The village of Port Mathurin serves as the capital of the island of

Rodrigues Rodrigues (french: Île Rodrigues, link=yes ; Creole: ) is a autonomous outer island of the Republic of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, about east of Mauritius. It is part of the Mascarene Islands, which include Mauritius and Réunion. Rod ...

, a dependency of

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

. Most of the population of Rodrigues settles close to or in the city. It lies on the north coast of the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

island and functions as the administrative, judicial and economic centre of Rodrigues. As the name suggests, it also operates the main harbour of the island. PortMathurin

Port Mathurin has a population of around 6,000 people (2006). Sights include its market, while the town also has the island's only

bus station A bus station or a bus interchange is a structure where city or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. While the term bus depot can also be used to refer to a bus station, it generally refers to a bus garage. A bus station is ...

and a

viewpoint Viewpoint may refer to: * Scenic viewpoint, a high place where people can gather to view scenery In computing * Viewpoint model, a computer science technique for making complex systems more comprehensible to human engineers * Viewpoint Corporat ...

Mount Fanal Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, ...

, south of the town. There is a Roman Catholic church, an Anglican church, and a small mosque. Other landmarks of Port Mathurin include

Marie, Queen of Rodrigues Marie, Queen of Rodrigues (Marie, Reine de Rodrigues) is a six-foot tall statue of the Virgin Mary erected on the heights of Pointe Canon. The statue is a noted landmark of Port Mathurin The village of Port Mathurin serves as the capital of the ...

, a statue of the Virgin Mary located in Pointe Canon. The two ships of the Mauritius Cargo Handling Corporation, namely MV ''Mauritius Pride'' and ''Mauritius Trochetia'', anchor at Port Mathurin five times every month. On 1 May 1691,

François Leguat François Leguat (1637/1639 – September 1735) was a French explorer and naturalist. He was one of a small group of male French Protestant refugees who in 1691 settled on the then uninhabited island of Rodrigues in the western Indian Ocean. ...

and the first

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

landed on Rodrigues at the site of the future village, which was founded by French colonists in 1735. The place takes its name from that of an early French settler, either Mathurin Bréhinier or Mathurin Morlaix. In 1901 Port Mathurin became home to offices for the

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

- Australia undersea cable. There are 22 localities within the zone of Port Mathurin, which is one of 14 statistical subdivisions of Rodrigues, to which the population of 6,000 relates: #Baie Lascars (North) #Camp du Roi #Castor #Caverne Provert #Citronelle #Crève Coeur #Désiré #English Bay #Fond La Digue #Jentac #Mont Piton #Mont Vénus #Montagne Charlot #Montagne Fanal #Pointe Canon #Pointe Monnier #Port Mathurin #Roseaux #Solitude #Soupir #Terre Rouge #Vangar The village (locality) has a single secondary school: Rodrigues College. Other colleges operate in other villages around the island, namely Le Chou, Marechal, Grand Montagne, Mont Lubin and Citron Donis. The locality of Port Mathurin proper occupies a very small area, and neighbouring settlements (localities) include

Fond La Digue In the culinary arts, fond is a contraction of ''fonds de cuisine'' which is loosely described as "the foundation and working capital of the kitchen". It refers to a flavorful liquid that is used as foundation (''fondation'' in French, hence the ...

Montagne Fanal Montagne or Montagné may refer to: People * Camille Montagne (1784–1866), French military physician and botanist. The standard author abbreviation Mont. (of Montagne) is used to indicate this individual as the author when citing a botanical na ...

Pointe Monier Pointe technique ( ) is the part of classical ballet technique that concerns ''pointe work'', in which a ballet dancer supports all body weight on the tips of fully extended feet within pointe shoes. A dancer is said to be ''en pointe'' () when ...

Camp du Roi Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

and Baie Lascar. In 1996, the Admiral Nevelskoi Yacht, ended his course in the lagoon next to Port Mathurin, after 2 years voyage crewless. This yacht, which was a property of the Russian government, was then given to Hon. Bernard Eric Typhis Degtyarenko in 2010, and also declared as a Maritime Museum by the Admiral Nevelskoi Maritime University. The yacht is now one of several historic links between Russia and Mauritius. It is important to emphasize that it is one of the most expensive yachts in the world in its category, including its historical importance, its value reaches more than several million dollars.

References

External links

Mysterra Magazine Tour of Port Mathurin (with photos)
Populated places in Rodrigues Populated places in Mauritius Populated places established in 1735 {{Mauritius-geo-stub