The portuguese and Goa,
The Portuguese actually arrived in Goa in 1510, under the command of Alfonso
de Albuquerque. They had tried to establish a base further south, but were
opposed by the Zamorin of Calicut. They faced stiff competition from the Turks,
who controlled the trade routes in the Indian Ocean at that time.
Blessed by its natural harbours and wide rivers, Goa was the ideal base for
the seafaring Portuguese, who determined to wrestle control of the spice route
from the East.
They were also possessed with the strong desire to spread Christianity.
Jesuit missionaries led by St. Francis Xavier arrived in 1542. For a while
Portuguese control was limited to a small area around Old Goa, but by the
middle of the 16th Century, it had expanded to include the talukas (provinces)
of Bardez and Salcete.
The eventual ousting of the Turks and the fortunes made from the spice trade
led to Goa's golden age. At this point Old Goa was the largest city in the
East, boasting of no less than 300 churches, within the town, and having a
population of over 40,000 people. The colony became the viceregal seat of the
Portuguese Empire of the East, which included various African port cities, East
Timor and Macao. Decline set in, however due to competition from the British,
French and Dutch in the 17th Century. Combined with Portuguese inability to
adequately service its far flung Empire, its power rapidly decayed,
Goa reached its present size in the 18th Century after a series of
annexations. In1763 the provinces of Ponda, Sanguem, Quepem and Canacona were
added, followed by Pednem, Bicholim and Satari in 1788.
The Marathas nearly vanquished the Portuguese in the late 18th Century. Then
during the Napoleonic wars in Europe, there was a brief occupation by the
British, who had by then occupied most of India, Afghanistan, Burma and Ceylon.
But it was not until 1961, when India, by then, an independent republic under
Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, ejected them. The Portuguese finally disappeared from the
subcontinent.
But, even after 450 years of colonial rule, Goa has retained a distinctive
blend of cultures.
From Reagan D'costa
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