GUADELOUPE, o'de-1(7Up', Fr. pron. gwhd' ioup'. The largest of the French West Indian islands, situated between the British islands of Dominica to the south and Montserrat on the north (Map: West Indies, Q 6). Area, 619 square miles. Guadeloupe is practically divided into two isiands—Basse Terre and Grande Terre, separated by the Riviere Salee, an inlet four miles long and 100 to 400 feet wide. The two portions differ radically. Basse Terre, the western part, is mountainous, and reaches in its highest peak the active volcano of La Grande Soufriere, an altitude of about 5500 feet. It is of volcanic for mation and intersected by a large number of vol canic streams. Grande Terre, the eastern part, on the other hand, has few elevations above 100 feet, is of calcareous formation, and depends for its water-supply mainly on ponds and marshes. The climate of Guadeloupe is hot and moist, and not unhealthful in the more elevated parts of the island. The mean annual temperature is nearly 80°. Guadeloupe, like most of the West Indies, has a fertile soil, and produces chiefly sugar, coffee, cocoa, vanilla, rice, bananas, etc. Over 30 per cent. of the total area is under culti vation, and of that nearly 50 per cent. is under sugar. The sugar industry of the island, which had greatly declined with the abolition of slav ery, has again revived as a result of the impor tation of coolies, and the annual output amounts at present to about 50,000 tons. Cotton, rub ber, and tobacco are also cultivated to some ex tent. The forests of Guadeloupe, confined largely to Basse Terre, are quite extensive, abounding in campeachy or logwood. The commerce for 1889 amounted to 36,700,000 francs ($7,082,100), divided almost equally between exports and im ports. Guadeloupe forms, together with the isl
ands of Marie Galante, Les Saintes, Saint Bar tholomew (Barthelemy), and a part of Saint Martin, a French colony, and is administered by a governor, an executive council of six, and a legislative council of thirty members. It is rep resented in the French Parliament by a Sena tor and two Deputies. The budget for 1900 balanced at about 5,000,000 francs ($965,000), and the subvention from the French Government amounted, in 1901, to 1,600,000 francs ($308, 800). The population of the island of Guade loupe, chiefly colored, was 182,112 in 1901, in cluding about 15,000 coolies. Capital, Basse Terre (q.v.) ; chief commercial town, Pointe-a Pitre, at the south entrance of the Riviere Salee.
Guadeloupe was discovered by Columbus in 1493, and settled by the French in 1635. During the latter half of the seventeenth century the colonists resisted several attacks by the British, who finally captured the island in 1759 and re tained it until 1763. The island was again captured by the British in 1794 and 1810. In 1813 it was transferred to Sweden, and in 1816 was formally restored to France. Consult: An uvaire de la Guadeloupe et dependences (Basse Terre) ; Boumais, Guadeloupe physique, politique, economiqu(.. avee une notice historiquc (Paris, 1881) : Stoddard, Cruising Among the Caribbees (London, 1896) ; Ballet, La Guadeloupe (Basse Terre, 1890-96) ; Guesde, La Guadeloupe et dd pendences (Paris, 1900).