Story Highlights
- Historical event
- 29 June 1976
- Jean Moreau de Séchelles was a high-ranking politician in the era of the French King Louis XV with the function of Controller-General of Finances (French: Contrôleur général des finances). This high function approximately corresponded to the position of finance minister.
On this day in 1976, the small island country of Seychelles, located in the Indian Ocean, was granted independence.
Seychelles consist of about 155 islands and are approximately 1,500 kilometers away from the nearest continent mainland – Africa.
The majority of the population lives on several major islands. The capital city is called Victoria and is located on the main island – Mahé.
This largest island has an area of 155 square kilometers. In total, the landmass of all the islands is 451 square kilometers.
Only 84,000 residents live on the Seychelles, which is less than in any African country. It is interesting that most Seychellois are Roman Catholics (about 82%). Seychellois Creole is the primarily used language (based upon French).
Seychelles were named after the French minister named Jean Moreau de Séchelles. He was a high-ranking politician in the era of the French King Louis XV with the function of Controller-General of Finances (French: Contrôleur général des finances).
This high function approximately corresponded to the position of finance minister and was performed by many famous French powerful men – Jean-Baptiste Colbert, John Law (originally Scottish, but in the French service), Étienne de Silhouette (after whom the silhouette was named), Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, etc.
