Nevis / History, Population, Politics

History

Nevis had a fairly typical early history for the Eastern Caribbean. Known as Oualie by the indigenous Amerindians, the island was sighted by Columbus on his second voyage to the area and he christened it ‘Nuestra Senora de las Nieves’, which has been shortened to Nevis. The island was largely ignored by the Spaniards, but as other European settlers arrived it was settled by the English in the 1620s, from St Kitts next door. 

During the sugar era in the 1700s Nevis was known for its extremely fertile soil and hence the quality of its sugar. On the back of slave labour it became an extremely wealthy island, and the planters built themselves the large and grand houses, the result of which is the rich history that the island has today. At one stage Nevis apparently needed a fleet of 20 ocean-going ships to supply it with all it needed and to ship back all its sugar. 

Nevis is known for two famous residents, both of whom have a museum dedicated to them. Alexander Hamilton (1757–1804) was born on the island, in a house in Charlestown, and finished up as the first secretary to the US Treasury. The other famous figure to live on the island in the 1780s is Admiral Horatio Nelson. His job was to uphold the British Navigation Laws, which prevented island ships from trading with any countries other than Britain (before American independence they had good trade with the American colonies of course) so he was unpopular. He did find solace however, with Fanny Nisbet, whom he married on the island in 1787, on the Montpelier Estate. 

The nineteenth century was a time of decline for the island and it was joined to St Kitts in 1884. The decline continued into the late twentieth century, when the economy began to pick up, mainly through tourism. The islands took independence from the United Kingdom in September 1982. 
 

Population 

Today the population of Nevis is just over 11,000, which has grown in the past few years as the tourism industry develops. The Nevisians themselves are descended largely from the slaves that worked the plantations in the island’s sugar industry. Over the years many left the island, for St Kitts and further afield. Almost all Nevisians have relatives in St Kitts. 

Politics 

Nevis is an independent island in political federation with St Kitts. There is an eleven seat national Parliament in Basseterre, to which Nevis sends three representatives, which oversees laws for both islands. Nevis also has its own Assembly, which consists of five members. They meet just four times a year (upstairs in Alexander Hamilton House in Charlestown).