By Dr Jean Regis Ramsammy
Remarks Delivered in May 3, 2026 at Dr Kumar’s Indo Caribbean Program:
For some time now, Mrs. Shalima and hercolleagues have been asking me to participatein an online session on this topic, but it has been postponed several times for practical reasons.
A clarification: I am not the first to speak about “La Turquoise.” The name of this schooner hadalready appeared in the work of severalhistorians, including the Réunionese historianRoger Paquiry.
I began to take an interest in this subject aroundthirty years ago. I had grown tired of attendingconferences (ODI, GOPIO, IDC, the AapravasiGhat in Mauritius), where people would speakabout their ship, while we in Réunion wereunable to mention ours. This was troubling to me. I even wondered whether we were the “forgotten diaspora” or the forgotten child of India.
Today, I can announce that after years of research and observation, we have succeededin identifying the exact date of arrival of the first ship that carried the very first convoy of indentured laborers, along with all the relateddetails. This discovery was made in 2021.
No one in this panel will fault us for relyingexclusively on written archives, as we are wellaware of the limitations of oral tradition, especially after more than 150 years.
Despite the existence of a doctoral thesis on indenture, it required persistence and an acceptance of “long-term time” to solve thishistorical equation. This marked the beginning of the fascinating history of the first indenturedlaborers of Bourbon Island.
What we discovered, while exploring the archives of Saint-Denis
On June 3, 1828, in the late morning, the schooner La Turquoise docked at the Barachois.
The first official convoy to Bourbon carried 15 Indian workers. The vessel, commanded by Mr. Prévost de Langristin, had departed from the small port of Yanaon (on the southeast coast of India) on March 16, 1828.
This voyage, though decisive in the history of Indian immigration, had never been fully tracedor revealed. Since the 1980s, historians and researchers from Réunion, the Indian Oceanregion, and beyond had attempted to determinethe arrival date of this first convoy.
Even renowned scholars from Réunion, including the late Professor Sudel Fuma, hadexplored the question without obtainingconclusive answers. Others had formulatedhypotheses based on wind patterns and navigation practices of the time, but withoutsuccess.
In my own research, I also consulted specialistsfrom the Indian Ocean and the Caribbean. Eventually, while reviewing once again La feuille hebdomadaire de Bourbon (issue of June 7, 1828), I came across the crucial information.
This newspaper reports that on June 3, 1828, La Turquoise docked at the Barachois. It also states that the schooner stopped in Pondicherry beforeheading out to sea on April 15, 1828, en route to Bourbon.
I should note that La Turquoise was a modestvessel; no image of it exists. You may see a drawing of a similar ship that resembles it.
Life after this major discovery
Following this major discovery, I proposed thatthe local Indian federation pay tribute each yearby gathering in front of a memorial establishedby the community in 2015 during the visit of Minister Mahesh Sharma. I would like to thankAshook Ramsaran for encouraging me to support this project in Réunion, following the installation of the Kolkata memorial in 2011.
On June 3, 2022, the first commemoration wasorganized in urgency in Saint-Denis, near the ocean, in front of the memorial to Indian workers. It symbolically marked the arrival date of the first ship carrying Indian laborers.
I would now like to present the situation of ourdiaspora and the conditions surrounding the arrival of La Turquoise, which we now know occurred on June 3, 1828. We now have irrefutable proof.
Before the arrival of “La Turquoise”
On December 6, 1827, during a session of the Private Council of Bourbon, the decision wasmade to introduce a first group of contractedIndian workers to the island. This idea waspromoted by the notable Nicole Robinet de la Serve, who influenced colonial leaders alreadyanticipating the dismantling of slavery. They were not prepared to invite newly freedindividuals (former slaves) to sign laborcontracts under calm conditions.
To the question: was La Turquoise the first shipto transport Indians to Bourbon? The answer isyes.
Dear friends, I know the question you are all asking—and forgive me for anticipating the discussion: does this make La Turquoise the first ship transporting indentured Indian laborers, the first batch of the “coolie trade
