| Maputo Bay | |
|---|---|
| 'Baía de Maputo (Portuguese) | |
 Maputo Bay from space, January 1990 | |
  Maputo Bay Location in Mozambique | |
| Coordinates | 25°59′S32°42′E / 25.983°S 32.700°E /-25.983; 32.700 |
| Ocean/sea sources | Indian Ocean |
| Basin countries | Mozambique |
| Max. length | 24 km (15 mi) |
| Max. width | 36 km (22 mi) |
| Settlements | Maputo |
Maputo Bay (Portuguese:Baía de Maputo), formerly also known asDelagoa Bay fromBaía da Lagoa in Portuguese, is aninlet of theIndian Ocean on the coast ofMozambique, between 25° 40' and 26° 20' S, with a length from north to south of over 90 km long and 32 km wide.[1][2]
The bay is the northern termination of the series of lagoons which line the coast fromSaint Lucia Bay. The opening is toward the northeast. The northwestern end of the bay is defined by the Ponta da Macaneta, aspit with beaches facing westwards towards theMozambique Channel, and mangroves behind. The eastern side of the bay is defined by theMachangulo peninsula, which on its inner or western side affords safe anchorage. North of the peninsula isInhaca Island, and beyond it a smaller island, "Ilha dos Portugueses" (Portuguese Island), formerly known as Elephant's Island.[3]
In spite of a bar at the entrance and a number of shallows within, Maputo Bay forms a valuable harbour, accessible to large vessels at all seasons of the year. The surrounding country is low and very unhealthy, but Inhaca island has a height of 73 m, and was used as a sanatorium.
TheKomati River, also known as the Inkomati or Manhissa, enters the bay at its northern end. Three rivers, theMatola from the north, theMbuluzi or Umbeluzi from the west, and theTembe from the south, meet in theEstuário do Espírito Santo on the west side of the bay. The city ofMaputo lies north of the estuary, and theMaputo–Katembe bridge, completed in 2018, spans the estuary. TheMaputo River, which has its headwaters in theDrakensberg, enters in the south.[3]
Maputo Bay is part of theDelagoa marine ecoregion. Habitats in the bay includemangrove wetlands, seagrass beds, and fringing coral reefs aroundInhaca and Portuguese islands.
Humpback whales and several species ofdolphins live in the water whilesouthern right whales[4][5] anddugongs[6][7] were once numerous in the bay and are rare today.
The first European to reach the bay wasPortuguese navigatorAntónio de Campo, one ofVasco da Gama's captains, in 1502. In 1544 the merchant traderLourenço Marques explored the upper reaches of the estuaries leading into the bay.[3] Subsequently,King João III ordered the bay to be namedBaia de Lourenço Marques. Lourenço Marques is reputed to have named the bayBaía da Lagoa (Portuguese: "Bay of the Lagoon"). In English the Portuguese "Baia da Lagoa" then was translated and slightly transformed to "Delagoa Bay".
In 1720, theDutch East India Company built a fort and factory called Lijdzaamheid (Lydsaamheid) on the spot of Lourenço Marques (now Maputo), since April 1721 governed by anopperhoofd (chief factor), under authority of the Dutch Cape Colony, interrupted byTaylor's pirate occupation from April 1722 to 28 August 1722; in December 1730 the settlement was abandoned. Thereafter the Portuguese had—intermittently—trading stations in the Espírito Santo estuary. These stations were protected by small forts, usually incapable, however, of withstanding attacks by the natives.[3] In 1779 theAustrian shipJoseph und Theresia of theAustrian East India Company lands at the bay and the Austrians erect the St. Joseph and St. Maria forts. In 1778, an Austrian expedition led by English adventurerWilliam Bolts established a trading factory at Delagoa Bay. The factory, composed of 155 men and a number of women, traded in ivory, reaching as high as 75,000 pounds per year until the factory wasexpelled by the Portuguese in 1781.[8][9]
In 1823, Captain (afterwards Vice-Admiral)W. F. W. Owen, of theRoyal Navy, finding that the Portuguese exercised no jurisdiction south of the settlement of Lourenço Marques, concluded treaties of cession with native chiefs, hoisted the British flag, and appropriated the country from the English river southwards; but when he visited the bay again in 1824 he found that the Portuguese, disregarding the British treaties, had concluded others with the natives, and had endeavoured (unsuccessfully) to take military possession of the country.
Captain Owen re-hoisted the British flag, but the sovereignty of either power was left undecided till the claims of theTransvaal Republic rendered a solution of the question urgent. In the meantime the United Kingdom had taken no steps to exercise authority on the spot, while the ravages ofZulus confined Portuguese authority to the limits of their fort. In 1835Boers, under a leader namedOrich, had attempted to form a settlement on the bay and in 1868 the Transvaal president,Marthinus Pretorius, claimed the country on each side of theMaputo down to the sea. In the following year, however, the Transvaal acknowledged Portugal's sovereignty over the bay.[3]
In 1861, Royal Navy Captain Bickford declaredInhaca and Elephant islands to be British territory; an act protested by the authorities in Lisbon. In 1872, the dispute between the United Kingdom and Portugal was submitted to the arbitration ofAdolphe Thiers, the French president; and on 19 April 1875 his successor,Marshal MacMahon, ruled in favor of the Portuguese.[10]
Previously, the United Kingdom and Portugal had agreed a right of pre-emption would be granted to the unsuccessful claimant in case of sale or cession of the bay. Portuguese authority over the Mozambican interior was not established until some time after the MacMahon decision; nominally, the country south of the Manhissa river was ceded to them by theMatshangana chiefUmzila in 1861.[3] In honor of the French president's decision, a beer brewed in Maputo is still today called "MacMahon" or "2M" (Portuguese: "Dois M"). Similarly, the Maputo railway station sat at "Praça MacMahon" (MacMahon Square).[11] After Mozambique's independence from Portugal, it was renamed "Praça dos Trabalhadores" (Workers' Square).
In 1889, another dispute arose between Portugal and the United Kingdom over the Portuguese seizure of the railway running from the bay to the Transvaal. This dispute was also referred to arbitration: in 1900, Portugal was found liable and ordered to pay nearly £1,000,000 in compensation to the railway company's shareholders.[3]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Delagoa Bay".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 7 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 942.{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)| International | |
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