Compagnie de Saint-Christophe

The Compagnie de Saint-Christophe was a company created and chartered by French adventurers to exploit the island of Saint-Christophe, the present-day Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1625, a French adventurer, Pierre Bélain sieur d'Esnambuc, landed on Saint-Christophe with a band of adventurers and some slaves. Returning to France, in 1626 he applied to and received a charter from Cardinal Richelieu to create the Compagnie de Saint-Christophe. Richelieu was a major stockholder in the company, contributing some 10,000 livres out of the company's capital stock of 45,000 livres. The company was not very successful. In 1635 Richelieu directed his councilor François Fouquet to reorganize the company under the name Compagnie des Îles de l'Amérique, French for "Company of the American Islands". It was charged with colonizing Sainte-Christophe, Martinique and Guadeloupe.

In 1645 d'Esnambuc landed in Martinique and founded a colony at what is now Saint Pierre. His nephew Jacques Dyel du Parquet assisted him and later became governor of the island.

Source

• Louis Jean Pierre Marie Bonnassieux. Les grandes compagnies de commerce: étude pour servir à l'histoire de la colonisation. Paris: 1892. Reprinted 1969 by Ayer Publishing.