Editing Mauritius (section)

===British Mauritius (1810–1968)===

{{Main|British Mauritius}}

[[File:Isle of France, 2 December 1810.jpg|thumb|British forces [[Invasion of Isle de France|seizing the Isle of France]] on 2 December 1810]]
[[File:Visual Art of the first indentured Indian labourers arriving in Mauritius (1834).jpg|thumb|alt= Mixed emotions and feelings are portrayed|First indentured Indian workers (1834)]]
The British administration, which began with [[Robert Townsend Farquhar|Sir Robert Farquhar]] as [[Governor of British Mauritius|its first governor]], oversaw rapid social and economic changes. However, it was tainted by the [[Ratsitatanina|Ratsitatane]] episode. Ratsitatane, nephew of King Radama of [[Madagascar]], was brought to Mauritius as a political prisoner. He managed to escape from prison and plotted a rebellion that would free the island's slaves. He was betrayed by his associate Laizaf and was caught by a group of militiamen and [[Summary execution|summarily executed]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Carter|first=Marina|title=Murder and Mayhem in Mauritius: Historical Crime Stories|date=19 January 2015|publisher=Pink Pigeon Press}}</ref><ref name="Selvon">''A New Comprehensive History of Mauritius'', Sydney Selvon, 2012. {{ISBN|978-99949-34-91-1}}</ref>

In 1832, d'Épinay launched the first Mauritian newspaper (''Le Cernéen''), which was not controlled by the government. In the same year, there was a move by the ''procureur-general'' to abolish slavery without compensation to the slave owners. This gave rise to discontent, and, to check an eventual rebellion, the government ordered all the inhabitants to surrender their arms. Furthermore, a stone fortress, Fort Adelaide, was built on a hill (now known as the Citadel hill) in the centre of Port Louis to quell any uprising.<ref name="Toussaint2" /> Slavery was gradually abolished over several years after 1833, and the planters ultimately received two million [[pounds sterling]] in compensation for the loss of their slaves, who had been imported from Africa and [[Madagascar]] during the French occupation.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mauritius: Sugar, indentured labour and their consequences (1835–1910)|url=https://www.eisa.org/wep/mauoverview5.htm|access-date=20 September 2020|publisher=EISA}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Legacies of British Slave-ownership project|url=https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/search/|access-date=7 July 2021|publisher=University College London}}</ref> The [[Abolitionism in the United Kingdom|abolition of slavery]] had important effects on Mauritius's society, economy and population. The planters brought a large number of [[Indentured servant|indentured labourers]] from India to work in the sugar cane fields. Between 1834 and 1921, around half a million indentured labourers were present on the island. They worked on sugar estates, factories, in transport and on construction sites. Additionally, the British brought 8,740 Indian soldiers to the island.<ref name="govt" /> [[Aapravasi Ghat]], in the bay at [[Port Louis]] and now a [[UNESCO]] site, was the first British colony to serve as a major reception centre for [[indentured servants]]. The labourers brought from India were not always fairly treated, and a Frenchman of German origin, Adolphe de Plevitz, made himself the unofficial protector of these immigrants. In 1871 he helped them to write a petition that was sent to [[Arthur Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Baron Stanmore|Governor Gordon]]. A commission was appointed and recommended several measures that would affect the lives of Indian labourers during the next fifty years.<ref name="Toussaint" />

In 1885, [[Constitution of Mauritius (1885)|a new constitution]] was introduced. It was referred to as ''Cens Démocratique'' and it incorporated some of the principles advocated by one of the Creole leaders, Onésipho Beaugeard. It created elected positions in the Legislative Council – although the franchise was restricted mainly to the white French and fair-skinned Indian elite who owned real estate. In 1886, Governor [[John Pope Hennessy]] nominated [[Gnanadicarayen Arlanda]] as the first ever [[Indo-Mauritian]] member of the ruling council – despite the sugar oligarchy's preference for rival Indo-Mauritian Emile Sandapa. Arlanda served until 1891.<ref>{{Cite web|date=30 September 2012|title=Nominated members pioneered by Pope Hennessy|url=https://www.lemauricien.com/actualites/politique/deputes-correctifs-nomines-gouverneur-john-pope-hennessy-en-fut-pionnier-avec-choix-conteste/114085/|access-date=30 September 2012|publisher=Le Mauricien}}</ref> In 1903, motorcars were introduced in Mauritius, and in 1910, the first taxis came into service. The electrification of Port Louis took place in 1909, and in the same decade the Mauritius Hydro Electric Company of the [[Amode Ibrahim Atchia|Atchia Brothers]] was authorised to provide power to the towns of upper [[Plaines Wilhems]].
[[File:Numa Desjardins Champ de Mars Port Louis 1880.jpg|thumb|[[Champ de Mars Racecourse]], Port Louis, 1880]]

