Advent of Europeans
Advent of Europeans
Six European powers came to India for trade between 1498 and 1668 - the Portuguese, Dutch, English, Danes, French and, briefly, the Ostend Company. Only the English eventually turned trade into territorial power, because of superior finance, naval strength and the willingness of the Company's servants to intervene in Indian politics.
Order of arrival and departure
| Power | Arrival | First and main settlements | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portuguese | Vasco da Gama at Calicut, 1498 | Cochin 1503, Goa 1510 under Albuquerque, Daman, Diu, Salsette | Held Goa until 1961; declined after the sixteenth century |
| Dutch | 1602, Dutch East India Company (VOC) | Masulipatnam, Pulicat, Nagapattinam, Chinsura | Defeated by the English at Bedara in 1759; withdrew to the spice islands |
| English | 1600 charter, factory at Surat 1613 | Surat, Madras 1639, Bombay 1668, Calcutta 1690 | Became the paramount power after Plassey and Buxar |
| Danish | 1616 | Tranquebar 1620, Serampore 1755 | Sold their settlements to the English in 1845 |
| French | 1664, Compagnie des Indes Orientales | Surat 1668, Masulipatnam 1669, Pondicherry 1674, Chandernagore 1690 | Defeated in the Carnatic wars; retained small enclaves until 1954 |
क्रम याद रखने का सूत्र - पुर्तगाली, डच, अंग्रेज़, डेनिश, फ्रांसीसी | आने का यही क्रम है, और जाने का उल्टा नहीं - पुर्तगाली सबसे पहले आए और सबसे बाद तक (1961) रहे |
The Portuguese
Vasco da Gama reached Calicut in May 1498, guided across the Arabian Sea by a pilot from Gujarat, and was received by the Zamorin. Francisco de Almeida introduced the Blue Water Policy (cartaz system of trading licences), and Afonso de Albuquerque, the real founder of Portuguese power, captured Goa from Bijapur in 1510. The Portuguese introduced tobacco, the printing press at Goa in 1556, and several crops such as potato, chilli, papaya and cashew.
- Portuguese decline followed from religious intolerance, the Inquisition at Goa, piracy and the union of Portugal with Spain in 1580
- Their monopoly of the Cape route ended once the Dutch and English entered the Indian Ocean
- Goa, Daman and Diu were liberated by India in 1961 through Operation Vijay
The English and the French
The English East India Company received its charter from Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600. Captain Hawkins came to Jahangir's court in 1608 and Sir Thomas Roe secured trading rights in 1615. Bombay came to the English Crown as part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry in 1661 and was leased to the Company in 1668 for ten pounds a year. Job Charnock founded the settlement that became Calcutta, and Fort William was built there.
| Carnatic War | Years | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| First | 1746-1748 | Ended by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in Europe; Madras returned to the English |
| Second | 1749-1754 | Dupleix recalled; English candidate Muhammad Ali installed in the Carnatic |
| Third | 1758-1763 | Decisive English victory at Wandiwash in 1760 under Eyre Coote; Treaty of Paris 1763 ended French political ambitions |
Plassey 1757 → Wandiwash 1760 → Buxar 1764 → British paramountcy
✗ The French were defeated at Plassey | ✓ The French were defeated at Wandiwash in 1760; Plassey in 1757 was against the Nawab of Bengal
The English won because they had a stronger financial base at home, control of the sea, a compact and profitable Bengal base after 1757, and a company driven by shareholders rather than by a royal government that could change policy at will, as happened with the French.
Linkage: this topic leads directly into British expansion and the conquest of Bengal. The Portuguese introduction of new crops connects to Indian agriculture in Geography, the Indian Ocean trade to the ancient and medieval maritime topics, and Goa's liberation in 1961 to post-independence integration in Polity.
Exam pointer: usually one question, most often a chronology or a match between a European power and its settlement. High-yield: order of arrival, Albuquerque and Goa 1510, Thomas Roe under Jahangir, and Wandiwash 1760. Traps: confusing Almeida's Blue Water Policy with Albuquerque's territorial policy, dating the English charter to 1601, and mixing up the Carnatic wars with the Anglo-Mysore wars.
FAQ
Who was the first European to reach India by sea?
Vasco da Gama of Portugal, who landed at Calicut in May 1498 after sailing round the Cape of Good Hope. He was guided across the Arabian Sea by an Indian pilot and was received by the Zamorin, the ruler of Calicut.
What was the Blue Water Policy?
Francisco de Almeida's strategy of making Portugal supreme at sea rather than acquiring territory on land. It relied on naval power and the cartaz system of licences that other ships had to buy to trade in the Indian Ocean. Albuquerque replaced it with a policy of territorial fortified bases.
Why did the English defeat the French in India?
The English had greater financial resources, naval superiority, and a secure and profitable base in Bengal after 1757. The French company depended on the French government for funds and direction, and Dupleix's recall in 1754 removed their most capable strategist.
60-second recap
- Order of arrival: Portuguese 1498, Dutch 1602, English 1600 charter, Danish 1616, French 1664.
- Albuquerque took Goa in 1510; Almeida's Blue Water Policy came earlier.
- English factories: Surat 1613, Madras 1639, Bombay 1668, Calcutta 1690.
- Dutch were defeated at Bedara in 1759; Danes sold out in 1845.
- Three Carnatic wars; Wandiwash 1760 was decisive; Treaty of Paris 1763.
- Goa, Daman and Diu were liberated in 1961; Pondicherry came to India in 1954.