Britisher's Arrival in India

Charter of Queen Elizabeth I

• The British were encouraged to venture in the east due to their victory over Spanish Armada in 1588 and Francis drake's voyage around the globe in 1580.
• On 31st December 1600, Queen Elizabeth I issued a charter with exclusive rights to trade to the company named as 'Governor and Company of Merchants of London trading into East Indies'.

British Arrival in India

SOUTH & WEST INDIA

• As mentioned in the post Portuguese in India ,Captain Hawkings was the first Englishman to arrive in India. He arrived in the court of  Jahangir in 1609.
• Due to Portuguese resistance, he was unable to set up a factory at Surat and left Agra in 1611. However, The English had started trading at Masulipatnam (established factory later in 1616) on the south-eastern coast of India.
• Next year, Captain Thomas Best defeated the Portuguese ship fleet near Surat which impressed Jahangir so much that he granted them the permission to establish a factory at Surat under Thomas Aldworth. They also got permission to establish factories at Agra, Ahmedabad & Broach.
• Britishers were rid of their rivals (Portuguese & Dutch) as  the Dutch won't interfere with the English Company's trade in India as decided by Anglo-Dutch compromise (Dutch in India).
  The Portuguese King gifted Bombay to King Charles II as dowry when he married Portugal princess Catherine in 1662.
• Their position strengthened by the 'Golden Farman' issued by the Sultan of Golconda in 1632 according to which they earned the perks of trading freely in the ports of Golconda on payment of 500 pagodas a year.
• In 1639, they received permission to build a fortified factory at Madras which later became the Fort St. George and replaced Masulipatnam as headquarters of the English settlements in south India.

BENGAL

• The English were allowed to trade in Bengal in 1651 by Shah Shuja, the subahdar of Bengal, in return of Rs. 3000 annually. Factories were opened at Hoogly, Kasimbazar, Patna & Rajmahal.
• The Britishers wanted to fortify the factories and appealed the same to Shayista Khan,  the Mughal governor of Bengal, in 1682. As the appeal wasn't granted, tension became the Mughals and the English increased. Violent clashes forced the Britishers to leave Hoogly and were sent to an unhealthy location.
• Job Charnock, an agent of the company, signed a treaty with the Mughals in February 1690 to negotiate as to return to a place called Sutanuti. Thus, the English factory was established on  February 10, 1691, the day an imperial farman (order) was issued permitting the English to continue trade  on payment of Rs 3000 annually in lieu of all dues.
• Sobha Singh, a zamindar in Bardhaman district, rebelled this farman and gave the English the pretext they were looking for, to fortify their settlement at Sutanuti in 1696. They bought zamindari of surrounding villages of Sutanuti, Gobindpur & Kalikata (Kalighat) and made the settlement fortified named as Fort William in 1700. It also became the seat of the eastern presidency of Calcutta with Sir Charles Eyre as its first president.

Farrukhsiyar's Farmans

• In 1717, the Mughal emperor Farrukhsiyar secured three famous farmans, giving the Company a number of trade concession and privileges. These farmans were also called as Magna Carta of the Company.
• This was issued because William Hamilton, a doctor associated with the company, cured the emperor of  a disease. 
• As per the farmans:-
  * The Company was permitted to issue dastaks (passes) for the transportation of goods.
  * In Bengal, the Company's imports and exports were exempted from additional customs duties on payment of Rs 3000 annually.
  * Similar privileges were enjoyed by the English in Hyderabad and Surat too.
  * It was ordered that the coins of the Company minted at Bombay were to have currency throughout the Mughal empire.

Dutch in India

Advent in East

• Seeking the profit made by Portuguese in the East, the Dutch also undertook voyages in the same direction.
• In 1596, Cornrlis de Houtman was the first Dutchman to arrive at Sumatra & Bantam (Indonesia).
• In 1602, the Dutch (Netherlands) administration formed the Dutch East India Company for trading related activities in the East including India.
• The Company was also empowered to conclude treaties, carry on war (if necessary), take possession of territory and to erect fortresses.

