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100-832: Franklin Meyers was born on 28 November 1967 on Sint Eustatius to Etienne H. Meyers and Eulalie Meyers (née Hazel). His maternal grandfather, Melford Hazel , was one of Sint Maarten's well-known politicians, who served as an Island Council member for many years. At the age of 4 he moved to Sint Maarten with his Family, where he attended the Oranje School and then the Old Pond Side School. In 1983 he attended Newtown High School in New York and obtained his high school diploma in 1987. Two years later after having several jobs on Sint Maarten Meyers traveled on to Miami Dade Community College and got

200-459: A Portuguese group of Sephardic Jews that arrived from Amsterdam and Brazil from 1654. In 1982, there was a population of about 2,000 Muslims , with an Islamic association and a mosque in the capital. Most Netherlands Antilleans were Dutch citizens and this status permitted and encouraged the young and university-educated to emigrate to the Netherlands. This exodus was considered to be to

300-472: A colony of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In 1865 a government regulation for Curaçao was enacted that allowed for some very limited autonomy for the colony. Although this regulation was replaced by a constitution ( Dutch : Staatsregeling ) in 1936, the changes to the government structure remained superficial and Curaçao continued to be ruled as a colony. The Dutch abolition of slavery in 1863 would hit most of

400-578: A degree in Mortuary Science in 1991. Soon thereafter he returned to Sint Maarten and was hired at the newly established Emerald Funeral Home. In 1994 he postulated himself for the Netherlands Antilles parliamentary election on Joseph Richardson's Partnership for Political Reform Party but did not obtain enough votes to be elected. The following year, he joined the Democratic Party (DP) for

500-448: A few weeks to observe all their property being sold at small fractions of the original value after having been confiscated by Rodney. There were numerous complaints about "individuals of both sexes being halted in the streets and being body searched in a most scandalous way." Pieter Runnels, an eighty-year-old member of the island council and captain of the civic guard, did not survive the rough treatment he received aboard Rodney's ship. He,

600-596: A fixed exchange rate with the United States dollar of 1.79:1. A large percentage of the Netherlands Antilleans descended from European colonists and African slaves who were brought and traded there from the 17th to 19th centuries. The rest of the population originated from other Caribbean islands as well as Latin America, East Asia and elsewhere in the world. In Curaçao there was a strong Jewish element going back to

700-591: A flagpole atop the walls of Fort Oranje, reading: In commemoration to the salute to the flag of the United States, Fired in this fort November 16. 1776, By order of Johannes de Graaff, Governor of Saint Eustatius, In reply to a National Gun-Salute, Fired by the United States Brig of War Andrew Doria, Under Captain Isaiah Robinson of the Continental Navy, Here the sovereignty of the United States of America

800-667: A garrison of sixty men. De Graaff surrendered the island, but first fired two rounds as a show of resistance in honour of Dutch Admiral Lodewijk van Bylandt , who commanded a ship of the Dutch Navy which was in the harbor. Ten months later, the island was conquered by the French, allies of the Dutch Republic in the war. The Dutch regained control over the looted and plundered island in 1784. A series of disastrous French and British occupations of Sint Eustatius from 1795 to 1815 diverted trade to

900-468: A large Jewish population and an established community capable of aiding the refugees. St. Kitts did not have any Jewish community or population. The other seventy-one were locked up in the weighing house in Lower Town where they were held for three days. Expulsion of Americans followed on 23 February, of merchants from Amsterdam on 24 February and of other Dutch citizens and Frenchmen on 5 March. The crews of

1000-521: A major point of transhipment of captured Africans, goods, and a locus for trade in contraband . Transshipment of captured Africans to the British, French, and Spanish islands of the eastern Caribbean was significant enough that the colonists built a two-story slave house at the fortress Amsterdam (also known as Waterfort) to serve as a depot of enslaved Africans until around 1740. The depot housed about 400–450 people. St. Eustatius's economy flourished under

1100-543: A member from the Democratic Party citing the frequent controversies and statements made by then DP member Maria Buncamper-Molanus . In 2010, Meyers along with Theodore Heyliger and a few others established the United People's Party (UP). While Meyers decided not to seek election for public office at that time, he stayed on as President of the party. After forming the very first government of country Sint Maarten, with

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1200-615: A member of one of the island's oldest-established families, became the only civilian casualty of the British occupation. Rodney singled out the Jews: the harshness was reserved for them alone. He did not do the same to French, Dutch, Spanish or even the American merchants on the island. He permitted the French to leave with all their possessions. Rodney was concerned that his unprecedented behavior would be repeated upon British islands by French forces when events were different. However, Governor De Graaff

