History

…ibs to name the island "the island of women" or "Matinino" (not Madidina, as commonly believed). According to their oral tradition, they regularly returned to the island to take male children who were of age to become warriors, leaving women and children behind.

Some sources attribute the discovery of Martinique to Juan de la Cosa, a Spanish conquistador, in 1500. A map from that time mentions it as Joanacera (the Amerindian name for Martinique) or Ioüanacera (which could mean "island of iguanas"). However, Matinino endured and was used in subsequent maps. Eventually, the name evolved into "Matinina" before becoming "Madinina" on a 16th-century Italian map.

At that time, the island was covered with forests, and the Indigenous people lived in carbets. These structures, without walls and designed to easily attach hammocks, were typical shelters of the Amerindian cultures. The Caribs survived through fishing, hunting, and cultivating cassava, which they introduced to the island. The arrival of Europeans profoundly disrupted these societies, leading to their disappearance in less than fifty years.

The Arrival of the First Europeans with Christopher Columbus

Europeans discovered the "New World" in 1492 under the guidance of the Genoese navigator Christopher Columbus. During his second voyage on November 11, 1493, Saint Martin's Day, he spotted an island offshore which he named Martinique in honor of the saint of that day. However, it was only during his fourth voyage in 1502 that the navigator set foot on mainland Carbet.

Initially, Europeans were welcomed by the people they named "Indians." However, Columbus' companions and their successors, particularly the Spanish conquistadors, responded to this hospitality with massacres. Only after exterminating the last Amerindian did the colonizers find themselves in the delicate situation of being unable to exploit the lands due to the stifling heat. Despite their fertility, these lands were swiftly reclaimed and swallowed by the virgin forest.

The discovery of America sparked intense enthusiasm among all European nations, leading them to enter into a fierce competition to seize its riches. Spain, Portugal, France, the Netherlands, and England all sought vast colonies in America.

This rivalry quickly turned into naval battles in the Caribbean Sea among privateers, buccaneers, and sea raiders in the service of different nations. It then escalated into wars between these powers to expand or defend their colonial domains.

The Company of the American Islands

In 1626, during the reign of Louis XIII, the Company of the American Islands was founded under the authority of Cardinal de Richelieu. The aim of this enterprise was to populate and exploit these lands under the King's authority. In accordance with an agreement with this company, Liyénart de l'Olive and Duplessis d'Ossonville landed in Martinique and took possession of the island on June 25, 1635.

The expedition comprised two types of settlers: inhabitants and indentured servants. Inhabitants arrived with their families and brought along indentured servants whose voyage and sustenance they paid for. These servants were named such because they had committed to serving the inhabitant for three years. Their living conditions were akin to those of slaves. They had to perform the most arduous tasks, were whipped, tortured, and sometimes even sold during their term of service.

At the end of their term, if they survived, these unfortunate individuals received a land grant of 25 hectares from the State. Conditions were so harsh that the servants had little chance of surviving such treatment, and if by some miracle they did, they were vulnerable to the tropical climate and diseases. Consequently, the servants were quickly decimated, and recruiting new ones became challenging. To address this, the term of service was later halved.

The initial French expedition comprised 40 inhabitants and their families accompanied by approximately 500 indentured servants. After landing at Carbet, they took possession of the island on June 25, 1635. However, following an exploration of the surroundings and encountering many snakes, they considered the terrain too rugged and decided to leave the island for the neighboring Guadeloupe, where they disembarked the next day.

Privateers, Buccaneers, and Sea Raiders

The rush toward the New World also coincided with the golden age of piracy from around 1630 to 1730. Romanticized in novels and movies, these pirate tales unfolded in the Caribbean seas. Names like Blackbeard and Calico Jack continue to carry their share of legends and colorful stories. Let's delve into these concepts that have reached us, not without confusion.

A pirate is primarily an outlaw who doesn't abide by any authority. As a result, they were executed upon capture. Piracy has existed since antiquity and persists today in regions like the South China Sea or East Africa. Pirates had their own rules, especially regarding the distribution of loot, and even a kind of "social security" that granted compensation for the loss of an eye, finger, or leg. However, without loot, they received no payment.

A privateer was affiliated with a nation (France, the Netherlands, England, Spain) and attacked civilian ships on behalf of the nation that granted them a "letter of marque." Upon capture, privateers were considered prisoners of war and were not sentenced to death. Among the most famous was the English privateer Sir Henry Morgan, who attacked Spanish ships in the Antilles. Often, in times of peace, privateers transitioned into piracy. Even in times of war, they were regarded as pirates by enemy forces.

