Santa Lucia is a small island state in America, located in the Caribbean Sea, north of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and south of the island of Martinique. He is a member of the Caribbean Community, of the Organization of American States and of the Commonwealth of Nations. Saint Lucia is one of the Windward Islands, the name comes from Saint Lucia of Syracuse. The United Kingdom took control of the island from 1663 to 1667, and in the following years, when it was at war with France, the empire of the island changed hands 14 times. In 1814, the British took definitive control of the island.
Because it changed so frequently between British and French control, Saint Lucia was also known as the "Helen of the West Indies." Representative government occurred in 1924. From 1958 to 1962, the island was a member of the Federation of the West Indies. On February 22,1979, Saint Lucia became an independent state of the Commonwealth of Nations associated with the United Kingdom. It has a mixed legal system of English common law and codified civil law. The civil code approved in 1879 under the British government is based on the civil code of Canada of 1866 and in 1882 came into force the code of civil procedures of Quebec of 1867. The island celebrates its independence every year with a holiday. He is also a member of the Francophonie. The financial sector has resisted the global financial crisis, but the recession has affected tourism.