1300-531: A new interim Constitution of the Netherlands Antilles was enacted in February 1951. Shortly afterwards, on 3 March 1951, the Island Regulation of the Netherlands Antilles ( Dutch : Eilandenregeling Nederlandse Antillen or ERNA ) was issued by royal decree , giving fairly wide autonomy to the various island territories in the Netherlands Antilles. A consolidated version of this regulation remained in force until

1400-600: A non-existing entity since 2010, are allowed to field teams at the Chess Olympiad under this name, because the Curaçao Chess Federation remains officially registered as representing the dissolved country in the FIDE Directory. Unlike the metropolitan Netherlands, same-sex marriages were not performed in the Netherlands Antilles, but those performed in other jurisdictions were recognised. The main prison of

1500-625: A petition and letters to the government. The majority of the population on St. Eustatius are of African descent. Participation in cultural heritage, i.e. involving the community whose ancestors are being excavated, is good practice in contemporary archaeology. Archaeological excavations on St. Eustatius apparently fall under the old Monuments Act for the BES islands that is very brief on these issues. The 2016 Dutch Heritage Act offers more protection for cultural heritage. The Committee on Kingdom Relations asked Secretary of State Raymond Knops questions about

1600-527: A sentence of general beggary pronounced in one moment upon a whole people. A cruelty unheard of in Europe for many years… The persecution was begun with the people whom of all others it ought to be the care and the wish of human nations to protect, the Jews… the links of communication, the mercantile chain… the conductors by which credit was transmitted through the world... a resolution taken to banish this unhappy people from

1700-592: A single country – the Netherlands Antilles – in 1954, under the Dutch crown. The country was dissolved on 10 October 2010. Curaçao and Sint Maarten became distinct constituent countries alongside Aruba which had become a distinct constituent country in 1986; whereas Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (the BES islands ) became special municipalities within the Netherlands proper. From 1815 onwards Curaçao and Dependencies formed

1800-617: A transit point for enslaved Africans in the transatlantic slave trade . The ruins of the Waterfort on the southwest coast of the island are reminders of this past. A slave house of two floors was in the Waterfort. Plantations of sugarcane, cotton, tobacco, coffee and indigo were established on the island and worked with labor of enslaved Africans. In 1774 there were 75 plantations on the island with names such as Gilboa, Kuilzak, Zelandia, Zorg en Rust, Nooit Gedacht, Ruym Sigt and Golden Rock. In

1900-541: A tropical trade-wind climate , with hot weather all year round. The Leeward islands are subject to hurricanes in the summer months, while those islands located in the Leeward Antilles are warmer and drier. Spanish explorers discovered both the leeward ( Alonso de Ojeda , 1499) and windward ( Christopher Columbus , 1493) island groups in the late 16th century. However, the Spanish Crown only founded settlements in

2000-399: A vote in favour of retaining the Netherlands Antilles, the arrangement continued to be an unhappy one. Between June 2000 and April 2005, each island of the Netherlands Antilles had a new referendum on its future status. The four options that could be voted on were the following: Of the five islands, Sint Maarten and Curaçao voted for status aparte , Saba and Bonaire voted for closer ties with

2100-417: A well-developed infrastructure as compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods were imported, with Venezuela , the United States, and Mexico being the major suppliers, as well as the Dutch government which supports the islands with substantial development aid . Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hampered the development of agriculture. The Antillean guilder had

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2200-559: Is Dutch for Saint Eustace (also spelled Eustachius or Eustathius), a legendary Christian martyr , known in Spanish as San Eustaquio and in Portuguese as Santo Eustáquio or Santo Eustácio . The island's prior Dutch name was Nieuw Zeeland ('New Zeeland'), named by the Zeelanders who settled there in the 1630s. It was renamed Sint Eustatius shortly thereafter. The indigenous name for

2300-520: Is an island in the Caribbean . It is a special municipality (officially " public body ") of the Netherlands . The island is in the northern Leeward Islands , southeast of the Virgin Islands . Sint Eustatius is immediately to the northwest of Saint Kitts and southeast of Saba . The regional capital is Oranjestad . The island has an area of 21 square kilometres (8.1 sq mi). Travelers to

2400-474: Is attempting to restore the structure to the best estimate of its former condition. The grounds include a Jewish ritual bath ( mikveh ) and an oven used on Passover . A restored and respectfully maintained Jewish cemetery is next to the Old Church Cemetery, at the top of Oranjestad, Sint Eustatius. After 1848, slavery only existed on the Dutch and Danish Eastern Caribbean islands, which caused unrest on

