The Portuguese in India | History Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Arrival of Portuguese

• Vasco da Gama's arrival in Calicut on the Malabar coast in 1498, accompanied by three ships and guided by a Gujarati pilot named Abdul Majid, is widely seen as the start of a new era in the relationship between Asia and Europe.

Objectives of Finding the Sea Route and Factors Behind the Advent of the Portuguese:

• Asia and Europe engaged in trade since ancient times.
• Direct sea relations between the two were a realization of an old aspiration.
• Greek historian Herodotus noted the Phoenicians rounding Africa in the 6th century BC.
• The fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 disrupted existing trade routes.
• Indian goods reached European markets through Arab Muslim intermediaries.
• The Red Sea trade route became a lucrative state monopoly for Islamic rulers.
• Land routes to India were similarly controlled by Arabs.
• Europeans were eager to discover a direct sea route to India.
• A direct sea link with India would undermine the Arab and Turkish monopoly over trade in eastern goods.
• For the Portuguese, establishing a sea route to India would deal a severe blow to Muslims.
• The Arabs and Turks were traditional adversaries of Christianity.
• There was a growing threat to Europe due to the rising military and naval strength of the Turks.
• The Portuguese hoped their explorations in Africa would lead them to the legendary Kingdom of Prester John.
• This would enable them to launch attacks on Muslims from two fronts.
• Thus, commercial and religious objectives mutually reinforced and justified each other.

Interest Shown by the Pope:

• In 1453, the Pope expressed his increasing interest in the search for a sea route to India by issuing a Bull that granted Portugal the right to claim lands "in perpetuity" beyond the Cape in Africa up to India. This was contingent upon converting the local "heathens" to Christianity.

Effect of Renaissance:

• The Renaissance, which swept across 15th-century Europe, played a significant role in rekindling interest in the search for a sea route to India. It challenged established ways of thinking and fostered a spirit of exploration.
• The Renaissance era encouraged exploration, there was a growing interest in oriental trade, evidenced by the influx of Genoese traders into the Indian Ocean from the 13th century onwards.
• Notable figures like the Venetians Nicolo Conti and Barbosa, as well as the Russian Nikitin, were among the many who traveled the Indian Ocean and reached India during this period.

Economic Development of Europe:

• Many regions of Europe were experiencing rapid economic development during this time.
• This was marked by the expansion of arable land, the introduction of improved ploughs, scientific crop management techniques such as crop rotation.
• An increased supply of meat contributed to this economic prosperity.
• This economic prosperity led to a heightened demand for oriental luxury goods.
• As dietary habits changed with greater meat consumption, the need for spices to enhance the flavor of salted meat also grew.
• Due to winter fodder shortages, much of the cattle in Europe had to be slaughtered.
• The meat was preserved by salting, making oriental spices even more essential.
• Oriental spices became crucial for making salted meat more palatable.

Advances in Ship-Building and Navigation:

• During this period, Europe made significant strides in ship-building and navigation techniques.
• This progress fueled a widespread eagerness across Europe for adventurous sea voyages aimed at exploring the uncharted territories of the East.

Genoese Interest:

• Genoese were the main competitors of the Venetians in Europe.
• Although the Genoese were involved in distributing oriental goods in Europe, they had been overshadowed by the Venetians.
• Both Venice and Genoa, despite their success in trade, were too small to challenge the powerful Ottoman Turks.
• The capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453 severely impacted the Genoese.
• The Black Sea ports, crucial for their trade, became increasingly inaccessible.
• This loss, combined with their ongoing rivalry with Venice, prompted Genoa to assist Portugal and Spain.
• Genoa provided ships, financial support, navigational expertise in their quest for a sea route to India.
• Christopher Columbus, a Genoese explorer, 'discovered' America in 1492 while searching for a route to India.
• During this period, Portugal emerged as a leader in Christendom's resistance to Islam.
• The quest for an ocean route to India became a fixation for Prince Henry of Portugal, known as the 'Navigator'.
• He aimed to bypass Muslim control over the eastern Mediterranean.

