Montserrat is a Caribbean island and a British Overseas Territory. Officially, the capital is Plymouth, but the government has moved to Brades after Chances Peak erupted, destroying Plymouth in 1995.
Quick facts Sovereign state, English settlement ...
Montserrat |
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 Coat of arms |
| Motto: "A people of excellence, moulded by nature, nurtured by God" |
Anthem: "God Save the King"[a]
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National song: "Motherland"[2]
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 Topographic map of Montserrat showing the "exclusion zone" due to volcanic activity, and the new airport in the north. The roads and settlements in the exclusion zone have mostly been conquered by natural forces. |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
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| English settlement | 1632 |
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| Treaty of Paris | 3 September 1783 |
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| Federation | 3 January 1958 |
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| Separate colony | 31 May 1962 |
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| Capital | Plymouth (de jure)[b]
Brades (de facto)[c]
Little Bay (under construction)
16°45′N 62°12′W |
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| Largest city | Brades |
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| Official languages | English |
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| Demonym(s) | Montserratian |
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| Government | Parliamentary dependency under a constitutional monarchy |
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| Charles III |
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• Governor | Harriet Cross |
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• Premier | Reuben Meade |
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| Legislature | Legislative Assembly |
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• Minister | Stephen Doughty |
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• Total | 102 km2 (39 sq mi) |
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• Water (%) | negligible |
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| Highest elevation | 1,050 m (3,440 ft) |
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• 2022 estimate | 4,390[3] (194th) |
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• 2018 census | 4,649[4] (intercensal count) |
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• Density | 46/km2 (119.1/sq mi) (not ranked) |
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| GDP (PPP) | 2014 estimate |
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• Total | US$63 million[5] |
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• Per capita | US$12,384 |
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| GDP (nominal) | 2019 estimate |
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• Total | US$181,680,000[6] |
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| Currency | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
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| Time zone | UTC-4:00 (AST) |
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| Driving side | left |
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| ISO 3166 code | MS |
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| Internet TLD | .ms |
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| Website | https://www.gov.ms/ |
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Before the island was called Montserrat, Kalinago and Taíno people had lived in the region for a long time. They knew it as Alliouagana.[7]
Montserrat was colonised mostly by Irish Catholics.[8] They brought many black slaves to the island and forced them to work on sugar plantations.[9] The work the slaves made many plantations grow wealthy. When slavery was made illegal in the 1830s, the British Empire paid all the slave owners.[10]
