Parishes of Grenada
Encyclopedia
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The Caribbean island country of Grenada
is subdivided into sub-regions known as parish
es.
A parish
defines a territorial unit or region that, historically, was usually an area under the pastoral care served by a local church as an ecclesiastical administrative unit (see Parish
) and later used by map-makers to set boundaries to an area of land. Traditionally a settlement or village would centre around a church and later grow to become a town and then even a city. Therefore a parish has now come to mean an administrative division and is used so by several countries as the smallest unit (or lowest tier) of local government.
The differing size and shape of each parish was primarily influenced by the island's earlier history and land that was granted to the first settlers that claimed that territory during the colonial
years of the island.
Two decades after Barbados was settled the French governor of Martinique, Jacques-Dyel du Parquet, purchased Grenada from a French company and in 1650 established a settlement at what was to be Fort Royal in the parish of the low lands (Ville Ft. Royal situé à Paroisse de la Basse Terre). During this time the parish boundaries where laid out.
After a century the French capitulated to the British and formally ceded the island to Britain in 1763 by the Treaty of Paris
. The English took over the churches and, as was traditional, chaples of ease and local churches were elevated to parish church
status across the island, leading to the formation of new parishes surrounding those newly named churches. The six boundaries or borders of these parishes having already been well established in the mindset of the people then living simply took on the names of these churches.
The nation's capital St. George's, which is located within the parish of Saint George, and even to this day the original parishional border-lines are still well defined.
The six parishes are:
The Caribbean island country of Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
is subdivided into sub-regions known as parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
es.
A parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
defines a territorial unit or region that, historically, was usually an area under the pastoral care served by a local church as an ecclesiastical administrative unit (see Parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
) and later used by map-makers to set boundaries to an area of land. Traditionally a settlement or village would centre around a church and later grow to become a town and then even a city. Therefore a parish has now come to mean an administrative division and is used so by several countries as the smallest unit (or lowest tier) of local government.
The differing size and shape of each parish was primarily influenced by the island's earlier history and land that was granted to the first settlers that claimed that territory during the colonial
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
years of the island.
Two decades after Barbados was settled the French governor of Martinique, Jacques-Dyel du Parquet, purchased Grenada from a French company and in 1650 established a settlement at what was to be Fort Royal in the parish of the low lands (Ville Ft. Royal situé à Paroisse de la Basse Terre). During this time the parish boundaries where laid out.
The French cartographer Jacques-Nicolas Bellin (1703–1772) draw several editions of a chart of the island of Grenada showing the earlier French parish divisions and was published as Carte de L'Isle de la Grenade in Paris 1756. However, by 1763 the island was under British rule and a later map of the Island of Grenada showing towns and villages and division of the island into quarters in English by cartographer Bryon Edwards (for J. Cooke's History of the West Indies) was engraved in 1818. |
After a century the French capitulated to the British and formally ceded the island to Britain in 1763 by the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1763)
The Treaty of Paris, often called the Peace of Paris, or the Treaty of 1763, was signed on 10 February 1763, by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. It ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years' War...
. The English took over the churches and, as was traditional, chaples of ease and local churches were elevated to parish church
Church of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
status across the island, leading to the formation of new parishes surrounding those newly named churches. The six boundaries or borders of these parishes having already been well established in the mindset of the people then living simply took on the names of these churches.
The nation's capital St. George's, which is located within the parish of Saint George, and even to this day the original parishional border-lines are still well defined.
The six parishes are:
| Nr. | Parish | Capitals | Land Area(km²) | Population(census 2001) | Densitykm−2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saint Andrew Saint Andrew Parish, Grenada Saint Andrew's is the largest parish in Grenada. The main town is Grenville, which is also Grenada's second largest town after St George's. Grenville is also known as La Baye .-History:... |
Grenville | 99 | 24,749 | 249.98 |
| 2 | Saint David Saint David Parish, Grenada Saint David in the southeastern part of Grenada is the fourth largest parish on the island. It is also the only one without a main town. Because of this fact, it is sometimes referred to as "The Virgin Parish". It is ringed by spectacular bays and inlets that help to provide the nation with a... |
St. David's | 44 | 11,486 | 261.04 |
| 3 | Saint George Saint George Parish, Grenada Saint George is one of the parishes of Grenada, located on the south-western end of the island. The capital of Grenada, St. George, is located in this parish, and it is regarded as the most picturesque capital in the Caribbean. Its horseshoe-shaped harbour is surrounded by the pastel colors of... |
St. George's | 65 | 37,057 | 570.10 |
| 4 | Saint John Saint John Parish, Grenada -External links:***... |
Gouyave | 35 | 8,591 | 245.46 |
| 5 | Saint Mark Saint Mark Parish, Grenada St Mark Parish is a parish on the west coast of Grenada. It is the smallest parish on the island.-Victoria:Along the west coast of the island nation of Grenada lies the small fishing village of Victoria, Grenada. Victoria is the center of activity for the St. Mark’s parish, the smallest parish on... |
Victoria | 25 | 3,994 | 159.76 |
| 6 | Saint Patrick Saint Patrick Parish, Grenada Saint Patrick is one of the parishes of Grenada, covering the north of the country. A spectacular coastline with several fine bays faces several small islands to the north. Its most famous beach is Bathway. The principal town in St. Patrick is Sauteurs... |
Sauteurs | 42 | 10,674 | 254.14 |
| These two islands are of the Grenadines Grenadines The Grenadines is a Caribbean island chain of over 600 islands in the Windward Islands.-Geographic boundaries:They are divided between the island nations of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada. They lie between the islands of Saint Vincent in the north and Grenada in the south. Neither... , have the status of dependency. |
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| — | Carriacou Carriacou and Petite Martinique Carriacou and Petite Martinique is the dependency of Grenada, lying north of Grenada island and south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Lesser Antilles. The Grenadine islands to the north of Carriacou and Petite Martinique belong to the nation of St... |
Hillsborough | 34 | 6,081 | 178.85 |
| — | Petite Martinique Carriacou and Petite Martinique Carriacou and Petite Martinique is the dependency of Grenada, lying north of Grenada island and south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Lesser Antilles. The Grenadine islands to the north of Carriacou and Petite Martinique belong to the nation of St... |
2.4 | 900 | 375.00 | |
| Grenada Grenada Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea... |
St. George's | 344 | 102,632 | 298.35 | |
See also
- ISO 3166-2:GDISO 3166-2:GDISO 3166-2:GD is the entry for Grenada in ISO 3166-2, part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization , which defines codes for the names of the principal subdivisions of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1.Currently for Grenada, ISO 3166-2 codes are...