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História
de Goa |
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Goa's
history stretches back to the 3rd Century BC, when,
it formed part of the Mauryan Empire. It was later
ruled by the Satyahanas of Kothapur at the beginning
of the Christian era, and eventually passed to the
Chalukyas of Badami, who controlled from 580-750 AD.
Over the next few Centuries it was ruled successively
by the Shillaharas, the Kadambas and the Chalukyans
of Kalyani. Goa fell to the Muslims for the first
time in 1312, but the invaders were forced to evacuate
it in 1370, by Harihara, whose capital was in present
day Hampi.
They
held Goa for nearly 100 years, and its harbours became
important landing places for ships carrying Arabian
horses to Hampi. In 1469 Bahmini Sultans of Gulbaga
conquered Goa. When this dynasty broke up, the area
passed to the Adil Shahas of Bijapur, who made Goa
Velha their second capital. The old secretarial building
in Panjim, is the former palace of Adil Shah, and
it was later taken over by the Portuguese, as their
official residence. |
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The
Portuguese and Goa |
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A
fleet of four ships sailed out of the Tagus,
in Portugal, on the 8th July 1497. Their departure
accompanied by the tears shed by the crowds,
and the chant of the priests was to have a colossal
effect on this remote location on the Indian
subcontinent.Vasco da Gama and his band of adventurers
had setout to find a new route to India, and
to break the monopoly that the Turks held in
the spice trade. They reached India on 18 May1498.
Vasco da Gama's voyage opened the Indian Route,
or Cape Route, as it was also known, that is
to say regular sailing's of fleets between the
West and the East. |
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The
Indian route allowed an important commercial traffic,
the expansion and consolidation of the Portuguese
Empire, the dissemination of the Portuguese language,
and culture; and the legacy of the values and ideals
of Christianity in the Orient and Goa. |
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The
broad horizon of information provided by the
'Discoveries', was responsible for showing
Europeans the truth about the ways of life,
of the Goan people and the Orient. This horizon
of information brought about a revolution in
contemporary ways of living, not only through
the knowledge it revealed, but also through
the exchanges it produced. Which can be noticed
in many different areas, and with consequences
that nowadays are part of the world patrimony. |
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The
Portuguese actually arrived in Goa in
1510, under the command of Alfonso de Albuquerque.
They had tried to establish a base further south,
but were opposed by the Zamorin of Calicut.
They faced stiff competition from the Turks,
who controlled the trade routes in the Indian
Ocean at that time.
Blessed
by its natural harbours and wide rivers, Goa
was the ideal base for the seafaring Portuguese,
who determined to wrestle control of the spice
route from the East. |
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They
were also possessed with the strong desire to spread
Christianity. Jesuit missionaries led by St. Francis
Xavier arrived in 1542. For a while Portuguese control
was limited to a small area around Old Goa, but by the
middle of the 16th Century, it had expanded to include
the talukas (provinces) of Bardez and Salcete.
The eventual ousting of the Turks, and the fortunes
made from the spice trade led to Goa's golden age. At
this point Old Goa was the largest city in the East,
boasting of no less than 300 churches, within the town,
and having a population of over 40,000 people. The colony
became the viceregal seat of the Portuguese Empire of
the East, which included various African port cities,
East Timor and Macao. Decline set in, however due to
competition from the British, French and Dutch in the
17th Century. Combined with Portuguese inability to
adequately service it's far flung Empire, its power
rapidly decayed. Goa
reached its present size in the 18th Century after
a series of annexations. In1763 the provinces of Ponda,
Sanguem, Quepem and Canacona were added, followed
by Pednem, Bicholim and Satari in 1788.
The Marathas nearly vanquished the Portuguese in the
late 18th Century. Then during the Napoleonic wars
in Europe, there was a brief occupation by the British,
who had by then occupied most of India, Afghanistan,
Burma and Ceylon. But it was not until 1961, when
India, by then, an independent republic under Pt.
Jawaharlal Nehru, ejected them. The Portuguese finally
disappeared from the subcontinent.
But, even after 450 years of colonial rule, Goa has
retained a distinctive blend of cultures.
The Goan people and their lifestyle, even today still
retain a distinctive Southern European flavor, combined
with the unique mix of its own native culture. Modern-day
Goa is a conglomerate, of the various civilizations
that it came in touch with, and that influenced the
culture
of Goa. |
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