DELAGOA BAY (Portuguese for the bay "of the lagoon"), officially known as Bahia de Lourenco Marques (q.v.), an inlet of the Indian ocean on the east coast of South Africa, between 25° 4o' and 26° 20' S., with a length of 26 m. and a breadth of 22 M. It is the northern termination of the series of lagoons which line the coast from St. Lucia bay. The opening is towards the north-east. The southern part of the bay is formed by the Inyak (native Nyaka) or Mahlungulu peninsula.
North of the peninsula is Inyak island, with the fishing village of Pt. Melville at its north-west point, and beyond Elephant's island. Delagoa Bay forms a valuable harbour, accessible to large vessels at all seasons of the year. The surrounding country is low and very unhealthy, but the island of Inyak has a height of 24o ft., and could be used as a sanatorium. The Manhisa or Komati river enters the sea just north of the bay; the Matolla, the Umbeluzi and the -Tembe, from the Lebombo, meet in the estuary called by the Portuguese the Espirito Santo, but generally known as the English river; and the Maputa, or Lisuthu, which has its head-waters in the Drakenberg, enters in the south, as also does the Funti river. These rivers are the haunts of the hippo potamus and the crocodile.
The bay was discovered by the Portuguese navigator Antonio de Campo, one of Vasco da Gama's companions, in 15o2. Antonio Caldeira explored the lower courses of the rivers entering Delagoa Bay, especially the Espirito Santo. The Portuguese visited the district from time to time. In 1721 the Dutch East India com pany built a fort and "factory" on the spot where Lourenco Mar ques now stands; but in 173o the settlement was abandoned. Thereafter the Portuguese had—intermittently—trading sta tions on the Espirito Santo. In 1771, the Austrian Asiatic com pany of Trieste attempted to establish a station there, but were expelled. Intermittent native wars followed the building of a fortress on the site of the present town, in 1781. In 1823 W. F. W. Owen concluded treaties of cession with native chiefs, and appro priated for Britain the country from the English river southwards; in 1824 the Portuguese, disregarding the British treaties, con cluded others with the natives, and endeavoured (unsuccessfully) to take military possession of the country. The sovereignty of either power was left undecided till the claims of the Transvaal Republic rendered a solution of the question urgent. Great Britain had taken no steps to exercise authority on the spot, while the ravages of Zulu hordes confined Portuguese authority to the limits of their fort. In 1835 Boers had attempted to form a settlement on the bay, which is the natural outlet for the Transvaal; and in 1868 the Transvaal President, Marthinus Pretorius, claimed the country on each side of the Maputa down to the sea. In the following year, however, the Transvaal acknowledged Portugal's sovereignty over the bay. In 1861 Bickford had declared Inyak and Elephant's island British territory. In 1872 the dispute be tween Great Britain and Portugal was submitted to the arbitra tion of M. Thiers, the French President; and on July 24, 1875, his successor, Marshal MacMahon, declared in favour of the Portuguese. It had been previously agreed by Great Britain and Portugal that the right of pre-emption in case of sale or cession should be given to the unsuccessful claimant to the bay. Portu guese authority over the interior was not established until some time after the MacMahon award; nominally the country south of the Manhisa river was ceded to them by the Matshangana chief Umzila in 1861. In 1889 another dispute arose between Portugal and Great Britain in consequence of the seizure by the Portuguese of the railway running from the bay to the Transvaal. This dis pute was referred to arbitration, and in 19oo Portugal was con demned to pay nearly ii,000,000 in compensation to the share holders in the railway company. (See LOURENc0 MARQUES and GAZALAND.) For an account of the Delagoa Bay arbitration proceedings see Sir E. Hertslet, The Map Of Africa by Treaty (1909). Consult also the British blue-book; Delagoa Bay, Correspondence respecting the claims of Her Majesty's Government (1875) ; L. van Deventer, La Hollande et la Baie Delagoa (The Hague, 1883) ; G. McC. Theal, The Portu guese in South Africa (1896) ; Tesset, The Key to South Africa, Delagoa Bay (1899), and History of South Africa since September 1795 (19o8). The Narrative of Voyages to explore the shores of Africa . . . performed . . . under direction of Captain W . F. W . Owen, R.N. (1833) contains much interesting information concerning the district in the early part of the p9th century.