Exhibition “From the banks of the Loire to Tortuga Island”

Published on 02 July 2014 - Updated 11 July 2014
Cet article date d'il y a plus de 9 ans

The exhibition, which bears the Loire Valley World Heritage label, is the first event in the “Loire des Lumières” programme. It illustrates the historical links that united the Antilles and Anjou from the 17th to the 19th century. Housed in Sainte-Barbe des Mines Chapel in Chalonnes-sur-Loire from 10 May to 30 October 2014, it invites visitors – local inhabitants, school groups and national tourists alike – to reacquaint themselves with the history of these two regions, separated by the Atlantic Ocean but linked by a shared past.

The reconstructions, artefacts and documents that make up the exhibition’s itinerary cover almost 300 years of history, from the foundation of Santa Domingo (present-day Haiti) by Rochefort-born Bertrand d’Ogeron in the 17th century to negotiation of Haiti’s independence debt by Emmanuel de Las Cases, director of Chalonnes-sur-Loire’s mines, in the 19th century. The exhibition helps visitors understand the conditions under which Anjou and the banks of the Loire made up Nantes’ hinterland (as the main slave-trade port in the 18th century) and took direct or indirect part in political and maritime history and triangular trade from the 17th to the 19th century. 

Two walks will be on offer alongside the exhibition, designed to deepen participants’ knowledge of local heritage

  • an “on the trail of slave traders in Anjou” itinerary
  • an itinerary in the streets of Chalonnes-sur-Loire

“Loire des Lumières”

The “Loire des Lumières” programme, initiated by the “Les Anneaux de la Mémoire” association with support from the Pays de la Loire Region, aims to galvanise the banks of the Loire by organising lectures, exhibitions, study days, shows and other cultural events with three thematic focuses: 

  • The Transatlantic Loire
    • With this initial exhibition, the fruit of a partnership between the “Les Anneaux de la Mémoire” association and Loire-Layon community of municipalities.
  • The Loire of Revolutions
  • The Loire of Civilisations

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