The French Guiana Prefecture Building ( French: ''Hôtel de préfecture de la Guyane'') is the seat of the

Prefect of French Guiana French ancien regime (Dates in italics indicate ''de facto'' continuation of office) French First Republic and Empire Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy Second Republic and Empire Third Republic French overseas département or regio ...

. It is located in

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; gcr, Kayenn) is the capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic Oc ...

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It was originally built as a monastery of the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

s. In 1762, it became the headquarters of the Colonial Government. Since 1946, it is used by the

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

. In 1978, it became a ''

monument historique ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...

'' (historic monument).

History

In 1679, the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

received permission to built a simple wooden house at site. In 1729, the building was replaced by a brick U-shaped structure and served as a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

, and mission for the conversion of slaves and

Amerindians The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the Ame ...

. In 1762, the Jesuits were expelled from the colony, and the Colonial Government moved into the building. In 1787, the building was renovated. In 1801,

Victor Hugues Jean-Baptiste Victor Hugues sometimes spelled Hughes (July 20, 1762 in Marseille – August 12, 1826 in Cayenne) was a French politician and colonial administrator during the French Revolution, who governed Guadeloupe from 1794 to 1798, emancipa ...

took residence in the building, and the first floor became the seat of the Governors of French Guiana. In 1925, the building was reconstructed and a gallery with 13 coloumns was added to the front of the building. From 1946 to 1982, the building was used by the Prefecture of French Guiana. In 1984, the Ministry of Armed Forces was relocated to the ground floor and the remainder of the building was renovated. Since 1985, the first floor is home to the seat of the Prefect of French Guiana.

References

Buildings and structures in Cayenne Government of French Guiana {{FrenchGuiana-stub