Astove Island

Astove Atoll

Astove Atoll Location of Astove Atoll in Seychelles
Geography
Location	Indian Ocean
Coordinates	10°06′S 47°45′E / 10.100°S 47.750°E / -10.100; 47.750Coordinates: 10°06′S 47°45′E / 10.100°S 47.750°E / -10.100; 47.750
Archipelago	Seychelles
Adjacent bodies of water	Indian Ocean
Total islands	15
Major islands	Astove Charlotte
Area	7.9 km2 (3.1 sq mi)
Highest elevation	18 m (59 ft)
Administration
Seychelles
Group	Outer Islands
Sub-Group	Aldabra Group
Sub-Group	Astove Atoll
Districts	Outer Islands District
Largest settlement	Astove (population 2)
Demographics
Demonym	Creole
Population	2 (2016)
Pop. density	0.25 /km2 (0.65 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups	Creole, French, East Africans, Indians.
Additional information
Time zone	SCT (UTC+4)
Official website	www.seychelles.travel/en/discover/the-islands/outer-islands
ISO Code = SC-26

Astove Atoll is a large atoll, part of the Aldabra Group, lying in the Outer Islands of Seychelles, with a distance of 1,041 km (647 mi) southwest of the capital, Victoria, on Mahé Island.

The name Astove is said to be derived from the Portuguese As Doze Island, meaning the twelve islands, which may have been the original Portuguese name for Farquhar. Much of the region in which Astove lies was explored by Arab seamen and merchants between 1000 and 1500 AD, but there is no record of human settlement on the island before 1760. In that year, the Portuguese frigate La Dom Royal, laden with plunder and slaves, went aground at Astove. All aboard made it to the island, but the captain and crew soon abandoned Astove and struck out for Mozambique in a long boat. They never returned for the slaves, who organized into a community and subsisted on the bounty of the island and the sea.

A passing ship reported that there was “a treasure trove of slaves” to be had for the taking from Astove, but repeated efforts to capture them failed when almost all the ships foundered, as had the La Dom Royal. In 1796, a British ship attempted to remove the slaves by force – and succeeded in embarking some 100 of them – but the slaves revolted and helped thwart the effort, which failed completely when the ship foundered. There was, reportedly, great loss of life in the shark-infested waters.

In 1911, treasure hunters found near Astove the wreckage of La Dom Royal. They excavated the ship, finding gold and silver.

The remaining slaves on Astove were eventually picked up and evacuated to Mahe, leaving one sole survivor named “Paul” on the island. In 1799, a passing ship stopped at Astove and a search was made for this lone slave, but no trace of him could be found.

On the morning of August 12, 1836, the ship Tiger of Liverpool, which was commanded by Captain Edward Searight, was wrecked on the reef of Astove atoll. An account by William Stirling was published seven years later.

Human presence at Astove remained inconsistent throughout the 19th century and centered largely upon harvesting operations that were under way at the time. Astove was heavily mined for guano and phosphates, and hunted for its sea turtles, but for the most part remained not visited due to its remoteness and distance from normal shipping lanes.