Guadaloupe: Location, History, Size, Population, & Government

About Guadaloupe, information, history size, location, population, people, culture, and government.

Guadeloupe

Size--687 sq. mi. (1,780 sq. km.). Population--350,000.

Two main islands and several smaller islands between the British Leewards and Windwards in the eastern Caribbean, Guadeloupe became a French Overseas Department in 1946, theoretically equal in political status to mainland French departments. Once hailed as a daring and liberal move, the Overseas Department status of Guadeloupe has come under criticism from islanders who maintain that they are still considered 2nd-class citizens. Economic troubles and racial unrest have been dealt with only gingerly by France. When Algerian independence was achieved, many of the officers most involved in the North African repression were then transferred to the French West Indies, another cause for complaint.