A map of Haiti with Île de la Tortue to the north.

Tortuga seen from space

For other uses, see Tortuga (disambiguation).

Tortuga or Isla Tortuga, officially Île de la Tortue after the French takeover, is a Caribbean island off the northwest coast of Haiti, constituting the commune of Île de la Tortue, Port-de-Paix arrondissement of the Nord-Ouest Department of Haiti. It is located at 20.0666667° N 72.8166667° W and has an area of 180 km² (69 mi²).^[1] Its population was 22,080 in 1982 (Britannica online 2006). Its name in both Spanish and French means "Turtle Island" or "Tortoise Island", and it is sometimes called that in English. In the 17th century, it was a major center of piracy. Map of Haiti. ... World map depicting Caribbean : West Indies redirects here. ... Port-de-Paix is the capital of the département of Nord-Ouest in Haiti on the Atlantic coast. ... Nord-Ouest (English: North-West) is one of the nine departments (french: départements) of Haiti. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

History

Tortuga was discovered by Europeans in 1494, during the second voyage of Christopher Columbus into the New World. Columbus' sailors called it Tortuga ("Turtle") because its humped shape resembled a turtle. World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is one of the seven traditional continents of the Earth. ... 1494 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Christopher Columbus is the incorrectly Latinized name of Don Cristoval Colon, the navigator and maritime explorer credited as the discoverer of the Americas. ... Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, c. ... Suborders Cryptodira Pleurodira See text for families. ...

Tortuga was originally settled by a few Spanish colonists. In 1625 French and English settlers arrived on the island of Tortuga after initially planning to settle on the island of Hispaniola. The French and English settlers were attacked in 1629 by the Spanish commanded by Don Fadrique de Toledo. The Spanish were successful and fortified the island, expelling the French and English men. As most of the Spanish army left for Hispaniola to root out French colonists there, the French returned to take the fort and expanded on the Spanish-built fortifications. In 1630, the French built Fort de Rocher in a natural harbour. From 1630 onward, the island of Tortuga was divided into French and English colonies allowing buccaneers, often erroneously called pirates, to use the island more frequently as their main base of operations. In 1633, the first slaves were imported from Africa to aid in the plantations. The new slave trend did not stick, and by 1635, the use of slaves had ended. The slaves were said to be out of control on the island, and at the same time there had been continual disagreements and fighting between French and English colonies. In the same year, the Spanish returned and quickly conquered the English and French colonies, only to leave again, due to the island being too small to be of major importance. This abandonment of Tortuga allowed the return of both French and English pirates. In 1638, the Spanish again returned to take the island and rid it of all French and newly settled Dutch. They occupied the island, but were soon expelled by the French and Dutch colonists. Events March 27 - Prince Charles Stuart becomes King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland. ... Early map of Hispaniola The island of Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of Cuba to the west, and Puerto Rico to the east. ... Events March 4 - Massachusetts Bay Colony is granted a Royal charter. ... Events February 22 - Native American Quadequine introduces Popcorn to English colonists. ... A harbor (or harbour) or haven is a place where ships may shelter from the weather or are stored. ... Buccaneer is a term that was used in the later 17th century in the Caribbean Islands. ... Look up pirate and piracy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Events February 13 - Galileo Galilei arrives in Rome for his trial before the Inquisition. ... Wiktionary has related dictionary definitions, such as: slave Slave may refer to: Slavery, where people are owned by others, and live to serve their owners without pay Slave (BDSM), a form of sexual and consenual submission Slave clock, in technology, a clock or timer that synchrnonizes to a master clock... A world map showing the continent of Africa. ... Events February 10 - The Académie française in Paris is expanded to become a national academy for the artistic elite. ... Events March 29 - Swedish colonists establish first settlement in Delaware, called New Sweden. ...

