhabitants / km² |
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| main place | Charlestown | |
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Nevis is an island in the Caribbean and at the same time - as Nevis Island - one of the two member states of the federal island state of St. Kitts and Nevis .
geography
Nevis has a size of 93 km² and is part of the Leeward Islands , the northern part of the Lesser Antilles .
The neighboring island of St. Kitts is three kilometers to the northwest, and the island state of Antigua and Barbuda is to the east . During the last Ice Age , the sea level was about 60 meters lower and St. Kitts, Nevis, Sint Eustatius and Saba formed a contiguous island. The Nevis Peak (985 m) is the remnant of a very old stratovolcano .
The island's capital is Charlestown .
population
About 11,500 people live on Nevis (28% of the total population of St. Kitts and Nevis). At 98%, the literacy rate is one of the highest in the world. The Culturama Festival has been celebrated every July / August since 1974 .
history
The indigenous people of Arawak and Caribs named the island Oualie , which means land of beautiful water . Christopher Columbus discovered the island on his second voyage on November 11, 1493 and named it Santa María . The Spanish name Nuestra Senõra de las Nieves did not establish itself until after Columbus and is probably inspired by the snow-like cloud cap of Nevis Peak.
Spain laid claim to all of the Caribbean islands discovered by Spanish ships since 1493. Nevertheless, Nevis was a popular stopover for English and Dutch ships on their way to the North American continent. Captain Bartholomew Gilbert from Plymouth visited the island in 1603 and struck within two weeks twenty tons Lignum vitae -Holz.
On August 30, 1620, the English king claimed James I. the sovereignty over Nevis by a royal patent to the Earl of Carlisle exhibited to colonize. A European settlement did not take place until 1628 by Anthony Hilton , who fled St. Kitts before a murder plot. He was accompanied by 80 other settlers, who were soon supported by another 100 settlers from London who originally hoped to be able to settle Barbuda . Hilton became the first governor of Nevis.
In 1629 the island was conquered during the Anglo-Spanish War from 1625 to 1630 by a Spanish fleet of 36 galleons under Admiral Don Faderique de Toledo and the English were expelled - they returned as early as 1631.
In May 1667 a French-Dutch naval association attempted to conquer the island during the Second Anglo-Dutch War . An English squadron was able to prevent this in the naval battle off Nevis .
1674 formed Nevis together with Antigua , St. Kitts and Montserrat a confederation of English island colonies with a common House of Representatives under the Governor William Stapleton .
Nevis was once a major source of wealth in Britain because of its sugar production. Exports from the West Indies were worth more than those of all thirteen colonies in North America combined at the time of the American Revolution. The great wealth of the West Indies led to wars between Spain, Great Britain and France.
In 1706 the French occupied the island under Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville . The English had already been defeated, but the slaves freed by their oppressors continued to resist and were able to drive the attackers from the island.
Alexander Hamilton , a statesman and founding father of the USA , was born on the island in 1757 - both the 13 colonies and Nevis were British provinces at the time of the American War of Independence . The wedding of Admiral Nelson to Fanny Nisbet, celebrated on the island in 1787, is also well known .
After several French occupations, the island fell to Great Britain in the Peace of Paris in 1783.
Nevis was united with St. Kitts and Anguilla to St. Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla in 1882 , which in 1967 received the status of a dependent British territory with full internal autonomy. In 1971, Anguilla was separated again; In 1983 St. Kitts and Nevis became independent.
On August 10, 1998, a referendum to separate Nevis from St. Kitts failed due to the necessary two-thirds majority (2,427 pro to 1,498 against).
Sports
Nevis has its own soccer team , which has also played against official FIFA members.
