Castries, Saint Lucia
| Castries | |
|---|---|
| City | |
Castries
|
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| Motto: Statio Haud Malefida Carinis ("A Safe Harbour for Ships") | |
 The Quarter of Castries, showing Castries city (red dot) |
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| Coordinates: 14°01′N 60°59′W / 14.017°N 60.983°WCoordinates: 14°01′N 60°59′W / 14.017°N 60.983°W | |
| Country |
 Saint Lucia
|
| Quarter | Castries Quarter |
| Founded | 1650 as "Carenage" |
| Renamed | 1756 as "Castries" |
| Founded by | the French |
| Named for | Charles Eugène Gabriel de La Croix, marquis de Castries |
| Government | |
| • Governing body | Castries City Council |
| Area | |
| • Total | 79 km2 (30.5 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 2 m (6.56 ft) |
| Population (2013) | |
| • Total | 70,000 |
| • Density | 890/km2 (2,300/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Eastern Caribbean Time Zone (ECT) (UTC-4) |
| Area code(s) | 758 |
| HDI (2006) | 0.814 – high |
Castries 
i/ˈkæstriːz/, population 20,000, aggl. 53,639, is the capital and largest city of Saint Lucia, a country in the Caribbean. The quarter with the same name had a population of 70,000 on 22 May 2013 and stretches over an area of 80 km2 (31 sq mi).
Castries is in a flood gut and is built on reclaimed land. It houses the seat of government and the head offices of many of foreign and local businesses. The city's design is in a grid pattern. Its sheltered harbour receives cargo vessels, ferry boats, and cruise ships. It houses duty-free shopping facilities such as Point Seraphine and La Place Carenage. Many restaurants offer menus from local to Chinese. Supermarkets and other shopping facilities provide goods. The city is well served by a bus system and taxi service.
St Lucia's main post office is in Castries. Because most parts of the country do not use standard street addresses, mail is largely sent to P.O. boxes. Any mail sent without a town name ends up in the Castries post office.
Castries is the birthplace of Arthur Lewis, winner of the 1979 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics.
Castries was founded by the French in 1650 as "Carénage" (meaning "safe anchorage") when St. Lucia was purchased by Jacques Dyel du Parquet, the governor of Martinique. It was renamed in 1756 after Charles Eugène Gabriel de La Croix, marquis de Castries, commander of a French expeditionary force to Corsica that year. The earlier settlement across the harbour at Vigie, started in 1651, was abandoned after a devastating hurricane in 1780. From 1803 to 1844, the British made the town a major naval port and built fortifications on Morne Fortune, the mountain that overlooks this important harbour. By 1844, Castries had a population of 4,000. By the end of the century it had become a major coaling station, because it was the only port in the Caribbean capable of accommodating the Royal Navy.
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Wikipedia