10 museums & monuments to discover

Mauritius is much more than just a haven for beach lovers, it’s a veritable treasure trove of cultural and historical treasures scattered throughout its many museums and remarkable buildings. Intended to perpetuate and glorify the country’s immense heritage, these relics of history are wellsprings of knowledge available to locals and travellers alike. These are privileged, […]

by | Mar 4, 2024 | Activities, News | 0 comments

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Mauritius is much more than just a haven for beach lovers, it’s a veritable treasure trove of cultural and historical treasures scattered throughout its many museums and remarkable buildings. Intended to perpetuate and glorify the country’s immense heritage, these relics of history are wellsprings of knowledge available to locals and travellers alike. These are privileged, even sanctified, settings in which to immerse yourself in the heart of a country of many hues, whose past conceals a richness that will astonish many.

A journey through museums

Domaine des Aubineaux: the euphonium of the tea route

Metamorphosed and reincarnated into a marvellous tea sanctuary, an exuberant colonial house on the Domaine des Aubineaux welcomes us with its bewitching collection of curiosities including old East India Company items, plus paintings, photographs and antique furniture. In this grandiose ecosystem, stables once frequented by horses have metamorphosed their appearance to become venues for stores, meeting rooms and distilleries. Even now, a journey back in time reveals the ancient secrets of the essential oil production process. The local tea tasting takes place in a room once used by billiard players. To unravel the hidden mysteries of tea’s history, we need to transport ourselves to the Bois Chรฉri tea factory, home to the island’s first tea plantation, which majestically spreads over 250 hectares, producing an impressive 700 tonnes of tea leaves annually.

Modern epic at the Blue Penny Museum

The journey to the heart of the Blue Penny Museum-inauguratedwith panache in 2001-begins with a plunge into the island’s maritime history through the story of the Indian Ocean’s greatest maritime explorations. The galleries feature ancient cartographies that reconstruct the routes taken by Portuguese navigators and other explorers of the time, recounting their attempts, their weaknesses and their legendary exploits. Next, we’re invited to discover the old Port Louis of the 18th and 19th centuries, evoked through paintings and illustrations, juxtaposed with contemporary photographs of the same places, offering a chance to compare the changes that have taken place over time. We then delve into the island’s postal past, as it was the first British colony and the fifth country in the world to issue stamps! Finally, the journey ends with French writer Bernardin de Saint-Pierre recounting the love story of Paul and Virginie.

Echoes of French colonization at the Frederik Hendrik Museum

The charming Frederik Hendrik Museum is just a stone’s throw from the Old Grand Harbour, a place steeped in history and now a national heritage site. Here, you can examine the French-influenced remains, erected on the debris of the Dutch fort Frederik Hendrik after 1753, as well as the ruins of the island’s first Catholic church, built by Mahรฉ de Labourdonnais, and a powder magazine built during colonization. Archaeological digs have unearthed a panoply of period objects: old coins, pottery, pearls… Beyond that, you can contemplate paintings of emblematic figures such as Frederik Hendrik and Maurice de Naussau, maps dating from the 17th century and even a model of an East Indian merchant ship.

The white gold pact at L’Aventure du Sucre

Announcing its majestic presence in a former sugar mill in Beau Plan, just a few steps from a superb garden in Pamplemousse, l’Aventure du Sucre offers an educational and entertaining insight into the history of sugar cane, a crucial cog in the local economy for over 300 years. With the help of animated models, giant albums to leaf through and short films tailor-made for all ages, we can learn all about the sugar industry in Mauritius in an innovative way! From its humble beginnings, marked by the chimneys of sugar factories, to technological advances. The tour ends on a high note with a tasting of various shades of unrefined sugars, while sipping a good local rum.

On the trail of history through the Mahรฉbourg Naval Museum

Located in the village of Mahรฉbourg, named after Governor Mahรฉ de Larbourdonnais, the Mahรฉbourg Naval Museum occupies a former colonial mansion dating from 1772, converted into a naval museum by the British. Its three levels cover the social and cultural history of Mauritius in the past. Its galleries display a variety of objects dating back to the colonial period and naval battles, as well as furniture that was once part of the governors’ daily lives. But it’s in the section dedicated to the museum’s Dutch period that the real gems are to be found, such as a rare 1568 astrolabe recovered from the remains of the ship Banda.

Exploring the historical brilliance of monuments

Exploring the historical brilliance of monuments

Reliving the history of slaves at Morne Brabant

On February 1, 2009, a true tribute to the resistance of the slaves was born at the foot of the symbolic mountain of Morne Brabant. This international monument on the Slave Route, nestled in a verdant garden of lush native flora, offers exquisite views of the peninsula, the cliff and the expanse of the sea. The choice to establish this memorial in this precise location reflects not only the bravery of the slaves in the face of oppression, but also the crucial role the island played in the slave trade. It is also a poignant place where the abolition of slavery is commemorated, and where the memory of the victims of this tragic period is celebrated.

Aapravasi Ghat: Travel diary of the modern worker diaspora

The Aapravasi Ghat, located in Port-Louis on the picturesque Trou Fanfaron Bay, is a fascinating UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its geographical position, straddling land and ocean, symbolizes the passage of contract immigrants from their old lives to their new ones. A place steeped in history, it served as an entry point for immigration under the aegis of the British government as early as 1849, and has profoundly shaped the course of Mauritian history. This is where workers from India, China, Southeast Asia and Africa arrived, transforming the local population into a cultural mosaic. This wave of immigration, orchestrated by the British and dubbed the Great Experiment, was designed to demonstrate that a nation’s true superiority lay in free labor, rather than the exploitation of slaves.

The Port-Louis Citadel: a solid testimony to British colonization

Leaning against a hill in the capital, the Citadelle de Port-Louis, or Fort Adรฉlaรฏde, named after the queen consort of King William IV of England, bears witness to the last chapter of the fortifications built by the English after their arrival. Its landmarks, such as the officers’ and soldiers’ quarters, the main courtyard and the powder magazine, are encrusted in huge basalt stones. This prodigious fortress is a popular strolling destination for Mauritians, who come to admire the exceptional panorama it affords of the city, the Champ de Mars, the Caudan and the surrounding mountains.

The Martello Tower: an unusual immersion in the past

Located on La Preneuse beach in Riviรจre-Noire, the Martello tower is a military treasure with a surprising name, borrowed from a Corsican defense tower. The British, stunned by its resilience in battle, tributed it, even if they made a spelling mistake when referring to it. Inside this massive 12m-high, 15m-wide structure, a museum houses old military uniforms, kitchen utensils, replicas of period weapons, various objects discovered during excavations and a reproduction of the French ship La Preneuse, which marked a naval battle in 1799.

Le Chรขteau du Rรฉduit: a presidential residence with a grandiose allure

In an idyllic setting not far from the village of Moka lies Chรขteau du Rรฉduit, the brainchild of visionary Barthelemy David and successor to Mahรฉ de Labourdonnais. With its opulent natural surroundings that have seduced passers-by for centuries, it offers a splendid view of Le Bout du Monde, where two rivers meet before flowing into the ocean. Construction work on this magnificent chรขteau began in 1746 and was completed two years later, with the intention of serving as a refuge for women and children in the event of a British invasion. Le Rรฉduit has always been the official residence of the island’s governors, and continues to be that of its presidents. Here you’ll discover the Salon d’Honneur, the setting for official ceremonies, and the Salle des Fรชtes, the setting for the grandest banquets.

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