History

Pre-history

The first human inhabitants of the Comoro Islands are thought to have been Polynesian and Melanesian settlers, Malays and Indonesians, traveling by boat. These people arrived no later than the sixth century AD, the date of the earliest known archaeological site, found on Nzwani, although settlement beginning as early as the first century has been postulated. The earliest inhabitants of the islands were probably Bantu-speaking Africans the earliest evidence of the settlement of the islands dates from the sixth century. Traces of this original culture have blended with successive waves of African, Arab and Malagasy. Shirazi immigrants appear to have arrived sometime after the tenth century A.D. The islands of Comoros were populated by a succession of peoples from the coast of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and the Persian Gulf, the Malay Archipelago, and Madagascar. Bantu-speaking settlers reached the islands as a part of the greater Bantu expansion that took place in Africa throughout the first millennium.

According to pre-Islamic mythology, a jinni (spirit) dropped a jewel, which formed a great circular inferno. This became the Karthala volcano, which created the island of Grande Comoro. Development of Comoros was divided into phases. The earliest reliably recorded phase is the Dembeni phase (ninth to tenth centuries), during which each island maintained a single, central village. From the eleventh to the fifteenth centuries, trade with the island of Madagascar and merchants from the Middle East flourished, smaller villages emerged, and existing towns expanded. Many Comorians can trace their genealogies to ancestors from Yemen, mainly Hadhramaut, and Oman.

Among the earliest accounts of East Africa, the works of Al-Masudi describe early Islamic trade routes, and how the coast and islands were frequently visited by Muslims including Persian and Arab merchants and sailors in search of coral, ambergris, ivory, tortoiseshell, gold, and slaves. They also brought Islam to the people of the Zanj including Comoros. As the importance of Comoros grew along the East African coast, both small and large mosques were constructed. Despite its distance from the coast, Comoros is situated along the Swahili Coast in East Africa. It was a major hub of trade and an important location in a network of trading towns that included Kilwa, in present-day Tanzania, Sofala (an outlet for Zimbabwean gold), in Mozambique, and Mombasa in Kenya.

Medieval Comoros

According to legend, after hearing about Islam in 632, islanders sent an emissary, Mtswa-Mwindza, to Mecca—but by the time he arrived, the Muslim Prophet Muhammad had died. Nonetheless, after visiting Mecca, he returned to Ngazidja and gradually converted his islanders to Islam. Omani sailors referred to the Comoros as the Perfume Islands in 933. Al-works Masudi’s are among the earliest accounts of East Africa, describing early Islamic trade routes and how the coast and islands were frequently visited by Muslims, including Persian and Arab merchants and sailors in search of coral, ambergris, ivory, tortoiseshell, gold, and slaves. They also brought Islam to the Zanj, including the Comoros. As the Comoros’ importance grew along the East African coast, small and large mosques were built.

The Comoros are part of the Swahili cultural and economic complex, and the islands became a major trade hub and an important location in a network of trading towns that included Kilwa in modern-day Tanzania, Sofala in Mozambique (an outlet for Zimbabwean gold), and Mombasa in Kenya. The Portuguese arrived in the Indian Ocean at the end of the 15th century, with Vasco da Gama’s second fleet making the first Portuguese visit to the islands in 1503. For much of the 16th century, the islands supplied provisions to the Portuguese fort at Mozambique, and while the Portuguese crown made no formal attempt to take possession, a number of Portuguese traders settled.

By the end of the 16th century, local rulers had begun to push back, and with the support of Omani Sultan Saif bin Sultan, they had begun to defeat the Dutch and Portuguese. Said bin Sultan, his successor, expanded Omani Arab influence in the region by relocating his administration to nearby Zanzibar, which came under Omani control. Nonetheless, the Comoros retained their independence, and while the three smaller islands remained politically united, the largest island, Ngazidja, was divided into a number of autonomous kingdoms (ntsi). When Europeans became interested in the Comoros, the islanders were well positioned to capitalize on their needs, initially supplying ships on the route to India, particularly the English, and later, slaves to the plantation islands in the Mascarenes.

European contact

Portuguese explorers first visited the archipelago in 1503. The islands provided provisions to the Portuguese fort at Mozambique throughout the 16th century. Said bin Sultan increased Omani Arab influence in the region, moving his administration to nearby Zanzibar, which came under Omani rule. Nevertheless, Comoros remained independent, and although the three smaller islands were usually politically unified, the largest island, Ngazidja, was divided into a number of autonomous kingdoms. By the time Europeans showed interest in Comoros, the Islanders were well placed to take advantage of their needs, initially supplying ships of the route to India and, later, slaves to the plantation islands in the Mascarenes.

