History of Andaman Islands

The history of the Andaman Islands is one of the most unusual in India. These islands in the Bay of Bengal have been home to some of the world’s oldest surviving peoples, a remote British penal colony that held many freedom fighters, a Second World War occupation, the place where the Indian Tricolour was first raised on Indian soil, a devastating tsunami and, today, a growing travel destination. Knowing even a little of this past changes how you see the islands: the ruins on Ross Island, the cells of the Cellular Jail and the protected forests on the road north all make more sense once you know their story.

This guide gives a clear, readable overview, from the earliest inhabitants to the present, with pointers to the places where you can see that history for yourself. If you would like a trip built around these sites, explore our Andaman tour packages, planned by Andaman Emerald Travels, a travel team based in Port Blair.

The History of Andaman Islands at a Glance

This is a simplified timeline. Dates and details come from published historical accounts, which sometimes differ.

The First Peoples of the Andamans

The Andaman Islands have been inhabited for a very long time. The four indigenous peoples of the Andamans, the Great Andamanese, Onge, Jarawa and Sentinelese, are hunter-gatherers who are believed to have settled the islands as long as 60,000 years ago, and who developed their own languages, customs and deep knowledge of the sea and forest. In the Nicobar Islands to the south, the Nicobarese and the Shompen belong to a different group of peoples, thought to have arrived from the Malay and Burma coasts several thousand years ago.

Because these communities have no written language, much of their early history is known only through outside accounts and the work of anthropologists. Ancient and medieval travellers mention the islands, but those descriptions are hard to date and often unreliable. What is clear is that the islands were never empty, and that their peoples had lived on them for thousands of generations before any European ship arrived.

Figures are approximate and from the 2011 Census and published estimates.

To understand these communities respectfully, visit the Anthropological Museum in Port Blair, and read our guide to the tribes of Andaman. Please remember that travel to tribal reserves and the island of North Sentinel is restricted by law for the safety of everyone, and that photographing or approaching the people there is prohibited. This matters for travellers on the road through Baratang.

The Colonial Period and the Penal Settlement

Archibald Blair and the First Settlement (1789 to 1796)

The modern history of the islands began in 1789, when the East India Company sent Lieutenant Archibald Blair to survey the Andamans. He set up a settlement on Chatham Island, in what is now Port Blair, which was named in his honour. The settlement was not a prison. It was meant as a naval base and a place for ships to shelter, and it was abandoned in 1796 because of the high death rate from disease. Chatham is still part of the story today, and you can visit it at the Chatham Saw Mill.

The Penal Settlement (1858 Onwards)

After the Uprising of 1857, the British looked for a distant place to hold the prisoners they had captured, and chose the Andamans. In 1858, they took possession of three islands in and around Port Blair and set up a penal settlement. The first jail was built on Viper Island, and the administration was based on Ross Island, which became a small, comfortable colonial town while its prisoners lived in harsh conditions nearby.

The arrival of the British also brought conflict with the Great Andamanese. A battle fought at Aberdeen in 1859 between the British and the Andamanese is remembered by a memorial near the Rajiv Gandhi Water Sports Complex. In the decades that followed, disease and disruption caused a catastrophic decline in the indigenous population.

The Cellular Jail and the Freedom Struggle

As the settlement grew, the British built a much larger and more secure prison. The Cellular Jail, built in the late 1890s and early 1900s, was designed so that each prisoner was held in a separate cell. Many freedom fighters and political prisoners were held there, and the islands became known as Kala Pani, the “black water”. After Independence, the jail was preserved, and it was declared a national memorial in 1979. Its Light and Sound Show is one of the most moving experiences in the islands.

The Second World War and Netaji

During the Second World War, the islands became part of a much bigger conflict. Japanese forces captured Port Blair on 23 March 1942 and held the islands until the war ended, when the British returned on 7 October 1945. The occupation was a harsh period for the islanders, and traces of it remain, including the Japanese bunkers found at several sites around Port Blair.

In December 1943, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, who led the Provisional Government of Free India and was allied with the Japanese, visited Port Blair. On 30 December 1943, he hoisted the Indian Tricolour at the Gymkhana Ground, which is now the Netaji Stadium, in what is remembered as the first raising of the national flag on Indian soil. He also renamed the islands Shaheed (Martyr) and Swaraj (Self-rule). The moment is commemorated at Flag Point in Port Blair, and the memory lives on in the island names used today.

After Independence

After the British left, the islands became part of India in 1950 and were declared a Union Territory in 1956. In the years that followed, the government settled people from the mainland on the islands, built roads and ports, and developed forestry, farming and later defence facilities. The islands were opened gradually to tourism, with regulated access to protected areas and a strong emphasis on protecting the forests, reefs and indigenous peoples.

The 2004 Tsunami

On 26 December 2004, a huge earthquake off Sumatra caused a tsunami that struck the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with great force. Official figures put the number of deaths in the islands at more than 3,500, though the true number is believed to be higher, and most of the dead were from the Nicobar Islands. Several indigenous peoples of the Andamans, including the Onge and the Jarawa, are believed to have survived in large part by moving to high ground, guided by traditional knowledge. The islands recovered slowly, and tourism has since become one of their most important industries.

Renaming and Remembering

In recent years, several places have been renamed to honour the freedom struggle. In December 2018, Ross Island was officially renamed Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep, Neil Island became Shaheed Dweep and Havelock Island became Swaraj Dweep. In September 2024, the Union Home Ministry announced that Port Blair would be renamed Sri Vijaya Puram. Many travellers and travel sites still use the old names, so you will see both on signs and in this guide. To visit them, see our pages on Havelock Island and Neil Island.

Where to See Andaman History Today

You can follow the story across Port Blair in a day or two. A good route starts with the museums, moves on to the colonial sites and ends with the evening show: