Statue of Historic Figure: Victor Schoelcher - Fort-de-France, Martinique

Victor Schoelcher

Fort-de-France, Martinique

N 14° 36.305 W 061° 04.155

Quick Description: 

A statue of French abolitionist and writer is located in the court yard in front of the old courthouse on Rue de Pavé in Fort-de-France, Martinique.

Long Description:

A monument honoring French abolitionist and writer, Victor Schoelcher, was sculpted by Jean Joseph M.A. Marquet de Vasselot in 1904. A Carrara statue of Victor Schoelcher depicts the abolitionist and writer standing on a 6' high square stone base. He is wearing a knee length button down jacket under a calf length overcoat. To his right stands a young slave boy. He is looking down at the boy and has is right arm on the right shoulder of the boy.

The base of the statue is inscribed:

A

SCHŒLCHER

1804 - 1893

NULLE TERRE FRANÇAISE 

NE PEUT PLUS PORTER D'ESCLAVES

TO

SCHŒLCHER

1804 - 1893

NO FRENCH LAND

CAN CARRY MORE SLAVES

Victor Schœlcher was born into a wealthy family in Paris on July 22, 1804. He studied at the Lycée Condorcet before becoming a journalist. Using his personal wealth, he was an ardent advocate for the abolition of slavery throughout the world. From 1840 to 1842 he visited the West Indies, including Martinique, to study slavery.

He published many articles regarding the positive aspects of abolishing slavery. For example, he advocated the construction of large central factories for a more efficient production of sugar rather than using slave labor. He had a tremendous influence on the abolitionist movements in the French West Indies.

Wikipedia list the following writings of Victor Schoelcher:

De l'esclavage des noirs et de la législation coloniale (On slavery of blacks and colonial legislation) (Paris, 1833)
Abolition de l'esclavage (Abolition of slavery) (1840)
Les colonies françaises de l'Amérique (French colonies of America) (1842)
Les colonies étrangères dans l'Amérique et Hayti (Foreign colonies in America and Haiti) (2 vols., 1843)
Histoire de l'esclavage pendant les deux dernières années (History of slavery during the last two years) (2 vols., 1847)
La verité aux ouvriers et cultivateurs de la Martinique (The truth to the workers and farmers of Martinique) (1850)
Protestation des citoyens français negres et mulatres contre des accusations calomnieuses (Protests of black and mulatto French citizens against slanderous accusations) (1851)
Le procès de la colonie de Marie-Galante (The trial of the Marie-Galante colony) (1851)
La grande conspiration du pillage et du meurtre à la Martinique (The big conspiracy of theft and murder in the Martinique) (1875)
The Life of Handel, translated by James Lowe