Côn Đảo 4.67

The Côn Đảo Islands are an archipelago of Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province, in the Southeast region of Vietnam, and a district of this province.DescriptionSituated about 185km from Vũng Tàu and 230km from Saigon, the group includes 16 mountainous islands and islets. The total land area reaches 75.15km² and the local population is about 5,000.The islands are composed of magmatic rocks of different ages. Hon Bay Canh, Hon Cau, Hon Bong Lang composed of Cretaceous microgranit rocks. The Northern part of Con Dao Island composed of quartz diorite and granite - granodiorit of late Mesozoic- early Cenozoic age, and is partially covered by Quaternary marine sediments. The Southern part of this island and Hon Ba island are composed of the riolit and intrusive formations of unknown age. On the western slope of Con Dao Island, there exist of outcrops of diorite and microgranit penetrated by big quartz bands.The island group is served by Côn Đảo Airport situated on the largest island in the Archipelago: Côn Sơn Island.HistoryFormally a Khmer Empire territory known as Koh Tralach islands were settled by the Vietnamese by the 17th century.On June 16, 1702, the English East India Company founded a settlement on Pulo Condore as an entrepôt for ships plying between India and China. Three years later, on 2 March 1705, the Vietnamese murdered the English agents, destroyed the factory, and expelled the remaining settlers.