Dutch Settlements in East Indies.

Dutch Settlements in India

• In 1605, the Dutch established their first factory at Masulipatnam (in Andhra).
• They expanded their trading centres at different parts of the nation and thus became a threat to the Portuguese. Their main stronghold in South India was Madras (Chennai) & Nagapatam, which they captured from the Portuguese.
• They offered multiple factories across India  at Pulicat (North of Madras) (1609), Surat (1616), Bimlipatam 1641), Karaikal (1645), Chinsura (1653), Cochin (1663), Kasimbazar (near Murshidabad), Baranagar, Patna & Nagapatnam.
• They mainly made profit through spice trade but carried other commodities  like indigo (manufactured in the Yamuna valley), textile & silk (from Bengal, Gujarat & the Coromandel), opium & rice (from the Ganga valley) and saltpetre (from Bihar).

Anglo-Dutch Rivalry & Decline of Dutch in India

• The Dutch were not alone in this conquest to gain control over the Eastern market. Their competitors were the English, who were rising to prominence in the Eastern trade.
• Commercial rivalry soon transformed into bloodshed . In 1623, the Dutch massacred 10 Englishmen along with 9 Japanese at Amboyna (a place in present day Indonesia, which was captured from the Portuguese by the Dutch in 1605).
• After an extended warfare, both the sides came to a peace negotiation in 1667 according to which the Dutch withdrew from India to concentrate on their more profitable trade in Indonesia, in response of the British withdrawing all their claims on Indonesia.
• In the third Anglo-Dutch war (1672-74), three home bound English ships were captured by the Dutch in the Bay of Bengal. The response by the English resulted the crushing defeat of the Dutch in the battle of Hoogly (November 1759), killing the Dutch ambitions in India.
• They were present in the Indian sub continent from 1605 to 1825.

Portuguese in India

EUROPE IN 15TH CENTURY

• Islamic & Arabic countries, especially Egypt & Persia, controlled the land & sea routes between India & Europe due to geographical advantage(as shown in Figure).
• Europeans, led by Portugal & Spain, wanted to find a new sea route to India as then they needed to pay revenue to these nations to be able to use the Red Sea trade route.
• In 1494, under the Treaty of Tordesillas, rulers of Spain & Portugal divided the non-Christian world amongst themselves by an imaginary line in the Atlantic. As per the treaty, Portugal could claim anything to the east of the line and Spain to the west of the line.
• Expeditions of Portuguese ships heading towards India began and Vasco Da Gama along with his 3 ships, led by a Gujarati pilot named Abdul Majid arrived at Calicut (present day Kozhikode) on 20th May 1498. 



Sea Route used by Vasco Da Gama

Portuguese: From Trading to Ruling

Trading Activities

• Vasco Da Gama returned from India after 3 months with a rich Cargo and sold the Indian merchandise (especially spices) to European market to make huge profits.
• The importance of pepper trade & spices was evident to Europeans who had to purchase Indian commodities through Muslim middlemen and had to spend almost ten times the amount. 
• Tempted by the profit, Pedro Alvarez Cabral,who also discovered Brazil while on his way to India in 1500, came to India to trade for spices. He negotiated and established a factory at Calicut.
• He attacked Arab merchant's ships and seized their cargoes as a retaliation when his factory was attacked by locals. He also bombarded Calicut.
• Later on he made advantageous treaties with the local ruler of  Cochin (present day Kochi) & Cannanore (present day Kannur).
• Due to the immense success of his previous trip, Vasco Da Gama once again visited India in 1501. His rupture with Zamorin (ruler of Calicut) was complete when Zamorin declined to exclude the Arab Merchants for trade in favour of Portugal.
• Calicut, Cochin & Cannanore gradually became important trade centres and in pretext of protecting these factories, they got permission to fortify these centres.

