Batavia, Suriname

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Batavia
Batavia in 1879, by Arnoldus Borret (1848-1888). The man with a hat is the doctor.
Batavia in 1879, by Arnoldus Borret (1848-1888). The man with a hat is the doctor.
Batavia is located in Suriname
Batavia
Batavia
Location in Suriname
Coordinates: 5°42′N 55°52′W / 5.700°N 55.867°W / 5.700; -55.867
CountryFlag of Suriname.svg Suriname
DistrictSaramacca District
Resort (municipality)Calcutta

Batavia on the Coppename River in Suriname is a former cocoa plantation, military post and state leper colony. The leper colony functioned from 1824 to 1897, after which the location was completely abandoned. Since 2001 Batavia has been redeveloped as a place of pilgrimage and tourism.

Leper colony[]

In 1790, an area of uncultivated land near the Saramacca River known as , was designated to treat leprosy. In due time plantations started to sprawl around the leprosy colony, and in 1824, the colony moved to the Coppename location.[1] Batavia was a military post along the .[2]

It was not until 1786 that Catholic priests were sent from the Netherlands to Suriname, but they were not welcome on the plantations. After sporadic initial visits by priests to Batavia, the leper colony was allowed to have a permanent Roman Catholic mission post in 1836. It was led by , followed by others, including Peter Donders. In 1865, the Suriname mission was assigned to the (Dutch) Redemptorists.[3] One of their rules is "They shall work among the most abandoned."[4] Donders joined the Redemptorists in 1866. In 1883, Vicar Apostolic requested retirement for Donders, because Donders was old and spoke unintelligibly, however the lepers launched a protest against the decision.[5] Donders remained among the lepers until his death on 14 January 1887.[6] Donders was beatified by Pope John Paul II on 23 May 1982.[7]

Batavia was closed in 1897, and the lepers were moved to the former plantation on the Suriname River near Paramaribo. Batavia was burned to the ground to prevent a future outbreak of leprosy[2] In 2000 plans were made to restore the colony. The reconstruction reopened on 14 January 2017, and Batavia is nowadays a tourist attraction and a pilgrimage site.[2]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Batavia en Lepra" (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  2. ^ a b c "Batavia in history". Batavia Suriname. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
  3. ^ "Wie is Petrus Donders" (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Peerke Donders 1809-1887". Tilburgers.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Petrus (Peerke) Donders". Batavia Suriname. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Blessed Peter Donders" (in Italian). Santi e Beati. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  7. ^ "Heiligverklaring". Peerke Donders (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 May 2020.

External links[]

Coordinates: 5°42′N 55°52′W / 5.700°N 55.867°W / 5.700; -55.867

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