Portuguese India - Rise and Decline of Portuguese in india

Discover of  Sea Route to India 

With the discovery of new sea route via the Cape of Good Hope by Vasco da Gama in c. 1489 CE, many trading companies came to India and established their trading centres. At the outset, they entered India as traders but with the passage of time, in order to safeguard their commercial interests, they tried to dominate the politics of India. Thus, the commercial rivalry among the European powers led to political rivalry and this not only brought them in conflict with each other but with Indian rulers too. 

Rise of Portuguese in India 

Prince Henry of Portugal encouraged voyages for discovery of sea route to India. The first Portuguese who succeeded in reaching the Cape of Good Hope was Bartholomew Diaz in c. 1487 CE. Later, following his footsteps, Vasco da Gama reached the port of Calicut on May 21, 1489 CE making it a landmark day in the history of India's maritime trade. He was warmly received by Zamorin, the Hindu ruler of Calicut and he returned to Portugal in the next year making huge profits from the Indian cargo that was worth sixty times the cost of the expedition. In c. 1500 CE, another Portuguese Pedro Alvarez Cabral arrived in India and even Vasco da Gama too made a second trip in c. 1502 CE. The Portuguese established trading stations at Calicut, Cannanore and Cochin.  

The first governor of the Portuguese in India was Francis de Almeida. Later in c. 1510 CE, the second Governor Alfonso-da-Albuquerque captured Goa from the ruler of Bijapur and thereafter, Goa became the capital of the Portuguese settlements in India. Albuquerque also captured Malacca and Ceylon and built a fort at Calicut. He also encouraged his countrymen to marry Indian women. At the time of his death in c. 1515 CE, he left the Portuguese as the strongest naval power in India. 

In c. 1530 CE, Nino-da-cunha acquired Diu and Bassein from Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. Later, Portuguese settlements were also established at Daman, Salsette and Bombay on the west coast and at San Thome near Madras and Hugli in Bengal on the east coast. However, the Portuguese power declined in India by the end of the 16th century and they lost all their possessions in India except Goa, Diu and Daman. In c. 1631 CE, Portuguese lost Hugli during the reign of Shah jahan. In c. 1661 CE,

Portuguese king gave Bombay as a gift to Charles II of England for marrying his sister. The Marathas captured Salsatte and Bassein in c. 1739 CE.

 Some Portuguese gifts to India - (I) Cultivation of tobacco and potato, (II) 1st printing press in India and (III) 1st scientific work on Indian medicinal plants. 

Religious Policy of the Portuguese

The Moors were the bitter enemies of the Portuguese in North Africa. So were the Arabs. Arriving in the East, the Portuguese brought with them the same zeal to promote Christianity and the wish to persecute all Muslims. Intolerant towards the Muslims, the Portuguese were initially quite tolerant towards the Hindus. However, over time, after the introduction of the Inquisition in Goa, there was a change and Hindus were also persecuted. But, in spite of this intolerant behavior, the Jesuits made a good impression at the court of Akbar, mainly due to the Mughal emperor's interest in questions of theology. 

In September 1579, Akbar forwarded a letter to the authorities at Goa, requesting them to send two learned priests. The Church authorities in Goa eagerly accepted the invitation, seeing in it a chance to convert the emperor to Christianity, and with him his court and the people. Jesuit fathers, Rodolfo Aquaviva and Antonio Monserrate, were selected for the purpose, When they reached Fatehpur Sikri on February 28, 1580, they were received with honour. Aquaviva and Monserrate went back in 1583, belying the hopes the Portuguese entertained of Akbar's conversion to the Christian faith. The second mission called by Akbar in 1590 also ended on a similar note in 1592. The third mission, again invited by Akbar, arrived in 1595 at Lahore and continued as a sort of permanent institution, thereby extending its influence on secular politics. Fathers Jerome Xavier and Emanuel Pinheiro were the leaders of the mission, and their letters from the court became very widely known for the information they provided on the later part of Akbar's reign.

Prince Salim, on ascending the throne as Jahangir, assuaged the Muslims by neglecting the Jesuit fathers. Gradually, however, his temporary estrangement from the Jesuits ended, and in 1606, he renewed his favours to them. The elegant and spacious church at Lahore was allowed to be retained by them along with the collegium or the priests' residence. In 1608, a number of baptisms were carried out in Agra, the priests publicly acting with as much liberty as in Portugal. 

Jahangir's conduct was such that the Jesuit priests became hopeful of bringing him within the Christian fold. However, these hopes were belied. Moreover, arrogant actions on the part of the Portuguese viceroys created a rift with the Mutual emperor.

Causes of Decline of Portuguese in India

1. Weak Successors: Lack of strong and competent Viceroys I India after the death of Alfonso de Albuquerque partly resulted in the disintegration of the Portuguese Empire in India. 

2. Religious Intolerance: The Portuguese coercive methods for forcible conversion of the native people to Christian faith and their act of performing atrocities on non-Christians created bitterness in the minds of the native people. For instance, in 1540, the Portuguese destroyed all Hindu temples in Goa. 

3. Corrupt Portuguese Administration: In Indian was unmindful of the sufferings of the people and was more interested in making fortunes for themselves which eventually resulted in further alienation of the people. 

4. Clandestine Practices in Trade and Piracy: Most of the Portuguese officials in order to supplement their meagre salaried income resorted to earning through clandestine practices of piracy and looted the mercantile goods laden ships of other nations in the Arabian Sea. All these activities resulted in hostile attitude towards the Portuguese. 

5. Establishment of Mughal Empire and Marathas: Along with other rival power like Dutch and English who gave a tough competition to Portuguese and left little scope for them to grow in India. 

6. Diversion of Attention to South America after the Discovery of Brazil: The Portuguese discovered Brazil in Latin America and began to pay much attention to it than its territories in India, which eventually resulted in the neglect of their Indian possessions and thereby gradual weakening of their position in India. 

7. Predominance of Spanish Interests after 1580: When Portugal came under Spain in 1580, the Spanish interests predominated over the Portugal interests which were subsequently side-lined. Not only the Portuguese fortresses in India were not-repaired; the army was not recruited and trades were left unarmed but the Spanish officers who were sent to India were just worthless who tried to only make wealth for themselves. Also, in the interest of Spanish, various restrictions were put on the Portuguese.