"Rugby union in Saint Martin Rugby union in Saint Martin is a minor but growing sport. The island is divided roughly in half between France (53 km) and the Netherlands (34 km); it is the smallest inhabited sea island divided between two nations. There is free movement between the two parts of Saint Martin/Sint Maarten. There are two governing bodies: the French Rugby Federation and the Netherlands Antilles Rugby Federation Rugby was introduced to Saint Martin by the French who colonised the area. More talented players tend to leave for Metropolitan France. There have been occasional games against sides from"
"activity has been almost totally curtailed. There is a small airport on the French side of the island at Grand Case, L'Espérance Airport for small aircraft serving neighbouring Caribbean islands. It frequently suffers thick fog during the hurricane season due to its location. Saint Martin Saint Martin (; ) is an island in the northeast Caribbean Sea, approximately east of Puerto Rico. The island is divided roughly 60/40 between the French Republic () and the Kingdom of the Netherlands (), but the two parts are roughly equal in population. The division dates to 1648. The southern Dutch part comprises Sint"
"Hispaniola Hispaniola (; Latin and ; ; ) is an island in the Caribbean island group known as the Greater Antilles. It is the second largest island in the Caribbean after Cuba, and the most populous island in the Caribbean; it is also the eleventh most populous island in the world. The island is divided between two separate, sovereign nations: the Spanish-speaking Dominican Republic (48,445 km, 18,705 sq mi) to the east, and French Creole-speaking Haiti (27,750 km, 10,710 sq mi) to the west. The only other shared island in the Caribbean is Saint Martin, which is shared between France"
"Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; Antillean Creole: ""Gwadloup"") is an insular region of France located in the Leeward Islands, part of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. Administratively, it is an overseas region consisting of a single overseas department. With a land area of and an estimated population of 400,132 as of January 2015, it is the largest and most populous European Union territory in North America. Guadeloupe's two main islands are Basse-Terre to the west and Grande-Terre to the east, which are separated by a narrow strait that is crossed with bridges. They are often referred to as a single"
"Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. With a population of 40,120 on an area of , it encompasses the southern 40% of the divided island of Saint Martin, while the northern 60% of the island constitutes the French overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin. Sint Maarten's capital is Philipsburg. Before 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten was known as the Island Territory of Sint Maarten (), and was one of five island territories (""eilandgebieden"") that constituted the Netherlands Antilles. On 6 and 7 September 2017 the"
"Collectivity of Saint Martin The Collectivity of Saint Martin (), commonly known as simply Saint Martin (""""), is an overseas collectivity of France in the West Indies in the Caribbean. With a population of 36,286 (as of January 2011) on an area of , it encompasses the northern 60% of the divided island of Saint Martin, and some neighbouring islets, the largest of which is Île Tintamarre. The southern 40% of the island of Saint Martin constitutes Sint Maarten, since 2010 a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Before 2007, the French part of Saint Martin formed a"
"in the world. Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. With a population of 40,120 on an area of , it encompasses the southern 40% of the divided island of Saint Martin, while the northern 60% of the island constitutes the French overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin. Sint Maarten's capital is Philipsburg. Before 10 October 2010, Sint Maarten was known as the Island Territory of Sint Maarten (), and was one of five island territories (""eilandgebieden"") that constituted the Netherlands Antilles. On 6 and 7"
"Dutch Caribbean The Dutch Caribbean (historically known as the Dutch West Indies) are the territories, colonies, and countries, both former and current, of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands that are located in the Lesser Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea. Currently the Dutch Caribbean comprises the islands of Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba. The contemporary term is sometimes also used for the Caribbean Netherlands, an entity since 2010 consisting of the three islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, which are special municipalities of the Netherlands. The islands in the Dutch Caribbean"
