Mrs Desbassayns

Known under the name of Mrs Desbassayns , born Gonneau-Montbrun the July 3rd 1755 with Saint-Paul, Marie Anne Therese Ombline Desbassayns is a famous character of the Histoire of the Meeting to have been to the head of a great field and, consequently, one of greatest fortunes of the 18th century of the island, in particular after the death of her husband.

Biography

Fortunate heiress, it marries in 1770, the church of Saint-Paul, Henri Paul Panon, known as Desbassayns, grandson of Auguste Panon says Europe and of Francoise Chastelain. Twenty-three years its elder, it will give him nine children.

After its death, which has occurred in 1800, it manages the family inheritance with a remarkable skill and firmness and appears on this occasion like a woman of hardening to the iron constitution, worker and organized.

Its immense property, extended on several hundreds of Hectare S in the tops of Saint-Gilles, with the Bernica and Saint-Paul, employed more than four hundred Esclave S, even more. They worked primarily with the culture of the coffee and the Canne to sugar, the second developing from now on more quickly than the first.

With her sons, Mrs Desbassayns develops the Industrialization culture of this plant. Of an intense religious enthusiasm, it can consequently make build, in 1842, a Chapelle intended for its family and her slaves, not far from his house of Saint-Gilles-the-Tops, the pointed Chapelle.

It dies out the February 4th 1846 at the ninety years age.

Posterity

The image of Mrs Desbassayns was deformed by the collective memory. The various points of view concerning its personality are shared since its death.

The popular tradition underlines its authoritative character and scorning, its spite even its cruelty towards its slaves. One lends even a cruelty without terminal to him which is worth to him to be sometimes confused wrongly with the imaginary character of Grand-mère Kalle.

On another side, one notices that it was sole owner to have opened a Hôpital for its slaves. Moreover, it makes watch of a very modern position in its will: “ By means of this Revenue, I want and hear that the slaves and poor inhabitants of the surroundings, in mind of which mainly I made build the aforementioned Chapelle, keep free places there and are subjected on this subject, with no generally unspecified remuneration. ”

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