Complex sentence: While the English were the first to lay claim to St. Vincent in 1627, the French centred on the island of Martinique would be the first European settlers on the island when they established their first colony at Barrouallie on the Leeward side of St. Vincent in 1719.
Split into simpler sentences: While the English were the first to lay claim to St. Vincent in 1627, the French centred on the island of Martinique. French settlers were the first European settlers on the island when they established their first colony at Barrouallie on the Leeward side of St. Vincent in 1719.