23 Best Granada Island geographical location, flag, tourist sites 2022
Grenada is a Caribbean country comprising a main island, also called Grenada, and smaller surrounding islands. Dubbed the “Spice Isle,” the hilly main island is home to numerous nutmeg plantations. It’s also the site of the capital, St. George’s, whose colorful homes, Georgian buildings and early-18th-century Fort George overlook narrow Carenage Harbour. To the south is Grand Anse Beach, with resorts and bars.
- Capital: Saint George’s
- Population: 112,519 (2020) World Bank
- Continent: North America
- Currency: Eastern Caribbean dollar
In English, the Island of Granada or Grenada is part of the Antillean and Grenadine islands of the Caribbean Sea. It also belongs to the British Commonwealth of Nations, which means that Queen Elizabeth II of England is the head of state of this country.
Saint George is the capital city. Granada has beautiful natural landscapes and historical monuments, waiting to be declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
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Table of Contents
- 1 Where is the Island of Granada located?
- 1.1 Colonial historical review
- 1.2 Flag
- 1.3 Airport
- 1.4 Tourist sites
- 2 War in Grenada
- 2.1 Background
1. Where is the Island of Granada located?
Granada Island has a land area of 343 km 2, of which 121 are coastal. It is located between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. 160 km from Trinidad and Tobago, to the north, it borders Venezuela to the northeast, Saint Vincent & the Grenadines to the south and the Caribbean Sea to the southeast.
It is a country made up of Grenada, the largest of the islands, and other smaller islands: Cariacoa, Little Martinique, Ronde Island, Caille Island, Diamante Island, and Large Saline and Frigate Island.
The bulk of the population is concentrated in Granada, in the largest cities, Saint George, the capital, Grenville and Gouyave. Hillsborough, is the other largest, is located on the island of Carriacou (Carriacou in French).
colonial historical review
The Island of Granada was initially inhabited by the Arawak (Arahuaco) Indians, who were displaced by the Carib Indians, before the arrival of Christopher Columbus, on August 15, 1498. Columbus called it Concepción, and in the 18th century, it was already known, such as Granada, possibly a name copied from a Spanish city, as was customary with the colonies of the New World. (See article: Dominica )
It was colonized 100 years after it was discovered due to the bloody and terrible clashes between the Caribs and the colonizers. The Caribs were cannibals and did not allow the English, the first colonizers, to stay on the island.
The English sold the island to a French company in 1650. The new French “invaders” brought reinforcements from the island of Martinique to finish off the Carib Indians. The French were there until 1762 when the British forcibly occupied the island during the Seven Years’ War.
2. British Empire
It was finally ceded to the British Empire, thanks to the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Although the French reoccupied the island in 1779, the British recovered it through Versailles in 1783. Grenada remained under British rule for the rest of its colonial period.
3. Flag
Grenada adopted its current flag on February 7, 1974, Independence from the United Kingdom. It is a rectangle divided into triangles, two yellow above and below, two green on the sides, around the flag, a red border.
Embellished with seven yellow five-pointed stars, three on the upper edge and another three on the lower, one in the center, within a red circle, superimposed in the center of the flag.
In the triangle on the left, a nutmeg pod, symbolizing its actual production of this species, occupying the second place in the world, after Indonesia.
The seven stars represent the municipalities of the island of Granada, as well as the hope of a bright future. Saint John, Saint Mark, Saint Patrick, Saint Andrew, Saint David, and the Grenadines. The central star represents the capital, Saint George.
Nutmeg, as noted above, is one of the leading export fruits, and the island is known as the “Island of spices.”
4. colors and symbols
The colors used, pan-African, symbolize the relationship of this country with Africa, red would be harmony and unity, as well as courage and vitality; yellow is wisdom and tropical warmth, coupled with the kindness of its inhabitants, and green reflects the lush vegetation, fertility, and agriculture of the country. Anthony C. George designed this flag.
It is worth noting that before Independence, there had been two flags, both based on the “Blue Ensign, “the blue flag of the United Kingdom. One was in force until 1903, in which the coat of arms appeared with a typical scene from the island; for the second (1903-1967), this coat of arms was changed, placing a ship upon arrival at the island of Granada.
Later, the horizontal tricolor flag was introduced, between 1967 and 1974, of blue, yellow, and green colors, with the image of a nutmeg pod located in the center, within an oval box.
5. Airport
On the island of Granada, they have the Maurice Bishop International Airport, named after the late Prime Minister, assassinated during the US invasion. It was previously called Point Salines International Airport.
It is located in the city of Saint George, the capital of the island, eight km from the airport, in an area called Point Salines, southwest of Granada. This airport was the scene of the invasion of the United States of America in October 1983.