2500-649: The Caribbean Netherlands . The neighboring Dutch colony of Surinam in continental South America , did not become part of the Netherlands Antilles but became a separate autonomous country in 1954. All the territories that belonged to the Netherlands Antilles remain part of the kingdom today, although the legal status of each differs. As a group they are still commonly called the Dutch Caribbean , regardless of their legal status. People from this former territory continue to be called Antilleans ( Antillianen ) in

2600-475: The European Union , but instead listed as overseas countries and territories (OCTs). This status was kept for all the islands after dissolution, and will be kept until at least 2015. Tourism, petroleum transshipment and oil refinement (on Curaçao), as well as offshore finance were the mainstays of this small economy, which was closely tied to the outside world. The islands enjoyed a high per capita income and

2700-625: The Kingdom act amending the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands with regard to the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles was signed by the three countries in the closing Round Table Conference on 9 September 2010 in The Hague . The Island Regulation had divided the Netherlands Antilles into four island territories : Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao ( ABC ), and the islands in the Leeward Islands. In 1983,

2800-579: The Lesser Antilles , and Aruba , Curaçao , and Bonaire in the Leeward Antilles . The country came into being in 1954 as the autonomous successor of the Dutch colony of Curaçao and Dependencies , and it was dissolved in 2010, when like Aruba in 1986, Sint Maarten and Curaçao gained status of constituent countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands , and Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Bonaire gained status of special municipality of Netherlands as

2900-484: The Netherlands alone: Bonaire , Sint Eustatius , and Saba . Collectively, these special municipalities of the Netherlands are also known as the BES islands . The Constitution of the Netherlands Antilles was proclaimed on 29 March 1955 by Order-in-Council for the Kingdom. Together with the Islands Regulation of the Netherlands Antilles it formed the constitutional basis for the Netherlands Antilles. Because

3000-704: The SSS islands , and increased tourism from Venezuela in the ABC islands , Spanish had also become increasingly used. The majority of the population were followers of the Christian faith, with a Protestant majority in Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten, and a Roman Catholic majority in Bonaire, Curaçao and Saba. Curaçao also hosted a sizeable group of followers of the Jewish religion, descendants of

3100-488: The St Eustatius National Parks Foundation (STENAPA). Due to its turbulent history, Sint Eustatius is rich in archaeological sites. Nearly 300 sites have been documented. The island is said to have the highest concentration of archaeological sites of any area of comparable size. In the 1920s, J. P. B. de Josselin de Jong conducted archaeological research into Saladoid sites on the island and in

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3200-433: The "Golden Rock Site". While the island may have been seen by Christopher Columbus in 1493, the first recorded sighting was ‌in ‌1595 by Sir‌ ‌Francis‌ ‌Drake‌ ‌and‌ ‌ Sir‌ ‌John‌ ‌Hawkins‌ .‌ From the first European settlement in the 17th century, until the early 19th century, St. Eustatius changed hands twenty-one times between the Netherlands, Britain, and France. In 1625, English and French settlers arrived on

3300-418: The 17th century slave trade. The language Papiamentu was predominant on Curaçao and Bonaire (as well as the neighboring island of Aruba). This creole descended from Portuguese and West African languages with a strong admixture of Dutch, plus subsequent lexical contributions from Spanish and English. An English-based creole dialect, formally known as Netherlands Antilles Creole , was the native dialect of

3400-465: The 18th century, "Statia" was the most important Dutch island in the Caribbean and was a center of great wealth from trading. At this time it was known as the "Golden Rock" because of its immense wealth. A very large number of warehouses lined the road that runs along Oranje Bay; most (but not all) of these warehouses are now ruined and some of the ruins are partially underwater. A French occupation in 1795

3500-475: The 18th century, St. Eustatius's geographical placement in the middle of Danish (Virgin Islands), British ( Jamaica , St. Kitts, Barbados , Antigua ), French ( St. Domingue , Ste. Lucie , Martinique , Guadeloupe ) and Spanish ( Cuba , Santo Domingo , Puerto Rico ) territories—along with its large harborage, neutrality and status from 1756 as a free port with no customs duties—were all factors in it becoming

3600-791: The 1980s a great deal of research at the Golden Rock site was done by archaeologist Aad Versteeg of Leiden University . Around 1981, under the direction of archaeologist Norman F. Barka, the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia also started archaeological research on Sint Eustatius. The documented archaeological sites include prehistoric sites, plantations, military sites, commercial trading sites (including shipwrecks), and urban sites (churches, government buildings, cemeteries, residences). The St. Eustatius Center for Archaeological Research (SECAR) has been conducting archaeological research on

3700-587: The Boston Red Sox, in 2013 and 2018. Andruw Jones played for the Atlanta Braves in the 1996 World Series hitting two home runs in his first game against the New York Yankees. Three athletes from the former Netherlands Antilles competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics . They, alongside one athlete from South Sudan , competed under the banner of Independent Olympic Athletes . The Netherlands Antilles, though

