Plan du Port Louis. Dans L'Ile de France, situé par les 20 degrés 5 minutes de latitude sud et par 73 degrés de longitude de ténérif. Géometriquement levé sur les lieux. en 1721. Par le Chevalier Garnier de Fougerai [manuscript title] de [MAURITIUS] - [N.p., but most likely Mauritius

[N.p., but most likely Mauritius. Early to mid 19th century]. Manuscript map, 19 1/4 x 25 inches, on wove paper. Outline coloring. Old fold lines. Some light foxing and offsetting. Very minor loss at folds and from ink burn along the neatline. Manuscript plan of the harbor of Port Louis, with remarks on the best means for entering the harbor. Though dated 1721 in the cartouche, the plan is a later copy, probably made in the first half of the 19th century. The edges of land and sea have been watercolored for differentiation. The Pointe au Triton and the Ile aux Tonneliers are both labeled with several depths and anchorages noted. The Dutch were the first Europeans to become interested in the island, taking possession in 1598. After exploiting the island's dense forests for a century and introducing the cultivation of sugar cane and cotton, in 1710 the Dutch abandoned the colony. The French soon claimed it as "Ile de France," and the island remained under the control of the French East India Company until 1767. During the long war between France and England at the beginning of the 19th century, Mauritius proved to be an important strategic naval base, and as a result the British took charge of the island in 1810, and the Treaty of Paris confirmed official British possession in 1814. It remained an important sugar producing colony, and in the 20th century agricultural production was expanded to include tea, rice, and other produce.