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Archaeological finds on the island indicate that St Lucia was settled by Arawaks between 1000 and 500 BC. Around 800 AD migrating Caribs conquered the Arawaks and established permanent settlements on the island.
St Lucia was outside the routes taken by Columbus on his four visits to the New World and was probably first sighted by Spanish explorers during the early 1500s. The first attempt at European colonisation wasn't until 1605, when unreceptive Caribs quickly routed a party of English settlers. British colonists from St Kitts made a second attempt in 1638, but the settlement was abandoned within two years, after most of the settlers were killed in attacks.
After the British left, the French laid claim to the island and attempted to reach an agreement with the Caribs. In 1746, the French established the island's first town, Soufrière, and began developing sugar plantations. The British successfully invaded in 1778 and established naval bases at Gros Islet and Pigeon Island, which they used as staging grounds for attacks on the French islands to the north. St Lucia seesawed between the British and the French until 1814, when the Treaty of Paris finally ceded the island to the British, ending 150 years of conflict during which St Lucia had changed flags 14 times. Culturally the British were slow in replacing French customs and it wasn't until 1842 that English nudged out French as St Lucia's official language.
French customs linger to this day: the majority of locals speak a French-based patois, attend Catholic churches and live in villages with French names. St Lucia gained internal autonomy in 1967 and full independence, as a member of the British Commonwealth, in 1979. The birth of the tiny country was not all smooth sailing, however. The St Lucia Labour Party (SLP) government was rocked by resignations in 1981; by 1982 its grip on power had weakened. Strikes and demonstrations aggravated the impasse, leading to the collapse of the government in January of that year. The SLP regained power in 1987, still committed to their stated ambition of union with the neighbouring islands of Grenada, St Vincent and Dominica.
In the 1990s, the so-called 'Banana Wars' over trade agreements with the European Union, left small banana-producing islands like St Lucia in a tailspin. Historically, the 25-nation African, Caribbean and Pacific group (ACP), composed of former European colonies including St Lucia, Dominica, Grenada and St Vincent, could export bananas duty-free to commonwealth countries. But in 1993, the EU began restricting access to the ACP countries, by introducing blanket tariffs that opened the door for larger banana producers from South America. American giant Chiquita International (which doesn't produce or a single banana) jumped into the fight, insisting the matter be taken up with the World Trade Organization (WTO). In 2005, in a devastating blow to St Lucia's small farmers, the WTO ruled against the blanket tariff, which would have given small banana-producing countries the ability to compete with larger South American markets. St Lucia is reeling from the decision. Many farmers can no longer compete in the globalised market, where the competition to produce quality fruit the market demands is essentially impossible. In 1992, St Lucia exported 132,000 tonnes of bananas; in 2005, it only exported 42,000 tonnes. Many farms are unable to keep up or pay workers. As a result, St Lucia's export revenue has declined, and unemployment is on the rise.
Tourism in St Lucia continues to boom, although construction of resorts has not always followed environmentally sound guidelines. One of the newest resorts was shamelessly built smack between the twin Pitons, which have always stood as the symbol of the island's unspoiled natural character. Prior to the construction, many islanders had hoped the land would be set aside for a new national park.