Ronald Reagan excused his military intervention, saying that this airport was being built to be a bridge for weapons, soldiers, and Soviet military planes to the island of Cuba. This argument was always denied by the Prime Minister, Maurice Bishop. A Canadian company was in charge of remodeling and designing the new airport structures, contracting mostly European construction companies.
6. Lauriston Airport
Lauriston Airport (Lauriston Airport) is located west of Hillsborough, the central city of the island of Carriacou, Lesser Antilles. This island is part of the Caribbean country of Grenada. Its primary destination flight is the island of Granada; It has a track of 800 x 18 meters long.
7. sports
The most practiced sports among Granadans are cricket and football. The Granada football team is ranked 139th in FIFA. As a country, they won their first Olympic medal in London in 2012, with the victory of Kirani James, in the 400-meter freestyle athletics. Lewis Hamilton, multiple world champions in Formula 1, has his paternal roots on the island of Granada.
8. Grenada Island Map
Tourist sites
Because the island of Granada is on the land of volcanic origin, it is slightly formed by mountains and rivers, which form broad valleys. It has coasts of small extensions, which form numerous capes and bays. In the capital is the bay of Grand Anse, the largest and most important. These are sites of tourist interest, frequently visited by tourists and natives of the island.
Its climate lends itself to visiting the beautiful beaches and rivers that the island has. It is a tropical climate, hot and humid, mild temperatures throughout the year, with rainfall ranging between 4,000 and 1,500 mm³ depending on altitude.
Like all the Caribbean islands, Grenada has exotic beaches, a paradise for visitors who come throughout the year. Even when it is not equipped with sufficient hotel infrastructure and services, it is always a good place that should not be missed and visited.
An obligatory place is the Levera National Park, with the most spectacular coastal area on the island, including corals, lagoons, mangroves, turtle nests, recreational activities, and water sports. Grand Anse is ideal for those who want to bask in the sun, with fine, shimmering white sands that contrast with the turquoise color of its Caribbean waters.
These beaches are indeed a treasure to behold, where you can also dive into the Isla Blanca Marine Park.
9. underwater museum
The artist Jason de Caires Taylor has been building an underwater museum with sculptures on the island’s coast. It is an exhibition that can only be seen underwater. The sculptures have an original, strange, and beautiful style, undoubtedly exclusive to the island of Granada.
The statues must be transformed into an artificial coral over the years; that is the main idea of the artist. This artist has managed to regenerate part of the coral reefs, which have been devastated by hurricanes and storms.
10. rides
George Town or Saint George, the island’s capital, is a typical city with pastel-colored houses, red roofs, and specific sites full of stories and legends. Fort San Jorge (Fort George) is the first military building built in Granada. Its Napoleonic cannons, which are used for military salutes, are a walk full of history and emotions.
Concord Falls is a refreshing and impressive waterfall; Mount Sinai is suitable for the best hiking on the island, all the way to the crater lake of The Kick them Jenny volcano, located eight kilometers (north) of the island of Grenada.
The Carriacou Museum invites us to learn about the island’s history, exhibiting remains and relics of the American Indians, who inhabited these lands before the arrival of the English and French settlers. Monte Rico is one of those historical sites where you can see large stone carvings with images of great American gods; it is also said that the site was full of gold.
Concord Fall
There is nothing better than the Saturday Morning Market in Saint George or Grenville for shopping. If you visit in February, you can’t miss the island’s famous Carnival, one of the best in the Caribbean.
11. spice island
And to find out why Grenada is called the island of spices, you should not forget to visit the Gouyave plantations, with nutmeg, the main export product, cocoa, and other spices. There are guided tours of the factories, where you can learn about the process of harvesting, collecting, and processing these products.
Due to its insular location, it is frequently visited by hurricanes. The most destructive storm was the one that occurred in September 2014, when Hurricane Ivan damaged much of the island and destroyed 90% of homes. Hurricane season is from June to November.
12. Grenada Island Volcano
Called Kick-‘Em-Jenny in English, which means “Kick them Jenny” in Spanish, it is an active submarine volcano just eight kilometers off the north coast of Granada. It has shown signs of its activity on numerous occasions since it was discovered in 1939.
Since Christopher Columbus arrived on the island in 1498, nothing was known of the existence of this volcano until it had its first eruption in 1939. Before that, it was called Diamond Rock, referring to the islets and the channel between Ronde Island and Granada. . From the scientific studies that emerged after this explosion, the name Kick-‘Em-Jenny began to become popular until it became official.
The volcano has a height of 1,300 meters above sea level, with a depth of 160 meters. It was thought of as an opportunity that grew more than 30 meters per decade, something that was never confirmed. This doubt was because the ships that studied the depth of the volcano made a mistake when measuring over the top of the mountain, with a difference of more than 160 meters.
Of course, if there are frequent eruption activities, the volcano can grow and form new islands in years, decades, hundreds, or thousands of years.
13. Most prominent eruptions
The first known, documented, and most ferocious eruption of this volcano was July 24, 1939. It ejected a cloud of gases, accompanied by ashes and solid materials, 275 meters above the surface.
It could be seen from the north coast of the island of Granada to the astonishment of the witnesses, among whom was the Granada historian RP Devas. He wrote a report on file at the University of the West Indies.
The phenomenon lasted for about 24 hours, generating tsunamis with waves of two meters in height, strongly affecting the coasts of Granada and the Grenadine Islands. After that, others of equal or less importance have occurred in 1943, 1953, 1965, 1966, 1972, 1974, 1988, 2001, 2015, and recently, there was an eruption alert in March 2018. ( See article: Islands of America )
In 1974 and 1988 were some of the most terrible, overturning solid material, ejected into the air and causing boiling on the sea surface. There are occasions that low-intensity earthquakes have been generated, invisible to human beings, detectable only by seismographs, located near the volcano’s crater.
Flora and fauna
14. Legend
Legend has it in Granada that there lived a powerful and warrior Emperor in pre-Hispanic times, who had a daughter named Jenny, princess of the island. She fell in love with Kin Kin, a young warrior of great courage and intelligence. The Emperor liked the possible marriage of his daughter with the young warrior.
So the marriage was planned, but when they were going to celebrate the long-awaited wedding, the enemy armies decided to attack the island. The Emperor was in charge of gathering his warriors, entrusting Kin Ken with directing them in combat.
Kin Ken went to war, which lasted several months, in which he managed to defeat the enemy. Before informing his father-in-law that he had won, some malicious and envious warriors came forward, telling the Emperor that Kin Ken had been killed in combat.
15. Eternal dream
When Jenny found out about the false news, she cried inconsolably, did not eat, and fell into a deep sleep, from which no one was able to wake her up.
When Kin Ken returned, victorious, finding out what had happened, he carried Jenny in his arms, took her from the palace, and they sank into the sea. No one ever saw them again until they were surprised to see that a great eruption erupted from the bottom of the sea, throwing flames into the sky in Venezuela.
When the Emperor saw this event, he told his people: “Kin Ken and Jenny died of sadness, because they could not live without each other. Love has turned them into volcanoes and their faithful hearts will burn like a flame forever.”
16. Islets of Granada
There are other places with the name of Granada, such as the Isletas de Granada and the city of Granada in Spain. The Isletas de Granada is made up of more than 360 islets, located southeast of the town of Granada in Nicaragua. They are scattered along the Asese peninsula.
They were formed by an avalanche of stone and mud, which emanated from the Mombacho volcano. These islets are covered with unusual vegetation and nests for important bird species.
Almost the majority have been populated used as vacation sites since houses have been built for this purpose. There are certain facilities for the stay of tourists and residents, such as hotels, shops, and boat rides are organized to visit them. Among the places to visit is Fort San Pablo, which was built as protection against pirate attacks in the 18th century.
It has witnessed battles and other conflicts that occurred in the colonial period. The Granada Isletas have been gaining space as a tourist attraction are frequently featured in various publications of this type.
The Alhambra. Spain
17. City of Granada, Spain
In Spain, a European country, there is a city called Granada, whose capital bears the same name. Located in the autonomous community of Andalusia, in the center of the Vega de Granada region, at 680 meters above sea level. Close to the foothills of the highest massif, the Sierra Nevada, which provides a cold and fresh mountain climate.
This city houses important official headquarters, such as the Superior Court of Justice of Andalusia, Ceuta, and Melilla; the Consultative Council of Andalusia; School Council and Notarial Association, also from Andalusia.
Other cultural and scientific institutions make life in the city, such as the Musical Documentation Center, Library, Institute of Astrophysics, Andalusian Institute of Geophysics and Prevention of Seismic Disasters, Center for Scenic Studies, shared with Malaga and Seville.
It is also the headquarters of the Army Training and Doctrine Command of the Spanish Armed Forces (MADOC).
Due to continued immigration since the 1990s, there are various cultures and characteristics in each area or neighborhood. The most important populated sites are: Zaidín, Albaicín, Sacromonte, Realejo, La Chana, Almanjáyar and La Cartuja.
The Alhambra is one of the most visited and most important monuments in the country, and it was declared a World Heritage Site in 1984 by UNESCO and the Generalife Garden and the Albaicín. The city’s cathedral is the first Renaissance church in Spain. (See article: Isle of Man )
18. museums
Museum-lovers have a paradise in Granada. Among them stands out the Science Park of Granada, Museum of Fine Arts of Granada, the oldest art gallery in the country. In the Technological Park of Health Sciences, to the south of the city, is the largest hospital in the province and research centers, university faculties, and industries in biomedical research.
