On
his third voyage to the New World in 1498, Columbus sailed by Grenada
and named it Concepcion.
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The British attempted a small settlement in 1609, but it was the French that
successfully battled the cannibalistic Carib Indians, finally driving them
off the island in 1651.
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Military
and political struggles continued on the islands for two centuries, with
Grenada finally becoming an independent country in 1974.
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Then,
in 1983, Grenada was seized by a Marxist military group. This action
facilitated an invasion by US forces and those of six other Caribbean
nations; they captured the ringleaders and hundreds of Cuban advisers and
free elections were reinstituted the following year.
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Grenada (the country) includes the large island of Grenada, and a few
islands on the southern edge of the Grenadines, with Carriacou and
Petit Martinique the most significant.
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Volcanic in origin, Grenada is dominated by a central ridge of mountains,
all covered with lush rainforests. The island is blessed with numerous bays
and harbors, and some of the best beaches in the Caribbean.
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Once famed only for its indigenous spices (namely mace and nutmeg),
Grenada's modern focus is tourism, and the islands are deservedly garnering
the attention of the travel industry.
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Population 94,000
Capital
City St. George's (4,500)
Languages
English (official), French patois
Official
Currency East Caribbean Dollar
Religions
Catholic, Anglican, others
Land
Area 133 sq miles (345 sq km)
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