Although his father was from Toulouse and his mother from Lorient, they were not casual visitors to the island. The family had lived in Saint-Denis for a long time. Roland was born there on October 6, 1888 in rue de l'Arsenal, which is now called rue Roland-Garros.
Saint-Denis is the largest city on the island with more than 150,000 inhabitants.
Réunion is an island of volcanic origin and is the westernmost of the Mascarene Islands. It is located about 700 kilometers east of Madagascar and 174 kilometers southwest of Mauritius. Réunion is an administrative region and a department of France with the status of an overseas department. The department's capital is Saint-Denis, located in the north of the island.
Since 1997, Réunion is part of the European Union as an integral part of the French Republic (its outermost region). The island has an airport named after Roland Garros, located in Gillot, near the capital, Saint-Denis.
