About Mauritius
Location | Early History | The Dutch Period | The French Period | The British Period | Mauritius Today
The Dutch Period
In 1598 the Dutch came into the scene when
Vice Admiral Vybrant Van Warwick claimed the island for
the Netherlands and named it Mauritius in honour of his
ruler, Prince Maurice of Nassau (Pictured on the left).
However it was not until 1636 that the Dutch established
the first settlement on the southeast coast of the island
where they built the first harbour. Today that location
is part of one of the major flourishing towns of the
country, called Mahébourg.
Click here to see the exact spot where the first Dutch landing took place in 1598.
Click here to to see the location where the Dutch built their first settlement in 1636.
The Dutch introduced sugar cane, tobacco, Javan deers, wild boars and African slaves into the island. They used Mauritius mainly as a supply base on the route to Java, as their settlement did not seem to prosper. In fact, due to unforeseen calamities (frequent tropical cyclones and infestation of sugar cane plantation by rats) that affected their settlement the Dutch abandoned the island for good in 1710.
Five years later the French appeared on the scene and re-made history by being the second nation to settle in Mauritius with pride, glory and success. Click here to find out more about that French period settlement.