Port T, Addu Atoll, and Diego Garcia: British Air and Naval Bases in the Indian Ocean During 1937–1944, & the Sultan of Land and Sea, Lord of Twelve Thousand Isles, the Sultan of the Maldives

Ibrahim Faamudheyri Kilagefaanu served as a key diplomatic representative for the Maldivian government during the British protectorate era, including Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II's reign (1935–1943).

The years 1937 to 1944 represented a transformative period for British military strategy in the Indian Ocean, as the region shifted from relative calm to a critical theater in World War II. Amid rising Japanese aggression in the Far East, Britain sought secure fallback positions to protect vital sea lanes, convoy routes to Australia, and the Eastern Fleet's operations. Two key locations, Addu Atoll (with its secret base Port T and early facilities on Gan Island) and Diego Garcia, emerged as strategic outposts for naval anchorage, refueling, and aerial reconnaissance. Central to the development of Addu Atoll was Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II, whose diplomatic consent under the British protectorate framework enabled the rapid, clandestine establishment of Port T.

Sir Andrew Caldecott, Governor of Ceylon from 1937 to 1944, played a pivotal coordinating role. Appointed amid growing constitutional and wartime pressures in Ceylon, Caldecott oversaw regional logistics and diplomacy. As Japanese advances threatened Singapore and Colombo, he facilitated requests for alternative bases. In early 1941, he sent a formal letter to Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II requesting permission to develop facilities on Addu Atoll. The correspondence highlighted the need for a defended fleet anchorage, refueling station, and aviation support, assuring temporary use and respect for Maldivian sovereignty. Permission was granted, reflecting the protectorate's dynamics since 1888, Britain handled external affairs, but local approval was sought for internal developments.

A Sunderland flying boat (a premier British four-engine flying boat,) is anchored at British Port T on Addu Atoll, a secret Royal Navy base in the Maldives during World War II, with a small vessel nearby under a clear sky.

Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II (born 21 April 1887; reigned 22 February 1935–8 April 1943) was the 32nd Sultan of the Maldives, a son of Sultan Muhammad Mueenudheen II. His formal coronation occurred on 20 August 1938. During his rule, the Maldives endured wartime hardships, including famine due to disrupted trade. Yet, the Sultan's decision to permit British access aligned with protectorate obligations and mutual interests in countering Japanese threats. In recognition of the Maldives' contributions, providing land, local labor, and logistical support, he was awarded the honorary Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George (KCMG) on 1 January 1942, styled as Sir Hassan Nooraddeen Iskandar II, KCMG, specifically "for services rendered during the war

Royal Marines install a formidable coastal defense gun at Port T, Addu Atoll, as military personnel gather around the artillery piece. Photo courtesy of Imperial War Museum.

Port T on Addu Atoll became the most developed of these wartime installations. Construction began in August 1941 with the arrival of the netlayer HMS Guardian, which landed Royal Navy crews to clear jungle on Gan Island and adjacent islets (Villingili, Hithadhoo). Royal Marines from the 1st Mobile Naval Base Defence Organization (M.N.B.D.O. I), under Lieutenant Colonel L. O. Jones ("Force Shortcut") and supported by Lieutenant Colonel W.B.F. Lukis ("Force Piledriver"), built coastal batteries, searchlights, jetties, anti-submarine nets, roads from crushed coral and palm logs, oil storage, and basic airstrips for Fleet Air Arm seaplanes and flying boats (Sunderlands, Catalinas). Operations maintained extreme secrecy, camouflage hid activities, and the base remained undetected by Japan. By January 1942, Port T was operational, refueling convoys (first on 3 January 1942) and serving as a rendezvous during the April 1942 Japanese Indian Ocean Raid. It supported patrols and endured incidents like the March 1944 U-boat attack on the tanker British Loyalty. Peak troop strength exceeded 4,000; the base wound down by 1945.

A view of the 'Hants' Battery and Headquarters Camp on Gan Island, Addu Atoll. Photo courtesy of Imperial War Museum.

