The Carib Expulsion was the
French-led
ethnic cleansing that removed most of the
Carib population in 1660 from
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in ...
. This followed the French invasion in 1635 and its conquest of the people on the
Caribbean island that made it part of the
French West Indies.
History
The Carib people had migrated from the mainland to the islands about 1200 AD according to carbon dating of artifacts.
[Sweeney, James L. (2007). "Caribs, Maroons, Jacobins, Brigands, and Sugar Barons: The Last Stand of the Black Caribs on St. Vincent"](_blank)
''African Diaspora Archaeology Network'', March 2007, retrieved 26 April 2007
In 1635 the Carib were overwhelmed by French forces led by the
adventurer
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme sp ...
Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc
Pierre Belain, sieur d'Esnambuc (; 1585–1636) was a French trader and adventurer in the Caribbean, who established the first permanent French colony, Saint-Pierre, on the island of Martinique in 1635.
Biography Youth
Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc ...
and his nephew
Jacques Dyel du Parquet
Jacques Dyel du Parquet (1606 – 3 January 1658) was a French soldier who was one of the first governors of Martinique.
He was appointed governor of the island for the Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique in 1636, a year after the first French se ...
, who imposed
French colonial rule on the
indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
Carib peoples.
Cardinal Richelieu of France gave the island to the
Saint Christophe Company, in which he was a shareholder. Later the company was reorganized as the
Company of the American Islands The Company of the American Islands (french: Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique) was a French chartered company that in 1635 took over the administration of the French portion of ''Saint-Christophe island'' (Saint Kitts) from the Compagnie de Saint- ...
. The French colonists imposed
French Law
The Law of France refers to the legal system in the French Republic, which is a civil law legal system primarily based on legal codes and statutes, with case law also playing an important role. The most influential of the French legal codes is t ...
on the conquered inhabitants, and
Jesuit missionaries arrived to
convert
Conversion or convert may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman''
* "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series
* "The Conversion" ...
them to the
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
"Institutional History of Martinique"
, Martinique Official site, French Government (translation by Maryanne Dassonville). Retrieved 26 April 2007
Because the Carib people resisted working as laborers to build and maintain the sugar and cocoa
Cocoa may refer to:
Chocolate
* Chocolate
* ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree
* Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao''
* Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...
plantations which the French began to develop in the Caribbean, in 1636 King Louis XIII
Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...
proclaimed ''La Traite des Noirs
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
* "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...
''. This authorized the capture or purchase of slaves from Africa, who were then transported as labor to Martinique and other parts of the French West Indies.
In 1650, the Company liquidated and sold Martinique to Jacques Dyel du Parquet, who became governor until his death in 1658. His widow then took control of the island for France. As more French colonists arrived, they were attracted to the fertile area known as ''Cabesterre'' (leeward side). The French had pushed the remaining Carib people to this northeastern coast and the Caravalle Peninsula, but the colonists wanted the additional land. The Jesuits
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders = ...
and Dominicans agreed that whichever order arrived there first, would get all future parishes in that part of the island. The Jesuits came by sea and the Dominicans by land, with the Dominicans' ultimately prevailing.
When the Carib revolted against French rule in 1660, the Governor Charles Houel sieur de Petit Pré retaliated with war against them. Many were killed; those who survived were taken captive and expelled from the island.
On Martinique, the French colonists signed a peace treaty with the few remaining Carib. Some Carib had fled to Dominica or St. Vincent, where the French agreed to leave them at peace. However, following the British conquest of these islands, the Caribs would eventually be expelled to Central America after losing the Second Carib War
The Second Carib War (1795–1797) took place on the island of Saint Vincent between 1795 and 1797. The conflict pitted large numbers of British military forces against a coalition of Black Carib, runaway slaves, and French forces for control o ...
.
References
{{French colonial campaigns
Carib people
History of Martinique
Indigenous topics of the Caribbean
History of Dominica
History of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Forced migration
Ethnic cleansing in North America
1660 in France
Garifuna
17th century in Martinique
17th century in the Caribbean