Ruling Activities

• In 1505, Francisco De Almeida was appointed as first governor of India. He was asked to consolidate the position of the Portuguese in India  and to destroy Muslim domination in trade.
• He was opposed by Zamorin along with Sultan of Egypt.
• In 1507, a Portuguese squadron was defeated in a naval battle off Diu by combined Gujarat and Egyptian navies.In this battle Almeida's son was killed.He avenged his son the next year by crushing the two navies.
• His "Blue Water Policy" was to be powerful at the sea rather than building fortress on Indian soil.
• He was succeeded by Afonso de Albuquerque under which Portugal gained strategic control of the Indian Ocean by establishing the bases overlooking all the entrances of the sea.
• Goa was captured from Sultan of Bijapur in 1510. Establishments were settled there as Portuguese arriving from Portugal were encouraged to settle down in Goa and take local wives.
• In 1530, Headquarters of Portuguese government shifted from Cochin to Goa by Nino da Cunha(Governor from 1528 to 1538). He also attempted to increase Portuguese influence in Bengal by settling many Portuguese nationals at Hoogly as one of their headquarters. 

Favourable Conditions for the Portuguese

• The Portuguese were technically advanced and disciplined. They were the first to have canons installed on their ships.
• India were divided into small kingdoms. The Portuguese exploited this fact for their rise in India as they played a role in successive battles for the balance of power between:
  Vijaynagara & the Deccan Sultan
  The Deccanis & the Mughals
  The Mughals & the Marathas

Religious Policy of the Portuguese

• The Portuguese promoted Christianity.They even targeted the Mughal emperor Akbar(1542-1605) & Jahangir to convert them into Christianity from Muslim. But they failed in their attempt because of their aggressive and arrogant behaviour.
• They prosecuted Muslims since the time they arrived in India but were tolerant towards the Hindus.Later on they also started prosecuting the Hindus.

Portuguese Vs. Mughals

• In 1608, Captain William Hawkins along with his ships reached Surat and brought a letter from James I, king of England, to the Mughal court of Jahangir(1569-1627), requesting permission to do business in India, which Jahangir readily accepted.
• Disappointed by Jahangir's decision, the Portuguese  negotiated and made truce with the Mughals. However, the Portuguese stopped the English ships arriving from England to enter Surat. This made Captain William to leave the Mughal court in anger.
• In November 1612, an English ship named "Dragon" under Captain Best successfully fought a Portuguese fleet and impressed Jahangir( who had no navy worth it's name).
• In 1613, Portuguese offended Jahangir by capturing Mughal ships, imprisoning Muslims and plundering their cargoes. As a result, Jahangir ordered to obtain compensation.
• The Portuguese also monopolised manufacture of salt & started strict levy of duty on Tobacco in Hoogly.
• They even purchased Hindu & Muslim children from slave trade.
• On 24th June 1632, Shah Jahan (1592-1666) ordered the Bengal governor Qasim Khan to take action and seize Hoogly.

Decline of the Portuguese in India

• Emergence of powerful dynasties in Egypt, Persia & North India( and the Marathas) reduced their advantages in India.
• Their religious policies gave rise to political fear and made Hindus & Muslims resentful towards themselves.
• The Mughals and other small rulers became resentful towards Portuguese because of their unfair trade practices.
• Colonising activities of the Portuguese were diverted to the west with the discovery of Brazil.
• The sea route to India from Europe couldn't remain a secret.
• The Dutch(who controlled spice trade later) and the English had greater resources and more compulsion to expand. 
• The Portuguese left Goa( and India) in 1961 when it was merged with Indian Union. So, if you or your parents or grandparents were born before 1961, you can have a Portuguese passport which gives you the right  of residence & movement in any European Union states.

Significance of the Portuguese

•  The Portuguese initiated European era in India and provided knowledge about India to the Dutch and the English.
• They practiced military innovations in context of cannons on ships, use of body armour and matchlock(type of firearm).
• They taught Indians and other European nations the art of building advanced ships. They used to make heavily constructed multi decked ships so as to sail long through Atlantic gales.
• They also brought Christianity along with their music and art for the first time in India.