The History of TheSEYCHELLES
Seychelles began to gain an infrastructure
of sorts during the British colonial period,
gaining roads, schools, churches and a
hospital. By 1900 the population had
grown to 7,000 and in 1903 Seychelles
became a crown colony in its own right,
separate at last from Mauritius. The British
Governor commemorated the event by
erecting a clock tower in the centre of
Victoria, a replica of the clock tower outside
the Victoria railway station in London.
Despite being a British colony, the culture
of Seychelles remained steadfastly French.
British Governors did attempt to anglicise
the islands, but with little success: customs
and language did not alter much during
the British colonial era, giving rise to the
popular observation that Seychelles
was “half-British but fully-French.”
Political change was in the air
during the Second World War and
universal adult suffrage was granted
shortly after it ended. In 1962 two
political parties were formed under
the leadership of two lawyers who
were to remain the main political
figureheads for the rest of the
century: France Albert Rene and
James Mancham. Independence from
Britain was gained in 1976, and today
Seychelles is a Republic within the
British Commonwealth under the
leadership of President Danny Rollen
Faure with a population of 95,569.Independence
from Britain was
gained in 1976, and
today Seychelles
is a Republic
within the British
Commonwealth
under the leadership
of President Danny
Rollen Faure.