Saint-Pierre, Martinique Saint-Pierre, Martinique Saint-Pierre () is a town and commune of France's Caribbean overseas department of Martinique, founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc. Before the total destruction of Saint-Pierre in 1902 by a volcanic eruption, it was the most important city of Martinique culturally and economically, being known as "the Paris of the Caribbean". While Fort-de-France was the official administrative capital, Saint-Pierre was the cultural capital of Martinique. After the disaster, Fort-de-France grew in economic importance. Saint-Pierre was founded in 1635 by Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc, a French trader and adventurer, as the first permanent French colony on the island of
Carriacou and Petite Martinique Carriacou and Petite Martinique Carriacou and Petite Martinique is a dependency of Grenada, lying north of Grenada island and south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Lesser Antilles. The Grenadine Islands to the north of Carriacou and Petite Martinique belong to the nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Carriacou Island is the largest island of the Grenadines, an archipelago in the Windward Islands chain. The island is with a population of 4,595 (1991 census). The main settlements on the island are Hillsborough, L'Esterre, Harvey Vale, and Windward. The neighbouring island of Petite Martinique is 2½ miles away