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A referendum on taking military action to conquer the breakaway United Suvadive Republic was held in the Maldives in March 1959. [1] The proposal was approved by voters. [2] The official results were lost.
In July 1959 Maldivian troops recaptured the atolls of Huvadu and Fuvahmulah, but there were still more uprisings on these islands in the following years. In February 1960, the United Kingdom was able to retake the island of Gan, but allowed the Suvadivi Republic to last on the Addu atoll until 1963. On 22 September 1963, the British withdrew support for the rebels and handed the island back to the Malé government. The former British military base was later converted into Gan International Airport. [3]
The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as Maldive Islands, is a country and archipelagic state in South Asia in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is named after the main island and capital, Malé. 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; and the modern nation consisting of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1194 islands. Historically, the Maldives held a strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. The Maldives' nearest neighbours 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 main source of cowrie shells, then used as a currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. Most probably Maldives were influenced by Kalingas of ancient India who were earliest sea traders to Sri Lanka and the Maldives from India 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. This office has since been replaced by the embassy of the People's Republic of China.
Al Ameer Ibrahim Nasir Rannabandeyri Kilegefan, KCMG, NGIV commonly known as Ibrahim Nasir, was a Maldivian politician adhering to the non-aligned ideology and staunch anti-imperialist. Nasir served as the Prime Minister of the Maldives from 1957 to 1968 under the monarchy, and later the first President of the Second Republic of Maldives from 1968 to 1978. Nasir served two terms, then he decided to retire, even though the People's Majlis voted him in for a third term. Nasir is remembered as an independence hero for guiding the Maldives to independence from the British Empire, he is also credited for establishing the tourism industry in the Maldives, as well as rapidly modernizing and developing the country and economy.
Huvadhu, Suvadive, Suvaidu or Suvadiva is the atoll with the most islands in the world. The atoll is located in the Indian Ocean. It is south of the Suvadiva Channel in the Republic of Maldives with a total area of 3,152 km2, of which 38.5 km2 is dry land. The atoll contains 255 islands.
Royal Air Force Gan, commonly known as RAF Gan, is a former Royal Air Force station on Gan island, the southern-most island of Addu Atoll, which is part of the larger groups of islands which form the Maldives, in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Its motto is En Route, which signifies its importance as a strategic staging post for enabling RAF aircraft to reach their onward destinations at their bases in the Far East.
Addu City is a city in Maldives that consists of the inhabited islands of Addu Atoll, the southernmost atoll of the archipelago. Addu City is the second-largest urban area in Maldives, in terms of population, and is one of the two urban areas to get the status of "city" other than the capital city, Malé, and Fuvahmulah. Addu City has 6 districts. They are Hithadhoo, Maradhoo-Feydhoo, Maradhoo, Feydhoo, Hulhudhoo and Meedhoo. These divisions are naturally islands, but are well connected. In addition, Addu Atoll has other uninhabited islands.
Gan is the southernmost island of Addu Atoll, as well as the southernmost island of the Maldives. It is relatively large by Maldive standards.
Gaafu Alifu is an administrative division of the Maldives created on February 8, 1962, when Huvadhu Atoll was divided into two districts. Gaafu Alifu corresponds to the northeastern section of this large natural atoll north of the line extending between the channels of Footukandu and Vaarulu Kandu. The capital of this district is Vilingili.
Gaafu Dhaalu is an administrative district of the Maldives formed by the southwestern section of Huvadhu Atoll. It was created on February 8, 1962, when Huvadhu Atoll was divided into two districts. Gaafu Dhaalu corresponds to the Southwestern section of this large natural atoll, south of the line extending between the channels of Footukandu and Vaarulu Kandu. The capital of this region is Thinadhoo (Thenadhoo). There are 153 islands in this district, 10 of which are inhabited. This district is located about 340 kilometers south of the capital Malé.
Addu Atoll, also known as Seenu Atoll, is the southernmost atoll of the Maldives. Addu Atoll, together with Fuvahmulah, located 40 km north of Addu Atoll, extend the Maldives into the Southern Hemisphere. Addu Atoll is located 540 km south of Malé, the country's capital. Administratively, Addu Atoll is the location of Addu City, one of the four cities of the Maldives. Addu City consists of the inhabited areas of Addu Atoll, namely the natural islands of Hulhudhoo, Meedhoo, Maradhoo, Feydhoo, and Hithadhoo.. In addition to the areas that are included as a part of Addu City, Addu Atoll has a number of other inhabited and uninhabited islands, including the island of Gan, where Gan International Airport is located.
Feydhoo is one of the inhabited islands of the Addu Atoll.
Gadhdhoo, is the second most populated island in Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll. It has its own dialect of Dhivehi which is considerably different from northern and mid-Maldivian speech.
The President of the Republic of Maldives is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Maldives and the commander-in-chief of the Maldives National Defence Force.
The United Suvadive Republic was a short-lived breakaway state from the Sultanate of Maldives between 1958 and 1963, consisting of the three southern atolls of the Maldive archipelago: Addu Atoll, Huvadhu Atoll and Fuvahmulah. The first president of the new nation was Abdulla Afeef Didi. The secession occurred in the context of the struggle of the Maldives’ emergence as a modern nation. The United Suvadive Republic inherited a Westminster system of governance cloned from Britain along with other institutional structures.
Gan International Airport (GIA) is an international airport located on the island of Gan in Addu Atoll in the island nation of the Maldives. As of June 2019, it is one of three international airports in the Maldives.
The Administrative Divisions of the Maldives refers to the various units of government that provide local government services in the Maldives. According to the Decentralization Act 2010, the administrative divisions of the Maldives would consist of atolls, islands, and cities; each administered by their own local council, under the basic terms of home rule. Geographically, the Maldives are formed by a number of natural atolls plus a few islands and isolated reefs which form a pattern from North to South. Administratively, there are currently 189 islands, 18 atolls and 4 cities in the Maldives.
Abdullah Afeef was the only President of the United Suvadive Republic from 1959 to 1963. Born in Hithadhoo, Addu Atoll, Afeef was an educated and well-respected individual from a family of notables. Owing to his knowledge of the English language, he served as a translator to the British military at Gan airbase in the same atoll. His local name was Elha Didige Ali Didige Afeefu.
The depopulation of Havaru Thinadhoo was an event that took place in 1962, following the formation of the United Suvadive Republic, when Thinadhoo, the wealthiest island at the time was forcefully depopulated and destroyed.
The Sultanate of Maldive Islands was an Islamic monarchy that controlled the Maldives for 815 years (1153–1968), with interruption.
The Republic of Maldives gained independence from the United Kingdom, under an agreement signed with United Kingdom on July 26, 1965, after 78 years as a British protectorate.
