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Map of New Courland (click on image for a larger version) |
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New Courland, officially the Duchy of New Courland,
is a country in the Caribbean, close to Trinidad and Tobago.
Originally a colony of the duchy of Courland and Semigallia
(together with a part of Tobago), it was occupied by several
other colonial powers, including the Dutch and the Spanish,
before it became part of the British Empire in 1814 as part
of the Trinidad and Tobago colony; the main island of New
Courland was renamed Carolina. In the interbellum and after
the second world war, many Latvians and Lithuanians settled
on Carolina and when the colony became independent in 1962,
Carolina left Trinidad and Tobago, forming its own duchy
within the Commonwealth of Nations.
New Courland's population, due to its at some times chaotic
history, is rather mixed. Apart from Britons, Spaniards and
Venezuelans, the link with the British Empire brought many
Africans and Indians and other South Asians to the island.
After the First World War, a large group of Balts from the
newly independent nations of Latvia and Lithuania settled
on the island, with a second wave arriving in the 30s as a
result of the economic crisis. Currently Balts (Latvians,
Latgalians, and Lithuanians) form the largest ethnic group
of New Courland.
New Courland is a member of the Forum of International
Cooperation and Trade (FICT). |
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