40 Fascinating Facts About Saint Lucia | Page 18

Photo Credit: Everything Saint Lucian Soufriere first... Photo Credit: Photographer Shane Blackett ...then Castries  SAINT LUCIA HAS HAD TWO CAPITALS 11 The original capital of Saint Lucia was Soufriere - home of  the Sulphur Springs. A town on the West Coast of Saint Lucia that got its name from the French and means “sulphur in the air.”  In 1967 when Saint Lucia became an associated state of Great Britain, Castries became the capital city. But Castries wasn't always its name. When the French founded Castries in 1650 they called it Carénage, a reference to the city’s deep water port which means "safe anchorage". But in 1785, to honor Marshal de Castries, the French colonial Minister for the navy and the colonies, the name was changed to Castries. In 1803, after numerous changes, the city finally adopted "Castries" as its name. http://www.stlucia-history.com/castries.html  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soufri%C3%A8re,_Saint_Lucia