Saint-Pierre, Martinique
Encyclopedia
Saint-Pierre is a town and commune
of France
's Caribbean
overseas department
of Martinique
, founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc
. Before the total destruction of Saint-Pierre in 1902 by a volcanic eruption, it was the most important city of Martinique culturally and economically, being known as "the Paris of the Caribbean". While Fort-de-France
was the official administrative capital, Saint-Pierre was the cultural capital of Martinique. After the disaster, Fort-de-France
grew in economic importance.
, a French
trader and adventurer, as the first permanent French colony on the island of Martinique.
The Great Hurricane of 1780
produced a storm-surge of 25 feet (7.6 m) which "inundated the city, destroying all houses" and killed 9,000 people.
The town was destroyed again on 8 May 1902, when the volcano
Mount Pelée
erupted, killing over 30,000 people, the entire population of the town as well as people from neighboring villages who had taken refuge in the supposedly safe city, save two people – a prisoner by the name of Louis-Auguste Cyparis (also known by various other names), who later toured the world with the Barnum and Bailey Circus, and Léon Compère-Léandre
, a man who lived at the edge of the city.. Legend (erroneously) has it that the town's doom was forecast by loud groaning noises from within the volcano, but the mayor
of the town had it blocked off to prevent people from leaving during an election
. This story appears to have originated with one of the island's newspapers, published by a political opponent of the governor, and has no basis in fact. Actually, there was considerable eruptive activity in the two weeks prior to the fatal blast, but since the phenomenon of the pyroclastic flow
(nuée ardente) was not yet understood, the danger was perceived to be from lava
flows, which, it was believed, would be stopped by two valleys between the volcano and the city. More details of the eruption and results are given in the Mount Pelée
entry.
Today, the town is the district capital of the Caribbean North district of Martinique. It has been designated as a "city of Art and History". There are many historic remains, and a Volcanological Museum (Musée vulcanologique Franck Perret).
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
overseas department
Département d'outre-mer
An overseas department is a department of France that is outside metropolitan France. They have the same political status as metropolitan departments. As integral parts of France and the European Union, overseas departments are represented in the National Assembly, Senate, and Economic and Social...
of Martinique
Martinique
Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of . Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados...
, founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc
Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc
thumb|220px|Pierre Belain d'EsnambucPierre Bélain, Sieur d'Esnambuc 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....
. Before the total destruction of Saint-Pierre in 1902 by a volcanic eruption, it was the most important city of Martinique culturally and economically, being known as "the Paris of the Caribbean". While Fort-de-France
Fort-de-France
Fort-de-France is the capital of France's Caribbean overseas department of Martinique. It is also one of the major cities in the Caribbean. Exports include sugar, rum, tinned fruit, and cacao.-Geography:...
was the official administrative capital, Saint-Pierre was the cultural capital of Martinique. After the disaster, Fort-de-France
Fort-de-France
Fort-de-France is the capital of France's Caribbean overseas department of Martinique. It is also one of the major cities in the Caribbean. Exports include sugar, rum, tinned fruit, and cacao.-Geography:...
grew in economic importance.
History
Saint-Pierre was founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'EsnambucPierre Belain d'Esnambuc
thumb|220px|Pierre Belain d'EsnambucPierre Bélain, Sieur d'Esnambuc 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....
, a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
trader and adventurer, as the first permanent French colony on the island of Martinique.
The Great Hurricane of 1780
Great Hurricane of 1780
The Great Hurricane of 1780, also known as Hurricane San Calixto, the Great Hurricane of the Antilles, and the 1780 Disaster, is the deadliest Atlantic hurricane on record. Over 20,000 people died when the storm passed through the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean between October 10 and October...
produced a storm-surge of 25 feet (7.6 m) which "inundated the city, destroying all houses" and killed 9,000 people.
The town was destroyed again on 8 May 1902, when the volcano
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
Mount Pelée
Mount Pelée
Mount Pelée is an active volcano at the northern end of the island and French overseas department of Martinique in the Lesser Antilles island arc of the Caribbean. Its volcanic cone is composed of layers of volcanic ash and hardened lava....
erupted, killing over 30,000 people, the entire population of the town as well as people from neighboring villages who had taken refuge in the supposedly safe city, save two people – a prisoner by the name of Louis-Auguste Cyparis (also known by various other names), who later toured the world with the Barnum and Bailey Circus, and Léon Compère-Léandre
Léon Compere-Léandre
Léon Compère-Léandre was a shoemaker in Saint-Pierre on the French Caribbean island of Martinique when Mount Pelée erupted on May 8, 1902 and destroyed the town. He is one of only 2 known survivors....
, a man who lived at the edge of the city.. Legend (erroneously) has it that the town's doom was forecast by loud groaning noises from within the volcano, but the mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of the town had it blocked off to prevent people from leaving during an election
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...
. This story appears to have originated with one of the island's newspapers, published by a political opponent of the governor, and has no basis in fact. Actually, there was considerable eruptive activity in the two weeks prior to the fatal blast, but since the phenomenon of the pyroclastic flow
Pyroclastic flow
A pyroclastic flow is a fast-moving current of superheated gas and rock , which reaches speeds moving away from a volcano of up to 700 km/h . The flows normally hug the ground and travel downhill, or spread laterally under gravity...
(nuée ardente) was not yet understood, the danger was perceived to be from lava
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
flows, which, it was believed, would be stopped by two valleys between the volcano and the city. More details of the eruption and results are given in the Mount Pelée
Mount Pelée
Mount Pelée is an active volcano at the northern end of the island and French overseas department of Martinique in the Lesser Antilles island arc of the Caribbean. Its volcanic cone is composed of layers of volcanic ash and hardened lava....
entry.
Saint-Pierre today
The city of Saint-Pierre was never restored to its old glory, though some villages were built some decades later on its place.Today, the town is the district capital of the Caribbean North district of Martinique. It has been designated as a "city of Art and History". There are many historic remains, and a Volcanological Museum (Musée vulcanologique Franck Perret).