Arrival of Vasco Da Gama in India (1498)

• Vasco Da Gama arrived in Calicut, India, in May 1498 with three ships, guided by a Gujarati pilot named Abdul Majid.
• The Hindu ruler of Calicut, the Zamorin (Samuthiri), welcomed Da Gama, believing in the mutual benefits of trade.
• The Zamorin allowed the Portuguese to trade in spices and set up a factory along the coast.
• Despite opposition from Arab merchants, Da Gama secured trading rights from the Zamorin.
• He faced difficulties in paying customs duties and prices in gold.
• The Portuguese aimed to monopolize the spice trade to Europe.
• They attempted to search Arab trading ships, leading to conflicts.
• After a violent confrontation where Portuguese in the factory were killed, the Portuguese retaliated.
• Da Gama spent three months in India and returned to Portugal with a lucrative cargo.
• The spices brought back were worth sixty times the cost of the entire expedition.
• This success prompted other European merchants to seek direct trade in India.
• In 1502, Da Gama returned with a larger fleet and demanded the expulsion of Muslim merchants.
• The Zamorin refused, leading Da Gama to launch a brutal attack on Calicut.
• He established forts in Cochin, Quilon, other places to control Malabar trade.
• Da Gama's actions marked a shift from the Asian tradition of open trade to a Mediterranean approach.
• The Portuguese aimed to monopolize eastern trade, particularly against Arab competitors.
• This led to the establishment of Calicut, Cannanore, Cochin as key Portuguese trade centers.
• Under the guise of protecting their trading activities, the Portuguese fortified these centers.
• This altered the existing trading dynamics in the Indian Ocean.

Portuguese Governors in India

Francisco De Almeida

• In 1505, the King of Portugal appointed a governor in India for a three-year term with the condition to establish four forts on the southwestern Indian coast: at Anjediva Island, Cannanore, Cochin, Quilon.
• He was given enough military force to protect Portuguese interests.
• Almeida aimed to make the Portuguese the dominant power in the Indian Ocean through his Blue Water Policy(cartaze system).
• He believed that naval power was crucial for controlling India, stating, “As long as you may be powerful at sea you will hold India as yours; and if you do not possess this power, little will avail you a fortress on shore.”
• In response to the rising Portuguese power, the Sultan of Egypt equipped a fleet to challenge them, joined by ships from the ruler of Gujarat, the Zamorin of Calicut and the rulers of Bijapur and Ahmednagar.
• After an initial success where Almeida’s son was killed, the combined fleet was defeated by the Portuguese in 1509.
• This victory established Portuguese naval supremacy in the Indian Ocean, allowing them to expand operations into the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.

Alfonso de Albuquerque

• Alfonso de Albuquerque, who succeeded Almeida as the Portuguese governor in India, is considered the true founder of Portuguese power in the East.
• He completed this task before his death.
• Albuquerque advocated for a policy aimed at dominating oriental commerce by establishing forts at strategic locations in Asia and Africa.
• This policy was supported by a strong navy.
• He believed that a dominion based solely on a navy would not last.
• Albuquerque argued that without forts, rulers would neither trade nor maintain friendly relations.
• Under Albuquerque, the Portuguese strengthened their control by introducing a permit system for other ships.
• They exerted influence over major shipbuilding centers in the region.
• The lack of timber in the Gulf and Red Sea regions for shipbuilding aided Portuguese objectives.
• Albuquerque initiated this policy by easily acquiring Goa from the Sultan of Bijapur in 1510.
• This acquisition marked the first piece of Indian territory under European control since Alexander the Great.
• Goa, with its excellent natural harbor and fort, was strategically located to command Malabar trade.
• From Goa, the Portuguese monitored Deccan rulers' activities.
• They extended their presence on the mainland by blockading and sacking Bijapuri ports Danda-Rajouri and Dabhol.
• This action crippled Bijapur's sea trade.
• From their base at Goa, the Portuguese established forts at Colombo in Sri Lanka, Achin in Sumatra, Malacca port.
• These forts allowed them to control the narrow gulf between the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra.
• The Portuguese also set up a station at Socotra Island at the mouth of the Red Sea.
• They besieged Aden, which Vasco da Gama had failed to capture.
• However, he forced the ruler of Ormuz to allow the Portuguese to establish a fort there.
• During this period, the Portuguese aimed to control the forts of Diu and Cambay, key centers of Gujarati trade.
• They made two unsuccessful attempts to capture Diu in 1520-21.
• These attempts faced defeat by its governor, Ahmad Ayaz.
• Notably, Albuquerque abolished the practice of sati.
• He encouraged his men to marry Indian women to secure a permanent Portuguese population in India.

