sultanate · Central and Southern Africa
Sultanate of Moheli
Origins
Around 1830 Ramanetaka, a Merina prince and governor who had fled Madagascar, seized control of Moheli (Mwali) and set himself up as sultan with the Muslim name Abderremane, displacing the island's earlier rulers.
Rule and society
After Ramanetaka's death in 1842 his young daughter Djoumbe Fatima became queen. Her long reign saw rival French and British influence and a controversial plantation lease to a French trader, while the small island lived from fishing, farming and trade with Zanzibar. Islam and Swahili culture shaped court life at Fomboni.
Decline and legacy
France imposed a protectorate in 1886, and the last queen, Salima Machamba, abdicated before the island was annexed and attached to the Colony of Mayotte and Dependencies. Moheli is now part of the Union of the Comoros.
Lineage
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (1)
- Sultanate of Moheli was a protectorate of French Empire1886 CE – 1909 CE
More states of Central and Southern Africa →
Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Sultanate of Moheli. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/sultanate-of-moheli
- MLA
- “Sultanate of Moheli.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/sultanate-of-moheli. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Sultanate of Moheli.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/sultanate-of-moheli.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Sultanate of Moheli’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/sultanate-of-moheli (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