Paul Proust de la Gironière (1797–1862) was a traveler from

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

who lived in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

and wrote about his experiences there. He arrived in the Philippines in 1820 and established the Jala Jala

hacienda A ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or '' finca''), similar to a Roman '' latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards ...

in Morong (present-day

Rizal Rizal most commonly refers to: * Rizal (province), a province of the Philippines * José Rizal, Filipino national hero whom the province is named after Rizal may also refer to: People * Akmal Rizal Ahmad Rakhli, Malaysian footballer * Atep Ri ...

province). Among the activities that he undertook were hog raising and planting

indigo InterGlobe Aviation Limited (d/b/a IndiGo), is an India, Indian airline headquartered in Gurgaon, Haryana, India. It is the largest List of airlines of India, airline in India by passengers carried and fleet size, with a 64.1% domestic market ...

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

, and

coffee Coffee is a beverage brewed from roasted, ground coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content, but decaffeinated coffee is also commercially a ...

. On June 23, 1837, Gironiere's efforts in the field of horticulture and agriculture were recognized by the Real Sociedad Economica de Amigos del Pais de Pilipinas — winning 1,000 pesos for raising 6,000 coffee plants. He ensured good relations with the clergy by building a church; and with his workers by building cockpits in the estate.

Family

His father was a noble captain ruined by the French Revolution who died in Vertou, near from Nantes.

Works

*''Vingt Années aux Philippines'' (1853) *''Aventures d'un gentilhomme breton aux îles Philippines'' (1855) *''Moeurs indiennes et quelques pensées philosophiques pendant un voyage à Majaijai'' (1862)

References

*''Un Français aux Philippines : La Gironière'' from '' Archipel'' Vol. 14, No. 14, 1977, pp. 15–18

*http://jacbayle.perso.neuf.fr/livres/Nouveau/Gironiere.html

External links

* *
Journey to Majayjay (audio)
{{DEFAULTSORT:La Gironiere, Paul De 1797 births 1862 deaths French emigrants Immigrants to the Philippines People from the Spanish East Indies