By 1640, the buccaneers of Tortuga were calling themselves the Brethren of the Coast. The pirate population was mostly made up of French and Englishmen, along with a small number of Dutchmen. In 1645, in an attempt to bring harmony and control over the island, the acting French governor imported roughly 1,650 prostitutes, hoping to regularize the unruly pirates' lives. By the year 1670, as the buccaneer era was in decline, many of the pirates, seeking a new source of trade, turned to log cutting and trading wood from the island. At this time, however, a Welsh pirate named Henry Morgan started to promote himself and invite the pirates on the island of Tortuga to set sail under him. They were hired by the French as a striking force that allowed France to have a much stronger hold on the Caribbean region. Consequently, the pirates were never really controlled, and kept Tortuga as a neutral hideout for pirate booty. In 1680, new Acts of Parliament forbade sailing under foreign flags (in opposition to former practice). This was a major legal blow to Caribbean pirates. Settlements were finally made in the Treaty of Ratisbon of 1684, signed by the European powers, that put an end to piracy. Most of the pirates after this time were hired out into the Royal services to suppress their former buccaneer allies. Events December 1 - Portugal regains its independence from Spain and João IV of Portugal becomes king. ... // Events January 10 - Archbishop Laud executed on Tower Hill, London. ... Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ... 1670 was a common year beginning on a Saturday in countries using the Julian calendar and a Wednesday in countries using the Gregorian calendar. ... Sir Henry Morgan, in a popular woodcut, 18th century Sir Henry Morgan (c. ... Events First Portuguese governor was appointed to Macau The Swedish city Karlskrona was founded as the Royal Swedish Navy relocated there. ... English parliament in front of the king c. ... Sailing at sunset Wooden sailing boat Sailing is the skillful art of controlling the motion of a sailing ship or sailboat, across a body of water. ... The tricolour flag of France A flag is a piece of cloth, often flown from a pole or mast, generally used symbolically for signalling or identification. ... Events France under Louis XIV makes Truce of Ratisbon separately with the Empire and Spain. ...

Geography

L'ile de la Tortue, shaped as a sea-tortoise, stands off the northern coast of Haiti. It is very mountainous and full of rocks; yet, it is hugely dense of lofty trees that grow upon the hardest of those rocks. The rocks are abundant on the northern part of the island. At the beginning of the 17th century the population lived on the southern coast of the island. This part contained a port that allowed several entries to ships.

The southern part of the island was divided into four; the first part was called Low Land or Low Country. This was the main part of the southern coast because it contained the island's port. The town was called Cayona, and there lived the richest planters of the island. The second was called the Middle Plantation. Its territory could only grow Tobacco. The third part was named Ringot. These places were situated towards the Western part of the island. The fourth was called the Mountain; it is there that the first cultivated plantation was established upon the island. Species Nicotiana acuminata Nicotiana alata Nicotiana attenuata Nicotiana benthamiana Nicotiana clevelandii Nicotiana excelsior Nicotiana forgetiana Nicotiana glauca Nicotiana glutinosa Nicotiana langsdorffii Nicotiana longiflora Nicotiana obtusifolia Nicotiana paniculata Nicotiana plumbagifolia Nicotiana quadrivalvis Nicotiana repanda Nicotiana rustica Nicotianasuaveolens Nicotiana sylvestris Nicotiana tabacum Nicotiana tomentosa Ref: ITIS 30562 as of August 26, 2005...

L'ile de la Tortue's best beach is Pointe Saline at the western tip of the small island. This area is very dry and offers little shade. At the Les Palmiste on the eastern coast visit a pre-Columbian rock carving of a goddess at La Grotte au Bassin and two big caves at Trou d'Enfer and La Grotte de la Galerie. Basse-Terre, on the southeastern coast, is home to the remains of Fort de la Roche, once the island's biggest fortress. Along with a 15m high lime kiln, three cannons and the foundations of a wall are all that is left of Fort Ogeron, built in the mid 1600's.

Trivia

Tortuga has been featured in the movies Captain Blood from 1935, "The Black Swan" from 1942, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl from 2003, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest from 2006. It has been featured in the video games Sea Legend, Tortuga - Two Treasures , Sid Meier's Pirates!, Monkey Island and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow as well. For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as... Captain Blood is a 1935 swashbuckling film. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield (ca. ... 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1942 calendar). ... Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is a movie of adventure and romance set in the Caribbean during the seventeenth century. ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about computer and video games. ... Sid Meiers Pirates! is a computer game created by Sid Meier first published by MicroProse in 1987. ... The Secret of Monkey Island, CD version. ...

See also

• Buccaneers
• Piracy in the Caribbean

Buccaneer is a term that was used in the later 17th century in the Caribbean Islands. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

References

External links

• http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Garden/5213/