3800-540: The British left. Many of the merchants (including the Jews) returned to the island. However, French and British occupations from 1795 disrupted trade and also the North-Americans, now globally recognised as an independent nation, had meanwhile developed their own trading network and did not need St. Eustatius anymore. The island was eclipsed by other Dutch ports, such as those on the islands of Curaçao and Sint Maarten . During

3900-534: The British on its way to Holland. It was wrapped in documents that the British believed to be a strange cipher, but were actually written in Yiddish , addressed to Jewish merchants in Holland. President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited St. Eustatius for two hours on 27 February 1939 on USS Houston to recognise the importance of the 1776 "First Salute". He presented a large brass plaque to St. Eustatius, displayed today under

4000-524: The Constitution depended on the Islands Regulation, which gave fairly large autonomy to the different island territories, and the Islands Regulation was older than the Constitution, many scholars describe the Netherlands Antilles as a federal arrangement. The head of state was the monarch of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, who was represented in the Netherlands Antilles by a governor. The governor and

4100-724: The DP, the UP Party was sworn into office and Meyers took on the position of Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Telecommunications, and Transportation. In April 2012, United People's parliamentary faction leader Romain Laville left his party and became an independent member of parliament causing the first Wescot-Williams government to fall. Meyers was succeeded by Romeo Pantophlet of the National Alliance (NA) on 21 May 2012. In 2007, after deciding to retire from politics he started his own business;

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4200-438: The Dutch by ignoring the monopolistic trade restrictions of the British, French and Spanish islands ; it became known as the "Golden Rock". Edmund Burke said of the island in 1781: It has no produce, no fortifications for its defence, nor martial spirit nor military regulations ... Its utility was its defence. The universality of its use, the neutrality of its nature was its security and its safeguard. Its proprietors had, in

4300-413: The Dutch government – led to increasing demands for autonomy within the population as well. In May 1948 a new constitution for the territory entered into force, allowing the largest amount of autonomy possible under the Dutch constitution of 1922. Among other things, universal suffrage was introduced. The territory was also renamed "Netherlands Antilles". After the Dutch constitution was revised in 1948,

4400-409: The Dutch ships Rodney took were sent to St. Kitts for imprisonment – after first stripping them of all their belongings. Because of their maltreatment, many perished. The Jews were well received on St. Kitts – where many knew them as their respected business partners. They were supported in their protest against their deportation and it proved successful. They were allowed to return to St. Eustatius after

4500-584: The Gentiles". The building is off a small lane called Synagogue Path, away from the main street. The synagogue attested to the wealth of the Jews of St. Eustatius and their influence on the island. In 2001, its walls were restored as part of the Historic Core Restoration Project , although there are no known images showing what the synagogue looked like when still in use, so that archeological research

4600-541: The Kingdom of the Netherlands: Aruba , Curaçao , and Sint Maarten . (The Netherlands is the fourth constituent country in the Kingdom of the Netherlands.) Sint Maarten covers approximately 40% of the island of Saint Martin ; the remaining northern part of the island – the Collectivity of Saint Martin – is an overseas territory of France . There are three Caribbean islands that are special municipalities of

4700-475: The Leeward Islands. In the 17th century the islands were conquered by the Dutch West India Company and colonized by The Netherlands. From the last quarter of the 17th century, the group consisted of six Dutch islands: Curaçao (settled in 1634), Aruba (settled in 1636), Bonaire (settled in 1636), Sint Eustatius (settled in 1636), Saba (settled in 1640) and Sint Maarten (settled in 1648). In

4800-447: The Netherlands reached an agreement with Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba: this agreement would make these islands special municipalities. On 3 November 2006, Curaçao and Sint Maarten were granted autonomy in an agreement, but this agreement was rejected by the then island council of Curaçao on 28 November. The Curaçao government was not sufficiently convinced that the agreement would provide enough autonomy for Curaçao. On 9 July 2007

4900-529: The Netherlands, and Sint Eustatius voted to stay within the Netherlands Antilles. On 26 November 2005, a Round Table Conference (RTC) was held between the governments of the Netherlands, Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles, and each island in the Netherlands Antilles. The final statement to emerge from the RTC stated that autonomy for Curaçao and Sint Maarten, plus a new status for Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (BES) would come into effect by 1 July 2007. On 12 October 2006,

5000-420: The Netherlands. The islands of the Netherlands Antilles are all part of the Lesser Antilles island chain. Within this group, the country was spread over two smaller island groups : a northern group (part of Leeward Islands ) and a western group (part of the Leeward Antilles ). No part of the country was in the southern Windward Islands . This island subregion was located in the eastern Caribbean Sea, to

