Last modified: 2025-04-26 by olivier touzeau
Keywords: dzaoudzi-labattoir | mayotte |
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![[Flag]](../images/y/yt-dzl.gif)
Flag of Dzaoudzi-Labattoir - Image by Olivier Touzeau, 4 January 2025
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Dzaoudzi-Labattoir is a French commune in Mayotte, of which it was the de jure capital until August 27, 2023. The commune is made up of the two villages of Dzaoudzi, located on the peninsula of the same name, and Labattoir. In 2017, the commune (787 ha) had 17,831 inhabitants, making it the third most populated city in Mayotte.
The commune of Dzaoudzi is made up of the northern half of the island
of Petite-Terre (the southern half forming the commune of Pamandzi).
The urbanized areas mainly consist of the village of Labattoir and that of Dzaoudzi located on a rocky peninsula located near Petite-Terre to which it is connected by the causeway called Boulevard des Crabes. The relief of the commune is marked by the presence of numerous volcanic craters, particularly on the northern and eastern coasts. Labattoir is a French toponym and recalls the existence, in this village, of a slaughterhouse (abattoir) which adjoined the lime kiln present near the entrance to the village.
It was under the reign of Salim (Saleh ibn Mohamed ibn Bechir el Monzari, reigning around 1790-1807) that the rock of Dzaoudzi began to shelter the capital of the sultanate after the abandonment of Tsingoni. As evidenced by the archives of the early colonial period, Dzaoudzi was protected by protective ramparts, which were reinforced by the French during the fortification of the island in the 1840s. Shortly after 1843 (taking possession of Mayotte by France), the French administration settled on Petite-Terre, on the rock of Dzaoudi. It built a barracks and an officers' pavilion, a chapel, a prison and a hospital
Decree No. 77-129 of 11 February 1977 established the capital of Mayotte at Mamoudzou, but Dzaoudzi temporarily retained this function while waiting for the transfer to be made official by ministerial decree. This ministerial decree was never published, but a decree of 24 August 2023 made the change of capital official as of 27 August 2023, following a vote by the Departmental Council. However, the prefecture hotel (which was located in the former governor's house) and the general council had already been transferred to Mamoudzou in 1987.
A Foreign Legion base, the Mayotte Foreign Legion Detachment (DLEM), as well as a sentry of the French Navy are located in Dzaoudzi.
Olivier Touzeau, 4 January 2025
The flag is white with the coat of arms and the name of the commune above. Note the presence of a crater lake in the first quarter of the coat of arms: photo (2020), photo (2022), photo (2024).
Olivier Touzeau, 4 January 2025