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Old 08-06-2008, 04:36 AM canarymoon is offline     #3 (permalink)
More Info on Forte-de-France

this is from Martinique Tours / Excursions / Sightseeing / Sights / What To See / Attractions / Places of Interest / Places to Visit


Fort-de-France, the capital, is wonderful to explore on foot. Among the sightseeing attractions is the city's architectural masterpiece, the Bibliothèque Schoelcher, or Schoelcher Library, a Romanesque-Byzantine gem built 100 years ago for the Paris Exposition of 1889, then dismantled and shipped to Martinique mosaic by mosaic. Named for Victor Schoelcher, the French abolitionist whose work helped end slavery on the island in 1848, it sits just off La Savane, the central park. La Savane's gardens make for pleasant strolling and picture-taking, and boast two impressive statues: one of Pierre Belain d'Esnambuc, the French nobleman who claimed the island for France in 1635, the other of Marie Josephe Rose Tascher de la Pagerie, who was born in Trois Ilets across the bay, and made history as Napoléon's Empress Joséphine.