Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante (often simply referred to as Capesterre) is a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
on the island of
Marie-Galante
Marie-Galante ( gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Mawigalant) is one of the islands that form Guadeloupe, an overseas department of France. Marie-Galante has a land area of . It had 11,528 inhabitants at the start of 2013, but by the start of 2018 ...
overseas region
The overseas departments and regions of France (french: départements et régions d'outre-mer, ; ''DROM'') are departments of France that are outside metropolitan France, the European part of France. They have exactly the same status as mainlan ...
and
department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...
, itself in the
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles ( es, link=no, Antillas Menores; french: link=no, Petites Antilles; pap, Antias Menor; nl, Kleine Antillen) are a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea. Most of them are part of a long, partially volcanic island arc betwe ...
.
Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante is located on the southeast coast of Marie-Galante. The surface area is and the population is 3,469 (as of 2006). The population density is 75 persons per km2.
History
The name of the commune comes from cabesterre, vocabulary of marine of use to the 17th century which indicated a ground exposed to the east winds. In 1928, a cyclone struck hard the borough which had to be rebuilt.
Geography
Capesterre is situated southeast on the island of Marie-Galante. The port of Capesterre and its long beaches are protected from the waves of the Atlantic by the coral reefs.
Climate
Like any other Eastern Caribbean town, Capesterre experiences quite evenly spread rainfall during the year, with a wetter season between July and November which coincides with hurricane season. The town receives 1500–2500 mm of rainfall. Tropical heat is the norm, bringing constant highs of around 32 °C (89 °F) that drop to 20 °C (68 °F) at night.
Trade winds, called alizés, blow from the northeast and often temper the climate.
Population
Economy
Capesterre is partly surrounded by forest and scrubland. North, there are sugar fields where sugar is produced. Other food crops such as bananas, cocoa and coffee are also grown. Fishing is also done at the harbor.
There are also manufacturing factories near Capesterre. There is one rum distillery at Capesterre, Bellevue Distillery and it produces Rum Domaine de Bellevue. Also, there is a factory where the production of Moysan Cane syrup. This is a traditional and typical Marie-Galantine product. It is the by-product from the cooked juices of the canes.
Tourism is not a full-scale industry. Capesterre has two hotels nearby and several restaurants. The beaches attract tourists to Marie-Galante.
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
Sights
Capesterre is especially famous for its beaches such as the beach of Feuillère & the beach of Petite Anse.
The Bézard Windmill is the first windmill in the French West Indies to have been reconstructed to its original state and returned to proper working condition. It is one of the rare mills in Marie-Galante to have benefited from modernism at the end of the 19th century in the area of sugar cane grinding. Its structure is completely metal with horizontal rollers for more efficiency.
The wind engine power plant Petite Place was put into operation in 1998. It produces electricity that is directly deposited into the reserves of EDF (French Electrics). Thanks to the trade winds 30% of the Island's electrical consumption is produced.
The church of the Holy-Anne is located near the bay.
Exploitation Rousseau et Fils is an ox drawn wagon tour company in Capesterre.
Le Discothèque Touloulou is a night club in Capesterre and it opens from 10 p.m.
Photo gallery
Image:Capestere.jpg, Road by the ocean near Capesterre-de-Marie-Galante
Image:Moulin Bezard.jpg, The Bézard Windmill, northwest of Capesterre
Image:Plage Feuillere.jpg, Beach of Feuillère