The Maldivian Annual Tribute was a tribute presented each year by the Sultan of the Maldives to the British Governor of Ceylon. The tributes were presented after the Maldive islands became a British protectorate in 1887 and were carried out annually until 1947 when a new agreement removed the requirement of tributes, however Maldives remained a British protectorate until 1953 when the sultanate was suspended and the First Republic was declared. [1] [2]
The presentation of tributes took place in November, with the Sultan's state schooner carrying the gifts arriving in Colombo at the end of the monsoon season. An afternoon was fixed and the Maldivian Representative in Colombo boarded the schooner and returned with several divahin carrying the gifts on their heads. The Maldivian party was met at the harbor jetty by Ceylonese Mudaliyars in uniform and a Lascarins guard of honour and band, as well as a police detachment to escort the Maldivian party to the Queen's House on foot. The streets would be lined with sightseers.
On arriving at Queen's House, the Maldivian Representative was formally received by the Governor and his officials. The Representative presented a letter wrapped in silk to the Governor from the Sultan. The presentation took places with two interpreters translating. The Governor would speak in English which would be translated to Tamil and the Maldivian interpreter would translate it to Divehi for the Maldivian Representative. The tribute was thereafter handed over followed by tea and the Maldivian Representative taking his leave. [1]
The tribute would consist of a gift of the finest Maldivian produce such as Maldivian mats, lacquer, sweetmeats known as bondihalua, fish dish known as rihakuru, jars, shells and ambergris. [1]
The Government of Ceylon would in turn send a letter to the Sultan accompanied by products from Ceylon.
The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is a country and archipelagic state in South Asia in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 750 kilometres from the Asian continent's mainland. The Maldives' chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south.
The history of the Maldives is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia and Indian Ocean. The modern nation is formed of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1194 islands. Historically, the Maldives has held strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. The Maldives's nearest neighbors are the British Indian Ocean Territory, Sri Lanka and India. The United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, and some Indian kingdoms have had cultural and economic ties with the Maldives for centuries. In addition to these countries, Maldivians also traded with Aceh and many other kingdoms in what is today Indonesia and Malaysia. The Maldives provided the primary source of cowrie shells, which were then used as currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. Most likely, the Maldives were influenced by the Kalingas of ancient India. The Kalingas were the earliest region of India to trade with Sri Lanka and the Maldives and were responsible for the spread of Buddhism. Stashes of Chinese crockery found buried in various locations in the Maldives also show that there was direct or indirect trade contact between China and the Maldives. In 1411 and 1430, the Chinese admiral Zheng He (鄭和) visited the Maldives. The Chinese also became the first country to establish a diplomatic office in the Maldives when the Chinese nationalist government based in Taipei opened an embassy in Malé in 1966. The Embassy of the People's Republic of China has since replaced this office.
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