Nino da Cunha

• Nino da Cunha served as the governor of Portuguese territories in India from 1528 to 1538.
• He relocated the headquarters of the Portuguese government in India from Cochin to Goa.
• While the Gujarat-Turkish alliance was forming, a greater threat emerged from the Mughals.
• Humayun launched an attack on Gujarat.
• Bahadur Shah of Gujarat sought assistance from the Portuguese by granting them the island of Bassein and its dependencies and revenues in 1534.
• He also promised them a base in Diu.
• Bahadur Shah's relationship with the Portuguese soured when Humayun withdrew from Gujarat in 1536.
• After the Mughals were expelled from Gujarat, Bahadur Shah appealed to the Ottoman sultan for help.
• He attempted to limit Portuguese expansions at Diu.
• The Portuguese engaged in negotiations, during which Bahadur Shah was killed in 1537.
• Subsequent attempts to reclaim Diu were unsuccessful.
• The Portuguese acquired several territories from the Sultans of Gujarat, including:
  (i) Daman (occupied in 1531, formally ceded in 1539);
  (ii) Salsette, Bombay, Baçaim (occupied in 1534);
  (iii) Diu (ceded in 1535).
• Da Cunha tried to expand Portuguese influence in Bengal by settling many Portuguese nationals there, with Hooghly as their headquarters.
• During this period, the Ottoman Turks, under Sultan Sulaiman, were preparing to attack Europe.
• The Turks had defeated the ruler of Iran in 1514 and conquered Syria, Egypt, Arabia.
• The sultan of Gujarat sent an embassy to the Ottoman ruler congratulating him on his victories.
• The Ottoman ruler expressed a desire to combat the Portuguese.
• There was a continuous exchange of embassies and letters between the two countries.
• After expelling the Portuguese from the Red Sea in 1529, a strong fleet under Sulaiman Rais was sent to assist Bahadur Shah.
• Bahadur Shah welcomed this assistance, two Turkish officials were appointed as governors of Surat and Diu.
• One of these officials, Rumi Khan, later gained fame as a master gunner.
• In 1531, the Portuguese attacked Daman and Diu, but Rumi Khan successfully repelled the attack.
• The Portuguese established a fort at Chaul further down the coast.
• The Turks made their largest naval display against the Portuguese in Indian waters in 1536.
• Many sailors in this fleet were pressed into service from Venetian galleys in Alexandria.
• The fleet, commanded by the 82-year-old Sulaiman Pasha, governor of Cairo, appeared before Diu in 1538.
• The Turkish admiral's arrogance led to the Sultan of Gujarat withdrawing his support.
• After two months of siege, the Turkish fleet retreated upon hearing news of a formidable Portuguese armada en route to relieve Diu.

Note:

• The threat from the Turks to the Portuguese continued for another twenty years.
• During this time, the Portuguese strengthened their position by taking control of Daman from its ruler.
• A final attack by the Ottomans was led by Ali Rais in 1554.

Favourable Conditions for Portuguese

• In India, except for Gujarat, ruled by the powerful Mahmud Begarha, the northern part was much divided among many small powers.
• In the Deccan, the Bahmani Kingdom was breaking up into smaller kingdoms. None of the powers had a navy worth its name, nor did they think of developing their naval strength.
• In the Far East, the imperial decree of the Chinese emperor limited the navigational reach of the Chinese ships.
• As for the Arab merchants and ship-owners who until then dominated the Indian Ocean trade, they had nothing to match the organization and unity of the Portuguese. Moreover, the Portuguese had cannons placed on their ships.

Technological Comparison:

• Technologically, the Indo-Arab ships and the Chinese junk could match the Portuguese galleons and caravels in strength, holding capacity for goods, ability to sail against the wind with their lateen sails.
• However, the Portuguese were superior in the maneuverability of their ships, which were faster and more agile compared to the Indo-Arab vessels.
• The hulls of Portuguese ships were also stronger, capable of withstanding cannon fire better than their rivals’ ships.

