Historical Marvels of Architecture and Grandeur!

An Aerial View of Maraval Road, the magnificent 7 buildings on the left, the Savannah on the right

Come take a stroll with me and learn great historical facts of Trinidad as we head to the western side of the the Queen's Park Savannah in the heart of Trinidad's Capital of Port of Spain called Maraval Road. This stretch in the city is lined by seven grand and archaic historical buildings known as the magnificent seven showcasing the islands rich colonial history and architecture being produced by British, French, German and Scottish influences with deep backgrounds and amazing stories. Some of the structures are still in use while others are being renovated and restored but either way, they form an integral part of city's landscape and identity and this extends to the country at large as well.

I parked the car on the side of the busy Maraval Road near the side walk that surrounds the perimeter of the Savannah and as you can see, it was well shaded by large and very old trees along the whole way which made it such a lovely walk being shaded from the harsh Caribbean sun which has been extremely hot these last few days!

The first building that starts exactly at the beginning of Maraval Road is Queen's Royal College with its bold but deep red color and almost navy blue and grey highlights. It is quite well known for its large 94 foot clock tower and belongs to one of the most prestigious schools in the country. German Renaissance architectural features are married with the necessary tropical styled open corridors as back in 1904, when it was built, there was no air conditioning! The clock was gifted by King Edward VII and is part of one the most recognizable and well known of the Magnificent 7!

Next up is Hayes Court which is a french colonial style building with Scottish cast-iron architectural elements. The mansion was built for the anglican bishops of Trinidad and Tobago in 1910. It is now currently privately owned and seemed to be well maintained as you can see.

Meanwhile this was the view on the other side as I was strolling along with all the amazing trees and savannah grass the provided such a relaxing, calm and cool atmosphere and seemed to even be a source of fresh and clean air amidst the urban landscape of carbon monoxide and cars that sped along the Maraval road.

Next up is Mille Fleurs, which stands for a thousand flowers. This French provincials style mansion was built as a gift of a wife to her husband who was the first Mayor of Port of Spain. She obviously loved flowers and the house was was in their posession for 19 years until it was sold to Joseph Salvatori who used to host lavish parties, the proceeds of which were sometimes used to fund French Resistance! The government of Trinidad and Tobago bought the house in 1979 after it exchanged hands a few times and it has been a public building used for governmental purposes until 2021 where it was made to be main headquarters of the National Trust that actually is the body delegated to oversee and maintain the magnificent 7 themselves.

Roomor or Ambard's house is best recognised by its large amounts of trees and vegetation that seeks to hide the architectural beauty that it is. It is French 2nd Empire in style and was constructed in 1904. The ironwork and windows are so intricate and beautiful! The name Roomor is formed from a combination of the names Roodal and Morgan, the first being that of maiden name the woman that currently privately owns the residence and the second being that of her husband's.

This is the view of Maraval Road as I looked back at this point from the way I came so far. It did not at all feel like it but the distance was huge! We have just a few to go again but you can get an idea of how the traffic flows along the road on an almost midday time.

The Archbishop's Palace was built in 1903 with an Indian Empire style, by the 5th Archbishop of Port of Spain and was actually designed by an Irish Architect! Red granite and marble was used to construct the building and it is currently still the residence of whoever the current Archbishop of Port of Spain is and the relevant offices.

White hall is probably the most important and utilised of the bunch. It was once called Rosenweg and was also one of the largest homes on the Maraval Road built in 1904 by Jospeh Leon Agostini to a moorish Mediterranean style. The subsequent owners after named it whitehall after the coral stone used to construct it. During the second world war, the United States commandeered the building to be used as a military headquarters and after the war it was purchased by the government of Trinidad and Tobago. It is now used as the Prime Minister's Office to whomever is in power.

The last and most eccentric of the bunch also ends Maraval Road before the largest roundabout in the world, the Queens Park Savannah tapers to the right. This one is called Stollmeyer's Castle or Killarney and is my favorite of the bunch for its literal castle like features and beautiful brick walls. It was built by Charles Fourier Stollmeyer in 1902 and his daughter in law called it Killarney, after the location in Ireland. It was built by a Scotsman called Robert Gillies in a Scottish Baronial Architectural style. This building was also occupied by the US during the world war. It was then also purchased by the government from private hands thereafter to be used in conjunction with the next door (and previously discussed) White Hall for the Prime Minister's Office. It is now repurposed for rental for functions for both government and private usage.

This was the end of the straight Maraval Road and the view looking back from the way I walked is as you see above. You can see White Hall and Stollmeyer's Castle on the right. I could not at all see my car any more but the walk back did not feel long as the beautiful trees and architecture was more interesting to take in without having to worry about fiddling around with the camera!

You can see the whole lineup of the magnificent 7 in the bottom corner of the aerial photo above from from behind with Queen's Royal College on the right and Stollmeyer's Castle on the left and the Queens Park Savannah in the background! I hope you enjoyed the tour as much as I did learned a lot about the history and involvement Trinidad and Tobago had with larger historical stages. Who knew there would be so much history and depth in just one stretch of road! Thanks a lot for coming along, Cheers!