When slavery was abolished throughout the British territories in 1835, several hundred freed African slaves arrived in the Seychelles and went to work on the remaining plantations in exchange for food rations and wages. Slavery still dealt with the cultivation of coconut palms, cotton, and spices.
Having become British on paper, in practice the islands maintained the culture that had originated from the original slaves and settlers the French language also remained dominant. In music and traditional dances, however, the African imprint, given by the slaves of the time, is stronger.Īfter the Napoleonic wars, with the Treaty of Paris (1814), the Seychelles were ceded to Great Britain, albeit with the usual French practices still in force. In fact, French is one of the official languages of the country and represents the basis of Seychelles Creole. It is still possible to observe strong French influences in the reality of the Seychelles, not only in surnames and geographical names, but also in the cuisine and language. The Seychelles remained part of France until 1814, when it passed to the British. This led to a strong mix of ethnic groups and determined the multi-ethnic and multicultural character of the population, which is still visible today. In the first century of settlement, the Seychelles had few inhabitants, but very varied origins. Subsequently, large quantities of slaves were brought from Mauritius (Creoles born of African and European parents), Madagascar, Mozambique and, to a lesser extent, India. In 1770, 15 settlers, together with a dozen slaves, settled in the Seychelles. The French decided to settled in the Seychelles both to take advantage of their strategic position in relation to India and to start growing spices in an attempt to compete with the Dutch spice trade. Later, this name (anglicised to Seychelles) became the name of the entire archipelago, while Mahé returned to be used for the main island. Later Mahé took the name of Isle de Séchelles in honour of Viscount Jean Moreau de Séchelles, Minister of Finance during the reign of Louis XV. When he returned two years later to map it better, he renamed it Mahé in honour of Mahé de la Bourdonnais, his patron and administrator of Mauritius. When the French explorer Lazare Picault landed on today's Mahé in 1742, he was struck by its fertile and luxuriant appearance and called it Ile de l'Abondance.
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