Portuguese Determination:

• Ultimately, it was the determination and resolve of the Portuguese sailors that played a crucial role in their success.
• Indian powers, more accustomed to fighting pirates, were not prepared to engage in extended sea battles, especially without the backing of their own rulers.

Indian Powers' Reaction:

• Indian powers accepted Portuguese naval dominance because it did not threaten their political positions on the mainland.
• The Portuguese presence also did not negatively impact their income from overseas trade.
• Engaging in naval conflict with the Portuguese seemed difficult, uncertain of success, unlikely to yield significant financial returns.

Religious Policy of the Portuguese

• The Portuguese were eager to promote Christianity and sought to persecute all Muslims.
• Initially, the Portuguese were intolerant towards Muslims but relatively tolerant towards Hindus. However, this changed with the introduction of the Inquisition in Goa, leading to the persecution of Hindus as well.
• Despite their intolerant behavior, the Jesuits made a positive impression at the court of Akbar, the Mughal emperor, due to his interest in theological discussions.
• In September 1579, Akbar wrote to the authorities in Goa, requesting the presence of two learned priests.
• The Church authorities in Goa saw this as an opportunity to convert the emperor and his court to Christianity and eagerly accepted the invitation.
• Jesuit priests Rodolfo Aquaviva and Antonio Monserrate arrived in Fatehpur Sikri in 1580 but returned in 1583, disappointing the Portuguese hopes of converting Akbar.
• The Jesuit priests maintained contact with the Mughal emperors even during the reign of Jahangir.

Portuguese Lose Favour with the Mughals

• In 1608, Captain William Hawkins arrived in Surat with a letter from King James I of England, seeking permission to trade in India.
• The Portuguese tried to Hawkins from reaching the Mughal court but failed.
• Jahangir, the Mughal emperor, welcomed Hawkins in 1609, accepting his gifts and appointing him as a Mansabdar of 400.
• The English were granted trading rights, angering the Portuguese.
• A truce was eventually established between the Portuguese and the Mughal emperor.
• In 1612, the English ship Dragon, led by Captain Best, defeated a Portuguese fleet.
• Jahangir was impressed by the English victory, as he had no navy of his own.
• In 1613, the Portuguese angered Jahangir by attacking Mughal ships and imprisoning Muslims.
• During Shah Jahan's reign, the Portuguese lost their advantages in the Mughal court.

Capture of Hooghly:

• In 1579, the Portuguese established a trading post near Satgaon in Bengal, later moving trade to the new port of Hooghly.
• They monopolized salt production, built their own customs house, enforced duties on tobacco.
• The Portuguese also engaged in a brutal slave trade, capturing Hindu and Muslim children to raise as Christians.
• They even seized two slave girls from Mumtaz Mahal.
• On June 24, 1632, Shah Jahan ordered the siege of Hooghly, which lasted three months.
• The Mughals suffered 1,000 casualties but captured 400 prisoners, who were given the choice to convert to Islam or become slaves.
• Persecution of Christians continued for a time but eventually subsided.

Impact of the Portuguese on Indian Trade

• End of Unarmed Trade: The Portuguese disrupted the era of unarmed open sea trade in Indian waters, challenging the Muslim monopoly on trade in the western Indian Ocean and their trade of eastern goods to Europe.
• Monopoly Demands: From the moment they arrived in Calicut, the Portuguese demanded a complete monopoly over trade, seeking to oust other merchants, both Indian and foreign.
• Armed Trade: Portuguese ships, equipped with arms and ammunition, threatened other merchants, confiscating their merchandise and vessels, marking the beginning of armed trade.
• Introduction of the Cartaz System: In 1502, the Portuguese introduced the Cartaz system, demanding exclusive trading rights in Calicut. When the Zamorin refused, Vasco da Gama declared war on all ships in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean.
• Cartaz Explained: The Cartaz was a sea-pass or trading license issued by the Portuguese, allowing ships to trade without fear of attack. It was first issued in 1502.
• Royal Monopoly: The Portuguese declared a royal monopoly over trade in spices, drugs, dyes (including indigo), copper, silver, gold, arms, ammunition, war horses.
• Trade Restrictions: Traders from any country, including Portuguese private traders and royal officials, were prohibited from trading in these commodities without a permit.
• Control and Enforcement: The Cartaz aimed to control and enforce Portuguese trade monopoly across the Indian Ocean, ensuring merchants paid taxes at Portuguese trading posts.
• Search and Seizure: The Portuguese searched ships suspected of trading without a Cartaz or in banned commodities. Ships suspected of carrying contraband could be sunk or captured, the crew enslaved.
• Pass Purchases: Rulers like Akbar, Nilam Shah of Ahmednagar, Adil Shah of Bijapur, kings of Cochin, the Zamorins of Calicut, the rulers of Cannanore purchased passes from the Portuguese to send their ships to various destinations.

