Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands

Saint Croix (/ˌseɪnt ˈkrɔɪ/; Spanish: Santa Cruz; Dutch: Sint-Kruis; French: Sainte-Croix; Danish and Norwegian: Sankt Croix) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an unincorporated territory of the United States.

St. Croix is the largest of the islands in the territory, being 22 by 7 miles (45 by 11 km). However, the territory's capital, Charlotte Amalie, is located on Saint Thomas.

History

The island was inhabited by various indigenous groups during prehistory. Christopher Columbus landed forces on the island on November 14, 1493, and was attacked by the Kalinago, who lived at Salt River on the north shore. Control of the island was traded among various powers, including Spain, the Netherlands, the Knights of Malta, and Great Britain before it became a possession of France from 1650 until 1733. On June 13, 1733, France sold the island group to Denmark-Norway and the Danish West India Company. For nearly 200 years, St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John were known as the Danish West Indies; around the mid to late 18th century, "at the peak of the plantation economy, the enslaved population of St. Croix numbered between 18,000 and 20,000, the white population ranging between 1,500 and 2,000".

St. Croix (disambiguation)

St. Croix or Saint Croix (from the French: Sainte-Croix, "holy cross") may refer to: