What is the island of St Helena known for?
It is perhaps best known for being the site Napoleon was exiled to after his final defeat in 1815 . Most historical accounts state that the island was sighted on 21 May 1502 by Galician navigator João da Nova sailing in the service of Portugal, and that he named it Santa Helena after Saint Helena of Constantinople.
What is the population of St Helena 2021?
It is one of three constituent parts of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. It measures about 16 by 8 kilometres (10 by 5 mi) and has a population of 4,439 per the 2021 census. It was named after Saint Helena of Constantinople.
What is the ccTLD for Saint Helena?
Saint Helena was granted the use of .sh as its own Internet country code top-level domain ( ccTLD ). This is formally shared with Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha, British Overseas Territories.
How many people are there on St Helena?
The island is a single electoral area and elects 12 representatives to the Legislative Council of 15. The difference between the total population of the Administrative Districts and that recorded in the 2016 Census arises because the census included 183 people on board the RMS St. Helena and 13 people who were on yachts in the harbour.
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What is the capital town of Saint Helena?
JamestownSaint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha / CapitalJamestown is the capital city of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, located on the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is also the historic main settlement of the island and is on its north-western coast. Wikipedia
Is St Helena a country or city?
Saint Helena measures about 16 by 8 kilometres (10 by 5 mi) and has a population of 4,439 per the 2021 census....Saint HelenaSovereign stateUnited KingdomColonial charter1657Crown colony22 April 1834Current constitution1 September 200934 more rows
What is Saint Helena known for?
St. Helena is the patron saint of difficult marriages, divorced people, converts, and archaeologists. Her Feast Day is August 18.
What is the population of St Helena 2022?
6,118The current population of Saint Helena is 6,118 as of Friday, October 14, 2022, based on the latest United Nations estimates. Saint Helena population is equivalent to 8.0E-5% of the total world population. Saint Helena ranks number 229 in the list of countries (and dependencies) by population.
Does St Helena have an airport?
Saint Helena Airport (IATA: HLE, ICAO: FHSH) is an international airport on Saint Helena, a remote island in the south Atlantic Ocean, in the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha. The construction of the runway was finished in 2015 and the airport opened in 2016.
Can I move to St Helena Island?
St Helena Island welcomes long and short-term visitors. The Immigration Section manages all applications to enter St Helena as well as applications for permission to work for people who do not hold St Helenian status.
Who Found Jesus cross?
Flavia Julia Helena AugustaHelena, later known as Flavia Julia Helena Augusta, mother of Constantine the Great, was credited after her death with having discovered the fragments of the Cross and the tomb in which Jesus was buried at Golgotha.
Who owns St Helena Island?
the British overseas territorySt. Helena is part of the British overseas territory of St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Ascension Island is approximately 700 miles (1,100 km) to the northwest, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha is some 1,300 miles (2,100 km) to the south.
Can you holiday on St Helena?
If you really want to get completely off the beaten track, St Helena holidays will surely satisfy. One of the most remote islands in the world, Britain's second-oldest overseas territory was used to imprison Napoleon Bonaparte and its first airport only opened in 2017.
Is Saint Helena a rich country?
Saint Helena's gross domestic product (GDP) for the 2018–19 financial year was £38.5 million and GDP per capita was £7,392 and GNP per capita was £8,230. In 2019, there was an annual rate of inflation of 3.3% and a median employment income was £8,410.
What type of people live in St Helena?
St. Helena is currently declining at a rate of -0.70% annually and its population has decreased by -11.49% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 6,049 in 2020....Population by Race.RacePopulationPercentageWhite5,40589.35%Some Other Race3024.99%Two or More Races1282.12%Asian1252.07%2 more rows
Why you should visit St Helena?
St Helena is one of the most remote places in the world, offering isolation at its most splendid. Billed as the best-kept secret in the South Atlantic, St Helena is a rather unique island, thanks to the contrast of its rugged volcanic landscape set against the quaint trimmings of bygone-era British life.
Does anyone live on St Helena?
The island has a small population of a few thousand inhabitants, mainly descended from Africans, Mixed race African and Europeans, British settlers, East India Company employees and indentured labourers from the South Asian sub-Continent, East Indies, Madagascar and China.
Can you holiday on St Helena?
If you really want to get completely off the beaten track, St Helena holidays will surely satisfy. One of the most remote islands in the world, Britain's second-oldest overseas territory was used to imprison Napoleon Bonaparte and its first airport only opened in 2017.
Is St Helena part of South Africa?
Saint Helena Bay is the only area along the South African West Coast where the sun rises across the bay. The reason for this is its unique location, where by the town itself faces north east and almost north. It is described as "calm and tranquil" as quoted from the Portuguese explorer, Vasco da Gama.
Is Saint Helena Ascension and Tristan da Cunha a country?
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British overseas territory consisting of the islands of Saint Helena and Ascension, together with the Tristan da Cunha islands group.
Where is Saint Helena located?
Internet TLD. .sh. Saint Helena ( / həˈliːnə /) is a British possession located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island lying some 1,950 kilometres (1,210 mi) west of the coast of southwestern Africa, and 4,000 kilometres (2,500 mi) east of Rio de Janeiro on the South American coast.
What is the population of Saint Helena?
Saint Helena measures about 16 by 8 kilometres (10 by 5 mi) and has a population of 4,534 (2016 census). It was named after Saint Helena of Constantinople.
What happened to St Helena after Napoleon's death?
After Napoleon's death, the thousands of temporary visitors were withdrawn and the East India Company resumed full control of Saint Helena. Between 1815 and 1830, the EIC made the packet schooner St Helena available to the government of the island, which made multiple trips per year between the island and the Cape, carrying passengers both ways and supplies of wine and provisions back to the island. Napoleon praised Saint Helena's coffee during his exile on the island, and the product enjoyed a brief popularity in Paris in the years after his death.
What is the name of the police station in Saint Helena?
The SHPS also uses a variety of ranks similar to other Commonwealth law enforcement agencies. Saint Helena has one police station, Coleman House, named after PC Leonard John Coleman who died in the line of duty on 2 December 1982. The Island's only prison - HMP Jamestown - was built in 1827 and in 2018.
How much did it cost to build the airport in Saint Helena?
In November 2011, a deal was signed between the British government and South African civil engineering company Basil Read, and the airport was scheduled to open in February 2016 with flights to and from South Africa and the UK. The cost was £250 million. This is aimed at helping the island become more self-sufficient, encouraging economic development while reducing dependence on British government aid. It is also expected to kick-start the tourism industry, with up to 30,000 visitors expected annually.
What happened to Saint Helena?
The British Nationality Act 1981 reclassified Saint Helena and the other Crown colonies as British Dependent Territories. Saints lost their right of abode in Britain. For the next 20 years, many could find only low-paid work with the island government, and the only available employment outside Saint Helena was on the Falkland Islands and Ascension Island. The Development and Economic Planning Department (which still operates) was formed in 1988 to contribute to raising the living standards of the people of Saint Helena.
How many districts are there in Saint Helena?
Saint Helena is divided into eight districts, with the majority housing a community centre. The districts also serve as statistical divisions. The island is a single electoral area and elects 12 representatives to the Legislative Council of 15.
What is the name of the parish in St Helena?
The Anglican Parish of St. James is one of the three parishes of the Diocese of St Helena on the island. St James' Church is the primary church in the parish and is the oldest Anglican Church in the southern hemisphere; the present building was put up in 1772. There are 3 daughter churches: St John's, in Upper Jamestown, St Mary's, the Briars, and St Michael's, in Rupert's Valley. The sole Catholic Church in St Helena, Sacred Heart Church, is located in Jamestown; as is a Baptist church.
Is Saint Helena a port?
The town is commonly divided into lower and upper parts, depending on the distance up James Valley. Being the island's main port (and with the Saint Helena Airport only receiving its first scheduled flight in October 2017) the town is still currently the main entrance to the island to visitors.
Is Jamestown a city?
Jamestown is formally a city, a status granted by Queen Victoria in 1859, and its full name is the "City of James Town". It is also one of the 8 districts (administrative divisions) and is the capital of both the island of Saint Helena and the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
Land
Of volcanic origin, St. Helena has much volcanic ash and many conspicuous rock features, but volcanic activity on the island is now extinct. Perpendicular cliffs rise 1,600 to 2,300 feet (490 to 700 metres) on the eastern, northern, and western sides of the island.
People
The island’s population is largely of mixed European (mostly British), South and East Asian, and African descent. English is the only language spoken, and the majority of the people are Anglicans. Jamestown, the only town among the settlements on St. Helena, has about one-sixth of the island’s population.
Economy
Less than one-third of the island is suitable for farming or forestry. Principal crops are corn (maize), potatoes, and green vegetables. Poultry, sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs are raised. Some coffee is grown for export. There are no minerals and virtually no industry, but some locally grown timber is used for construction purposes.
