History
From around the 8th century Shirazi traders from Persia established settlements in the archipelago; and between the 12th and 15th centuries, Zanzibar became a powerful city-state, exporting slaves, gold, ivory and wood, and importing spices, glassware and textiles. In the early 16th century Zanzibar came under Portuguese control. Omani Arabs in the mid-16th century routed the Portuguese and by the early 19th century had become so prosperous that in the 1840s the Sultan of Oman relocated his court here from the Persian Gulf.
In 1862 Zanzibar became independent from Oman, although Omani sultans continued to rule under a British protectorate. On 10 December 1963 Zanzibar gained independence and in 1964 Abeid Karume signed a declaration of unity with Tanganyika (mainland Tanzania), forming a fragile union with the new United Republic of Tanzania.
