A visit like no other for Sciences Po students
On September 20, 2025, on the occasion of the European Heritage Days (JEP 2025), this year under the theme of “Patrimoine des itinéraires, Patrimoine architectural”, the doors of the “Préfecture de la Martinique” were opened to a group of Political Science students.
Guided by Florence Declaveillere, Architecte des Bâtiments de France and head of the Unité de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine / Conservation des Monuments Historiques at the DAC Martinique, these young people explored much more than just an administrative building. They plunged into the history of an exceptional building, at the crossroads of local identity, regal power and the art of building in a tropical environment, during JEP 2025.
Sharing the State: a privileged exchange with the Prefect
One of the highlights of the visit was a tour of the prefecture and the Prefect’s office, followed by a discussion in one of the prefecture’s meeting rooms. A place usually reserved for official decisions, open here to the curiosity and questions of an engaged youth.
Students were able to ask questions about the role of the state representative, the challenges of local governance and the professions of public administration. A warm and inspiring discussion, punctuated by a group photo, gave a human face to the institution.
Prior to this time of institutional exchange, the students had explored the prefecture and discovered the keys to its architecture thanks to explanations from Florence Declaveillere, as part of the JEP 2025 program.
A monument to Martinique's history
Built between 1923 and 1928 by architect Jules Germain Olivier the prefecture’s main building is the successor to an earlier 18th-century wooden colonial complex.
In 1946, following the departmentalization of Martinique, it became the headquarters of the prefecture. This “palace” is organized around an avenue of honor and adjoining administrative buildings, designed to assert the presence of the State in Martinique.
Tropical and majestic architecture
Inspired by the Petit Trianon and Haussmann architecture, the building adopts a tropicalized neoclassical style. With its symmetrical façade, superimposed Doric and Ionic architectural orders, wide grand staircase and four-sloped roofs, the building is designed to combine aesthetics, functionality and adaptation to the climate.
Large wooden shutters, covered galleries and natural ventilation ensure comfort without modern artifice. Art Deco wrought-iron doors and stucco decorations reinforce the heritage value of the whole. It’s precisely this type of heritage engineering that JEP 2025 is highlighting, with a reminder of the wealth of architectures adapted to tropical climates.
A symbol of the state, but also of the people
A place of power, the prefecture is also a witness to major events in local history: the eruption of Montagne Pelée, the agricultural exhibitions of the 1920s, and the tercentenary celebrations of the island’s attachment to France in 1935.
In 1990, the building was officially listed as a historical monument. It thus became an object of memory, both institutional and cultural. JEP 2025 also reminds us of this role of transmission: understanding the history of a place to better grasp its collective value.
Tropical problems, heritage solutions
Like all old buildings in tropical environments, the prefecture has to cope with termites, cyclones, earthquakes and the erosion of time. Several renovations have been carried out, notably in 1996, 2013, and after the fire in the Salle Félix Éboué.
But conservation is not enough. You also have to adapt: make it accessible, make it safe, modernize it, while respecting the soul of the place. This is what Florence Declaveillere conveys to her students: heritage conservation is not about freezing things, it’s about bringing them to life, a principle at the heart of JEP 2025.
A heritage for today and tomorrow
This behind-the-scenes look at a place of power enabled the students to discover a functional and symbolic heritage, where every architectural detail tells a piece of history.
Martinique’s prefecture is not stuck in the past: it continues to transmit, adapt and inspire. A living lesson in heritage, in keeping with the ambitions of the Journées du Patrimoine 2025 (JEP 2025).
