Fort-de-France (, , ; ) is a commune and the capital city of

Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...

, an

overseas department and region The overseas departments and regions of France (, ; DROM) are the five departments and regions of the French Republic which are located outside European France (also known as " metropolitan France"). These overseas entities have exactly the s ...

of France located in the Caribbean.

History

Before it was ceded to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in 1635, the area of Fort-de-France was known as Iguanacaera, which translates to "Iguana Island" in the indigenous Kariʼnja language. In 1638,

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 set ...

(1606–1658), nephew of

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 w ...

and first governor of Martinique, decided to have Fort Saint Louis built to protect the city against enemy attacks. The fort was soon destroyed, and rebuilt in 1669, when

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

appointed the Marquis of Baas as governor general. Under his orders and those of his successors, particularly the Count of Blénac, the fort was built with a Vauban design. In the 1680s, the area was settled and became the French colonial capital in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

and the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

, eventually developing into the city of Fort-de-France and it was governed by the

Code Noir The (, ''Black code'') was a decree passed by King Louis XIV, Louis XIV of France in 1685 defining the conditions of Slavery in France, slavery in the French colonial empire and served as the code for slavery conduct in the French colonies ...

("Black Code"), which was a French decree that regulated slavery in the French colonies including Martinique. King Louis XIV issued the Code Noir in 1685, which detailed the conditions of slavery and also restricted the freedoms of free black people. Originally named Fort-Royal, the administrative capital of Martinique was over-shadowed by Saint-Pierre, the oldest city in the island, which was renowned for its commercial and cultural vibrancy as "The Paris of the Caribbean". The name of Fort-Royal was changed to a short-lived "Fort-La-Republique" during the French Revolution, and finally settled as Fort-de-France sometime in the 19th century. The old name of Fort-Royal is still used today familiarly in its Creole language form of "Foyal", with the inhabitants of the city being "Foyalais". The city was captured by a British expedition which captured Martinique in 1762, but the island was returned to French control in the Treaty of Paris. In 1839, the city was struck by a minor

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

and 1890 saw an outbreak of fire which razed part of the city. The Hôtel de Ville (town hall) was completed in 1901. By the turn of the 20th century, however, Fort-de-France became economically important after the

volcanic A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...

eruption of

Mount Pelée Mount Pelée or Mont Pelée ( ; , ; ), meaning "bald mountain" or "peeled mountain" in French, is an active volcano at the northern end of Martinique, an island and French overseas department in the Lesser Antilles Volcanic Arc of the Caribbean ...

destroyed the town of Saint-Pierre in 1902. Until 1918, when its commercial growth began, Fort-de-France had an inadequate water supply, was partly surrounded by swamps, and was notorious for yellow fever. Now the swamps are drained to make room for extensive suburbs. On 3 August 1945, Fort-de-France's hydrobase became the site of Martinique's first fatal airliner crash. A

Sikorsky S-43 The Sikorsky S-43 (sometimes referred to as the Baby Clipper) is a 1930s American twin-engine amphibious flying boat monoplane produced by Sikorsky Aircraft. Design and development The S-43 first flew in 1935, and was a smaller version of the ...

(NC15066) on Pan Am Flight 216 arriving from

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( ; Trinidadian and Tobagonian English, Trinidadian English: ''Port ah Spain'' ) is the capital and chief port of Trinidad and Tobago. With a municipal population of 49,867 (2017), an urban population of 81,142 and a transient dail ...

at 10:11 was landed in poor weather conditions due to safety concerns by the crew and subsequently sank within 10 minutes, killing 4 of the 14 occupants.

Geography

Fort-de-France, also known as the Fort of France, lies on Martinique's west coast at the northern entrance to the large

Fort-de-France Bay Fort-de-France Bay (, ) is a large inlet of the Caribbean Sea, off the coast of Martinique. It is named after Martinique's capital, Fort-de-France, located north of the bay. Important Bird Area A tract of some 3,361 ha, encompassing the la ...

, at the mouth of the Madame River. The city occupies a narrow plain between the hills and the sea but is accessible by road from all parts of the island. Fort-Saint-Louis-06

Climate

Fort-de-France has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Af''), characterised by very warm to hot and humid weather year-round. The wettest months are from July to November when hurricanes are a frequent threat, although substantial rainfall occurs in all months. The hottest month on average is September, and the coldest month on average is February.

Population

Naval port

Fort Saint Louis in Fort-de-France is a French naval base.

Government

As of 27 June 2021, the Mayor of Fort de France is

Serge Letchimy Serge Letchimy (; born 13 January 1953) is the President of the Executive Council of Martinique and former member of the National Assembly of France. He represents the island of Martinique's 3rd constituency since June 2007, and is a member ...

replacing Alfred Marie-Jeanne as the new mayor of the capitol. With a participation rate of little over 44% the Letchimy Party Alians Matinik received 37,72% of the votes, whereas Marie Jeanna who came in a close second with Gran Sanblé Pou Matinik acquired 35,27% of the votes. The commune of Fort-de-France makes up Martinique's 3rd constituency for the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

Main sights

* Fort Desaix * Place de la Savane * Jardin de Balata, a

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...

Fort-de-France Cathedral St. Louis Cathedral () is a Catholic cathedral in Martinique, an Overseas departments and territories of France, overseas department of France. It was built in the late 19th-century in the Romanesque Revival architecture, Romanesque Revival style a ...

* A statue of Empress Joséphine, the wife of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in the gardens of La Savane was destroyed by anti-racist protestors in 2020.

Transport

Martinique Aimé Césaire International Airport Martinique Aimé Césaire International Airport (, ) is an international airport of Martinique in the French West Indies. Located in Le Lamentin, a suburb of the capital Fort-de-France, it was opened in 1950 and renamed in 2007, after author an ...

is located in a suburb outside Fort-de-France.

Notable people

* Manon Tardon (1913–1989), Resistance fighter *

Frantz Fanon Frantz Omar Fanon (, ; ; 20 July 1925 – 6 December 1961) was a French West Indian psychiatrist, political philosopher, and Marxist from the French colony of Martinique (today a French department). His works have become influential in the ...

(1925–1961), psychiatrist, political philosopher and revolutionary *

Julienne Salvat Julienne Salvat (12 May 1932 – 11 March 2019) was a French teacher, poet, ''Femme de lettres'', and actress from Martinique who spent a large part of her career in Réunion. She was the recipient of the Silver Medal from the Société Académiqu ...

(1932–2019), teacher, poet, ''femme de lettres'', actress *

Karine Jean-Pierre Karine Jean-Pierre (born August 13, 1974) is an American political advisor who served as the White House Press Secretary, White House press secretary from May 2022 to January 2025, and a senior advisor to President Joe Biden from October 2024 t ...

(born 1974), organizer, activist,

White House Press Secretary The White House press secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the executive branch of the United States federal government, especially with regard to the president, senior aides and ...

from 2022 to January 2025

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fortdefrance Capitals in the Caribbean Communes of Martinique Martinique–Saint Lucia border crossings Populated places in Martinique Port cities in the Caribbean Prefectures in France