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La Grande Chaloupe
Situated on the cliffside between La Possession and Saint-Denis, Grande Chaloupe is a landmark in Réunion’s history. Thousands of immigrants passed through here as soon as they disembarked for quarantine in the Lazaret buildings.
Lazarets de la Grande Chaloupe
Grande Chaloupe, 97419 La Possession
Tel: 02 62 20 03 23.
Lazaret 1, Open Tuesday to Friday: 9am-5pm.
Free admission. Guided tours available.
In the heart of La Grande Chaloupe stand the two large buildings of the Lazarets. These isolation centers were built around 1860 to prevent the spread of epidemics on the island by Indian, African, Malagasy and Chinese conscripts. This location was chosen because of its deep, isolated position, easy to monitor and control. The La Grande Chaloupe Lazarets closed in 1936.
Many of the men and women who populated Reunion came here to replace the missing workforce following the abolition of slavery in 1848.
The buildings of this sanitary holding center, part hospital, part prison, could accommodate four hundred people, sometimes more. Quarantine lasted a minimum of ten days for hired workers, much longer in the event of an epidemic. However, it’s impossible to know exactly how many people passed through here.
Visit
Lazaret number 1 houses a museum dedicated to this period in Reunion’s history. In addition to visiting the dormitories and the cemetery, the permanent exhibition “Quarantaine et Engagisme” (Quarantine and Enlistment), housed in the former isolation pavilion, invites you to discover the living conditions of the enlisted men. It’s a remarkable journey through time, exploring the history of the settlement of Réunion Island.
Railways
La Grande Chaloupe is also linked to the history of Reunion’s railroads. The train ran for 80 years. Rail links were discontinued in 1976, when the Corniche road opened up a fast lane between north and west. The station, located near the Lazarets, was a lively place.
The village of Grande Chaloupe is home to a small railway museum. Here you can see restored locomotives and other historical evidence. The station has been listed as a Monument Historique since 1998.