St Kitts and Nevis
Key facts
Date of Membership in CARICOM: 26 Jul 1974
Also Known as:Mother Colony of the West Indies
Status of Independence:Independent
Area: 269 sq km (104 miles2)
Capital City: Basseterre
Population: 54,000 (2013)
Currency: Eastern Caribbean Dollar (EC$)
Highest National Award: Order of the National Hero
Economy
GDP Growth: 0.9% p.a. 2009–13
GNI: US$724m
GNI PC: US$13,460
Key dates in history
1493 Arrival of Columbus on island known to Amerindians as ‘ Laimuiga’ fertile land which Columbus is
Said to have renamed ‘San Cristobal’ (St Christopher) after himself known to Amerindians as
‘Oualie’ renamed by Columbus ‘las Nieves” referring to the cloud- covered Nevis peak said to
Remind him of snow capped mountains in Spain
1623 First British settlement in the West Indies
1690 Severe earth quake and tidal wave destroyed what is believed to be the first capital of Nevis
(James Town)
1783 Ceded to Britain following shared use with France
1816 Together with Anguilla and British Virgin Island administered as single British Colony
1871 Incorporated within Leeward Islands Federation
1958 Member of West Indies Federation (St Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla)
1967 Associated Statehood with Britain (full internal self-government) within WISA.
Robert L. Bradshaw, first Premier
1980 Formal dissolution of association with Anguilla
1983 Achieved independence as a federation. Dr. Kennedy A. Simmonds, first Prime Minister
