History Reunion

 Historical dates

1512: discovery of the island by the Europeans.
1646: the governor of Fort Dauphin in Madagascar sends a dozen rebel soldiers to the island.
1649: France claims Reunion as its own and christens it Bourbon island.
1735 to 1746: Mahé de la Bourdonnais governs the island, as well as Ile de France (Mauritius).
1764: Reunion passes under direct control of the French Crown.
1810: Great Britain seizes the island and develops the cultivation of sugar cane. Reunion goes back to the French in 1815.
1819: the beginning of the cultivation of vanilla on the island.
1848: the abolition of slavery and the beginning of Indian immigration.
1946: Reunion becomes a DOM - French Overseas Department.
February 1991: in Saint Denis, riots cause 10 deaths.
2000: the plan for the division of the island into two departments is annulled by the 2002 decree.
2002: serious damage is caused by Hurricane Dina.
August 2004: Piton de la Fournaise starts to erupt. This makes the island approximately 50 acres larger.
January 2007: following the passing of the bill on Overseas territory, Reunion becomes a DOM-ROM (Overseas Department and Region), like Martinique, Guadeloupe and Guyana.