Nobody lived on the Seychelles until the 17th century. In 1609, a British East India ship made landfall, and in the next few years shiploads of pirates moved their operations to the Indian Ocean from the Caribbean and used the islands as their base.

In 1742 the governor of Mauritius, Mahé de La Bourdonnais, sent a ship to check out the islands. Ship's captain Picault named the main island after his governor and laid the way for the French to claim the islands 12 years later. In 1770 the first load of French settlers and slaves arrived on the island and started growing spices, cassava, sugar cane, coffee, sweet potatoes and maize, as well as harvesting the giant tortoise.

By the end of the 18th century, the islands were looking pretty choice and the British were taking an interest. The governor at the time, de Quinssy, lowered the French flag and gave in when attack looked imminent, but the British sailed on and de Quinssy raised the flag again. This happened 12 times until 1814, when Britain took charge of the Seychelles after the Napoleonic Wars. The main feature of British rule was an increase in the number of slaves and high-class political prisoners - French remained the main language and French culture lived on.

In 1964 the Seychelles' first political parties were formed - France Albert René formed the Seychelles People's United Party, while James Mancham led the Seychelles Democratic Party. The SDP, the party of the planters and business people, won the 1966 and 1970 elections, defeating the socialist SPUP. In 1976 the country was made independent and the two parties formed a coalition to run the place: Sir Jim became president and René prime minister. The president set out to make the Seychelles

In 1981 a group of South African mercenaries tried to invade the country, but were found out at the airport, where they shot two people and hijacked a plane to get home. René outlawed the SDP and its supporters, who set up resistance movements in the UK, South Africa and Australia. The tourist trade dried up as a campaign of bombings and murders, as well as the occasional coup attempt, gathered force.

In December 1991 René surprised his opponents (and, quite probably, his supporters) by legalising opposition parties, perhaps in response to pressure from the country's main aid-donors. Elections were held in 1992, under Commonwealth observation, and René scraped in with a bare majority. Mancham, surrounded by SAS security men, got a third of the vote and claimed the elections were rigged. A new constitution was implemented to support the new multiparty system, and elections in 1993 and 1998 were won, once again, by René.

There is no indigenous culture in the Seychelles, but aspects of African origin have survived. The government has formed the National School of Music and the National Cultural Troupe to foster a Créole cultural identity and tradition. The sombre moutia is the typical dance of the Seychelles, with strong African and Malagasy rhythms. The songs are prayers which the slaves turned into work chants, and they're accompanied by slow, repetitive dance routines. The moutia is one of those participatory affairs, where everyone has to get up and join in. Seychellois music is a blend of Indian, European, Chinese and Arabic - accordions, banjos and violins blend with the makalapo, a stringed instrument, the zez, a sitar, African skin drums and the bom, a bowed instrument.

Most Seychellois are Catholic and the majority are avid churchgoers, but there is a widespread belief in the supernatural and in the old magic of spirits known as gris. Sorcery was outlawed in 1958, but there are a number of bonhommes and bonfemmes di bois practising their cures and curses and concocting potions for love, luck and revenge.

English and French are the official languages and both are spoken by most people, although French Créole is the lingua franca. Kreol seselwa was rehabilitated and made semi-official in 1981, and is increasingly used in newspapers and literature. Seychelles Créole is similar to that of Mauritius and Martinique, but differs remarkably from that of Réunion.

The Seychelles is the best of all the Indian Ocean islands for Créole cuisine. Fish and rice are the staple foods, but rice takes a back seat while more imaginative use is made of fruit, vegetables, herbs and spices. The range of fish and seafood available is huge and you'll probably be able to try shark, barracuda, kingfish, octopus, squid, jack fish, red snapper, cordonnier, parrot fish and grouper. Other Créole dishes standard to the region are the daube, a sweet sauce or stew; rougaille, a tomato-based sauce used with fish, sausages or as a side dish; carii coco, a mild meat or fish curry with coconut cream; fish marinaded in lemon; and brèdes, a local variety of spinach.