Louis-Marie-François Tardy de Montravel (28 September 1811 – 4 October 1864) was a French naval officer, navigator, explorer, and colonial administrator. He is known for his hydrographic surveys, his role in the founding of Nouméa in New Caledonia, and his tenure as governor of French Guiana.
Early life and naval career
Born in Vincennes, France, he was the son of Marie-Alexandre-Auguste Tardy de Montravel, an artillery colonel. He was admitted to the Naval Academy as a second-class student in 1827 and advanced to first-class student in 1829. He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 January 1833 and volunteered for the Antarctic expedition led by Admiral Dumont d'Urville. His work in astronomy, geography, and hydrography during that expedition became a major source for the expedition's atlas and contributed to the entomological collection at the National Museum of Natural History. His performance earned him promotion to lieutenant commander in 1839 and the Legion of Honour in 1842.
Hydrographic work in South America
After returning to Europe, Tardy de Montravel commanded the brig Boulonnais on the Brazil station, where he carried out hydrographic surveys of the northern coast of Brazil, the coast of Guyana, and the mouth and course of the Amazon River, which he ascended approximately 1,000 km. This cartographic work, conducted from 1842 to 1845, resulted in an atlas of fourteen maps and two nautical documents. The publication earned him the rank of lieutenant commander in 1846. These documents later served as a major reference during negotiations to delimit the border between French Guiana and Brazil, concluded in 1856. In 1847, he was appointed commander of the corvette L'Astrolabe, which joined the naval station off the coast of Argentina during the Platine War. He was responsible for bringing the treaty concluded with that country in 1850 back to France.
New Caledonia
Promoted to captain on 2 February 1852, Tardy de Montravel sailed on the corvette La Constantine to New Caledonia, which Rear-Admiral Febvrier-Despointes had recently taken possession of. Montravel surveyed the territory's coasts and managed the new colony. He decided to transfer the French establishment from Balade to the Nouméa peninsula, where he founded the city of Port-de-France (renamed Nouméa in 1866) and built Fort Constantine to protect it. He served as the second commandant of New Caledonia from 1 January 1854 to 31 October 1854. A district of Nouméa is named Montravel in his honor.
Far East and French Guiana
During the Crimean War, La Constantine sailed at the head of a naval division in the China and Japan seas, the Sea of Okhotsk, and at the mouth of the Amur River. Created an officer of the Legion of Honour in 1855, Tardy de Montravel returned to France the following year and published the scientific results of his navigations in 1857. His observations on the Sea of Okhotsk, previously known only through whalers' reports, were adopted as a reference by the Bureau des Longitudes.
He was appointed the 41st governor of French Guiana on 16 February 1859, serving until 1 May 1864. In that role, he worked to improve health conditions in the penal colony and to promote the economic potential of agriculture and forestry carried out by convict labor. He was promoted to Commander of the Legion of Honour in 1860 and elevated to the rank of rear admiral on 27 February 1864. He also received several foreign decorations, including the Orders of the Court and the Sword of Portugal, the Iron Crown, the Dutch Lion, and Our Lady of Guadalupe of Mexico.
Death
Affected by the tropical climate, Tardy de Montravel died in Elbeuf, France, on 4 October 1864 during convalescent leave in mainland France.
Legacy
Several geographical features bear his name, including a hill and a beach near Cayenne in French Guiana, and a district of Nouméa in New Caledonia.