5100-454: The Netherlands. The islands of the former country of the Netherlands Antilles are currently divided in two main groups for political and constitutional purposes: There are also several smaller islands, like Klein Curaçao and Klein Bonaire , that belong to one of the island countries or special municipalities. There are three Caribbean islands that are countries ( Dutch : landen ) within

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5200-550: The Netherlands. None of the other islands voted to remain. After the other islands decided to leave, ending the Netherlands Antilles, the island council opted to become a special municipality of the Netherlands, like Saba and Bonaire. This process was completed in October 2010. In 2011 the island officially adopted the US dollar as its currency. Sint Eustatius is 6 miles (10 km) long and up to 3 miles (5 km) wide. Topographically,

5300-642: The Royal Funeral Home and Crematorium. During this time, Meyers successfully obtained his private pilot license. In 2013 Meyers married his long time partner businesswoman Brenda Wathey in Bali , Indonesia. Sint Eustatius in the Caribbean Sint Eustatius ( / j uː ˈ s t eɪ ʃ ə s / yoo- STAY -shəs , Dutch: [sɪnt øːˈstaː(t)sijʏs] ), known locally as Statia ( / ˈ s t eɪ ʃ ə / STAY -shə ),

5400-603: The United Colonies and St. Eustatius. In 1778, Lord Stormont claimed in Parliament that, "if Sint Eustatius had sunk into the sea three years before, the United Kingdom would already have dealt with George Washington ". Nearly half of all American Revolutionary military supplies were obtained through St. Eustatius. Nearly all American communications to Europe first passed through the island. The trade between St. Eustatius and

5500-523: The United Nations deemed decolonization of the territory complete and removed the Netherlands Antilles from the United Nations list of non-self-governing territories . Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles on 1 January 1986 after a 30 year-long political battle for separation, paving the way for a series of referendums among the remaining islands on the future of the Netherlands Antilles. Whereas

5600-565: The United States was the main reason for the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War of 1780–1784. Notably, the British Admiral George Brydges Rodney, having occupied the island for Great Britain in 1781, urged the commander of the landing troops, Major-General Sir John Vaughan, to seize "Mr. Smith at the house of Jones – they (the Jews of St. Eustatius, Caribbean Antilles) cannot be too soon taken care of – they are notorious in

5700-638: The burning of a straw King Momo , cleansing the island of sins and bad luck. Netherlands Lesser Antilles competed in the Winter Olympics of 1988, notably finishing 29th in the bobsled, ahead of Jamaica who famously competed but finished 30th. Baseball is by far the most popular sport. Several players have made it to the Major Leagues, such as Xander Bogaerts , Andrelton Simmons , Hensley Meulens , Randall Simon , Andruw Jones , Kenley Jansen , Jair Jurrjens , Roger Bernadina , Sidney Ponson , Didi Gregorius , Shairon Martis , Wladimir Balentien , and Yurendell DeCaster . Xander Bogaerts won two World Series with

5800-412: The cannons of Fort Oranje (international protocol required two guns fewer to acknowledge a sovereign flag). It was the first international acknowledgment of American independence. The Andrew Doria had arrived to purchase munitions for the American Revolutionary forces. She was carrying a copy of the Declaration of Independence which was presented to Governor De Graaff. An earlier copy had been captured by

5900-405: The cause of America and France." The war was disastrous for the Dutch economy. Britain declared war on the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on 20 December 1780. Even before officially declaring war, Britain had outfitted a massive battle fleet to take and destroy the weapons depot and vital commercial centre that St. Eustatius had become. British Admiral George Brydges Rodney was appointed

6000-410: The city they pelted the militia with stones and pieces of rock. A group of 35 shooters stormed the hill, killing two insurgents and injuring several. The six leaders of the uprising were exiled from the island and transferred to Curaçao . Thomas Dupersoy , a free African, is considered the chief leader of the uprising. One of the other leaders sent a death notice to his owner in 1851. After the uprising,

6100-407: The commander of the battle fleet. 3 February 1781, the massive fleet of 15 ships of the line and numerous smaller ships transporting over 3,000 soldiers appeared before St. Eustatius prepared to invade. Governor De Graaff did not know about the declaration of war . Rodney offered De Graaff a bloodless surrender to his superior force. Rodney had more than 1,000 cannon to De Graaff's one dozen cannon and

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6200-423: The council of ministers, chaired by a prime minister, formed the government. The Netherlands Antilles had a unicameral legislature called the Parliament of the Netherlands Antilles . Its 22 members were fixed in number for the islands making up the Netherlands Antilles: fourteen for Curaçao, three each for Sint Maarten and Bonaire, and one each for Saba and Sint Eustatius. The Netherlands Antilles were not part of