Monopoly Trade

• When the Portuguese arrived in India, they found merchants from various parts of the world engaged in trade along the coastal regions.
• Vasco da Gama reported in 1498 that merchants from places like Mecca, Tenasseri, Pegu, Ceylon, Turkey, Egypt, Persia, Ethiopia, Tunis, different parts of India were trading at the port of Calicut.
• Chinese merchants and those from the Red Sea areas also frequented Indian ports, there was no record of any group demanding exclusive trading rights or setting apart commodities for specific traders.
• However, the situation changed significantly with the arrival of the Portuguese.
• The Portuguese pressured Indian kings to prohibit other merchants from trading at their ports and declared certain commodities off-limits for other traders.
• They sought to establish a monopoly on trade through treaties with Indian rulers.
• The establishment of Portuguese fortresses at strategic locations, patrols by their ships and the requirement of passes for other vessels were all efforts to enforce their monopoly in Asian waters.

Trade of the Indian Rulers and Merchants:

• The Portuguese attempts at establishing a total monopoly did not completely uproot trade conducted by Indian rulers and merchants.
• The king of Cannanore collected passes from the Portuguese to send his vessels laden with commodities to Cambay and Hormuz.
• He imported horses from these places, despite this being identified by the Portuguese as a monopoly item.
• Sometimes, such vessels risked confiscation by the Portuguese.
• The kings of Tanur, Challe and Calicut on the Malabar coast faced similar circumstances.
• Nobles of Gujarat continued their trade despite the Portuguese monopoly.
• Malik Gopi, Malik Ayaz, Khwaja Sofar, others interested in trade plied their ships with or without passes from the Portuguese.

Monopoly was not very effective:

• The local and foreign merchants settled in India carried on their trade with or without cartaz.
• The Portuguese soon found that they stood to lose more on land than gain on sea by continuing their practices, because traders who lost on sea put pressure on their governments to retaliate against Portuguese trade in their areas.
• It was impossible to police trade along huge coasts of Asia.
• Sea-pirates preying on Portuguese ships were active in areas such as Oman, Malabar, South-East Asia, Portuguese policies brought them greater encouragement and support from traders and small rulers.

Pepper Trade:

• 60,000 quintals of pepper produced annually between Calicut and Cape Comorin.
• Only 15,000 quintals were delivered to the Portuguese factories.
• The remaining three-fourths were taken to other ports.
• This practice was termed illegal by the Portuguese.
• The Portuguese were not willing to enhance the price of pepper agreed upon in 1503.
• Producers had no alternative but to supply pepper to merchants.
• Merchants would send pepper to other centres of trade without Portuguese knowledge.

Trade by Arabs and Gujaratis:

• The Arabs and Gujarati traders found ways to get around the Portuguese trade embargo and regulation.
• Even Portuguese private traders were unhappy due to royal monopoly and Cartaz and royal officials who received small salary often bribed by private traders (Portuguese, Arabs, Gujarati etc).
• Several Portuguese officials conducted their own private trade in various commodities without the knowledge of their government.

Portuguese Control Challenges:

• Portuguese control over the Indian Ocean remained incomplete due to their failure to capture Aden.
• The failure to capture Aden hindered their ability to control entry to the Red Sea.
• The Turkish conquest of Syria, Egypt and Arabia complicated Portuguese efforts.
• Expansion of Turkish naval power in the eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea affected Portuguese blockades.
• The Portuguese monopoly was never effective in the Red Sea zone.
• At the other end of the Indian Ocean, Portuguese control over the Spice Islands weakened.

