b31_0197 - 5 Francs DANISH WEST INDIES (VIRGIN ISLANDS) 1905 P.017

DANISH WEST INDIES (VIRGIN ISLANDS)

The Danish West India and Guinea Company established itself in Saint-Thomas in 1670, in Saint-John in 1718 and in Sainte-Croix in 1733. In 1754, the administration was taken over by the Danish government. In 1792, the slave trade was banned and slavery was abolished in 1848. The local economy based on sugar cane was in decline. Abandoned by the Danish government, the islands were sold in 1916 to the United States of America, the Danish administration ending on March 31, 1917. The territory became the Virgin Islands of the United States.