Founded by Arab traders in the 11th century, Mombasa was an important port for trade across the Indian Ocean. It was visited in 1331 by the Arab traveler Ibn Baṭṭūṭah and in 1498 by the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama (Gama, Vasco da). Because of its strategic position, it was continually fought over, passing among the Arabs, Persians, Portuguese, and Turks until 1840, when the ...