Advent Of The Europeans

The great Trading center Constantinople was captured by Ottoman Turks in 1453 A.D. They captured the trading center so that they can create a problem for the European merchants by blocking the land route which passes through Afghanistan.

Francisco-de-Almeida was the first Viceroy of Portuguese possessions in India. He followed policy to increase the Portuguese naval power so that they can become the ultimate masters of Indian Ocean. It was during his rule that Portuguese defeated Arab Traders.

The English East India Company was started in 1600 A.D. Their purpose was to trade with the eastern countries. It was initially started by the 100 London Merchants who received the permission from Queen Elizabeth I.

Pondicherry became the headquarters of the French settlement in India. The ruler of Tanjore gave them the place in the south of Madras in 1674 and later they established their headquarters in Pondicherry which is in South.

Bijapur

Explanation: The Portuguese captured Goa from the Sultan of Bijapur. Albuquerque, the second viceroy of the Portuguese in India was a great conqueror. He captured Goa in 1510 and made it the capital.

Jahangir

Explanation: Caption William Hawkins visited the court of the Mughal emperor Jahangir. The king of England, James I sent captain William Hawkins to get the permission from Mughal emperor to establish a factory in Surat.

1615

Explanation: Sir Thomas Roe arrived in India in 1615. He was sent by the king of England, James I to the Mughal emperor Jahangir, who gave them the permission to set up their Trading centers at Agra, Baruch, and Ahmedabad.

Dupleix

Explanation: Dupleix came to India in 1742 as the Governor of the French possessions. Under his leadership, French was able to increase their area of influence.

Explanation: 1. Vasco –da-Gama was a Portuguese sailor who came to India in 1498. The Hindu ruler of Calicut, king Zamorin gave him a warm welcome. He again came to India in 1501 and successfully set up a factory at Cannanore.

2. Mahe was one of the French settlements. The French East India Company successfully made Pondicherry as their headquarters. They made Chandranagore as the French settlement than they got Mahe in 1725 and Karaikal in 1739.

3. When the Portuguese power ended in India, the Dutch established their power and formed the Dutch East India Company. Their focus was to trade with eastern countries, so they traded with East Asia also known as “Spice Islands.”

4. After the death of Queen Elizabeth I, King James I became the king of England. He was the one who sent Captain William Hawkins and Sir Thomas Roe to meet the Mughal emperor Jahangir so that they could successfully set up their factories in India.

In 1664, Colbert, a minister of Louis XIV (The king of France) established the French East India Company. Even France understood the importance of trading with India. So the French East India Company established their factories at Surat and Masulipatnam.

Francis Day was an English Colonial Administrator who served the British East India Company. He was the one who laid the foundation of Modern Madras by bringing a piece of land from Raja of Chandragiri in 1639.

Fort St. George is located in Madras, present-day Chennai. It was built by Francis Day of British East India Company in 1640. They built this to protect their trade with other countries.

Cape of Good Hope is located on the Atlantic Coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. Vasco-Da-Gama, one of the Portuguese sailors crossed the Cape of Good Hope in 1498 and successfully reached India.

Like other European countries, the Portuguese also established their power in India. They were the first one who discovered a new route to India. The 3 causes for the decline of the Portuguese power in India are as follows:-

• The successors of Albuquerque who was the second viceroy of Portuguese power in India were considered to be weak and incapable. They failed to strengthen Portuguese power in India.

• The religious policy of Portuguese became the major cause of their downfall in India. They forcefully converted the people of Christianity. They destroyed Hindu temples in India and generated hatred for Muslims.

• The Portuguese maintained friendly relations with the Vijayanagara Empire in the south. When Vijayanagara kingdom defeated in the battle of Talikotta, it greatly affected the Portuguese power in India. The fall of Vijayanagara Empire weakened the Portuguese power in India.

Initially, the Portuguese had the possession of the Bombay. When Charles II, king of England married to Catherine, the daughter of Portugal king he received Bombay as a part of the dowry. Later, Charles II gave Bombay on a contract basis to the British East India Company at a nominal rent of �10 in 1668. They set up commercial centers and gradually acquired power in India.

The French East India Company was established by the Colbert, a minister of Louis XIV in 1664. In1668 and in 1669 they set up their factories in Surat and Masulipatnam respectively. They realized the importance of trading with India, so they also established their headquarters in Pondicherry. They wanted the complete possession of India. But in the Carnatic wars, they got defeated, and British got the passion of India.

Alfonso-De- Albuquerque is regarded as the real founder of the Portuguese power in India. He became the second viceroy of the Portuguese power in India. He is known as a great conqueror and captured Malacca in the Far East and built the port of Ormuz in the Persian Gulf. In 1510, he captured Goa from the Sultan of Bijapur and made it the capital. Unlike other Portuguese rulers, he opened schools for Hindus and treated them well. But Muslims became their enemies due to the religious policy of the Portuguese. He is the one who encouraged marriages between Portuguese and Indian. During his rule, the Portuguese maintained a friendly relationship with the Vijayanagara Kingdom. But later the fall of the Vijayanagara kingdom greatly influenced Portuguese and weakened them.

