Sovereignty and Maritime Practices in the Western Indian Ocean, 1700–1900

Abstract

This article examines how far existing work on the Indian Ocean has focused on aspects like sovereignty and maritime law in the western Indian Ocean and argues for more research in this field. The conduct of shipping in the western Indian Ocean took a drastic shift during the period from 1700 to 1900 when an organised admiralty law was drafted in India, indicating that the role played by the British in this process cannot be disregarded. Highlighting the struggle between various European powers for supremacy over maritime trade and commerce in the Indian Ocean by analysing the available sources, this article identifies numerous gaps in studies of the Indian Ocean, which need further scholarly exploration.

Geopolitics in the Maldives: Intersection of Foreign Relations and Internal Political Rivalries

“…As Chowdhary (2022: 293) emphasised, the Indian Ocean is crowded with trading lanes. The need for Maldivian help in securing these maritime trade routes puts the country in a good position to benefit from the competition between India and China (Balázs, 2016; Chatterjee, 2024), while other recent reports now clearly identify the risks and possibilities of closer links with Middle Eastern countries (Ghafoor, 2023; Saberin, 2024).…”

“…While Chatterjee (2024) provides updated background facts, he ignores the role of Maldivian internal politics in this regard. Historically grounded research shows some awareness that small local entities, not just the respective authoritarian Maldivian ruler, contributed to shaping power relationships regarding sovereignty (Chowdhary, 2022). It makes sense to highlight that ‘there is often collusion between the ruling authority and the upper levels of the society’ (Misra, 2004b: 137), leading to corruption, but that phenomenon is observable everywhere.…”

“…This article therefore picks up the challenge identified by Chowdhary (2022: 195) to fill the numerous gaps of knowledge and understanding about geopolitical realities in the Western Indian Ocean region. It focuses mainly on showing how the Maldivian rulers over time dealt with various challenges posed by a succession of various foreign powers in the region, prominently the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British.…”

“…First, how early trade and power relations in the Indian Ocean region were affected by an intricate interplay of wider geopolitical dynamics manipulated by various European powers. Considerable research already exists on that theme, as the references in Chowdhary (2022: 205–7) document. Second, the largely ignored internal political rivalries in the Maldives are added into the analysis.…”