Le lycée de Saint-Denis, de la création du collège royal au lycée colonial : histoire d’un établissement secondaire sous un gouvernement colonial

Abstract

Reunion Island was a French colony in the Indian Ocean since 1663. After 1815 and the British possession of Mauritius Island (the former Isle de France), Reunion Island needed a new place for secondary education. The creation of the “Collège Royal” in Saint-Denis was the culmination of the many requests from the inhabitants of the Island and the negotiations between the local governor and the French government. It was established by ordinance of Governor Milius in 1818. The Collège allowed the upper middle-class to access secondary education more easily, with, however, some differences with the French school system, as it was organised in France during the 19th century. The growth of secondary education materialised with an increasing expansion of the premises dedicated to the “lycée” (France’s high school) over the century, which were built thanks to military engineers posted in the colony. These studies were however mainly meant for the upper class, overwhelmingly white, in a society where the mentality of the slavery period still prevailed. At the beginning of the 20th century, the lycée opened vocational training sections, which improved access to secondary education. Secondary classes for ladies opened in 1913. In spite of some changes, the “lycée de La Réunion” remained rooted in a specific local and colonial system until 1946. That year, Reunion Island became a French department and adopted the whole French administrative system.

Keywords

• colonies
• high school
• secondary education
• Reunion island
• French overseas territories