History of French Guiana

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The history of French Guiana dates back to the period prior to

Rumours online proclaim that in 1498, French Guiana was visited by Europeans when Christopher Columbus sailed to the Guiaiean coast, which he named the "Land of Pariahs". Columbus had actually sailed to the coast of Venezuela from Trinidad, and he named the coastline “Ysla Sancta”, as from his view the far away coast appeared to be an island. The term “Land of Pariahs” comes from the Gulf of Paria, the water that the lands Columbus had discovered were facing.^[1][2]

In 1608, the

In 1667, the English seized the area. Following the Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667, the area was given back to France. The Dutch briefly occupied it for a period in 1676.

Consolidation of French rule

After the

During the French Revolution, the National Convention voted to abolish the French slave trade and slavery in France's overseas colonies in February 1794, months after enslaved Haitians had started a slave rebellion in the colony of Saint-Domingue. However, the 1794 decree was only implemented in Saint-Domingue, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana, while the colonies of Senegal, Mauritius, Réunion and Martinique, and French India resisted the imposition of these laws.^[2]

In 1794, after the execution of Maximilien Robespierre, 193 of his followers were sent to French Guiana. In 1797, the republican general Pichegru and many deputies and journalists were also sent to the colony. When they arrived, they found that only 54 of the 193 deportées sent out three years earlier were left; 11 had escaped and the rest had died of tropical fevers and other diseases. Pichegru managed to escape to the United States and then returned to France where he was eventually executed for plotting against Napoleon.

Later on, slaves were brought out from Africa, and plantations were established along the more disease-free rivers. Exports of sugar, hardwood, Cayenne pepper, and other spices brought a certain prosperity to the colony for the first time. Cayenne, the capital, was surrounded by plantations, some of which had several thousand slaves.

1800s and the Penal Era

In 1809, an Anglo-Portuguese naval squadron

In 1852, the first shiploads of chained convicts arrived from France. In 1885, to get rid of habitual criminals and to increase the number of colonists, the French Parliament passed a law that anyone, male or female, who had more than three sentences for theft of more than three months each, would be sent to French Guiana as a relégué. This relégués was to be kept in prison there for six months but then freed to become settlers in the colony. However, this experiment failed dismally. The ex-prisoners, unable to make a living off the land, found themselves forced to revert to crime or to eke out a hand-to-mouth existence until they died. In fact, transportation to French Guiana as a relégué amounted to a life sentence, and usually, a short life sentence, as most of the relégués died very quickly from disease and malnutrition.

The prisoners would arrive at

In 1853, gold was discovered in the interior, precipitating border disputes with Brazil and

The territory of Inini, consisting of most of the interior of French Guiana, was created in 1930. It was abolished in 1946.

During World War II the local government declared its allegiance to the Vichy government, despite widespread support for Charles de Gaulle. This government was removed on 22 March 1943.^[6]

French Guiana became an

The infamous penal colonies, including Devil's Island, were gradually phased out and then formally closed in 1951. At first, only those freed prisoners who could raise the fare for their return passage to France were able to go home, so French Guiana was haunted after the official closing of the prisons by numerous freed convicts leading an aimless existence in the colony.

Visitors to the site in December 1954 reported being deeply shocked by the conditions and the constant screams from the cell block still in use for convicts who had gone insane and which had only tiny ventilation slots at the tops of the walls under the roof. Food was pushed in and bodies removed once a day.

In 1961, Brazilian president Jânio Quadros planned the annexation of French Guiana, but resigned, likely in a failed move to gain more political power,^[7] before he could execute the operation.^[8]

In 1964, Kourou was chosen to be the launch site for rockets, largely due to its favourable location near the equator. The Guiana Space Centre was built and became operational in 1968. This has provided some local employment and the mainly foreign technicians, and hundreds of troops stationed in the region to prevent sabotage, bring a little income to the local economy.

The 1970s saw the settlement of Hmong refugees from Laos in the county, primarily to the towns of Javouhey and Cacao. The Green Plan (Le Plan Vert) of 1976 aimed to improve production, though it had only limited success. A movement for increased autonomy from France gained momentum in the 70s and 80s, along with the increasing success of the Parti Socialiste Guyanais.

Protests by those calling for more autonomy from France have become increasingly vocal. Protests in 1996, 1997, and 2000 all ended in violence. While many Guianese wish to see more autonomy, support for complete independence is low.^[9]

21st century

In a 2010 referendum, French Guianans voted against autonomy.^[10]

On 20 March 2017, French Guianans began going on strike and demonstrating for more resources and infrastructure.^[11] 28 March 2017 saw the largest demonstration ever held in French Guiana.^[12]

The first woman to be elected to the Senate was Marie-Laure Phinéra-Horth in 2020.^[13][14]

Notes