Soufrière, Saint Lucia Soufrière, Saint Lucia Soufrière is a town on the West Coast of Saint Lucia, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The town and the surrounding district has a population of 7,935. It was founded by the French and was the original capital of the island. There were large estates run by plantation owners of French origin and their descendants still live in the area. The French Revolution of 1789 resulted in many Royalists being executed and the slaves freed. However, Napoleon reintroduced slavery when he came to power. The British invaded St Lucia shortly after, but the slaves and French deserters
History of Saint Lucia a de facto a French colony well into the 18th century. In 1722, the George I of Great Britain granted both Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent to John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu. He in turn appointed Nathaniel Uring, a merchant sea captain and adventurer, as deputy-governor. Uring went to the islands with a group of seven ships, and established settlement at Petit Carenage. Unable to get enough support from British warships, he and the new colonists were quickly run off by the French. The 1730 census showed 463 occupants of the island, which included just 125 whites, 37 Caribs,