A buccaneer was often an adventurer or a deserter from a European army who remained in the New World. Buccaneers lived without a leader and specialized in supplying passing ships with provisions. They raised cattle and pigs, smoking their meat. The term "buccaneer" originated from the smoked meat they supplied to the ships. They established commercial outposts on some Caribbean islands.

A buccaneer was often an adventurer or a deserter from a European army who remained in the New World. Buccaneers lived without a leader and specialized in supplying passing ships with provisions. They raised cattle and pigs, smoking their meat. The term "buccaneer" originated from the smoked meat they supplied to the ships. They established commercial outposts on some Caribbean islands.

The filibuster was a European who fled wars, religious persecution, or poverty in the major cities of the Old Continent to seek refuge in the Antilles. They were mainly settled on the island of Tortuga, off Haiti.

The island once served as a port of call and resupply for pirates, privateers, and smugglers from various nations (French, English, Dutch). These adventurers took to the sea, conducting operations against ships. Claiming to act for their respective countries, their legal status was ambiguous, between pirate and privateer. Flibustiers were mainly involved in attacks against Spanish ships, as many were Dutch and Holland was under Spanish rule, fighting for independence.

The Colonization of Martinique Starting from 1635

After the unsuccessful attempt of l'Olive and Duplessis, it's the turn of another adventurer to undertake the colonization of Martinique. Pierre Beslain, lord of Esnambuc, had already colonized the island of Saint Christopher (which was the first French colony founded in the Caribbean, before being ceded to the English after the Treaty of Utrecht in 1703).

Drawing on this experience, he obtained authorization from the Company of the American Islands to establish a colony in Martinique. Departing from Saint Christopher in 1635 with a hundred armed men, he landed on Madinina on September 1st of the same year. He was particularly well received by the Caribs, who even allowed him to build a fort in the northern part of the current city of Saint Pierre.

Recalled to Saint Christopher, Esnambuc entrusted the island to Dupont, his chief lieutenant. However, Dupont disregarded the instructions to reconcile with the Indians, leading to violent conflicts between the two communities. The Caribs revolted and were crushed in 1636.

The Transatlantic Slave Trade and Slavery in Martinique

Slavery existed from the outset in the American colonies. Even before the slave trade existed in Martinique, slaves were captured from the Spanish, Portuguese, or Dutch and were sold to inhabitants who employed them in clearing land and exploiting their estates. These unfortunate individuals could nonetheless find refuge among the Carib Indians who offered them hospitality and allowed them to flee. These fugitives came to be known as "maroon slaves."

The slave trade was tolerated starting from 1667, following the decrease in white indentured servants decimated by diseases, wars, and mistreatment. By 1685, the colony already counted more than 10,000 African slaves. The master could do whatever he wanted with his slave, beat or even torture them, as no law regulated this practice. The slave, in turn, was considered a piece of movable property.

In 1685, Colbert issued an ordinance, the "Code Noir." This regulated the condition of slaves in the American islands but at the same time definitively established the practice of slavery in the French colonies.

The provisions of the Code Noir covered all aspects of daily life, as well as the relationships between masters and slaves. Religion, masters' obligations, corporal punishment, marriages, and offspring, everything was governed by laws.

Later, during the reign of Louis XV, the provisions of the Code Noir were questioned. For instance, in 1720, a master who wanted to free his slave had to request permission from the governor. In 1736, colonists were forbidden from baptizing as free the children born to a slave mother. In 1743, maroons faced the penalty of having their tendons cut upon capture. However, the king granted emancipation for the Caribs and indigenous people in general.

In 1783, Martinique had a population of 77,000 inhabitants, including 60,000 slaves, 5,000 people of color, and 12,000 whites.

The Long Road to the Abolition of Slavery

During the revolutionary period, Martinique's society was profoundly divided. The economic interests of wealthy planters clashed with the urban bourgeoisie composed of merchants and traders. People of color sought equality with whites, while slaves pursued freedom.

Their demands found support in mainland France through the Society of the Friends of the Blacks, presided over by Abbé Grégoire. However, slavery also had its fierce proponents, grouped in the Club de l'Hôtel de Massiac.

This latent conflict worsened as revolutionary ideas spread through the mainland. Urban inhabitants sided with the Revolution, while planters remained loyal to the monarchy.