Over the centuries, the Comoro Islands have been settled by a succession of diverse groups from the coast of Africa, the Persian Gulf, Southeast Asia, and Madagascar. Portuguese explorers first visited the archipelago in 1505. Apart from a visit by the French Parmenter brothers in 1529, for much of the 16th century the only Europeans to visit the islands were Portuguese; British and Dutch ships began arriving around the start of the 17th century and the island of Ndzwani soon became a major supply point on the route to the East. Ndzwani was generally ruled by a single sultan, who occasionally attempted to extend his authority to Mayotte and Mwali; Ngazidja was more fragmented, on occasion being divided into as many as 12 small kingdoms.

The Englishman Sir James Lancaster visited Grande Colmore about 1591, but the dominant foreign influence in the islands remained Arabian until the 19th century. In 1793, Malagasy warriors from Madagascar first started raiding the islands for slaves. On Comoros, it was estimated in 1865 that as much as 40% of the population consisted of slaves. France first established colonial rule in Comoros in 1841. The first French colonists landed in Mayotte, and Andriantsoly (also known as Andrian Tsouli, the Sakalava Dia-Ntsoli, the Sakalava of Boina, and the Malagasy King of Mayotte) signed the Treaty of April 1841, which ceded the island to the French authorities.

Colonial France

Comoros served as a way station for merchants sailing to the Far East and India until the opening of the Suez Canal significantly reduced traffic passing through the Mozambique Channel. The native commodities exported by Comoros were coconuts, cattle, and tortoiseshell. Both the British and the French turned their attention to the Comoros islands in the middle of the 19th century. The French finally acquired the islands through a cunning mixture of strategies, including the policy of ‘divide and conquer’, checkbook politics and a serendipitous affair between a sultana and a French trader that was put to good use by the French, who kept control of the islands, quelling unrest and the occasional uprising. William Sunley, a planter and British Consul from 1848–1866, was an influence on Anjouan.

French settlers, French-owned companies, and wealthy Arab merchants established a plantation-based economy that used about one-third of the land for export crops. After its annexation, France converted Mayotte into a sugar plantation colony. The other islands were soon transformed as well, and the major crops of ylang-ylang, vanilla, coffee, cocoa beans, and sisal were introduced. In 1886 Said Ali bin Said Omar, Sultan of Bamboo signed an agreement with the French government that allowed France to establish a protectorate over the entire island of Ngazidja (Grande Comore); protectorates were also established over Ndzwani (Anjouan), and Mwali (Mohéli island in French) the same year. Résidents were posted on the three islands.

On 9 April 1908, France declared the protectorates and Mayotte a single colony, Mayotte and dependencies. On 25 July 1912, it was annexed to Madagascar as a province of that colony. From 16 June 1940 – 1942 the colonial administration remained loyal to Vichy France (from 1942, under Free French), but 25 September 1942 – 13 October 1946 they were, like Madagascar, under British occupation. After World War II, the islands became a French overseas territory and were represented in France’s National Assembly. Internal political autonomy was granted in 1961. The agreement was reached with France in 1973 for Comoros to become independent in 1978. On July 6, 1975, however, the Comorian parliament passed a resolution declaring unilateral independence.  Ahmed Abdallah proclaimed the independence of the Comorian State and became its first president. The French recognised the new state.

Independent Comoros

In 1978, president Ali Soilih, who had a firm anti-French line, was killed and Ahmed Abdallah came to power. Under the reign of Abdallah, Denard was commander of the Presidential Guard (PG) and de facto ruler of the country. He was trained, supported and funded by the white regimes in South Africa (SA) and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in return for permission to set up a secret listening post on the islands. South-African agents kept an ear on the important ANC bases in Lusaka and Dar es Salaam and watched the war in Mozambique, in which SA played an active role. Comoros was also used for the evasion of arms sanctions.

When in 1981 François Mitterrand was elected president Denard lost the support of the French intelligence service, but he managed to strengthen the link between SA and Comoros. Besides the military, Denard established his own company SOGECOM, for both the security and construction, and seemed to profit by the arrangement. Between 1985 and 1987 the relationship of the PG with the local Comorians became worse. On September 28, 1995, Bob Denard and a group of mercenaries took over the Comoros islands in a coup (named operation Kaskari by the mercenaries) against President Djohar. On October 3, 1995, the airports at Iconi and Haha ya and the French Embassy in Moroni were secured. By 3:00 p.m. the next day Bob Denard and his mercenaries had surrendered.

In March 1996, following presidential elections, Mohamed Taki Abdoulkarim, a member of the civilian government that Denard had tried to set up in October 1995, became president. On 23 November 1996, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 crashed near a beach on the island after it was hijacked and ran out of fuel killing 125 people and leaving 50 survivors. In May 2006, Ahmed Abdallah Sambi was elected from the island of Anjouan to be the president of the Union of Comoros. He is a well-respected Sunni cleric who studied in the Sudan, Iran and Saudi Arabia. He is respectfully called “Ayatollah” by his supporters but is considered, and is a moderate Islamist. He has been quoted as stating that Comoros is not ready to become an Islamic state, nor shall the veil be forced upon any women in Comoros.