Naval Conflicts:

• The Portuguese had to contend with a naval power there willing to take on their warships.
• Using the traditional Javanese naval skills, Sumatra ruler, Sultan Ali Mughayat Shah was able to defeat the Portuguese in many naval skirmishes and to capture large number of guns from the Portuguese to fortify Acheh.
• He also approached the Ottoman Sultan for military equipment. The Ottomans supplied bronze guns of a calibre to enable Acheh in north Sumatra to withstand a siege.

Emergence of Acheh:

• This enabled Acheh to emerge as a major centre of the export of spices, in competition to Malacca which was under Portuguese control.
• Arabs and Gujaratis who were well entrenched at Malacca, used Acheh as a centre for export of spices to the Red Sea via the Laccadives, thereby bypassing the Portuguese controlled Malabar waters.

Factors Limiting Portuguese Success:

• Important factors in limiting the success of the Portuguese were:
• The structure of the Asian trade network
• The strength and resourcefulness of the Asian merchants, Arabs, Gujaratis, Tamils and others, who had long experience of operating the system
• The naval and military strength of Turkey and of the ruler of north Sumatra
• The internal limitations of the Portuguese and of the working of the cartaz system in the Portuguese Empire of India (Estado da India)

Cartaz System:

• The complete control over the oceanic trade by using the Cartaz system did not succeed much and the rules regarding giving Cartaz to local traders had to be liberalized.
• This included Muslims traders. Trade in horses which was exclusively in the hands of Muslims, was a highly profitable trade.
• The Muslims were also active in trade in many other commodities, such as textile products, glass, aromatics and coffee in which the Portuguese had neither the money nor the ships to engage themselves.
• Hence, the dictates of trade and profit soon overcame religious prejudices.

Portuguese Efforts and Trade:

• Portuguese effort to push out the Muslims from the trade in oriental goods.
• Establishment of a Portuguese monopoly over the trade in West Asia had only limited success.
• By the middle of the sixteenth century, large volumes of spices were brought to Lisbon.
• Spices were marketed in Europe mainly through Antwerp, Black Sea ports, markets of the Levant and Egypt.
• The Portuguese used the Cartaz system to control oceanic trade.
• Control was not complete until other European powers like the Dutch and English appeared in the 17th century.

Limitations of Portugal in Trade

• Portugal was a small country with limited financial resources, despite its rapid development in commerce.
• German and Italian merchants became the main distributors of eastern goods across Europe, as Portugal lacked the means to do so.
• There was a limited demand in Asia for European goods in exchange for eastern products, necessitating the export of precious metals, particularly silver.
• Unlike Spain, Portugal did not have silver mines in America and relied heavily on Italian and German financiers.
• The Portuguese king's expectation that control over the coastal trade of India would finance the export of eastern goods to Europe was misguided.
• Initially, Portuguese trade to Europe was confined to 12-13 ships per year from Lisbon to India.
• By the late 16th century, private Portuguese traders increased their share of trade to Europe to over 90 percent, focusing on textiles and precious stones.
• Private traders financed this trade through extensive involvement in Asian trade.
• The Portuguese government viewed its enterprise in the western Indian Ocean as a redistributive enterprise, earning income by taxing the trade of others rather than expanding trade.
• True expansion of trade between Europe and the East did not occur until the arrival of the Dutch and English in the 17th century.

Significance of the Portuguese

Contribution to the Political System:

• The Portuguese had a minimal impact on the political system in Asia due to their small numbers.
• It was difficult for them to capture and maintain large territories in India or elsewhere.
• They wisely confined their control to defensible islands and coastal forts that could be supplied by sea.
• A prime example of this is the island of Goa, which became their seat of government.
• Through threats and persuasion, the Portuguese were able to induce rulers of small states like Calicut, Cochin, Craganore to act as their agents in the spice trade.
• The Portuguese setup in Goa was overseen by a Governor-General, assisted by a Council that included the Ecclesiastical Head.
• Due to their small numbers, the Portuguese encouraged mixed marriages, leading to the emergence of a new Indo-Portuguese or Goanese society over time.
• This society and government were organized along rigid racial lines, with people of pure Portuguese origin at the top.
• Those of mixed origins were at the bottom and excluded from political power.
• The Church occasionally resorted to the dreaded "auto da fe," or burning at the stake, to eliminate heresy among Christians.
• Overall, the Portuguese contribution to politics and the expansion of world trade was negligible.

