Sultanate of Maldives

The Sultanate of Maldives (Dhivehi: Dhivehi Raajje, "the country of the Dhivehi people") was an Islamic monarchy that controlled the Maldivian Archipelago for 815 years (1153-1968), with interruption. Maldives was a Buddhist kingdom until its last monarch, King Dhovemi, converted to Islam in the year 1153; thereafter he also adopted the Muslim title and name Sultan Muhammad al-Adil. Six dynasties would rule over the Maldives until the Sultanate become elective in 1932. From the 16th century, the Sultanate increasingly came under European influence, starting with a 15-year period of Portuguese rule. After the expulsion of the Portuguese, the Maldives became subject to Dutch hegemony before finally becoming a British protected state in 1796. Following an abortive attempt at establishing a republic in 1953, a short-lived breakaway state, and independence from the United Kingdom, the Sultanate was abolished following a successful referendum in 1968, and the Maldives became a republic. History of the Maldives Prior to Islamic rule, the Maldives had been united under a Buddhist monarchy since the third century BCE. Maldivan exposure to Islam originated from Middle Eastern sailors and merchants; the Maldivan archipelago's strategic location in the Indian Ocean and abundance of cowrie shells, a popular currency, proved lucrative. In 1153, Sunni Muslim visitor Abu al Bar-akat converted the last Buddhist monarch of the Maldives, King Dhovemi, to Islam. This would mark the beginning of the Sultanate. For the next four centuries, the Sultanate would experience an era of peace and prosperity as its important Indian Ocean location allowed it to trade with much of Asia and Africa. The Portuguese arrived in the Maldives in 1507 and forced Sultan Kalu Muhammad to deliver an annual tribute of coir rope. In 1558, a Portuguese garrison was established on Malé and the Sultan was overthrown. Thus, the Maldives were administered from Portuguese Goa for the next 15 years, during which Christianity was imposed on the locals.