Force ‘Shortcut’: Royal Marines Detachment at Addu Atoll and Diego Garcia, October–November 1941 'Force ‘Shortcut’ was a specialized detachment of the 1st Royal Marine Group, Mobile Naval Base Defence Organisation (M.N.B.D.O. I), formed in mid-1941 to support the rapid, secretive construction and defense of fallback naval anchorages in the Indian Ocean amid escalating Japanese threats. Part of Britain's adaptive strategy to secure convoy routes and Eastern Fleet operations after potential losses in the Far East, Force ‘Shortcut’ was one of two parallel units dispatched from Egypt: the other was Force ‘Piledriver’ (commanded by Lieutenant Colonel W.B.F. Lukis, R.M.), focused primarily on Addu Atoll (codenamed Port T). Force ‘Shortcut’, under Lieutenant Colonel L.O. Jones, R.M., assisted ‘Piledriver’ at Addu before detaching for other sites, including Diego Garcia in the Chagos Archipelago.

 Arrived at Port T – Addu Atoll on the morning of 30 September 1941. The Clan Forbes entered the lagoon behind Photo courtesy of www.bandcstaffregister.com

Activities at Addu Atoll (October–November 1941)

Upon arrival, Force ‘Shortcut’ went ashore to support construction and defense efforts. Tasks included:

• Installing and siting coastal batteries (including the four 4-inch guns).

• Erecting searchlights, signal towers, anti-submarine nets, jetties, camps, and roads (using crushed coral and palm logs over swampy terrain).

• Assisting RAF Airfield Construction Squadrons with basic airstrips on Gan Island for Fleet Air Arm seaplanes and flying boats.

• Coordinating with local Maldivian labor and foreign workers amid tropical challenges.

  
  

(1941–1942): The hospital ship H.M.H.S. Vita served as a medical facility for the British Royal Marine forces during the establishment of the secret naval base known as Port T (or "T" Port) at Addu Atoll in the Maldives.

The conditions were challenging: dense jungle, coral blasting, extreme heat and humidity, along with widespread illnesses such as septic sores and ulcers from coral and insect bites, malaria, and scrub typhus. By October and November, sickness had reduced the number of men in some batteries, like ‘Devon’ and ‘Kent,’ to fewer than 50 each. The hospital ship H.M.H.S. Vita was dispatched to treat the affected individuals, with some being transferred to H.M.S. Corfu. Force ‘Shortcut’ collaborated with Force ‘Piledriver’ to meet the Admiralty's six-week deadline for operational guns, a goal that was achieved despite numerous setbacks. Some personnel.

Transition to Diego Garcia (Late November 1941)

By late November, initial Addu defenses were sufficiently advanced. Force ‘Shortcut’ detached from Port T around 26 November 1941 (some sources note end of November), leaving a portion of the Landing & Maintenance Unit behind with Force ‘Piledriver’.

Addu Atoll Gan Island's facilities originated in Port T's wartime efforts. From 1941, crushed-coral airstrips supported reconnaissance and seaplane operations. Inhabitants were relocated to make way for clearing and infrastructure. By 1942–1943, it hosted flying boats for anti-submarine patrols. Though airfield construction paused in 1944 due to shifting priorities, the cleared land and basic runways provided a foundation for postwar revival as RAF Gan (1957–1976).

Cannon Point, Diego Garcia, (Foalhavahi) Set Up in 1942

Diego Garcia, in the Chagos Foalhavahi developed more modestly. Designated a "secret anchorage" in 1941, it saw RAF Station Diego Garcia open in 1942 with an advanced flying boat unit at East Point Plantation, staffed by No. 205 and No. 240 Squadrons (Catalinas and Sunderlands) from Ceylon. These conducted patrols against Japanese and German submarines and raiders. Royal Marines installed 6-inch naval guns at Cannon Point for defense . A small garrison protected the site from potential Japanese attack. Unlike Addu's full fleet anchorage, Diego Garcia focused on aviation and limited defenses. The station closed on 30 April 1946 post-war.

