La Possession

La Possession is a commune in the French overseas department of Réunion. It is located on the northwest side of the island of Réunion, between the capital of Saint-Denis and the commune of Le Port.

To the territory of this commune belongs the major part of the valley of Mafate, a caldera of the extinct Piton des Neiges volcano. It is part of the Réunion National Park.

History

Historically the territory of the commune of La Possession belonged to the commune of Saint-Paul until 1895.

1675: First settlements by Jean Marquet (a creek has been named after him).
1699: Concessions for planting sugar cane attributed to Texer de Mota, a Portuguese from India
1730-1767: Construction of Chemin Crémont first paved walkway to the islands capital Saint-Denis
1797: Concession of Rivière des Galets attributed to Dr Rivière.
1833: Construction of a chapel, later replaced by a church
1834: Still belonging to the commune of Saint-Paul, Réunion the territory of the futur commune becomes special section.
1849–1854: Construction of the La route de la Montagne (Mountain road) - first reliable road connection to Saint-Denis.
1860: Construction of the lazaret of La Grande Chaloupe that becomes the quarantine station of Réunion.
1872: Claims by the population for installation of a new commune
1881: A petition is addressed to the regional council.
1882: Begin of the construction of the railway Saint-Denis - Saint-Pierre and the harbour of Le Port.
1886: First steamers enter the new harbour the Pointe des Galets
1890: Creation of the commune La Possession
1895: A part of the territory at the Pointe des Galets was split off to become the commune of Le Port..
1976: Inauguration of the new coastal highway to Saint-Denis.
1976: Closure of the railway Saint-Denis - Le Port

Tourism

Most of the caldera of Mafate belongs to the territory of the commune of La Possession. Hiking trails lead to this valley from Dos d'Âne and along the river Rivière des Galets. Another popular hiking trail, chemin Crémont, leads from La Possession to Saint-Denis, via La Grande Chaloupe.

At La Grande Chaloupe the partly restored lazaretto and the former train station can be visited. They have exhibitions about the history of the Réunion railroad, the lazaretto and engagement in Réunion.

Hotels

LODGE ROCHE TAMARIN***
LE PILON D’OR
several Gîtes in the valley of Mafate

Education

There are three collèges and one lycée in the commune:

Sister cities

Port Louis (Mauritius)
Villeneuve-d'Ascq (Metropolitan-France)
Antanifotsy (Madagascar)
Foshan (China)
Barakani (Anjouan - Comoros)

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All content originates from the English Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0