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Montserrat Montserrat









CARICOM Youth Ambassador(s)

Keyola Green

Key facts

Date of Membership in CARICOM: 1 May 1974 - Learn more about membership in CARICOM

Also Known as:Emerald Isle

Status of Independence:Independent

Area: 103 km2 (40 miles2)

Capital City: Plymouth (abandoned in 1997 due to volcanic activity. Interim government buildings built at Brades Estate at the northwest end

Population: 4,932 (2009)

Currency: Eastern Caribbean Dollar (EC$)

Highest National Award: Montserrat Badge of Honour

Economy

GDP: EC$176 Mn (2012)

GNI: 0.058 Bn US$

Key dates in history

1493      Sighted by Columbus who changed island’s Amerindian name `Alliouagana’ (land of the prickly bush) to Montserrat, after abbey of same name in Spain

1632      Colonised by Britain (settled by Anglo-Irish who arrived from St. Kitts)

1783      Finally ceded to Britain by France following numerous exchanges between the two countries which began in the seventeenth century

1871      Incorporated into Leeward Islands Administration

1958      Incorporated into the West Indies Federation

1967      Elected to retain colonial status instead of associated status within the West Indies Associated States (WISA)

1982 Montserrat-born, Alphonsus ‘Arrow’ Cassell released his first Pan-Caribbean hit called ‘Hot Hot Hot’ which became the biggest soca hit of all time

1989      Hurricane Hugo destroys more than  90 per cent of the island’s homes and other infrastructure. Island rebuilt in less than five years

1995      Eruption of Langs Soufriere Volcano

2002      Monsterratians regain full British citizenship

2009 Locally-based airline, FlyMontserrat commenced scheduled flights from Montserrat to Antigua. Permanent fast ferry services resume.

 

[1] http://www.visitmontserrat.com/History

Hon. EASTON TAYLOR-FARRELL

Primier

Visit Government Portal: http://www.gov.ms

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Did You Know?

The National Bird of Montserrat, the Oriole (leterus oberi), was found nowhere else in the entire world except Montserrat, until conservationists at Jersey Zoo went to the rescue when much of Montserrat was destroyed by a volcano at the end of the 1990s. It wiped out mountainous forests where these starling-sized Orioles live.The Jersey team went there and brought back eight surviving birds to begin a breeding programme and save them from dying out forever.

 

The Langs Soufriere Volcano located in Soufriere Hills, St. Anthonys, Montserrat erupted in July 1995 after having been dormant for 400 years. The volcano continues to be active and has resulted in more than half the population leaving the island. An eruption in December 1997 resulted in the deaths of 19 people.