MOMBASA 



into a chapel, but which was finally made into a 

 fort again by the Arabs. 



But to return to the Portuguese fort, it was 

 repaired in 1635 by the Portuguese, and the in- 

 scription with date is still on it. However, by the 

 end of the seventeenth century, the Portuguese 

 and many natives took refuge in it, the town being 

 occupied by the Arabs ; they held out for some 

 time till plague broke out among them, which 

 killed most of the Europeans. After holding out 

 for two years, the Arabs entered the fort and 

 killed the few remaining members of the garrison. 

 This was the last connection that the Portuguese 

 had with the island. 



Even now peace did not reign, for two parties 

 of Arabs were continually disputing ; and this 

 went on till Seyyid Said Imaum of Muskat settled 

 in Zanzibar, but after his death his sons quarrelled, 

 and England was called upon to arbitrate. Zanzi- 

 bar, including the African coast-line possessions, 

 and Mombasa were made independent of Muscat 

 and have been so ever since. However, later in 

 1887 the British East African Association leased 

 the coast-land from Seyyid Barghash, but now it 

 forms part of the British Protectorate, the Govern- 

 ment paying an annual rental to the Government 

 of Zanzibar. 



But to speak again of Mombasa itself, it is an 

 island, with two excellent harbours to the north 



23 



