The island of Mauritius located in Indian Ocean. It is situated just north of the Tropic of Capricorn, in latitude 20° south and longitude 57° 35' east of Greenwich. It is approximately 855 kilometres off the east coast of Madagascar, Africa being the nearest continent with Mombasa some 1800 kilometres away. Mauritius is a volcanic island about 10 million years old - only 1,865 square kilometres in area. The Central Plateau reaches 800 m in altitude with the highest peak, Piton de la Riviere Noire hitting 828 m. The coastline of 330 kilometres is almost entirely surrounded by one of the largest unbroken coral reefs in the world.
Mauritius was known to the early Arabs traders as it can be found marked on their maps, but the first visitors from Europe were the Portuguese who landed in 1510.
They used the island as a victualling stop on the way to Goa and Malacca but did not settle. The first attempt at colonisation was made by the Dutch who arrived in 1598 and named the island Mauritius after Prince Maurice of Nassau. They introduced sugar, Malagasy slaves and a herd of Javanese deer. But they were also heedlessly destructive and are said to be responsible for the disappearance of the magnificent ebony forests and the extinction of the famous dodo. They eventually abandoned their settlements in 1710.
The French occupied the island which they renamed Isle de France between 1715 and 1810 and many place names are reminders of this period. In 1810 with the British take-over, the name reverted to Mauritius. The abolition of slavery lead to the importation of Chinese and Indian indentured labourers, who were followed by traders of their own nationalities. Mauritius gained independence from Britain on 12 March 1968 and since then has been an independent sovereign nation within the British Commonwealth.
On 12 March 1992, Mauritius became a Republic.
Timeline
10th century - Phoenicians, Malays, Swahili and Arab seamen visit island but do not settle. Island named Dina Robin by Arab mariners. 1498 - Portuguese explorers stumble upon Mauritius in the wake of Vasco da Gama's voyage around the Cape of Good Hope. Mauritius, home to some of the world's most unspoilt beaches
1510 - Portuguese navigator Pedro Mascarenhas visits the island and names it Cirne. It is used as a port of call, but the Portuguese do not establish a permanent settlement. Early settlement
1598 - Dutch claim the uninhabited island and rename it after their head of state, Maurice, Prince of Orange and Count of Nassau.
1638-58 - Dutch settlement begins, but colony soon fails.
1664-1710 - Second Dutch attempt at colonisation fails. The Dutch withdraw permanently. By this time the dodo - a unique bird found only on Mauritius - has become extinct. Pirates inhabit the island.
1715 - French East India Company claims Mauritius for France, renames it Ile de France.
1721-67 - Settlement begins; Port Louis founded as a base for attacking the British in India.
1767 - French East Indies Company sells Mauritius; control of island transferred to French government.
1796 - Settlers break away from French control when the government in Paris attempts to abolish slavery.
1810 - British forces land in Mauritius after defeating the French in battle at Cap Malheureux.
British rule
1812 - Colonel Draper founds the Mauritius Turf Club, which opens the first racecourse in the southern hemisphere and the second oldest in the world.
1814 - Mauritius, Seychelles and Rodrigues ceded to Britain under Treaty of Paris.
1834 - British abolish slavery. It is phased out on the island under a transition period known as "apprenticeship".
1835 - Indentured labour system introduced. In subsequent decades hundreds of thousands of workers arrive from India.
1847 - Incorrectly-worded Penny Black postage stamps issued; later become some of the most sought-after stamps in the world.
1866-68 - Malaria epidemic kills more than 40,000 people after Anopheles mosquito accidently introduced.
1876 - Indian rupee becomes official currency.
1912 - Mahatma Gandhi visits.
1910 - Indentured labour system abolished. Between 1834-1910, 451,776 Indians were brought to Mauritius to work on the sugar estates, of which 157,639 returned to India.
1926 - First Indo-Mauritians elected to government council.
1936 - Creole politician Dr Maurice Cure founds Mauritian Labour Party (MLP), or Parti Travailliste.
1937 - Rioters demand better economic conditions and participation in government.
Towards independence
1942 - Donald Mackenzie MacDonald becomes governor. Introduces consultative committee which for the first time includes representatives from all Mauritian communities.
1948 - New constitution gives the vote to many Indians and Creoles in an enlarged legislature.
1957 - Internal self-government introduced, with an electoral system based on the Westminster model.
1958 - New constitution - all adults over 21 can vote. Island divided into four single-member constituencies.
1959 - First elections under universal adult suffrage won by MLP, led by Dr Seewoosagur Ramgoolam.
1961 - Cyclone Carol devastates island, leaving thousands homeless and prompting a housing revolution.
1964 - Ethnic rioting; Hindus and Creoles clash.
1965 - Constitutional conference held in London to discuss independence.
1966 - Britain drives out some 2,000 residents of the Chagos archipelago, in the Indian Ocean. Many are sent to Mauritius. Britain leases the Chagos islands to the US for 50 years. The US builds a military base on the largest island, Diego Garcia.
Independence
1968 - 12 March - Independence.
1969 - Opposition Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) founded, advocates socialism, led by Paul Berenger.
1971 - First Export Processing Zone created. Textiles sector develops. Between 1971-77, 64,000 jobs are created.
1971 - MMM, backed by unions, calls a series of strikes. State of emergency declared, lasts until 1976. MMM party's leadership imprisoned.
1979 - Cyclone Claudette devastates island.
1979 - Mauritius approaches IMF and World Bank for assistance. Country has deficit of $111 million.
Jugnauth elected
1982 - Sir Anerood Jugnauth becomes prime minister.
1985 - Seesowagar Ramgoolam, father of nation, dies.
1985 - Drugs scandal at Amsterdam airport; four MPs arrested on charges of drug smuggling. Inquiry in 1986 implicates three members of Legislative Assembly. Six more politicians are accused in 1987 of involvement in the affair.
1989 - Stock Exchange opens in Port Louis.
Republic
1991 December - Legislative Assembly approves the transition of the nation to a republic within the Commonwealth.
1992 March - Prime Minister Jugnauth declares Mauritius a republic. Legislative Assembly redesignated National Assembly and incumbent governor, General Ringadoo, becomes president. 1992 June - MMM member Cassam Uteem elected president. 1994 - Cyclone Hollanda leaves 1,400 people homeless and causes $81million in damage. 1995 December - MLP leader Navin Ramgoolam becomes prime minister. 1999 February - Creole singer Kaya dies in police custody, prompting four days of rioting among Creole community. 2000 - Mauritius secures a seat on the United Nations Security Council for the first time. 2000 - September - MSM leader Sir Anerood Jugnauth becomes prime minister.
2000 November - High Court in London rules that Britain acted unlawfully in driving the inhabitants of the Chagos archipelago from their homes in 1966. Many of the exiles settled in Mauritius.
2002 February - Cassam Uteem resigns as president, refusing to sign controversial anti-terrorism bill. Vice president also refuses to sign and resigns. Head of legislature becomes acting president and passes legislation into law.
2002 - Karl Hoffman elected president by National Assembly.
2002 - "Cyber Cities" plan launched to create concentrations of hi-tech facilities and boost economy.
2003 - Anerood Jugnauth hands over leadership of MSM to his son, Pravind.
2003 September - Anerood Jugnauth hands over power to Paul Berenger, who becomes the island's first non-Hindu premier.
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