Government and society
As outlined in the constitution of St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha (2009), the executive authority of the territory is vested in the British monarch, represented by a governor appointed by the monarch. St.
Where is Saint Helena located?
Saint Helena - population is concentrated in and around the capital Jamestown in the northwest, with another significant cluster in the interior Longwood area; Ascension - largest settlement, and location of most of the population, is Georgetown; Tristan da Cunha - most of the nearly 300 inhabitants live in the northern coastal town of Edinburgh of the Seven Seas
How has the population of Saint Helena changed?
Change in Saint Helena’s population size is driven by net outward migration. Since the 1980s, Saint Helena’s population steadily has shrunk and aged as the birth rate has decreased and many working-age residents left for better opportunities elsewhere. The restoration of British citizenship in 2002 accelerated family emigration; from 1998 to 2008 alone, population declined by about 20%.
What is the name of the island in the South Atlantic?
Saint Helena harbors at least 40 species of plants unknown elsewhere in the world; Ascension is a breeding ground for sea turtles and sooty terns; Queen Mary's Peak on Tristan da Cunha is the highest island mountain in the South Atlantic and a prominent landmark on the sea lanes around southern Africa
Why was Tristan da Cunha a British garrison?
Tristan da Cunha, named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506), was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island.
Where is the Ascension Island?
Ascension Island hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system (the others are on Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory ), Kwajalein (Marshall Islands), and at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US)); South Africa maintains a meteorological station on Gough Island in the Tristan da Cunha archipelago
Why was Ascension Island named?
The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena. It served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol.
When was the airport built in Saint Helena?
The British Government committed to building an airport on Saint Helena in 2005. After more than a decade of delays and construction, a commercial air service to South Africa via Namibia was inaugurated in October of 2017.
Who was Helena married to?
Helena was married to the Roman emperor Constantius I Chlorus, who renounced her for political reasons. When her son Constantine I the Great became emperor at York in 306, he made her empress dowager, and under his influence she later became a Christian.
Where did Helena make her pilgrimage?
Immediately after the double tragedy, Helena made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. She caused churches to be built on the reputed sites of Christ’s Nativity (in Bethlehem) and Ascension (near Jerusalem).
Who was Constantine's mother?
Constantine I: Final years. …of 326 that Constantine’s mother, Helena, embarked on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Her journey was attended by almsgiving and pious works and was distinguished by her church foundations at Jerusalem and at Bethlehem.
What is the capital of Saint Helena?
Located on the island’s northwestern coast is the city of Jamestown, which serves as the capital and a communication and transportation hub of Saint Helena. This historic settlement was founded by the East India Company in 1659. Saint Helena Island experiences tropical climatic conditions with warm summers and slightly cooler winters.
When did Saint Helena become a colony?
He stayed in the island’s Longwood House and died there on May 5, 1821. Under the 1833 India Act, the British Crown took over the control of Saint Helena from the East India Company, eventually turning Saint Helena into a Crown Colony. As per the British Nationality Act 1981, Saint Helena along with other Crown colonies was reclassified as British ...
What is the highest point on Saint Helena Island?
Diana’s Peak, which rises to an elevation of 818 m, is the highest point on Saint Helena Island. In 1996, the mountain and its surrounding areas were designated as the island’s first national park.
Where is Ascension Island?
Ascension Island is located about 1,300 km northwest of Saint Helena Island, while the Tristan da Cunha archipelago is located about 2,100 km to the south of Saint Helena.
When was Saint Helena discovered?
Flag of Saint Helena. Saint Helena Island was discovered by the Portuguese navigator João da Nova on May 21, 1502. The island was named in the honor of Saint Helena of Constantinople. The island was uninhabited during the time of its discovery.
Who took possession of Saint Helena?
The Dutch East India Company briefly took possession of the island in 1673, but the East India Company eventualy restored its ownership over the island. In October 1815, Napoleon Bonaparte was exiled by the British government to Saint Helena. He stayed in the island’s Longwood House and died there on May 5, 1821.
Is Saint Helena a British colony?
As per the British Nationality Act 1981, Saint Helena along with other Crown colonies was reclassified as British Dependent Territories. In 2002, the Dependent Territories were rechristened as Overseas Territories. Saint Helena is recognized as the United Kingdom ’s second-oldest Overseas Territories after the Territory of Bermuda.