Significance of Opening the Direct Sea-Route to India:

• The opening of the direct sea-route to India by the Portuguese facilitated India's closer integration with the expanding world economy.
• This contributed to the growth of a market economy in India.
• This development also marked a shift away from India's previous period of introspection.
• Historians note that the arrival of the Portuguese not only initiated the European era in India but also signaled the emergence of naval power.
• While the Cholas had been a naval power in the past, the Portuguese were the first foreign power to arrive in India by sea.
• New Trade Links:
• The Portuguese established India's trade connections with Japan, the Philippines, Latin America.
• They also paved the way for the arrival of other European powers like Spain, the Dutch, the English, the French.
• In Goa and neighboring areas, the Portuguese introduced their coin, Cruzado, which was also accepted in the regions of the Vijayanagar and Bahmani Kingdoms.

Introduction of Technology:

• The Portuguese were experts in advanced maritime techniques.
• Shipbuilding using western methods was initiated in Cochin under their guidance.
• Their multi-decked ships were robustly built, allowing them to carry heavier armaments.
• In sixteenth-century Malabar, the Portuguese demonstrated military innovations with the use of body armor, matchlock soldiers, guns brought from their ships.
• They may have influenced the Mughal use of field guns and the artillery of the stirrup.
• Technologies like printing and clocks, introduced in Goa, did not gain acceptance on the mainland.
• The Portuguese were also known for building new roads and irrigation works.

Contribution in Agriculture:

• The Portuguese introduced many products from the Latin American world, such as maize, potato, corn, pineapple, tobacco, chilli, into the Indian rural economy.
• Among these, tobacco became a major trade item.
• Other plants introduced by the Portuguese included papaya (first cultivated in Mexico), cashew (native to Brazil), guava (native to Central and South America).
• The quality of mango and citrus fruits was significantly improved, better plantation varieties of coconut were introduced, along with the establishment of large groves.
• Indian peasants were receptive to new products if they promised a profit.

Cultural Contribution:

• The missionaries and the Church in India were not only teachers but also patrons of the arts, such as painting, carving, sculpting.
• In music, they played a role in interpreting and introducing European art to India, not just Portuguese art.

Decline of the Portuguese

• By the 18th century, the Portuguese in India lost their commercial influence, although some continued trade individually, while others turned to piracy and robbery. Hooghly was even used by some Portuguese as a base for piracy in the Bay of Bengal.
• The decline of the Portuguese was caused by several factors:
• Emergence of Powerful Dynasties: The local advantages held by the Portuguese in India diminished with the rise of strong dynasties in Egypt, Persia, North India, along with the turbulent Marathas becoming their immediate neighbors. The Marathas captured Salsette and Bassein from the Portuguese in 1739.
• Religious Policies: The religious policies of the Portuguese, particularly the activities of the Jesuits, created political fears. Their antagonism towards Muslims and the policy of converting Hindus to Christianity caused resentment among Hindus as well.
• Dishonest Trade Practices: The Portuguese became notorious for their dishonest trade practices and were seen as sea pirates.
• Arrogance and Violence: Their arrogance and violent behavior earned them the animosity of small state rulers and the imperial Mughals.
• Discovery of Brazil: The discovery of Brazil shifted Portuguese colonizing activities to the West.
• The union of Spain and Portugal in 1580-81 forced Portugal into Spain’s wars with England and Holland, severely impacting Portuguese trade monopoly in India.
• The Portuguese monopoly on the sea route to India could not remain secret forever; soon the Dutch and English learned the navigation skills and discovered the route.
• New European trading communities arrived in India, leading to fierce rivalry. The Portuguese had to yield to more powerful and enterprising competitors.
• The Dutch and English had greater resources and stronger motivations for overseas expansion, ultimately overcoming Portuguese resistance.
• Goa, which remained with the Portuguese, lost its importance as a port after the fall of the Vijayanagara empire, rendering its possession insignificant.