Mahé is the largest island of
Seychelles
Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (; Seychellois Creole: ), is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands (as per the Constitution) in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, ...
, with an area of , lying in the northeast of the Seychellois nation in the Somali Sea part of the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
. The population of Mahé was 77,000, as of the 2010 census. It contains the capital city of
Victoria and accommodates 86% of the country's total population. The island was named after
Bertrand-François Mahé de La Bourdonnais, a French governor of
Isle de France (modern-day
Mauritius
Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...
).
History
Mahé was first visited by the British in 1609 and not visited by Europeans again until
Lazare Picault's expedition of 1742. The French navy frégate ''
Le Cerf'' (English: The Deer) arrived at
Port Victoria on 1 November 1756. On board was
Corneille Nicholas Morphey, leader of the French expedition, which claimed the island for the
King of France
France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions.
Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...
by laying a Stone of Possession on Mahé, Seychelles' oldest monument, now on display in the National Museum, Victoria.
In August 1801, Royal Navy frigate
HMS ''Sibylle'' captured the French frigate ''Chiffonne'' on the island. Mahé remained a French possession until 1812 when it became a British colony. It remained a colony until 1976 when Seychelles became an independent nation.
Mahé had a huge land reclamation project due to a housing shortage in the areas of Bel Ombre and the
Port of Victoria.
Mahé was largely a plantation owned by the Frichot family. In 1977,
France-Albert René staged a coup d’état and forced all the Frichots out of Seychelles or into prison. Some, such as Robert Frichot, were held in René's jails for several months in 1978 and told to leave Seychelles for their own safety upon release.
Geography
Mahé's tallest peak is
Morne Seychellois at , which lies in the
Morne Seychellois National Park. The northern and eastern parts of the island are home to much of the population and the
Seychelles International Airport which opened in 1971. The southern and western parts have Baie Ternay Marine National Park, Port Launay Marine National Park, and
University of Seychelles. The
Sainte Anne Marine National Park lies offshore, as do
Conception Island,
Thérèse Island,
Anonyme Island, and several smaller islands.
Mahé's forests have rare endemic plants found only in Seychelles, such as the critically endangered ''
Medusagyne oppositifolia'' (the jellyfish tree), the carnivorous ''
Nepenthes pervillei'' (Seychelles
pitcher plant), and many unique species of
orchid
Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...
.
Administration
The island has multiple districts.
Economy
Mahé's economy is mainly dependent on tourism.
Air Seychelles has its head office on the property of
Seychelles International Airport on the island. The
Port of Victoria is home to a tuna fishing and canning industry. From 1963 to 1996, the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
maintained a satellite control network at the
Indian Ocean Station, where it had a significant impact on the local economy.
Notable people
*
Margaret Elwyn Sparshott (1870–1940), English
matron, born in Mahé.
* Gaston Labat (1876–1934), an influential physician, leader and advocate of regional anesthesiology, and the original founder of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia in 1923.
*
Wavel Ramkalawan
Wavel Ramkalawan (born 15 March 1961) is a Seychellois politician and Anglican priest who has been serving as the President of Seychelles since 26 October 2020. Ramkalawan was an opposition MP from 1993 to 2011 and 2016 to 2020. He also served as ...
(1961), fifth president of the Seychelles.
Gallery
File:View point Anse Major Mahe (27842343749).jpg, View point Anse Major, Mahe
File:Aerial of Beau Vallon Mahe, Seychelles (38911468714).jpg, Aerial of Beau Vallon Mahe, Seychelles
File:Beach resort Mahe, Seychelles (39619518591).jpg, Beach resort Mahe Island, Seychelles
File:Steuerparadies Eden island Mahe (27842327419).jpg, Eden island Mahe
File:View point Anse Intendance beach Mahe Seychelles (38723090535).jpg, View point at Anse Intendance beach, Mahe
File:Luftbild Anse Intendance Strand Mahe Seychellen (24751376957).jpg, Aerial of beach Anse Intendance
File:Aerial of Anse Takamaka beach Mahe Seychelles (39589907292).jpg, Aerial of Anse Takamaka beach, Mahe
File:Seychelles large map.jpg, Map 1
File:Victoria (Seychelles).jpg, Mahé's capital Victoria
File:Hindu Temple Victoria Seychelles Islands of Africa.jpg, Arulmigu Navasakti Vinayagar Temple
File:Mahecapital.jpg, Mahé's capital Victoria
File:Maheview.jpg, Mahé
File:Seychelles 019.JPG, Beach
File:Seychelles,_mahe.JPG, Mahé's Harbour
File:Port Launay Beach view.jpg, Port Launay Beach, Mahé
References
External links
National Bureau of StatisticsMahe Map 2015Info on the island
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahe, Seychelles
Islands of Mahé Islands
Somali Sea