Schoelcher Library

Owned by the Department

Museums of France

Miscellaneous

Crédit photo : Original téléversé par Georgio sur Wikipédia franç - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

XIXe siècle

Époque contemporaine

1900

2000

1886-1887

Construction in Paris

1889

Universal exposure

1890

Fire of Fort-de-France

18 août 1891

Cyclone in Martinique

1893

Open to the public

15 mars 1973

Registration MH

5 janvier 1993

MH classification

Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

The library, including the garden and the fence (Box BC 190): classification by decree of 5 January 1993

Key figures

Victor Schœlcher - Politician and abolitionist	Donor of the initial collection of 10,000 books.
Pierre-Henri Picq - Building architect	Designer of the pavilion and Saint Louis Cathedral.
Victor Cochinat - First Librarian	Journalist forced by Scholcher to manage collections.

Origin and history

The Schoelcher Library, located in Fort-de-France in Martinique, was named in honour of Victor Schœlcher (1804-1893), an abolitionist politician and deputy for Martinique and Guadeloupe from 1848 to 1850. Without an heir, he left his collection of 10,000 books and 250 musical scores to the Conseil Général de la Martinique, provided that this library was accessible to all, especially former slaves. The project is entrusted to architect Pierre-Henri Picq, who first conceived the building as the Indochina pavilion for the Universal Exhibition of 1889 in Paris, in the Tuileries gardens.

After the Exhibition, the pavilion was dismantled and shipped to Martinique to be rebuilt on the site of the former Petit Government Hotel, facing the Savane Square. The works were marked by successive delays: a judicial review of the building company, the fire at Fort-de-France in 1890 (which destroyed the majority of original books), and a cyclone in 1891. Despite these obstacles, the library finally opened in 1893, the year of Schœlcher's death.

The building, in an eclectic style combining Byzantine influences, art nouveau and classics, is distinguished by its metal frame and glass dome. Its decoration includes friezes with the names of French writers and a colourful mosaic pediment. Although most of the original works were lost in the fire of 1890, about 1,200 books survived, including a signed copy of ninety-three by Victor Hugo. Today, the library maintains a holdings of 130,000 books, with a section dedicated to the history of Antillean.

Ranked a historical monument in 1993 (after a first inscription in 1973), the Schoelcher Library symbolizes both the architectural heritage of the Universal Exhibitions and Scholcher's commitment to education and equality. Its architecture, inspired by Picq, also recalls the Saint-Louis Cathedral of Fort-de-France, another construction by the architect.