National Day in Mauritius
National Day in Mauritius is held on March 12. Independence Day. This event in the second decade of the month March is annual.
This day celebrates the island country of Mauritius and its people, culture, and traditions on the anniversary of the day that Mauritius became an independent state within the Commonwealth.
The long-extinct Dodo bird was endemic to Mauritius, with the main island of Mauritius being the only known habitat of the flightless bird, which is still considered to be the national bird of Mauritius (it's also represented in the national Coat of Arms).
In 1598, a Dutch squadron, under the orders of Admiral Wybrand Van Warwyck, landed at Grand Port and named the island "Mauritius", in honour of Prince Maurice Van Nassau, "Stathouder" of Holland. Ile de France was renamed Mauritius and it was formally given to Britain at the Treaty of Paris in 1815.