[[File:The web of empire - a diary of the imperial tour of their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York in 1901 (1902) (14763807672).jpg|thumb|Visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (later [[George V|King George V]] and [[Mary of Teck|Queen Mary]]) to Mauritius, 1901]]
The 1910s were a period of political agitation. The rising middle class (made up of doctors, lawyers, and teachers) began to challenge the political power of the sugar cane landowners. [[Eugène Laurent]], mayor of Port Louis, was the leader of this new group; his party, [[Action Libérale]], demanded that more people should be allowed to vote in the elections. Action Libérale was opposed by the Parti de l'Ordre, led by Henri Leclézio, the most influential of the sugar magnates.<ref name="Toussaint" /> In 1911, there were riots in Port Louis due to a false rumour that Laurent had been murdered by the oligarchs in Curepipe. This became known as the [[1911 Curepipe riots]]. Shops and offices were damaged in the capital, and one person was killed.<ref name="Dinan">''Mauritius in the making across the censuses 1846–2000'', Monique Dinan. {{ISBN|99903-904-6-0}}</ref> In the same year, 1911, the first public cinema shows took place in Curepipe, and, in the same town, a stone building was erected to house the Royal College.<ref name="Dinan" /> In 1912, a wider telephone network came into service, used by the government, business firms, and a few private households.

[[World War I]] broke out in August 1914. Many Mauritians volunteered to fight in Europe against the Germans and in [[Mesopotamia]] against the Turks. But the war affected Mauritius much less than the wars of the eighteenth century. In fact, the 1914–1918 war was a period of great prosperity, due to a boom in sugar prices. In 1919, the Mauritius Sugar Syndicate came into being, which included 70% of all sugar producers.<ref name="Republic of Mauritius- History">{{Cite web|title=Republic of Mauritius- History|url=http://www.govmu.org/English/ExploreMauritius/Pages/History.aspx|access-date=29 May 2020|website=govmu.org|archive-date=16 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161016015207/http://www.govmu.org/English/ExploreMauritius/Pages/History.aspx}}</ref> The 1920s saw the rise of a "retrocessionism" movement, which favoured the retrocession of Mauritius to France. The movement rapidly collapsed because none of the candidates who wanted Mauritius to be given back to France were elected in the 1921 elections. In the post-war recession, there was a sharp drop in sugar prices. Many sugar estates closed down, marking the end of an era for the sugar magnates who had not only controlled the economy but also the political life of the country.
From the end of nominated Arlanda's term in 1891, until 1926, there had been no Indo-Mauritian representation in the Legislative Council. However, at the 1926 elections, Dunputh Lallah and Rajcoomar Gujadhur became the first [[Indo-Mauritians]] to be elected to the Legislative Council. At Grand Port, Lallah won over rivals Fernand Louis Morel and Gaston Gebert; at Flacq, Gujadhur defeated Pierre Montocchio.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2 July 2005|title=Gujadhur and Lallah: Shock waves (1926)|url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/gujadhur-and-lallah-shock-waves-1926|access-date=2 July 2005|website=L'Express}}</ref> 1936 saw the birth of the [[Labour Party (Mauritius)|Labour Party]], launched by [[Maurice Curé]]. [[Emmanuel Anquetil]] rallied the urban workers while Pandit Sahadeo concentrated on the rural working class.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Peerthum|first=Satyendra|date=18 February 2004|title=The birth of the Mauritian Labour Party|url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/birth-mauritian-labour-party|access-date=18 February 2004|website=L'Express}}</ref> The [[Uba riots of 1937]] resulted in reforms by the local British government that improved labour conditions and led to the un-banning of labour unions.<ref name="js">{{Cite journal|last=Storey|first=William Kelleher|year=1995|title=Small-Scale Sugar Cane Farmers and Biotechnology in Mauritius: The "Uba" Riots of 1937|journal=Agricultural History|volume=69|issue=2|pages=163–176|jstor=3744263}}</ref><ref name="rg">{{Cite journal|last1=Croucher|first1=Richard|last2=Mcilroy|first2=John|date=1 July 2013|title=Mauritius 1937: The Origins of a Milestone in Colonial Trade Union Legislation|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258935447|journal=Labor History|volume=54|issue=3|pages=223–239|doi=10.1080/0023656X.2013.804268|access-date=18 August 2018|s2cid=144176332|issn=0023-656X }}</ref> Labour Day was celebrated for the first time in 1938. More than 30,000 workers sacrificed a day's wage and came from all over the island to attend a giant meeting at the Champ de Mars.<ref>''L'ile Maurice: Vingt-Cinq leçons d'Histoire (1598–1998)'', Benjamin Moutou. {{ISBN|99903-929-1-9}}</ref> Following the dockers' strikes, trade unionist [[Emmanuel Anquetil]] was deported to Rodrigues, [[Maurice Curé]] and Pandit Sahadeo were placed under house arrest, whilst numerous strikers were jailed. Governor Sir [[Bede Clifford]] assisted Mr Jules Leclezio of the Mauritius Sugar Syndicate to counter the effects of the strike by using alternative workers known as 'black legs'.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Report of Truth and Justice Commission|url=https://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/ROL/TJC_Vol1.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615081832/http://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/ROL/TJC_Vol1.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=15 June 2016|access-date=25 October 2011|publisher=Government of Mauritius|ref=ISBN 978-99903-1-025-2}}</ref>
At the outbreak of [[World War II]] in 1939, many Mauritians volunteered to serve under the British flag in Africa and the Near East, fighting against the German and Italian armies. Mauritius was never really threatened, but in 1943, several British ships were sunk outside Port Louis by German submarines. In the initial stages of the war, locally recruited military formations were raised in order to defend the country in case the British imperial troops had to leave. On 24 March 1943, the [[Mauritius Regiment]], was created as an imperial unit and a new subsidiary of the East Africa Command (EAC). In late 1943, the 1st Battalion of the Mauritius Regiment (1MR) was sent to Madagascar for training, and in their place a battalion of the [[King's African Rifles]] (KAR) was stationed in Mauritius. The dispatch of the 1MR proved to be politically unpopular on the basis of some troops resenting conscription and the battalion overseas comprising solely non-white troops, exacerbating racial tensions in the country. The 1MR troops were further aggrieved at the segregation they were subject to, unequal pay, physically demanding training, and were fearful of the Japanese soldiers, all these factors culminated in the 1MR mutinying.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Jackson|first=Ashley|title=The Madagascar Mutiny of the First Battalion the Mauritius Regiment, December 1943|year=2002|journal=Journal of the Society for Army Historical Research|volume=80|issue=323|pages=232–250|jstor=44230830|issn=0037-9700}}</ref>