Overview
Culture and society
The Education and Employment Directorate, formerly the Saint Helena Education Department, in 2000 had its head office in The Canister in Jamestown. Education is free and compulsory between the ages of five and 16. At the beginning of the academic year 2009–10, 230 students were enrolled in primary school and 286 in secondary school. The island has three primary sch…
History
Most historical accounts state that the island was sighted on 21 May 1502 by Galician navigator João da Nova sailing in the service of Portugal, and that he named it Santa Helena after Saint Helena of Constantinople. A 2015 paper notes that 21 May is the Orthodox and Protestant feast day, opposing the Catholic one in August, and the day and the month was first quoted in 1596 by Jan Huyghe…
Geography
Sitting in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, more than 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) from the nearest major landmass, Saint Helena is remote. The nearest port on the continent is Moçâmedes in southern Angola; connections to Cape Town, South Africa are used for most shipping needs via the regular ship that serves the island, the MS Helena.
Administrative divisions
Saint Helena is divided into eight districts, with the majority housing a community centre. The districts also serve as statistical divisions. The island is a single electoral area and elects 12 representatives to the Legislative Council of 15.
The difference between the total population of the Administrative Districts an…
Population
Saint Helena was first settled by the English in 1659. As of January 2018 , the island had a population of 4,897 inhabitants, mainly descended from people from Britain—settlers ("planters") and soldiers—and slaves who were brought there from the beginning of settlement—initially from Africa (the Cape Verde Islands, Gold Coast and west coast of Africa are mentioned in early records), th…
Government
Executive authority in Saint Helena is vested in King Charles III and is exercised on his behalf by the Governor of Saint Helena. The Governor is appointed by the King on the advice of the British government. Defence and foreign affairs remain the responsibility of the United Kingdom.
There are 15 seats in the Legislative Council of Saint Helena, a unicameral legislature, in addition to a Speaker and a Deputy Speaker. Twelve of the 15 members are elected in elections held every f…
Human rights
In 2012, the government of Saint Helena funded the creation of the Saint Helena Human Rights Action Plan 2012–2015. Work is being done under this action plan, including publishing awareness-raising articles in local newspapers, providing support for members of the public with human rights queries, and extending several UN Conventions on human rights to St. Helena.
Legislation to set up an Equality and Human Rights Commission was passed by Legislative Cou…
Overview
Jamestown is the capital city of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, located on the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is also the historic main settlement of the island and is on its north-western coast. Before the development of the port at Rupert's Bay, it was the island's only port and the centre of the island's road and communicati…
History
Jamestown was founded in 1659 by the East India Company and is named after James, Duke of York, the future King James II of England. A fort, originally named the Castle of St John, was quickly built and, with the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, the fort was renamed James Fort, the town Jamestown and the valley James Valley. The fort and associated gun batteries dominated James Bay an…
Geography and description
The city is built on igneous rock in the James Valley, sandwiched between steep cliffs. It is therefore rather long and thin. The walls of the valley are rough and steep, and rockfalls have been a problem, although now minimised by netting. A small stream, the Run, runs through the valley. The city is commonly divided into lower and upper parts, depending on the distance up James Valley. Being the i…
Formal status
Jamestown is formally a city, a status granted by Queen Victoria in 1859, and its full name is the "City of James Town". It is also one of the 8 districts (administrative divisions) and is the capital of both the island of Saint Helena and the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Castle, one of the oldest buildings in the city, is one of the main g…
Climate
Jamestown features a tropical hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification: BWh) with essentially consistent temperatures throughout the year. Despite the fact that the city has a desert climate, its temperatures are moderated by the adjacent ocean and cold currents therein, leading to a cool climate for the deep tropical latitude. As a result, it seldom gets very hot in Jamestown. The temperature in the Jamestown area is some 5 degrees warmer than the rest o…
Population
As of 2016, the district Jamestown had 629 residents, a significant decline since the 2008 population of 714. The city's population has been shrinking and it is no longer the largest settlement on the island, having been surpassed by Half Tree Hollow, Saint Paul's and Longwood.
Education
As a British territory, the island follows the British education system. There is one primary school, serving children ages four to eleven, in Jamestown, Pilling Primary School, which was created by the amalgamation of Jamestown First School and Pilling Middle School in September 2007. The island's only secondary school is Prince Andrew School in Saint Paul's.
Religion
The Anglican Parish of St. James is one of the three parishes of the Diocese of St Helena on the island. St James' Church is the primary church in the parish and is the oldest Anglican Church in the southern hemisphere; the present building was put up in 1772. There are 3 daughter churches: St John's, in Upper Jamestown, St Mary's, the Briars, and St Michael's, in Rupert's Valley. The sole Catholic Church in …