LOYOLA HOUSE

Founded in 1668, Loyola Dwelling was one of the most important European colonial farms of its time. It functioned as a multi-ethnic society, with the Jesuit fathers, site administrators, European workers, a large number of slaves from Africa and a handful of natives living side by side. Covering almost 1,000 hectares at its peak, the Loyola settlement established itself as one of Guyana's main production centers for cocoa, coffee and sugar, as well as, to a lesser extent, pottery and blacksmithing. In 1740, the Jesuits even introduced indigo cultivation.

Soon impoverished by falling cocoa and coffee prices, but also by a slowdown in soil production, the dwelling turned to molasses production and tafia distillation, before abandoning for good the sugar business, like indigo, and turning to cotton production. In 1763, King Louis XV ordered the expulsion of the Jesuits from the Kingdom of France. Declared bankrupt, the Jesuits left the dwelling, which was later requisitioned by the French army and played its part in the Kourou expedition.

During your visit, you'll follow a 4.6 km loop trail that takes you to the remains of the dwelling: the master's house, the chapel, the sugar mill and the windmill. Gutted or low walls bear witness to a bygone prosperity.