HMS Intrepid was one of two Fearless class amphibious warfare ships of the Royal Navy. A Landing Platform Dock (LPD), she served from 1967 until 1999. Based in HM Naval Base, Devonport, Plymouth, Devon and HM Naval Base Portsmouth and saw service around the world over her 32 year life. In the process of being …
This part of history is somewhat unfamiliar, but during the second World War (1939 – 1945), the No. 174 (Mauritius) Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron that was a fighter-bomber unit in World War II. The squadron formed on the 2nd March 1942 at RAF Manston and equipped with Hurricanes and then rocket armed Typhoons in April 1943. It was involved in attacks on shipping and V-1 flying …
Dealing with narcotics is a serious offence nearly everywhere in the world, even though some of its milder category have been legalized in some countries. In Mauritius, illegal cultivation of these plants are still being practised secretly and very often we hear in the news how the Police or Special Mobile Force (SMF) have uprooted …
The Mauritius Volunteer Force represented the Soldiers serving the country at its own account. These soldiers of the British garrison were mainly of British, Indian and African origins, even though the officers were all British. Two places in Mauritius were these soldiers were frequently seen was in Curepipe and Port Louis. In those days the …
One of the sad moments in the history of Mauritius towards Independence is during the General Elections of 1967. While the elections went rather smoothly in most parts of the island, a small section in Port Louis knew some clashes and oppositions towards the voting influence. Whilst sources are not clear how this started, different …
The Guard of Honour of the King during the early colonial times parading on La Chaussée street towards the Government House in Port Louis. Definitely looks like a ceremonial procession. It is somehow difficult to derive more information on this ceremony but another interesting observation is certainly how La Chaussée street looked like during those …
The Special Mobile Force is a paramilitary unit that serves as the main internal security force in Mauritius. As Mauritius has no dedicated military, mainly due to the cost that it would incur, the SMF forms part of the Mauritius Police Force, with its personnel on long term rotation from the police force. In the …
The King’s African Rifles Regiment firing canons at the Pleasure Ground (les salines) during Empire Day in 1964. Quite an artillery indeed. Image shared by: France Athow UPDATE: The year is claimed to be 1952 probably instead of 1964 as originally mentioned. The King’s African Rifles (KAR) was a multi-battalion British colonial regiment raised from …