UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Mauritius
Mauritius has 2 sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List (2 cultural), the first inscribed in 2006 (Aapravasi Ghat). The map below plots every one of them alongside the rest of the List, and each site is written up in full further down the page.
- World Heritage Sites
- 2
- Cultural
- 2
- Natural and Mixed
- 0
- First Inscribed
- 2006
Map of World Heritage Sites in Mauritius
CulturalNaturalMixedIn DangerLarge dots are in Mauritius. Click a dot to read about the site.
Aapravasi Ghat
Mauritius · 20.1586° S, 57.5031° E · 1 km from Port Louis
Aapravasi Ghat ('The Immigration Depot') is a building complex located in Port Louis, Mauritius, the first British colony to receive indentured, or contracted, labour workforce from many countries. From 1849 to 1923, half a million Indian indentured labourers passed through the Immigration Depot, to be transported to plantations throughout the British Empire. The large-scale migration of the labourers left an indelible mark on the societies of many former British colonies, with Indians constituting a substantial proportion of their national populations. In Mauritius alone, 68 percent of the current total population is of Indian ancestry. The Immigration Depot has thus become an important reference point in the history and cultural identity of Mauritius.
Unchecked infrastructural development in the mid-20th century means that only the partial remains of three stone buildings from the entire complex have survived. These are now protected as a national monument, under the Mauritian national heritage legislation. The Immigration Depot's role in social history was recognized by UNESCO when it was declared a World Heritage Site in 2006.
Adapted from Wikipedia: Aapravasi Ghat (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Why Aapravasi Ghat Is Listed
- (vi)
- A direct association with events, ideas or beliefs of universal significance.
More about Aapravasi Ghat
UNESCO's Description
In the district of Port Louis, lies the 1,640 m2 site where the modern indentured labour diaspora began. In 1834, the British Government selected the island of Mauritius to be the first site for what it called ‘the great experiment’ in the use of ‘free’ labour to replace slaves. Between 1834 and 1920, almost half a million indentured labourers arrived from India at Aapravasi Ghat to work in the sugar plantations of Mauritius, or to be transferred to Reunion Island, Australia, southern and eastern Africa or the Caribbean. The buildings of Aapravasi Ghat are among the earliest explicit manifestations of what was to become a global economic system and one of the greatest migrations in history.
From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).
History
The area where the building complex is situated, Trou Fanfaron, was the landing point for the French East India Company, which took possession of Mauritius in 1721. Slaves were imported from Africa, India and Madagascar to construct defensive walls and a hospital during the early phase of settlement. By the mid-18th century, sugar plantations had been developed on the Island of Mauritius, utilizing slave labour.
In 1810, during the Napoleonic Wars, Mauritius passed to British control, as confirmed in the Treaty of Paris, at a time when the British Empire was expanding its influence in the Indian Ocean region.
Location
The Immigration Depot was built on the east side of the sheltered bay of Trou Fanfaron in Port Louis, the Mauritian capital. The historic complex currently consists of the partial remains of three stone buildings dating back to the 1860s, built on the spot of an earlier depot site. It consists of the entrance gateway and a hospital block, remnants of immigration sheds, and vestiges of the service quarters.
Subsequent land reclamations as a result of urban development have moved the Immigration Depot's location further inland. The Caudan Waterfront, a marina developed as an economic and tourist centre, is situated beyond the site.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Aapravasi Ghat (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Le Morne Brabant
Mauritius · 20.4606° S, 57.3136° E · 3 km² · 27 km from Curepipe
Le Morne Brabant [lə mɔʁn bʁa.bɑ̃] is a peninsula at the extreme southwestern tip of the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. On it is a basaltic monolith of the same name 556 metres (1,824 ft) high. Its summit covers an area of over 12 hectares (30 acres). There are many caves and overhangs on the steep slopes. It is largely surrounded by a lagoon and is a well known tourist attraction. It is also a refuge for two rare plants, the Mandrinette and the Boucle d'Oreille. The peninsula of Le Morne benefits from a micro-climate. The mountain is named after the Dutch East India Company ship Brabant that ran aground here on 29 December 1783.
UNESCO added Morne Brabant Mountain to the World Heritage List in 2008.
The coast off Le Morne Brabant is often cited as the location of an underwater waterfall.
Adapted from Wikipedia: Le Morne Brabant (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Why Le Morne Brabant Is Listed
- (iii)
- A unique testimony to a cultural tradition or civilisation.
- (vi)
- A direct association with events, ideas or beliefs of universal significance.
More about Le Morne Brabant
UNESCO's Description
Le Morne Cultural Landscape, a rugged mountain that juts into the Indian Ocean in the southwest of Mauritius was used as a shelter by runaway slaves, maroons, through the 18th and early years of the 19th centuries. Protected by the mountain’s isolated, wooded and almost inaccessible cliffs, the escaped slaves formed small settlements in the caves and on the summit of Le Morne. The oral traditions associated with the maroons, have made Le Morne a symbol of the slaves’ fight for freedom, their suffering, and their sacrifice, all of which have relevance to the countries from which the slaves came - the African mainland, Madagascar, India, and South-east Asia. Indeed, Mauritius, an important stopover in the eastern slave trade, also came to be known as the “Maroon republic” because of the large number of escaped slaves who lived on Le Morne Mountain.
From the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (CC BY-SA IGO 3.0).
World Heritage in Mauritius: Quick Answers
- How many UNESCO World Heritage Sites are in Mauritius?
- Mauritius has 2 World Heritage Sites: 2 cultural.
- What was the first World Heritage Site in Mauritius?
- Aapravasi Ghat, inscribed in 2006. The most recent is Le Morne Brabant, inscribed in 2008.
- Are any World Heritage Sites in Mauritius in danger?
- None of the World Heritage Sites in Mauritius is on UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger.