Louis-Charles-Henri Bertin (September 15, 1752 – April 26, 1822) was a French civil official who served as the first Colonial Prefect of
Martinique
Martinique ( , ; gcf, label=Martinican Creole, Matinik or ; Kalinago: or ) is an island and an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France. An integral part of the French Republic, Martinique is located in th ...
and
St. Lucia
Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...
.
Biography
Bertin was born in
Louisbourg
Louisbourg is an unincorporated community and former town in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia.
History
The French military founded the Fortress of Louisbourg in 1713 and its fortified seaport on the southwest part of the harbour, ...
,
ĂŽle-Royale (modern Cape Breton), in 1752 to Louis Bertin, a surgeon, and Marie-Anne Bertrand. Following France's
loss of Louisbourg to the English, the Bertin family removed to
Rochefort, France.
As an adult, Bertin served as a senior civil servant in the
Ministry of the Navy, which was charged with overseeing mercantile shipping, naval operations, and overseas colonies. Around 1792, Bertin served as a
commissaire-ordonnateur
An ''ordonnateur'' or ''commissaire-ordonnateur'' in the French colonial era was responsible for fiscal matters in a colony, as opposed to the governor, who was responsible for the military.
The relationship between the two heads was often tense.
...
for French naval forces in the Mediterranean, notably in 1793 aboard the
Tonnant.
By 1798, he had risen to the chief civilian officer for the Port of Bordeaux, before being transferred on July 12, 1798, to the Port of
Toulon
Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
.
Bertin next served as the first
maritime prefect
A maritime prefect ( French: ''Préfet maritime'') is a servant of the French State who exercises authority over the sea in a particular region under French jurisdiction, known as a maritime arrondissement (''Arrondissement maritime''). His admini ...
for
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...
from July 1800 to May 1801. At the port, he focused on construction of the bassin de la Barre, a system of locks to ease movement between the outer harbor and the bassin des Capucins, employing some 250 diggers and 60 stonecutters to complete the work.
In September 1801, Bertin was promoted to
counselor of the state for the navy, and was replaced as maritime prefect by
Bourdon de Vatry.
In Martinique
In 1802, with the signing of the
Treaty of Amiens
The Treaty of Amiens (french: la paix d'Amiens, ) temporarily ended hostilities between France and the United Kingdom at the end of the War of the Second Coalition
The War of the Second Coalition (1798/9 – 1801/2, depending on perio ...
, Martinique and St. Lucia were restored to France after six years of British control. Bertin, in May 1802, was named the first colonial prefect of the colony, arriving in Martinique on 18 Messidor X (July 7, 1802). Bertin shared control of the island with Rear Admiral
Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse
Louis-Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse (29 May 1747Granier, p.87Some biographers give a date of 1750 (Levot, p.541). Granier quotes the registers of Sainte-Marie parish. – 24 July 1812Levot, p.544) was a French admiral.
Villaret was born at Auch ...
as captain general and Le sieur Lefessier-Grandpré as grand judge.
Bertin reported that the inhabitants of Martinique were happy to be once again under French rule, as he moved to establish hospitals and barracks and to refurbish military batteries and fortifications. Bertin also stressed the need to resume trade with
Metropolitan France
Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...
. In February 1803, Bertin ordered work to begin on the creation of the Jardin colonial des Plantes de Saint-Pierre.
In 1803, France once again
declared war on England. Bertin sought support for the island from the United States by opening the ports of Martinique to neutral ships,
but this proved ineffective in the face of the British maritime blockade.
In 1804, Bertin was replaced by
Pierre-Clément de Laussat, who had lost his position as colonial prefect of Louisiana following the
sale of the territory to the United States. Bertin retired to France and to private life.
Legacy
in
Saint-Pierre bears his name.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bertin, Charles-Henri
1752 births
1822 deaths
French Governors of Martinique