Information AboutIfni |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT IFNI | |
| exclaves | |
| former spanish colonies | |
| geography of morocco | |
| history of morocco | |
| history of spain | |
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It had a total area of 1,502 km&2 (580 sq mi), and a population of 51,517 in 1964 . The main industry was Fishing . Spain's presence in the area can be traced to a settlement called Santa Cruz de la Mar Pequeña, founded in 1476 , whose importance was derived from its position as a center for the Trans-Saharan Slave Trade , and captives were shipped to sugar plantations on the Canary Islands . The Spanish were expelled from the area in 1524 by the Berbers . After its abandonment, the exact location of Santa Cruz De La Mar Pequeña was unknown. It was only until the mid-nineteenth century, during the Scramble For Africa , when France and Spain laid conflicting claims over the Maghreb , that Spain became interested in its lost medieval fortress in order to claim the southern part of Morocco . Ifni was considered the most likely area. The territory and its main town, Sidi Ifni , were ceded to Spain by Morocco on October 22 , 1859 following a short war, but there was little Spanish presence until 1934 , when the Governor-general of Spanish Sahara took up residence. During Franco's dictatorship, the colony was made a province to stop UN criticism on decolonization. Spain returned Ifni to Morocco on January 4 , 1969 . POSTAGE STAMPS Spain began issuing Postage Stamp s for Ifni in 1941 , initially Overprinting Spanish stamps with "TERRITORIO DE IFNI", then issuing new designs in 1943 . Issues followed at the rate of about 10/year, the last on November 23 , 1968 . Most are commonly available, but far more often seem unused, raising suspicion that the stamps were primarily issued to make money from Stamp Collectors , rather than to cope with a flood of Mail from the residents. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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