6300-416: The direct command of the Dutch West India Company, with a commander stationed on St. Eustatius to govern all three. At the time, the island was of some importance for the cultivation of tobacco and sugar . More important was the role of St. Eustatius in the trans-Atlantic slave trade and the intercolonial slave trade. Sint Eustatius became the most profitable asset of the Dutch West India Company and

6400-417: The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010. The new constitution was only deemed an interim arrangement, as negotiations for a Charter for the Kingdom were already under way. On 15 December 1954 the Netherlands Antilles, Suriname and the Netherlands acceded as equal partners to an overarching Kingdom of the Netherlands, established by the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands. With this move,

6500-434: The east of Puerto Rico . It consisted of three islands, collectively known as the " SSS islands ": The islands are located approximately 800–900 kilometers (430–490 nautical miles; 500–560 miles) northeast of the ABC islands . This island subregion was located in the southern Caribbean Sea off the north coast of Venezuela . There were three islands collectively known as the " ABC islands ": The Netherlands Antilles have

6600-428: The economies of the Dutch Caribbean islands hard as they were primarily slave labor-driven, plantation-based economies (the King of the Netherlands officially apologising for its part in the trade at a formal ceremony in 2023). With the exception of Aruba, where slavery was not as widespread as the island was considered too dry by the Dutch for large-scale plantations. Economic prosperity on Curaçao and neighboring Aruba

6700-412: The economy of the island never recovered. However, with the discovery of oil in Venezuela in the nineteenth century, the Anglo-Dutch Shell Oil Company established refineries in Curaçao, while the U.S. processed Venezuelan crude oil in Aruba. This resulted in booming economies on the two islands, which turned to bust in the 1980s when the oil refineries were closed. The various islands were united as

6800-405: The flat saddle between the two elevated areas, which forms the centre of the island. St. Eustatius has a tropical monsoon climate . Tropical storms and hurricanes are common. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November, sharply peaking from late August through September. Tropical Cyclone Climatology As St. Eustatius is a volcanic island and very small, all of the beaches on

6900-400: The group, but it persisted in its demands. The militia was mobilized and, after consultation with the Colonial Council and the main residents, an attack was decided by the Lieutenant Governor. After another warning to leave the city or otherwise experience the consequences, fire was opened on the group. The insurgents fled the city, leaving two or three seriously injured. From a hill just outside

7000-465: The hurricane of September 1928 and May 1929 accelerated the process of economic decline on the island. Sint Eustatius became a member of the Netherlands Antilles when that grouping was created in 1954. Between 2000 and 2005 the member islands of the Netherlands Antilles voted on their future status. In a referendum on 8 April 2005 , 77% of Sint Eustatius voters voted to remain within the Netherlands Antilles, compared to 21% who voted for closer ties with

7100-403: The inhabitants of Sint Eustatius, Saba and Sint Maarten. After a decades-long debate, English and Papiamentu were made official languages alongside Dutch in early March 2007. Legislation was produced in Dutch, but parliamentary debate was in Papiamentu or English, depending on the island. Due to a massive influx of immigrants from Spanish-speaking territories such as the Dominican Republic in

7200-595: The island and education is solely in English. A local English-based creole is also spoken informally. More than 52% of the population speak more than one language. The most widely spoken languages are English (92.7%), Dutch (36%), Spanish (33.8%) and Papiamento (20.8%). The population of Sint Eustatius is predominantly Christian . The main denominations are Methodism (28.6%), Roman Catholicism (23.7%), Seventh-Day Adventist (17.8%), Pentecostalism (7.2%) and Anglicanism (2.6%). Religion in Sint Eustatius (2018): In

7300-445: The island are made up of black volcanic sand. These volcanic sands, especially one of the more popular nesting beaches called Zeelandia, are very important nesting sites for several endangered sea turtles such as: the green turtle , leatherback , loggerhead and hawksbill . Sint Eustatius is home to one of the last remaining populations of the critically endangered Lesser Antillean iguana ( Iguana delicatissima ). The population

7400-565: The island by air arrive through F. D. Roosevelt Airport . Formerly part of the Netherlands Antilles , Sint Eustatius became a public body of the Netherlands in 2010. It is part of the Dutch Caribbean , which consists of Aruba , Bonaire , Curaçao , Saba , Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten . Together with Bonaire and Saba, it forms the BES Islands, also referred to as the Caribbean Netherlands . The island's name, Sint Eustatius,

7500-562: The island council election but once again was unable to secure the sufficient votes needed to be elected. In the 1999 island council election Meyers received 534 votes and was elected. He resigned from his position at Emerald Funeral Home to serve in public office, he became a member of the Executive Council and the Island Council and served as a Commissioner for 2 consecutive terms from 1999 until 2007. On 30 June 2008 Meyers resigned as

7600-518: The island is Aloi meaning "cashew island" (origin Arawak ). The earliest inhabitants were Caribs believed to have come from the Amazon basin (South America) and migrated north from Venezuela via the Lesser Antilles . In the early 20th century, settlement traces were discovered at Golden Rock and Orange Bay. Multiple pre-Columbian sites have been found on the island, most notably the site referred to as

7700-413: The island is saddle-shaped, with the 602-metre (1,975 ft) high dormant volcano Quill (Mount Mazinga), (from Dutch kuil , meaning 'pit'—originally referring to its crater) to the southeast and the smaller summits of Signal Hill/Little Mountain (or Bergje ) and Boven Mountain to the northwest. The Quill crater is a popular tourist attraction on the island. The bulk of the island's population lives in

7800-560: The island since 2004 including excavations at the Godet African Burial Ground and the Golden Rock African Burial Ground . In June 2021, SECAR became involved in protests against excavations at the 18th-century burial ground Golden Rock on the island. The Ubuntu Connected Front and other concerned citizens of Sint Eustatius denounced the non-involvement of the community in the excavation process through

7900-498: The island territory of the Leeward was split up to form the new island territories of Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius ( SSS ). In 1986, Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles, reducing the number of island territories to five. After the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, Curaçao and Sint Maarten became autonomous countries within the Kingdom and Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba ( BES ) became special municipalities of

8000-418: The island. In 1629, the French built a wooden battery at the present-day location of Fort Oranje . Both the English and the French left the island within a few years due to lack of drinkable water. In 1636, the chamber of Zeeland of the Dutch West India Company took possession of the island, reported to be uninhabited at the time. In 1678 the islands of St. Eustatius, Sint Maarten and Saba were under

8100-439: The island. They suffered in common with the rest of the inhabitants, the loss of their merchandise, their bills, their houses, and their provisions; and after this they were ordered to quit the island, and only one day was given them for preparation; they petitioned, they remonstrated against so hard a sentence, but in vain; it was irrevocable. From about 1815, when there was no longer a viable Jewish community using and maintaining

8200-440: The islands colonized by the Netherlands . As a result, a proclamation declared on 6 June 1848 on Sint Maarten that enslaved Africans would be treated as free persons. Unrest also arose on Sint Eustatius. On 12 June 1848, a group of free and enslaved Africans gathered in front of Lieutenant Governor Johannes de Veer's home demanding their declaration of liberty, increased rations, and more free hours. The Island Governor addressed

8300-532: The islands' detriment, as it created a brain drain . On the other hand, immigrants from the Dominican Republic , Haiti , the Anglophone Caribbean and Colombia had increased their presence on these islands in later years. The origins of the population and location of the islands gave the Netherlands Antilles a mixed culture. Tourism and overwhelming media presence from the United States increased

8400-427: The largest plantation owners on Sint Eustatius decided to give their enslaved workers a certain wage for fear of repetition of revolt. In 1863 slavery was officially abolished in the Netherlands. The Dutch were among the last to abolish slavery. The freed slaves no longer wanted to live in the field and moved to the city. Due to a lack of trade, the bay of Sint Eustatius underwent a recession. Natural disasters such as

8500-564: The last years of the 18th century Statia developed trade in bay rum. The economy declined in the early 19th century. From about 1795 the population declined, dropping to 921 in 1948. The first record of Jews on St. Eustatius dates to 1660. The Jews were mainly merchants with significant international trading and maritime commercial ties. Jews were captains, owners or co-owners with Christian partners, of significant numbers of ships originating out of St. Eustatius. A few were island plantation owners. Jews were estimated to have composed at least 10% of

8600-453: The matter. The Statia Heritage and Research Commission (SHRC) set up by the government of St. Eustatius investigated the allegations of the protest groups and published its report in January 2022. As of January 2024, the population was 3,204, with a population density of 154 inhabitants per square kilometre. The official language is Dutch, but English is the "language of everyday life" on

8700-474: The new island council of Curaçao approved the agreement previously rejected in November 2006. A subsequent referendum approved the agreement as well. The acts of parliament integrating the "BES" islands ( B onaire, Sint E ustatius and S aba) into the Netherlands were given royal assent on 17 May 2010. After ratification by the Netherlands (6 July), the Netherlands Antilles (20 August), and Aruba (4 September),

8800-588: The noted "First Salute". On 16 November 1776, the 14-gun American brig Andrew Doria commanded by Captain Isaiah Robinson sailed, flying the Continental Colors of the fledgling United States, into the anchorage below St. Eustatius's Fort Oranje. Robinson announced his arrival by firing a thirteen gun salute, one gun for each of the thirteen American colonies in rebellion against Britain. Governor Johannes de Graaff replied with an eleven-gun salute from

8900-434: The occupiers' islands. St. Eustatius's economy collapsed, and the merchants, including the Jews left. St. Eustatius reverted permanently to Dutch control from 1816. At its peak, St. Eustatius may have had a largely transient population of about 10,000 people. Most were engaged in commercial and maritime interests. A census list of 1790 gives a total population (free and enslaved people combined) of 8,124. Commerce revived after

9000-727: The past, Anguilla (1631–1650), the present-day British Virgin Islands (1612–1672), St. Croix and Tobago had also been Dutch. During the American Revolution Sint Eustatius, along with Curaçao, was a major trade center in the Caribbean, with Sint Eustatius a major source of supplies for the Thirteen Colonies . It had been called "the Golden Rock" because of the number of wealthy merchants and volume of trade there. The British sacked its only town, Oranjestad, in 1781 and

9100-430: The permanent population of St. Eustatius. Ten days after the island surrendered to the British on 3 February 1781, Rodney ordered that the entire Jewish male adult population assemble for him. They were rounded up and thirty one heads of families were summarily deported to St. Kitts without word or mercy to their dependents. The choice of exiling the Jews to St. Kitts was significant. The nearby British colony of Nevis had

9200-461: The regional United States influence. On all the islands, the holiday of Carnival had become an important event after its importation from other Caribbean and Latin American countries in the 1960s. Festivities included "jump-up" parades with beautifully colored costumes, floats, and live bands as well as beauty contests and other competitions. Carnival on the islands also included a middle-of-the-night j'ouvert (juvé) parade that ended at sunrise with

9300-513: The ruling parties campaigned for the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, the people voted for a restructuring of the Netherlands Antilles. The coalition campaigning for this option became the Party for the Restructured Antilles , which ruled the Netherlands Antilles for much of the time until its dissolution on 10 October 2010. Even though the referendums held in the early 1990s resulted in

9400-406: The spirit of commerce, made it an emporium for all the world. ... Its wealth was prodigious, arising from its industry and the nature of its commerce. The island sold arms and ammunition to anyone willing to pay, and it was therefore one of the few places from which the young United States could obtain military stores. The good relationship between St. Eustatius and the United States resulted in

9500-595: The synagogue on St. Eustatius, it gradually fell into ruin. The synagogue building, known as Honen Dalim, (חונן דלים, He who is charitable to the Poor) was built in 1737. Permission for building the synagogue came from the Dutch West India Company, additional funding came from the Jewish community on Curaçao. Permission was conditional on the fact that the Jewish house of worship would be sited where "the exercise of their (Jewish) religious duties would not molest those of

9600-610: Was also deported. As he did with all other warehouses, Rodney confiscated the Jewish warehouses, looted Jewish personal possessions, even cutting the lining of their clothes to find money hidden in there. When Rodney realized that the Jews might be hiding additional treasure, he dug up the Jewish cemetery. Later, in February 1782, Edmund Burke , the leading opposition member of the Whig Party, upon learning of Rodney's actions in St. Eustatius, rose to condemn Rodney's actions in Parliament : ...and

9700-579: Was first formally acknowledged to a national vessel by a foreign official. Presented by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, President of the United States of America The recognition provided the title for Barbara W. Tuchman 's 1988 book The First Salute: A View of the American Revolution . The British took the Andrew Doria incident seriously, and protested bitterly against the continuous trade between

9800-465: Was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. Colonial rule ended after the conclusion of the Second World War . Queen Wilhelmina had promised in a 1942 speech to offer autonomy to the overseas territories of the Netherlands. During the war, the British and American occupation of the islands – with the consent of

9900-532: Was strongly affected during the high-intensity hurricane year of 2017, with especially Hurricane Maria , during which the population declined by 25%. Sint Eustatius has three nature parks – on land and at sea: the Sint Eustatius National Marine Park, Quill/Boven National Park , and Miriam Schmidt Botanical Garden. Two of them have national park status. These areas have been designated as important bird areas. The nature parks are maintained by

10000-510: Was the beginning of the end of great prosperity for Sint Eustatius. Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles ( Dutch : Nederlandse Antillen , pronounced [ˈneːdərlɑntsə ʔɑnˈtɪlə(n)] ; Papiamento : Antia Hulandes ), also known as the Dutch Antilles , was a constituent Caribbean country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands consisting of the islands of Saba , Sint Eustatius , and Sint Maarten in

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