SAINT PIERRE AND MIQUELON

săN pyĕr, mēkəlôNˈ, French territorial collectivity (1995 est. pop. 7,000), 93 sq mi (241 sq km), consisting of nine small islands, S of Newfoundland, Canada, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The capital is St. Pierre on the island of the same name. Miquelon (83 sq mi/215 sq km) is the largest island. The population consists mainly of fishermen, most of whom live in or near the capital. The islands are barren, rocky, and often fogbound, but their proximity to the Grand Banks makes them a valuable base for fishermen. In April and October, Norman and Breton fishermen come there from France to fish. A thirty-year boundary dispute between France and Canada over offshore fishing rights was resolved in 1992. The French zone consists of waters within a 24-mi (38.6-km) limit of the two islands and also includes a 10.5-mi-wide (16.9-km) corridor leading south 200 mi (322 km) to international waters.

History

Probably first settled by Basques, the islands were colonized by France in 1604. They were taken by the British (1713) but returned to France in 1763; twice retaken by the British, they were restored to France in 1814, with the provision that they be unfortified. They were granted local autonomy in 1935, became an overseas department in 1976, and reclassified as a territorial collectivity in 1985 to comply with European Community (now European Union) trade regulations.

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