Domaine du Grand Hazier

Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Grand Hazier estate is a former colonial plantation located in Sainte-Suzanne, on the island of La Réunion. Founded at the end of the seventeenth century by Jean Julien, a Lyon man married to a Malagasy, the estate develops thanks to the work of slaves, including Charles, a captive native of India. The concession, confirmed in 1703, was originally dedicated to livestock and food crops such as wheat, rice or sweet potatoes.

In 1709, Augustin Panon, a planter colonist, gradually acquired the estate after a slave exchange with Jean Julien. Upon the latter's death in 1714, Panon became the sole owner and extended the crops, including sugar cane. The estate, which extended over 147 hectares in 1723, was then divided among its heirs, while remaining associated with the place called "The Great Hazier".

At the turn of the 19th century, under Nicolas Vincent Charles Caradec, the mansion was built, and the estate modernized with an orientation towards sugar cane. Despite the abolition of slavery in 1794 (not applied to Reunion), the estate prospered until the definitive abolition of 1848. The owners, like Rose Angelique Sophie Caiez d'Epinay, then received compensation for the loss of their slaves, before turning to engagism, especially with Indian workers.

After 1859, the estate changed hands several times, including the Chassagne family in 1903. Albert Chassagne, engineer, modernises the operation by diversifying the crops (vanilla, ylang-ylang, cassava) and reconstructs the master house in 1911. Today, the estate, classified as a historical monument since 1991, houses a vanilla grove and a Hindu chapel, and is visited by appointment.

The master house, typical of Creole architecture with its varangue and outbuildings, was rebuilt twice (circa 1860 and 1911). The site also includes slave boxes, a 2,000 m2 vegetable garden, orchards and a coconut alley leading to the national road. These elements illustrate the economic and social evolution of Réunion, marked by slavery, engagism and sugar cultivation.

The estate remains a symbol of the island's agricultural and human transformations, from its colonial origin to its current opening to the public, mixing historical heritage, memory of slavery and contemporary tourism activities.

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