La Possession

La Possession
La Possession
	An aerial view over La Possession and Le Port
	Coat of arms of La Possession; Coat of arms
	Coat of arms of La Possession; Coat of arms
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Country	France
Overseas region and department	Réunion
Arrondissement	Saint-Paul
Canton	La Possession
Intercommunality	Territoire de la Côte Ouest
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Vanessa Miranville
Area1	118.35 km2 (45.70 sq mi)
Population (2011)2	30,911
• Density	260/km2 (680/sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	97408 / 97419
Elevation	0–2,940 m (0–9,646 ft); (avg. 17 m or 56 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

La Possession is a commune in the French overseas department of Réunion. It is located on the northwest side of the island of Réunion, between the capital of Saint-Denis and the commune of Le Port.

To the territory of this commune belongs the major part of the valley of Mafate, a caldera of the extinct Piton des Neiges volcano. It is part of the Réunion National Park.

History

Historically the territory of the commune of La Possession belonged to the commune of Saint-Paul until 1895.

1675: First settlements by Jean Marquet (a creek has been named after him).
1699: Concessions for planting sugar cane attributed to Texer de Mota, a Portuguese from India
1730-1767: Construction of Chemin Crémont first paved walkway to the islands capital Saint-Denis
1797: Concession of Rivière des Galets attributed to Dr Rivière.
1833: Construction of a chapel, later replaced by a church
1834: Still belonging to the commune of Saint-Paul, Réunion the territory of the futur commune becomes special section.
1849–1854: Construction of the La route de la Montagne (Mountain road) - first reliable road connection to Saint-Denis.
1860: Construction of the lazaret of La Grande Chaloupe that becomes the quarantine station of Réunion.
1872: Claims by the population for installation of a new commune
1881: A petition is addressed to the regional council.
1882: Begin of the construction of the railway Saint-Denis - Saint-Pierre and the harbour of Le Port.
1886: First steamers enter the new harbour the Pointe des Galets
1890: Creation of the commune La Possession
1895: A part of the territory at the Pointe des Galets was split off to become the commune of Le Port..
1976: Inauguration of the new coastal highway to Saint-Denis.
1976: Closure of the railway Saint-Denis - Le Port

Demography

Historical population of La Possession
(Source: INSEE^[1])
Year	1967	1974	1981	1990	1999	2006	2009
Population	7 626	10 112	11 002	15 614	21 904	26 242	30 167
From the year 1962 on: No double counting—residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) are counted only once.

Tourism

Most of the caldera of Mafate belongs to the territory of the commune of La Possession. Hiking trails lead to this valley from Dos d'Âne and along the river Rivière des Galets. Another popular hiking trail, chemin Crémont, leads from La Possession to Saint-Denis, via La Grande Chaloupe.

At La Grande Chaloupe the partly restored lazaretto and the former train station can be visited. They have exhibitions about the history of the Réunion railroad, the lazaretto and engagement in Réunion.