I det 19. århundrede kaldte man Comorerne de krigeriske sultaners ørige, fordi Comorerne og Anjouan er domineret af nogle familier, der kalder sig adelige, og som har kæmpet om magten i århundreder. De gennemtvinger deres privilegier over for en stor del af befolkningen ved at bevare de store sociale forskelle, uberettigede økonomiske monopoler og en temmelig middelalderlig samfundsorganisation.
In the 19th century the Comoros were called the islands of the battling sultans, because Grande Comore and Anjouan were dominated by a few supposedly noble families who had been fighting for power for centuries, and who forced the vast majority of the population to bear the weight of their privileges by enforcing vast social inequalities, unjustifiable financial monopolies and a truly medieval structure of society.