Windward Islands
The Windward Islands, also known as the Islands of Barlovento, are the southern, generally larger islands of the Lesser Antilles, within the West Indies. They lie south of the Leeward Islands, approximately between latitudes 10° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W.
The name was also used to refer to a British colony in these islands, existing between 1833 and 1960 and consisting of the islands of
Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent,
the Grenadines,
and Grenada. The island of Dominica was traditionally a part of the Leeward Islands until 1940, when it was transferred from the Leeward Islands colony to the Windward Islands.Name and geography
The Windward Islands are called such because they were more windward to sailing ships arriving to the New World than the Leeward Islands, given that the prevailing trade winds in the West Indies blow east to west. The trans-Atlantic currents and winds that provided the fastest route across the ocean brought these ships to the rough dividing line between the Windward and Leeward islands.
Vessels in the Atlantic slave trade departing from the British Gold Coast and Gulf of Guinea in Africa would first encounter the southeasternmost "Windward" islands of the Lesser Antilles in their west-northwesterly heading to final destinations in the Caribbean and North and Central America. The chain of Windward Islands forms a part of the easternmost boundary of the Caribbean Sea.List of the Windward Islands
The Windward Islands are as follows:
