Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Fort-de-France refit basin was built between 1864 and 1868, as part of an extensive port development programme inspired by similar achievements at Toulon (1854), Lorient (1854), Cherbourg (1858) and Rochefort (1853-1861). This project was part of a modernization of French naval infrastructure, with a design adapted to the military and commercial needs of the time. The original part, made of stone, was completed a century later by a concrete extension, allowing to accommodate larger vessels, such as 12 000-ton cargo ships or 20,000-ton tankers.

The 19th-century captain's shop is a rare example of wood colonial architecture still preserved. It illustrates the administrative functioning of the port at a time when Martinique played a strategic role in transatlantic maritime trade. The cannons placed around the basin, marked in the ground, also recall its initial defensive use, although these moving elements (such as the doorboat or cabestans) are not protected as historical monuments.

Ranked by order of 21 August 2015, the refit basin includes in its protection the basin itself, the muzzles and the guns, but excludes mobile equipment. This site remains a major testimony of French port engineering of the 19th and 20th centuries, mixing colonial heritage and modern adaptations.

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