Maldivians are a people with an independent history spanning thousands of years. Huravee Day is a day that commemorates the victory from a battle fought to uphold this independence. In December of the year 1752, while Sultan Muhammad Imaduddin was reigning, he was a monarch who was kind to his people. However, greed for the throne arose in the hearts of the Chief Justice Muhammad Shamsuddin and his younger brother, Khatib Ahmed Muhyiddin. They secretly invited the Maldives’ age-old enemy, Ali Raja of Cannanore, to capture the Maldives. By sending an official letter bearing the royal seal, falsely claiming that the state of the country was contrary to Islamic principles, they prompted Ali Raja to send a Malabar army to Male’, which then seized the Maldives.
In this incident, Sultan Muhammad Imaduddin and another noble were taken to Cannanore, while the independence of the Maldivians was stolen, and Ali Raja declared himself the king of the Maldives. After torturing and drowning the two Maldivians who had aided them, the Malabars lived in Male’, looting the property of the Maldivians, oppressing them, and leaving them in a state of helplessness.
After three months of subjugation, a group of brave Maldivian heroes began to plan a revolt against the Malabar rule. Under the leadership of Dhon Hasan Manikufaanu of Muleege (later known as Don Bandaarain), an army of 200 warriors was assembled. They launched a surprise attack while the Malabars were asleep and achieved victory. This occurred on the night preceding Sunday, the 3rd of Jumada al-Akhir, in the year 1753. The key hero of this day was Dhon Hasan Manikufaanu of Muleege, who later became renowned as Sultan-ul-Ghazi Hassan Izzuddin. The Huravee Day we celebrate today is in memory of this triumph.