In comparison, Port T/Addu offered deeper lagoon shelter and comprehensive defenses, making it a primary Eastern Fleet hub in 1942. Diego Garcia emphasized long-range patrols in a more isolated position. Both exemplified Britain's adaptive strategy: secretive, temporary bases to sustain sea control amid Japanese threats. Caldecott's oversight from Ceylon linked these efforts, with Addu requiring direct diplomatic engagement via Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II.

Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II’s Abdication in April 1943: Political Pressures and Transition in the Maldives

Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II, the 32nd Sultan of the Maldives, abdicated on 8 April 1943 after eight years on the throne. His reign, which began on 22 February 1935, coincided with profound internal and external changes that ultimately undermined the authority of the sultanate. The abdication marked the end of a traditional monarchical era and the beginning of a prolonged regency period that exposed deep structural weaknesses in Maldivian governance.

Sultan Hassan Nooraddeen II is crowned as the Sultan of the Maldive Islands in a grand ceremony in 1938, with Chief Justice Hussain Salaahuddeen to his left, under a decorated canopy.

The primary catalyst for the abdication was the 1932 Constitution, the Maldives’ first written constitution. Although intended to modernize the state, it introduced an elected sultanate and significantly empowered the People’s Majlis (parliament), shifting real power away from the Sultan toward ministers and parliamentary factions. This constitutional framework created constant tension between the traditional royal prerogative and the emerging influence of an elite political class. By the early 1940s, ministerial and Majlis leaders, most notably figures such as Hassan Fareed Didi had grown increasingly assertive, viewing the sultan as an obstacle to further reform and greater administrative autonomy.

World War II added economic strain and social hardship. Disrupted trade routes caused famine and shortages across the atolls, heightening public discontent and providing additional leverage to those seeking change. While the Sultan’s decision in 1941 to permit the establishment of the secret British naval base Port T on Addu Atoll earned him the honorary KCMG in 1942, it did not translate into strengthened domestic authority. The protectorate arrangement shielded him from direct British interference in internal affairs, meaning the pressures that forced his abdication were almost entirely indigenous

His Highness Sir Hassan Nooraddeen Iskandar II, Sultan of land and sea, Lord of twelve thousand isles, the Sultan of the Maldives; Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George; reigned from 1935 until 1943.

The abdication itself was not the result of a popular uprising or violent coup, but rather a coordinated effort by key ministers and Majlis members to compel the Sultan to step down. Historical accounts describe it as resignation under duress, with the Prime Minister’s simultaneous resignation underscoring the orchestrated nature of the transition. No evidence suggests foreign coercion; the dynamics were driven by elite rivalry, constitutional friction, and the desire to consolidate power within the Majlis and cabinet.

Following the abdication, the Maldives entered its fifth interregnum. A Council of Regency assumed control, initially including the former Sultan himself for a short period, and governed through the Majlis. Abdul Majeed Didi was elected Sultan but never formally installed and remained in Ceylon, leaving the council in effective charge until the early 1950s. This extended period of regency rule (1943–1953) laid bare the fragility of the sultanate system and set the stage for later constitutional experiments, culminating in the short-lived First Republic (1953–1954) and, ultimately, the Second Republic in 1968.

Sultan Hassan Nooradheen II’s abdication was not an isolated event but the culmination of long-term tensions between traditional monarchy and emerging parliamentary power. The 1932 Constitution, intended as a modernizing reform, instead accelerated the erosion of royal authority and empowered a new political elite. Wartime hardships intensified these pressures, yet the decisive forces were internal, ministerial ambition, Majlis assertiveness, and unresolved elite rivalries. The resulting regency period exposed the sultanate’s structural weaknesses and prepared the Maldives for the gradual shift toward republican governance. In this sense, the 1943 abdication stands as a quiet but decisive turning point in the archipelago’s political evolution, marking the effective end of absolute monarchical rule and the beginning of a more contested, collective exercise of power.