Memory of the World; 2012 - unesdoc - Unesco

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Records of the French
occupation of Mauritius
Inscribed 1997
What are they
A series of records of the French occupation of Mauritius,
then known as Isle de France, from the late 17th century
to the early 19th century, and of the early English period
from 1810.
Why were they inscribed
These records document the colonial administration
of Mauritius by the French and British and provide
detailed information on the practice of slavery up to its
abolition in 1835.
Where are they
Mauritius Archives, Petite Rivière, Mauritius
These records provide a picture of the European colonial
conquests and settlements in Mauritius and the Indian
Ocean from the late 17th century to the early 19th century.
They include information on the French settlements on Isle
de France and Bourbon, and on other islands of the Indian
Ocean, Port of Africa and Asia, and documents relating to
the East India Company, navigation, pirates and corsairs,
and naval activity in the Indian Ocean. Most significantly
they also contain details about the slave trade, including
treatment of slaves, the struggle for the abolition of slavery
and the compensation paid to owners after abolition.
Among the oldest documents in the archive is the
Acte de Prise de Possession, the formal start to French
occupation in 1715, following the departure in 1710 of the
Dutch, who had established sugar plantations here. The
French developed sugar plantations further, and brought
in more slaves from East Africa and Madagascar as labour.
Some of the documents in the archive recall the island’s
role in the slave trade – the 1723 Code Noir relating to slaves
on Isle de France and Bourbon; the registers, from 1772 to
1775, that were used to record the daily catch of escaped
‘black fugitives’ (noirs fugitifs); and also the registers
covering the period 1776–92 that recorded acts of freedom
granted to slaves.
Liberation certificate of a slave and her seven children issued by
the British Government after they took control of Mauritius. �
256 Records of the French occupation of Mauritius