Page 414 - Micronesia

Rota Guide Map
Rota (Chamorro: Luta) also known as the “Peaceful Island”, is the
southernmost island of the United States Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the second southernmost of
the Marianas Archipelago. It lies approximately 40 nautical miles (74
km) north-northeast of the United States territory of Guam. Rota is
12.3 miles (19.8 km) long and 4.2 mi (6.8 km) wide.[1] Its coastline
is about 38 mi (61 km) long. The highest point on Rota is Mt. Mani-
ra which is 495 meters (1,624 ft). Rota is 47 nmi (87 km) north of
Guam, 63 nmi (117 km) south of Tinian and 73 nmi (135 km) south
of Saipan.
In 1521, the first European to see Rota was the lookout on Ferdinand
Magellan’s ship Victoria, Lope Navarro. However, Magellan’s armada
of three ships did not stop until they reached Guam, so the first Euro- World War II, Rota became part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific
pean to arrive in Rota (in 1524), was the Spanish navigator Juan Se-
bastián Elcano, who annexed it together with the rest of the Mariana
Islands on behalf of the Spanish Empire.
As with the other islands of the northern Marianas, Rota was sold to
the German Empire under the German–Spanish Treaty of 1899. In
World War I, the islands were occupied by the Japanese Empire. In
1919, the League of Nations formally recognized Japanese control un-
der the South Pacific Mandate. However, development of Rota lagged
behind that of neighboring Tinian and Saipan, with only 1000 Japa-
nese residents arriving by the end of December 1935, most of them
employed in raising sugar cane and in sugar refining. The refinery was
not economical, and it was closed three years later.
The Japanese garrison during World War II consisted of 1,031 Im-
perial Japanese Army men of the 10th Independent Mixed Brigade,
under the command of Major Shigeo Imagawa, and about 600 Impe-
rial Japanese Navy men. During the final stages of the war, Rota was
occasionally bombed by aircraft of the U.S. Navy in an attempt to si-
lence its radio transmitter that was providing warning to the Japanese
home islands upon the take-off of B-29 Superfortress bomber attacks
from Tinian, Saipan, and Guam, but the island was never invaded by
American troops. On September 2, 1945, one hour after the surren-
der of Japan, a detachment of U.S. Marines arrived on Rota to accept
the surrender of the Japanese garrison, which numbered 947 Imperial
Japanese Army and 1853 Imperial Japanese Navy. After the end of
Islands. Since 1978, the island has been a part of the Commonwealth
of the Northern Mariana Islands.
People: The indigenous people of Rota are called Chamorro. They are
friendly and it is customary to treat visitors with respect and wave in
greeting when meeting or passing in the road.
Things to do: Scuba diving, fishing, coconut crab hunting, lobster
hunting, star gazing, kayaking, hiking, golfing, snorkeling tours and
self guided island tours.