The English East India Company was established in 1600 with the purpose of trading with the East. It was initially started by the 100 London merchants who acquired the permission from the Queen Elizabeth-I. Gradually, in the name of the trade, they have taken complete control of India. Some of the points which give us information about the rule of the English East India Company in India are as follows:-

• They completely took over the power of government and established a monopoly of trade. They used their power to take over the trade of India completely. India was fully exploited as a market and as the producer of raw material for British goods. They were forced to import finished goods.

• To increase their revenue, they established many industries. They used the revenues of Bengal so that they could finance exports to England. This led to the drain of India’s wealth.

• They imposed heavy import duty on the Indian products. The Britishers also introduced machine made and cheap goods in India which made Indian traders lose their trade in the foreign market as well as in India.

• They made many Indian rulers to sign the subsidiary alliance which helped them increase their power. Subsidiary Alliance was a treaty according to which the Britishers would provide their military help to the Indian rulers. This, in turn, benefitted EIC (East India Company) as they gradually took over many states like this.

• Finally, in 1858 under the Indian Act of 1858 East India Company removed from power, and the British government took over the administration of India.

The Dutch established trading centers in India after the decline of the Portuguese power. Like other European powers, they also established the Dutch East India Company in 1602 with the purpose of trading with eastern countries. They focused on East Asia also known as the Spice Islands. This way, they established many trading centers such as Chinsura, Nagapattinam, Surat, Masulipatnam, Broach, Cambay, Ahmedabad, Patna, Kazimbazaar. In 1610, they founded Pulicat near Madras. After the arrival of the English power in India, Dutch power came to an end.

The French were the last of the European powers who decided to start trading with India. In 1664, Colbert, a minister of Louis XIV (The king of France) established the French East India Company. In 1668 and 1669, they established their factories at Surat and Masulipatnam respectively. When they got the place in the south of Madras from the ruler of Tanjore, they made Pondicherry as their headquarters in India. They also built Chandranagore.

Places occupied by Portuguese

Places occupied by Dutch

PLACES OCCUPIED BY THE ENGLISH

PLACES OCCUPIED BY THE DANISH

PLACES OCCUPIED BY THE FRENCH

Fort St. George in Chennai

(a)

Portugal – Portuguese

France – French

Netherlands – Dutch

Denmark – Danish

England - English

Above circled are some of the countries that established trade relations with India in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

(b)

Fort St. George is located in the Coastal city of Madras, presently known as Chennai. It is considered to be first English Fortress in India. It later became the British capital in South India. It was completed on 23 April 1644 at a cost of �3000 this fort is one out of the 163 Megalithic Sites in Tamil Nadu. The fort is named in the honor of the Patron Saint of England. The Fort faces the sea and some fishing villages because of which it soon became the center of merchant activity. It is this fort

which gave birth to the George Town and eventually led to the formation of the city of Madras. This fort is well preserved by the State of Tamil Nadu.

Fort St. David is located in a 100 miles south of Chennai on the Coromandel Coast of India. It was named for the patron saint of Wales. The region near the fort was first under the control of the Nayaks of Gingee so Dutch decided to trade in this region so that they can take advantage of the local manufacturing of the good they chose in the Cuddalore region. In 1608, they received the permission from the Nayaks of Gingee to build a fort at Devanampatnam and the construction was started. Presently, the fort is not in a good condition. .

Vattakottai Fort means ‘Circular fort’ is located near kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu. It was built of Granite blocks, and a part of it extends into the sea. It was built in the 18th century as a defense fortification. In the 18th century, It was constructed under the supervision of Captain Eustachius De Lannoy, an ex-Dutch naval officer of the Dutch East India Company, who became commander of the Travancore Army. The fort is now under the archaeological department. It is popular tourist spot now.

Tellicherry Fort is located in a town in Kannur District of Kerala. It is also known as Thalassery Fort. It is considered to be one of the important trading centers. The French came to Tellicherry to trade and eventually they got the hold of Mahe, Puducherry. The British opened a factory in the north of Tellicherry at the end of the 17th century. It was built out of laterite blocks. The most fascinating structure is the massive walls and the secret tunnels leading to the sea, and the beautifully carved huge doors. The lighthouse makes this site one of stronghold of the European powers in India. Fort is now under the control of Archaeological Survey of India since 1921.

Fort William is located in Calcutta presently known as Kolkata. It was built by the British India when they ruled in Bengal presidency. The fort was named after King William III. It was built of brick and mortar. In front of the Fort is the Maidan, the largest park in the city. An internal guard room became the Black Hole of Calcutta. Today Fort William is the property of the Indian army.