The Arrival of Europeans in India [1498]

Discovery of the sea route to India

• The Age of Discovery was a period from the 15th century to the 17th century during which Europeans were exploring and colonized various regions across the globe.
• The extensive overseas exploration was started by the Portuguese and Spanish. Later Dutch, English, and French also joined the exploration.
• Portuguese were the first to explore outside the Mediterranean through the maritime expeditions of the Canary Islands (100 km west of Morocco) in 1336.
• The Portuguese were the first to discover the sea route to India via the Cape of Good Hope Under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama.
• It was undertaken during the reign of King Manuel I in 1495–1499.
• Vasco da Gama reached Kappakadavu, near Calicut (Kerala) on May 27, 1498.

Arrival of Portuguese

• The Portuguese were the first Europeans to come to trade in India.
• Vasco da Gama:
  • Vasco da Gama reached Calicut on May 27, 1498.
  • He managed to secure trading rights from the Zamorin, Calicut’s ruler despite objections from Arab merchants.
  • Vasco da Gama again visited in 1502.
  • He was the Viceroy of Portuguese India (2nd Viceroy after Almeida) from 5 September 1524  until his death on 24 December 1524.
• The First Viceroy Almeida (1505-1509):
  • Francisco de Almeida was appointed the first viceroy of Portuguese India to look after the affairs of India.
  • He won the naval battle against the combined Egyptian and Gujarathi fleet of Diu in 1508.
  • He established his base of operations at Fort Manuel in Kochi.
  • It was the first Portuguese fort in Asia.
• Afonso de Albuquerque (1509-1515):
  • He initiated the plan of intermarriage between the Portuguese and the natives of India.
  • Afonso de Albuquerque captured Goa from the Bijapur Sultanate in 1510 with the help of a privateer ^[1] Timoja.
  • After this conquest, Goa became the primary anchorage for the Portuguese Armadas arriving in India.
• Armadas: Armadas were fleets of ships that came from Portugal annually to India.
• Capital of the Portuguese India:
  • Cochin was the capital of the Portuguese India from 1505 to 1530.
  • The capital was transferred from Cochin to Goa in 1530 by Nuno da Cunha (Governor of Portuguese India).
• In 1661 the Portuguese gifted the island of Bombay to King Charles II as a wedding dowry.
• Last Governor-General: Manuel Antonio Vassalo e Silva was the 128th and the last Governor-General of Portuguese India.
• The Indian Army invaded and captured Goa in 1961.
• Portugal only recognized Indian control after the Carnation Revolution and the fall of the Estado Novo regime by a treaty signed on 31 December 1974.

Portuguese Architecture in India

Basilica of Bom Jesus	The Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa is known for its Baroque architecture and housing the remains of St. Francis Xavier. It is located in Old Goa. It is renowned as one of the Seven Wonders of Portuguese Origin in the World. This list comprises seven remarkable landmarks built by the Portuguese during the six centuries of the Portuguese Empire (1415-1999).
Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount	Location: Goa Architectural Style: Baroque with Mannerist influences
Church of St. Augustine
Diu Fortress	It was built in 1535. It is also renowned as one of the Seven Wonders of Portuguese Origin in the World.
Castella de Aguada	Mumbai
Chapora Fort	Goa
Cranganore Fort	Thrissur, Kerala
Fort Aguada	Location: Goa It is a Monument of National Importance in Goa.
Fort Vasai (Fort Bassein)	It is a ruined fort in the town of Vasai (Bassein).

Arrival of The Dutch

Arrival of The English

• English East India Company:
  • The East India Company was founded in 1600. Queen Elizabeth herself was a shareholder in this company.
  • It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia), and later with East Asia.
• Captain Hawkins: In 1609, Captain Hawkins met with Emperor Jahangir to obtain royal permission to build a factory^[2] at Surat but failed due to Portuguese opposition.
• Sir Thomas Roe:
  • In 1615 AD, Sir Thomas Roe came to the Mughal court as an English ambassador.
  • He succeeded in getting ‘Farman‘ which recognized the right of the British to set up “factories” and trade everywhere within the Mughal Empire.
  • He set up factories at Agra, Ahmedabad, and Broach.
• First English Factory: The English established their first factory at Masulipatnam in 1611.
• Fort St. George: In 1640 they acquired the site of modern Chennai from the Raja of Chandragiri where they built the fort St. George.
• Farman of 1691:
  • The East India Company in 1691 got a Farman from Nawab Ibrahim Khan. The company was exempted from paying the customs duties in Bengal in return for an annual payment of Rs. 3000/-only, whereas other European companies had to pay 3 percent as duties.
  • This right was later ratified by the Imperial Farman granted by the Mughal Emperor Farruksiyar in 1715.

English Trading Posts
Masulipatnam	Got Farman from the Sultan of Golconda in 1632
Fort St George, Madras	permitted to build a fortified factory near Madras from the Raja of Chandragiri (1639)
Hugli
Patna
Dhaka
Cossimbazar

Arrival of The Danes

• Admiral Ove Gjedde (envoy of King of Denmark Christian IV) got trading right from Nayak of Tanjore.
• The first Danish trading post in India was built in Tranquebar (now Tharangambadi) on the Coromandel Coast in 1620.
• They built Fort Dansborg in Tranquebar.
• Serampore (Bengal) was a Danish Settlement under the name Frederiknagore.
• Hermann Abbestee was the first governor of Danish India.

Arrival of The French

Arrival of Europeans in India UPSC Question

Will be uploaded soon.

Arrival of Europeans in India PDF

Arrival of Europeans in India

loges – small trading post inside other towns

1. A privateer is a private person or vessel that engages in maritime warfare. ↩︎
2. Commercial bases were then called “factories”. ↩︎

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