"St. Croix, St. Kitts, St. Lucia, St. Martin, St. Vincent and Tobago. Control of many of these islands was contested between the French, the British and the Dutch; in the case of St. Martin, the island was divided in two, a situation that persists to this day. Great Britain captured some of France's islands during the Seven Years' War and the Napoleonic Wars. Following the latter conflict, France retained control of Guadeloupe, Martinique, Marie-Galante, St. Barthélemy, and its portion of St. Martin; all remain part of France today. Guadeloupe (including Marie-Galante and other nearby islands) and Martinique each is an"
"France. Unfortunately for the Dutch Republic, the war also resulted in the decline of the republic's dominance in overseas trade. On 23 March 1648, the French Kingdom and the Dutch Republic signed the Treaty of Concordia atop ""Mount Concordia"", in which both agreed to divide the island of Saint Martin into their own territories – the French Kingdom owning the northern part of the island and the Dutch Republic owning the southern part of island. On 17 May 1994, the French Republic and the Kingdom of the Netherlands signed the Franco-Dutch treaty on Saint Martin border controls in Paris, aimed"
"Île Amsterdam Île Amsterdam (), also known as Amsterdam Island, New Amsterdam, or Nouvelle Amsterdam, is an island of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the southern Indian Ocean that together with neighbouring Île Saint-Paul to the south forms one of the five districts of the territory. The research station at Martin-de-Viviès, first called ""Camp Heurtin"" and then ""La Roche Godon"", is the only settlement on the island and is the seasonal home to about thirty researchers and staff studying biology, meteorology, and geomagnetics. The island is named after the ship ""Nieuw Amsterdam"", which is in turn named after"
"Martinique Martinique () is an insular region of France located in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of and a population of 385,551 inhabitants as of January 2013. Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. One of the Windward Islands, it is directly north of Saint Lucia, southeast of Greater Antilles, northwest of Barbados, and south of Dominica. As with the other overseas departments, Martinique is one of the eighteen regions of France (being an overseas region) and an integral part of"
"(SSS). In 1986, Aruba seceded from the Netherlands Antilles, reducing the number of island territories to five. After the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, Curaçao and Sint Maarten became autonomous countries within the Kingdom and Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba (BES) became special municipalities of the Netherlands. The islands of the former country of the Netherlands Antilles are currently divided are two main groups for political and constitutional purposes: There are three Caribbean islands that are countries () within the Kingdom of the Netherlands: Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. (The Netherlands is the fourth constituent country in the"
"Saint Vincent (Antilles) Saint Vincent is a volcanic island in the Caribbean. It is the largest island of the country Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It is located in the Caribbean Sea, between Saint Lucia and Grenada. It is composed of partially submerged volcanic mountains. Its largest volcano and the country's highest peak, La Soufrière, is active, having last erupted in 1979. The territory was disputed between France and the United Kingdom in the 18th century, before being ceded to the British in 1763 and again in 1783. It gained independence on October 27, 1979. Approximately 100,000 people live on"
"Antilles The Antilles (; ""Antilles"" in French; ""Antillas"" in Spanish; ""Antillen"" in Dutch and ""Antilhas"" in Portuguese) is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater Antilles and the Lesser Antilles. The Greater Antilles includes the larger islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (subdivided into Haiti and the Dominican Republic) and the Cayman Islands. The Lesser Antilles contains the northerly Leeward Islands, the southeasterly Windward Islands, and the"
"Treaty of Concordia The Treaty of Concordia (or the Partition Treaty of 1648) was signed on March 23, 1648 between the French and the Dutch, and divided the island of Saint Martin. The treaty was signed by the two governors of the island, Robert de Longvilliers for France and Martin Thomas for the States General of the Netherlands. The signing took place atop ""Mount Concordia"". Based on the terms of the agreement, the island of Saint Martin was to be divided between the French Kingdom and the Dutch Republic and the peoples of St. Martin should coexist in a cooperative"
