Monuments to visit Gustavia

Behind Gustavia's red-and-white lighthouse, built in 1961, stood Fort Gustav. All that remains are a few stones of the enclosure, the cisterns, the powder magazine and the bakery. Several cannons and cannonballs found on the island date from this period. Built by the first settlers, it was used extensively during the Swedish period. It lost its importance when the island was handed back to France in 1878. It's a perfect vantage point from which to enjoy the sunset.

After a few steps, you reach the site of the former fortifications. Unfortunately, nothing remains of this former fort, named "Karl" after Duke Karl, the brother of King Gustaf III. Only a few stones, the remains of a former powder magazine, and some paved areas have survived. According to archaeologists, this was never a site of impressive weaponry... But the view is well worth the detour! A beautiful panorama of Shell Beach and the neighbouring islands (Saba, St. Eustatius, St. Kitts and Nevis) awaits you.

Inaugurated in 2002, it was formerly the town hall and changed its status when the island became an overseas collectivity under Article 74 of the French Constitution on July 15, 2007. Saint-Barth was then a commune and an arrondissement, dependent on the overseas department of Guadeloupe. The territorial council meets in this building. It has been represented in the Senate by a senator, Micheline Jacques, since 2020. The territorial council is made up of 19 members, with a 7-member executive council and a president (Xavier Lédée).

This former private home, built between 1796 and 1799, was bought by the Swedish crown in 1816, which officially made it its Customs Office. Damaged in the cyclone of 1837, it was restored before becoming, from 1861, the Maison des Gouverneurs, and then, after its return to France, the Saint-Barthélemy Town Hall. It was abandoned in 2001. All that remains today is the volcanic stone base, the kitchen and the cistern.

The building dates back to the Swedish era (early ^19th century) and, after being converted for various uses (even as a prison!), became the headquarters of the sub-prefecture in 1963. In 1995, it was severely damaged by one of the terrible cyclones (Luis) that marked the island's past. It was rebuilt immediately afterwards. Its architecture is typical, with a stone base and staircase. The four-sided tin roof is reminiscent of Creole-style houses. You'll probably spot a French flag flying permanently.

Close to the sub-prefecture, the stone and green lazured wood bell tower reminds us of the pointed roofs of Scandinavian churches. It is one of the few buildings to have survived the centuries almost without damage. In 1799, as part of the redevelopment of the city, which saw its streets paved, the Swedish Crown offered Carénage, which is now called Gustavia, a bell tower specially prepared in Stockholm. The installed bell was named Sofia Magdalena (a nod to the Swedish Queen Mary Magdalene of Denmark). It was cast in Stockholm and transported to the port of Saint-Barthélemy. The sound of the bell warned of deaths on the island, and sounded the curfew set by the Scandinavians in the morning at 6am and in the evening at 8pm. If you think that in the 1800's there were hardly 6,000 souls on the island, you can better understand the role that this bell tower must have played in the daily life of its inhabitants. The church that was adjacent to the bell tower disappeared in the 19th century. The sound of the bell no longer rings in the town since the town hall replaced it with a clock in the 1930s. On August^1, 1995, the bell tower was registered as a historical monument. The bell tower had been placed higher than the church so that the sound would carry farther and to prevent it from falling on the houses in case of cyclone. In 2017, once again the power of the winds damaged the roof of the bell tower. The devastating Hurricane Irma did not spare it but everything is back in place.