During World War II, conditions were hard in the country; the prices of commodities doubled but workers' salaries increased only by 10 to 20 percent. There was civil unrest, and the colonial government censored all trade union activities. However, the labourers of Belle Vue Harel Sugar Estate went on strike on 27 September 1943.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Karghoo|first=Christophe|title=Mémoire vivante|publisher=5plus.mu|agency=5Plus Dimanche|url=https://www.5plus.mu/node/14263|access-date=27 September 2003|archive-date=6 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230606205902/https://www.5plus.mu/node/14263|url-status=dead}}</ref> Police officers eventually fired directly at the crowd, resulting in the deaths of four labourers.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Peerthum|first=Satteeanund|title=Tribute to the Martyrs of Belle Vue Harel|work=L'Express|publisher=lexpress.mu|url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/tribute-martyrs-belle-vue-harel|access-date=3 September 2003}}</ref> This became known as the [[1943 Belle Vue Harel Massacre]].<ref>''Our Struggle, 20th Century Mauritius'', Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, Anand Mulloo</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=October 2007|title=The historical significance of Anjalay Coopen|url=http://www.lexpress.mu/node/203804/|access-date=22 January 2015|website=[[L'Express (Mauritius)|L'Express]]}}</ref> Social worker and leader of the Jan Andolan movement [[Basdeo Bissoondoyal]] organised the funeral ceremonies of the four dead labourers.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Peerthum|first1=Satteeanund|last2=Peerthum|first2=Satyendra|title=Labour Day: Remembering the Martyrdom of Anjalay|work=L'Express|publisher=lexpress.mu|url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/labour-day-remembering-martyrdom-anjalay|access-date=28 April 2005}}</ref> Three months later, on 12 December 1943, Bissoondoyal organised a mass gathering at "Marie Reine de la Paix" in Port Louis, and the significant crowd of workers from all over the island confirmed the popularity of the Jan Andolan movement.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Soobarah|first=Paramanund|date=29 April 2019|title=MBC defeats a government initiative|url=http://www.mauritiustimes.com/mt/the-mbc-defeats-a-government-initiative/|access-date=29 April 2019|website=Mauritius Times}}</ref>