"newly formed Caribbean Netherlands (part of the Netherlands proper, and compromising Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius), until January 1, 2011; since then, Bonaire is the only portion of the Caribbean Netherlands in which it is recognized. Papiamento is also spoken elsewhere in the Netherlands, particularly on Saba and Sint Eustatius, and on St. Maarten, by immigrants from Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. Some 150.000 Antillians live in The Netherlands (mostly from Curaçao) and they are fluently in their mother language Papiamento. Venezuelan Spanish and American English are constant influences today. Code-switching and lexical borrowing between Papiamento, Spanish, Dutch and English among"
"Saint Barthélemy Saint Barthélemy (), officially the Territorial collectivity of Saint-Barthélemy (), called Ouanalao by the indigenous people, is an overseas collectivity of France in the West Indies. Often abbreviated to ""St-Barth"" in French, and St. Barths or St. Barts in English, the island lies about southeast of St. Martin and north of St. Kitts. Puerto Rico is to the west in the Greater Antilles. Saint Barthélemy was for many years a French commune forming part of Guadeloupe, which is an overseas region and department of France. In 2003, the island voted in favour of secession from Guadeloupe in order"
"Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Kingdom celebrated its bicentennial in a series of festive occasions spanning from 2013 to 2015, the last being the year of the actual 200th anniversary of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of the Netherlands currently consists of four constituent countries: the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. Note that there is a difference between the ""Kingdom of the Netherlands"" and the ""Netherlands"": the Kingdom of the Netherlands is the comprehensive sovereign state, while the Netherlands is one of its four countries. Three islands in the Caribbean Sea (Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten) each form one of"
"islet of Klein Bonaire) is one of the Leeward Antilles and is located close to the coast of Venezuela. Sint Eustatius and Saba are in the main Lesser Antilles group and are located south of Sint Maarten and northwest of Saint Kitts and Nevis. The three islands gained their current status following the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles on 10 October 2010. At the same time, the islands of Curaçao and Sint Maarten became autonomous countries () within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The island of Aruba is also a constituent country of the Kingdom located in the Caribbean. The"
"Caribbean Netherlands The Caribbean Netherlands (, ) are the three special municipalities of the Netherlands that are located in the Caribbean Sea. They consist of the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, although the term ""Caribbean Netherlands"" is sometimes used to refer to all of the islands in the Dutch Caribbean. In legislation, the three islands are also known as the BES islands (an acronym of their names). The islands are currently classified as ""public bodies"" in the Netherlands and as overseas countries and territories of the European Union; thus, EU law does not automatically apply. Bonaire (including the"
"Île-Royale (New France) Île-Royale was a French colony in North America that existed from 1713 to 1763, consisting of two islands, Île Royale and Île Saint-Jean. Its territory is known now as Cape Breton Island (part of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia) and Prince Edward Island. The Treaty of Utrecht (1713), which brought an end to the War of the Spanish Succession, broke the equilibrium that existed in North America between Great Britain and France. This treaty marked the start of the reduction of French royal authority in this region of the world. France recognized the rights of Great"
"Kingdom of the Netherlands. This is the only land border shared by France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands anywhere. The main cities are Philipsburg (Dutch side) and Marigot (French side). The Dutch side is more heavily populated. The largest settlement on the entire island is Lower Prince's Quarter, on the Dutch side. The highest hilltop is the Pic Paradis () in the centre of a hill chain on the French side. Both sides are hilly with large mountain peaks. This forms a valley where many houses are located. There are no rivers on the island, but many dry gullies."
"Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was dissolved on 10 October 2010. After dissolution, the ""BES islands"" of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba became special municipalities of the Netherlands proper, while Curaçao and Sint Maarten became constituent countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, along the lines of Aruba, which separated from the Netherlands Antilles in 1986. The idea of the Netherlands Antilles as a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands never enjoyed the full support of all islands, and political relations between islands were"
"the passage in a ""unique (only) community"" within the framework of article 73 of the French Constitution. This replaces and exercises the skills of the General Council and the regional council. Martinique is divided into four ""arrondissements"", 34 ""communes"", and 45 ""cantons"". The four arrondissements of the island, with their respective locations, are as follows: Part of the archipelago of the Antilles, Martinique is located in the Caribbean Sea about northeast of the coast of South America and about southeast of the Dominican Republic. It is directly north of St. Lucia, northwest of Barbados, southeast of both Cuba and Hispaniola"
"Aruba Aruba ( ; , Papiamento: ) is an island and a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the southern Caribbean Sea, located about west of the main part of the Lesser Antilles and north of the coast of Venezuela. It measures long from its northwestern to its southeastern end and across at its widest point. Together with Bonaire and Curaçao, Aruba forms a group referred to as the ABC islands. Collectively, Aruba and the other Dutch islands in the Caribbean are often called the Dutch Caribbean. Aruba is one of the four countries that form the"
"Netherlands Antilles The Netherlands Antilles (, ; Papiamentu: ""Antia Hulandes"") was a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The country consisted of several island territories located in the Caribbean Sea. The islands were also informally known as the Dutch Antilles. The country came into being in 1954 as the autonomous successor of the Dutch colony of Curaçao and Dependencies, and was dissolved in 2010. The former Dutch colony of Surinam, although it was relatively close by on the continent of South America, did not become part of Netherlands Antilles but became a separate autonomous country in 1954. All"
"the three remaining constituent countries. Three other Caribbean islands (Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba) are special municipalities within the country of the Netherlands. Until its dissolution in 2010, the islands formed the Netherlands Antilles, with the exception of Aruba, which left the grouping in 1986. The Netherlands is a representative parliamentary democracy organised as a unitary state. Its administration consists of the Monarch and the Council of Ministers, which is headed by a Prime Minister. The people are represented by the States General of the Netherlands, which consists of a House of Representatives and a Senate. The Netherlands is divided"
"Juan de Nova Island Juan de Nova Island (French: ""Île Juan da Nova"" (official), ""Île Juan de Nova"" (local)), also known as Saint-Christophe, is a French tropical island in the narrowest part of the Mozambique Channel, about one-third of the way between Madagascar and Mozambique. It is a low, flat island, in size. Anchorage is possible off the northeast of the island which also has a airstrip. Administratively, the island is one of the Scattered islands in the Indian Ocean, a district of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. The island is garrisoned by French troops from Réunion and has"
"part of the island. In 2007 it was decided to eradicate the population of cattle entirely, resulting in the slaughter of the cattle between 2008 and 2010. Île Amsterdam Île Amsterdam (), also known as Amsterdam Island, New Amsterdam, or Nouvelle Amsterdam, is an island of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the southern Indian Ocean that together with neighbouring Île Saint-Paul to the south forms one of the five districts of the territory. The research station at Martin-de-Viviès, first called ""Camp Heurtin"" and then ""La Roche Godon"", is the only settlement on the island and is the seasonal"
"to form a separate overseas collectivity (COM) of France. The collectivity is one of four territories among the Leeward Islands in the northeastern Caribbean that comprise the French West Indies, along with Saint Martin, Guadeloupe ( southeast), and Martinique. Saint Barthélemy, a volcanic island fully encircled by shallow reefs, has an area of and a population of 9,625 (January 2015 estimate). Its capital is Gustavia, which also contains the main harbour to the island. It is the only Caribbean island which was a Swedish colony for any significant length of time; Guadeloupe was under Swedish rule only briefly at the"
"Kingdom of the Netherlands The Kingdom of the Netherlands (; ), commonly known as the Netherlands, is a sovereign state and constitutional monarchy with the large majority of its territory in Western Europe and with several small island territories in the Caribbean Sea, in the West Indies islands (Leeward Islands and Lesser Antilles). The four parts of the kingdom—the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao and Sint Maarten—are constituent countries (""landen"" in Dutch) and participate on a basis of equality as partners in the kingdom. In practice, however, most of the kingdom's affairs are administered by the Netherlands—which comprises roughly 98% of the"
"Suriname, French Guiana, Guayana Region in Venezuela, and Amapá in Brazil), are often included due to their political and cultural ties with the region. Geopolitically, the Caribbean islands are usually regarded as a subregion of North America and are organized into 30 territories including sovereign states, overseas departments, and dependencies. From December 15, 1954, to October 10, 2010, there was a country known as the Netherlands Antilles composed of five states, all of which were Dutch dependencies. From January 3, 1958, to May 31, 1962, there was also a short-lived political union called the West Indies Federation composed of ten"