Numerous civil disturbances erupted on the island between the two factions. In 1794, the English made a firm decision to seize Martinique, following numerous unsuccessful attempts in the past. Supporters of the Ancien Régime joined forces with the English against the republican forces governing the island.

Martinique remained under English occupation for seven years, from 1794 to 1801. This prevented the implementation of the law of February 4, 1794, which abolished slavery. After the island returned to French control in 1802, the law remained in force. However, the First Consul Bonaparte promulgated a new decree that reinstated slavery and the slave trade in the colonies.

Napoleon was married to Joséphine de Beauharnais, a Martinican Creole. Did the Empress have any influence on her husband's decision to reinstate slavery to appease the planters?

The slave trade was ultimately abolished much later during the Restoration under Louis XVIII by a royal ordinance on January 8, 1817. While it was now forbidden to bring slaves to the colonies, slavery itself persisted. People of color and freed slaves enjoyed relative freedom but were subject to humiliating and unequal laws.

In 1822, the slaves revolted. The repression was severe. But now, the dissatisfaction spread to free people of color and freed slaves who demanded civil and political equality. Some went to Paris, where they submitted a document to the King outlining their situation and the injustices they faced.

The colonists reacted harshly, and the leaders were condemned to the galleys in 1824. Four years later, in 1828, they were finally restored to their freedom and rights. Benjamin Constant's name is remembered, a deputy who courageously defended the cause of the oppressed. Between 1830 and 1833, Louis Philippe's government profoundly altered colonial law and granted civil and political rights to free people of color and the freed.

It also facilitated the emancipation of slaves, abolished the dungeons where they could be confined by their owners, eliminated branding and mutilations, and prohibited the use of firearms in pursuing fugitive slaves. Schools were established for young slaves aged 8 to 14.

But these reforms could only delay the inevitable. The slaves revolted twice, in Saint Pierre in February 1831 and in Grande Anse in December 1833.

In England, slavery was abolished under pressure from public opinion in 1833. In France, the struggle between slaveholders and abolitionists was intense.

Finally, it was the revolution of 1848 that put an end to the debate. The new government hastened to adopt Victor Schoelcher's proposal stipulating that "no French land could bear slaves." Schoelcher's abolition decree was adopted on April 27, 1848.

However, the main stakeholders, the slaves, did not wait for the decree to be implemented and massively revolted on May 22, 1848, to break their chains. Slavery was thus abolished the following day by the island's governor, Claude Rostoland. This date, May 22, 1848, is commemorated as the actual date of abolition. Thus, it was the Martinican slaves who liberated themselves without waiting for it to be official.

After the abolition, planters resorted to importing foreign labor, including Chinese, Indians, and Africans.

1902: Eruption of Mount Pelée

May 8, 1802, remains in history as the deadliest volcanic eruption of the 20th century. Saint Pierre, the largest city in Martinique, was destroyed in minutes by Mount Pelée volcano, leaving over 30,000 dead.

The victims succumbed to the shockwave, the inhalation of scorching gases (over 1000°C), burns, fires, or were trapped in the destruction of buildings. This pyroclastic flow devastated everything in its path, reaching the boats anchored in the port, which were charred. The city burned for several days, making it impossible to approach due to intense heat.

Among the few survivors were Louis-Auguste Cyparis, a prisoner protected by the thick walls of his cell, and Léon Compère-Léandre, a cobbler living on the outskirts of the city.

Saint Pierre, nicknamed the "Little Paris of the Antilles," was the economic and cultural capital of Martinique. Its flourishing port welcomed numerous merchant ships from around the world that came for the sugar and rum produced on the island.

This catastrophe is considered the most significant natural disaster of the century and deeply impacted the minds of Martinicans.

Martinique Today

During World War II, Martinique was isolated from the mainland. Resources were scarce, and food supplies relied solely on American aid. Although Martinique maintained neutrality in the conflict, the population revolted against the representative of the Vichy regime on the island, who was forced to depart in 1943.

Martinique then joined the Free French Forces. The post-war period was marked by great poverty in the Antilles. Strong social and political demands emerged.

Becoming a French Overseas Department in 1946 through the efforts of the young deputy-mayor Aimé Césaire, Martinique embarked on its decolonization. Complete equality of rights was achieved only in 1996, under the presidency of Jacques Chirac, allowing Martinicans to finally receive the same social benefits as mainland French citizens.