Mustique

Mustique
—  Private Island  —
Location of Mustique
Map showing the location of Mustique within the Grenadines
Coordinates: 12°52′N 61°11′W / 12.867°N 61.183°W / 12.867; -61.183
Country	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Island chain	the Grenadines
Owner	the Mustique Company
European Discovery	15th century by Spanish sailors
Area
• Total	2.2 sq mi (5.7 km2)
Population
• Total	500
• Peak season	1,300
Website	The Mustique Company

Mustique (pronounced /muˈstiːk/) is a small private island in the West Indies. The island is one of a group of islands called the Grenadines, most of which form part of the country of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

The island covers 1,400 acres (5.7 km² or 2.2 sq. miles) and it has several coral reefs. The land fauna includes tortoises, herons and many other species. Its year-round population of about 500 mostly live in the villages of Lovell, Britannia Bay, and Dover.

The island of Mustique is owned by the Mustique Company, which in turn is owned by the island's home owners. The island has approximately 100 private villas, many of which are rented out through the Mustique Company. In addition there is one hotel called the Cotton House, owned by the Mustique Company, and one privately-owned four bedroom hotel called Firefly, which is owned by Stan and Liz Clayton.

The island is located in the Grenadines Parish administrative area of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Residents and guests

Mustique has, over the years, attracted a number of celebrities such as Amy Winehouse^[1] and Jeremy Clarkson.^[2] Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have made private visits to Mustique in 1966, 1977, and 1985.^[3]

Early history

The history of the island of Mustique, and of the Grenadines in general, dates back to the 15th century, when Spanish sailors first sighted this more or less linear group of small rocky islands and named them 'Los Pájaros' or 'the birds', because they resembled a small flock of birds scattered across the sea in flight. During the 17th century the islands were renamed the Grenadines by pirates, who used the sheltered bays to hide their ships and treasure. The islands were later utilized by European planters to grow sugar cane. This lucrative industry lasted until the nineteenth century, when the extraction of sugar from European-grown sugar beet dramatically lessened the worldwide demand for tropical sugar.

Mustique's sugar plantations were abandoned and eventually swallowed up by scrub, leaving remnants such as the sugar mill at 'Endeavor' and its 'Cotton House.' The Plantation House was built in the 18th century.

Recent history

Mustique was purchased in 1958 by Colin Tennant, 3rd Baron Glenconner, under whose guidance the island began to be developed. Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, the sister of Queen Elizabeth II, accepted his gift of a 10-acre (40,000 m²) plot of land as a wedding present in 1960, and she built a residence called Les Jolies Eaux. In 1989 Mustique Island was transformed from a family estate into a private limited company with the homeowners as shareholders.

In 1971, the SS Antilles struck a reef not far off of the island, and sank.

Mustique pictures

• 

  Mustique International Airport

• 

  The general store

• 

  Beaches on the east coast

• 

  A villa

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ Sunday Times
3. ^ Commonwealth Visits Since 1952 and also Queen Elizabeth's sister, Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon

External links

Look up mustique in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• The Mustique Company
• Mustique Blues Festival
• Firefly Hotel

Coordinates: 12°52′N 61°11′W / 12.867°N 61.183°W / 12.867; -61.183