US Marines
19. War in Grenada
Granada was the protagonist of another invasion in more recent years, in the 20th century. In 1983, it suffered an attack by the United States and other Caribbean nations in a military operation called “Urgent Fury” to counter Hudson Austin’s coup against Bernard Coard, ruler of the island.
The United States intervened under the pretext of defending democracy and the human rights of citizens, especially Americans, who lived on the island of Grenada.
20. Invasion
October 25 was scheduled for the invasion, which began at 05:00. The US Army had not carried out an operation of this magnitude since the Vietnam War. There were at least 7,000 US Marines and 300 troops from the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). There were about 1,500 Grenadian soldiers plus 700 Cubans; without any training, the majority were construction workers.
According to the US, these workers were military engineers, members of the Cuban special forces. The naval and air superiority of the United States, with attack helicopters and naval artillery, were vital in gaining advantages against the Cuban-Grenadian resistance. Even so, the invading forces suffered casualties, consisting of 19 fatalities and 116 wounded.
On the other hand, Granada with 45 military deaths and at least 24 civilians, plus 358 wounded soldiers. Cuba ended up with 25 killed in action, 59 wounded, and 638 taken prisoner. After the victory of the United States, Paul Scoon, Governor-General, appointed a new government, withdrawing in mid-December, the American forces.
21. reactions
The United Kingdom and Canada opposed that invasion. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher wrote to Ronald Reagan, then President of the United States:
“This action will be seen as an intervention, by a western country, in the internal affairs of a small independent nation, however much we dislike its regime. I ask you to consider this, in the context of our broader East-West relations and the fact, that we will have in the coming days, to present to our Parliament and the people of the cruise missile site in this country… I cannot hide that I am deeply troubled by your latest statement.”
Neither the Organization of American States (OAS) nor the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) supported this interventionist adventure. Even when days later, a US aid program was given to Barbados, consisting of US$18.5 million, which was seen as a reward for its “collaboration.”
22. Background
In 1979, Maurice Bishop, leader of the New Jewel Movement, overthrew Sir Eric Gairy, Governor of Grenada. Bishop was a revolutionary lawyer, born in Aruba, accused of being linked to Marxism-Leninism, with support from the Soviet Union and Cuba. They also accused him of militarizing the island, for which he had a small army.
During his government, he built an international airport with exaggerated dimensions if he planned to use it for commercial flights. He received help from Cuba to start and develop the airport works.
The United States, through its president Ronald Reagan, at that time, considered a severe threat from Grenada to their country, the fact of making that airport and other facilities, with those characteristics, so close to their country.
They assumed that they were made to help the Soviet-Cuban militarization in the Caribbean and transport weapons from Russia and Cuba to equip the Central American insurgents. For his part, Bishop refuted such accusations and said that the airport was used to receive commercial tourist planes.
Fort Saint George
23. hit announced
It came on October 19, 1983, when Deputy Prime Minister Bernard Coard took power from Bishop, which with the help of his forces, they later executed under the protest of the citizens who were in his favor. That was how Hudson Austin became prime minister under the tutelage of Coard and his allies. They arrested Paul Scoon, who was the Governor-General of Grenada.
The United States took action on the matter through the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Barbados and Jamaica.
They warned of a coup d’état, considering the political instability in a country very close to their borders, in the protection of many American students, who were on the island, studying medicine at the University of St. George, one of the best in that specialty.
Which country owns Grenada?
BritainFrench settlement
Grenada remained French until 1762 when it capitulated to the British. It was formally ceded to Britain in 1763 by the Treaty of Paris. In 1779 it was recaptured by the French, but it was restored to Britain in 1783.
Is Grenada safe to visit?
Grenada has been in a state of emergency since March 25, 2020 and while restrictions have since been eased, the order has been extended to May 2022. From July 31, all visitors to the island must have been fully vaccinated at least two weeks before their arrival. Grenadian citizens and children aged under 13 are exempt.
Is Grenada a rich or poor country?
Grenada is a middle-income country yet 38% of its inhabitants live below the national poverty line, with wealth concentrated in the hands of the urban élite
Why is Grenada famous?
Grenada: Caribbean Spice Island, Famous for Its Vibrant Coastal Towns and Perfect Sandy Beaches. Grenada is an island found in the Caribbean, or West Indies, widely known for its spices, giving it its common nickname as the Spice Isle. Grenada is a significant source of cloves, cinnamon, and ginger, among others.
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