After the proclamation of the 1947 [[Constitution of Mauritius]], the general elections were held on 9 August 1948 – and, for the first time, the colonial government expanded the franchise to all adults who could write their name in one of the island's 19 languages, abolishing the previous gender and property qualifications.<ref name="CD">{{Cite web|title=Mauritius – Toward Independence|url=http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-8615.html|access-date=12 March 2023|website=country-data.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Mauritius: The road to independence (1945–1968)|encyclopedia=African Democracy Encyclopaedia Project|publisher=[[Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa]]|url=https://www.eisa.org/wep/mauoverview7.htm|access-date=1 July 2021|date=September 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508100629/https://www.eisa.org/wep/mauoverview7.htm|archive-date=8 May 2021|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Guy Rozemont]]'s [[Labour Party (Mauritius)|Labour Party]] won the majority of the votes with 11 of the 19 elected seats won by [[Hinduism|Hindus]]. However, the [[Governor of British Mauritius|Governor-General]] [[Donald Mackenzie-Kennedy]] appointed 12 Conservatives to the Legislative Council on 23 August 1948 to perpetuate the predominance of white [[Franco-Mauritians]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=38395|page=4816 |title=Colonial Office, The Church House |date=3 September 1948}}</ref><ref name=CD/> In 1948, [[Emilienne Rochecouste]] became the first woman to be elected to the Legislative Council.<ref name="RR">Ramola Ramtohul (2009) [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283122722_Engendering_Mauritian_History_The_Hidden_Controversies_over_Female_Suffrage Engendering Mauritian History: The HiddenControversies over Female Suffrage] ''Afrika Zamani'', No. 17, pp63–80</ref> [[Guy Rozemont]]'s party bettered its position in 1953, and, on the strength of the election results, demanded [[universal suffrage]]. Constitutional conferences were held in London in 1955 and 1957, and the ministerial system was introduced. Voting took place for the first time on the basis of universal adult suffrage on 9 March 1959. The general election was again won by the Labour Party, led this time by Sir [[Seewoosagur Ramgoolam]].<ref name="ram">{{Cite news|title=Histoire: Mauritius Independence 1961–1968|work=Le Mauricien=9 March 2014|url=http://www.lemauricien.com/article/histoire-mauritius-independence-1961-1968|access-date=9 September 2014}}</ref>

A Constitutional Review Conference was held in London in 1961, and a programme of further constitutional advance was established. The 1963 election was won by the Labour Party and its allies. The [[Colonial Office]] noted that politics of a communal nature was gaining ground in Mauritius and that the choice of candidates (by parties) and the voting behaviour (of electors) were governed by ethnic and caste considerations.<ref name=ram/> Around that time, two eminent British academics, [[Richard Titmuss]] and [[James Meade]], published a report of the island's social problems caused by overpopulation and the monoculture of sugar cane. This led to an intense campaign to halt the population explosion, and the decade registered a sharp decline in population growth.<ref>{{cite book|first=Adele|last=Simmons|title=Modern Mauritius: The Politics of Decolonization|publisher=Indiana University Press|location=Bloomington|year=1982|isbn=978-0-25338-658-8|page=145}}</ref>

In early 1965, a political assassination took place in the suburb of Belle-Rose, in the town of Quatre Bornes, where Labour activist Rampersad Surath was beaten to death by thugs of rival party [[Parti Mauricien Social Démocrate|Parti Mauricien]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Sécurité: des gros bras indispensables à certains politiciens|work=L'Express|publisher=lexpress.mu|url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/350433/securite-gros-bras-indispensables-certains-politiciens|access-date=2 April 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Li Ching Hum|first=Philip|title=Belle Rose-Quatre Bornes, Ville des Fleurs|work=Mauritius Times|url=http://www.mauritiustimes.com/mt/belle-rose-quatre-bornes-ville-des-fleurs/|access-date=22 December 2017}}</ref> On 10 May 1965, [[1965 Mauritius race riots|racial riots]] broke out in the village of ''Trois Boutiques'' near [[Souillac, Mauritius|Souillac]] and progressed to the historic village of [[Mahébourg]]. A nationwide [[state of emergency]] was declared on the whole British colony. The riot was initiated by the murder of Police Constable Beesoo in his vehicle by a Creole gang. This was followed by the murder of a civilian named Mr. Robert Brousse in Trois Boutiques.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Li Ching Hum|first=Philip|date=9 March 2018|title=The downside of freedom|publisher=Defimedia|agency=Le Defi|url=https://defimedia.info/downside-freedom|access-date=9 March 2018}}</ref> The Creole gang then proceeded to the coastal historic village of Mahébourg to assault the Indo-Mauritian spectators who were watching a Hindustani movie at Cinéma Odéon. Mahébourg police recorded nearly 100 complaints of assaults on Indo-Mauritians.<ref name="vm">{{Cite web|date=18 July 2014|title=Port Louis – Rioting against Independence at the General Elections of 1967 – Vintage Mauritius|url=http://vintagemauritius.org/port-louis/port-louis-rioting-independence-general-elections-1967/|access-date=15 August 2018|website=Vintage Mauritius|language=en-US}}</ref>