Portuguese conquest of Goa

Portuguese conquest of Goa, conflict in 1510 between Portuguese forces, under the command of Afonso de Albuquerque, and the Adil Shahi sultanate for control of what is now the state of Goa, on the southwestern coast of India. The Portuguese victory eventually led to the establishment of the Estado da Índia, the Portuguese empire in Asia. Goa was the first territorial possession of Portugal on that continent. It was also the first region of India to succumb to European colonial rule.

Historical context

The Portuguese first arrived in India after the navigator Vasco da Gama’s voyages (1497–99, 1502–03, and 1524) opened the sea route from western Europe to Asia around the Cape of Good Hope. By the early 1500s the Portuguese had set up their operations in Cochin (now Kochi), a port in southwestern India, and in March 1505 Francisco de Almeida was appointed the first viceroy of Portuguese India, where he was essentially in charge of a trading outpost in Cochin. His term was to last for three years, and in 1506 Afonso de Albuquerque was ordered by the king of Portugal to succeed Almeida as the governor and viceroy in 1508, when Almeida’s term was set to end. Albuquerque duly arrived in India, expecting to take charge, but Almeida imprisoned him in August 1509, reportedly having doubted the legality of his commission. Finally, on November 5 Albuquerque was appointed governor of the Portuguese possessions in India.

The first Portuguese conquest of Goa

In February 1510 Albuquerque announced his plans to attack the fleet of the grand sultan of Egypt to end the sultan’s dominance of trade with India via the Red Sea route. His alternate plan was to attack the port of Suez to destroy the Turks’ trade with India. About this time Timoja (also called Timmayya), who was said to be an admiral of the Vijayanagar empire’s fleet in southern India, advised Albuquerque to attack Goa. At that time Goa was under the Adil Shahi sultanate, a Muslim dynasty based in Bijapur (now in Karnataka state). Timoja’s intention behind this advice could have been to restore Hindu rule in Goa.

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When Timoja met with Albuquerque, he reported that a captain serving the grand sultan of Egypt—accompanied by a group of Turks who had survived their earlier defeat by Almeida—had recently arrived in Goa and had been encouraged by the local ruler to settle in the city. The captain had reportedly appealed to the sultan for reinforcements, hoping to fortify Goa and, from that stronghold, expel the Portuguese from India so that the spice trade might once again flow via the Red Sea route toward Mecca and Cairo. Timoja had been misinformed that the ruler of Goa, Yusuf Adil Shah, had died, leaving behind a young and inexperienced successor, and that internal rivalries among Deccan rulers had further weakened Goa. Because the city lacked sufficient troops and was poorly defended, Timoja argued, the moment was especially favorable for a decisive Portuguese assault. Albuquerque then decided to attack Goa.

On February 28, 1510, Albuquerque reached the port of Goa by sea. His forces attacked on March 1, storming the fortress of Panjim (now Panaji). On March 3 his forces entered the city of Ela (later Velha Goa, or Old Goa), where the officials of the Adil Shahi forces had fled. Thus, Goa was surrendered. One of the contributors to Albuquerque’s conquest was the Hindu population in Goa, which, fearing extinction, had not supported the Muslim rule under Yusuf Adil Shah. Once Albuquerque had established his control, he moved quickly to secure his new possession: He planned to build a citadel and a defensive wall surrounding the city. However, envoys soon arrived from the ruler of Vijayanagar and suggested that Goa should be handed over to him.

The Adil Shahi army led by Yusuf Adil Shah, who was not actually dead, soon retaliated against the Portuguese, launching sorties against their positions and eventually sending a force of 60,000 men to attack Goa. Albuquerque held on to Goa after his men rebelled, insisting that the city was indefensible. For his part, Yusuf Adil Shah offered two alternatives: either exchange Goa for another port within his dominions or surrender Timoja—whom Bijapur regarded as a traitor—in return for retaining Goa. Albuquerque showed no interest in these negotiations, and by mid-May 1510 the Bijapur troops had forced their way onto the island. The Portuguese at first tried to retain the citadel, but when that position proved indefensible, Albuquerque withdrew to the fleet at Goa harbor, though not before destroying military stores and executing a number of high-ranking Muslims in his custody.

From Panjim, Yusuf Adil Shah launched an artillery assault on Albuquerque’s fleet. Albuquerque and his men remained confined at sea for three months, during which they faced a food shortage. Finally, in June he ordered a night assault on Panjim, and after an intense struggle he drove out the Adil Shahi garrison. This victory came with challenges of its own, however. Albuquerque’s fleet had been struck by famine, and many of his men had deserted him. On receiving news of the fleet’s condition through deserters, Yusuf Adil Shah offered Albuquerque provisions, which he declined. In August 1510 Albuquerque received four ships that had arrived as reinforcements from Portugal, and he sailed to Onor, a town in what is now Karnataka.

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The second Portuguese conquest and the Battle of Goa

Albuquerque met Timoja, who had escaped from Goa to Onor, and Timoja informed him that the Adil Shahi forces had withdrawn toward Bijapur some days after the Portuguese departed and that there was unrest in Goa. This encouraged Albuquerque to return to Goa immediately. Reinforced by 2 vessels, his fleet grew to 14 ships and about 1,500 men. Because 2 of the vessels were designated for trade and needed to proceed to Cochin, the fleet sailed there before sailing to Onor.

On reassembling his fleet at Onor, Albuquerque once again met with Timoja, who reported that Yusuf Adil Shah had gone deep into the city of Goa and would not be able to defend it and that the city’s army had about 4,000 Turks and Persians. Convinced that the moment was favorable, Albuquerque sailed in early November 1510 with 28 ships, about 1,700 Portuguese soldiers, and many of Timoja’s troops. Additional support came from allied rulers on the Malabar Coast. With these combined forces, Albuquerque moved to retake the island and the city of Goa.

Having launched three attacks on Goa on November 25, Albuquerque routed the Adil Shahi forces. Portuguese losses were relatively light, with about 40 killed and 150 wounded, whereas the Adil Shahi troops reportedly suffered about 2,000 casualties. Thus, Albuquerque recaptured and sacked the city of Goa. Soon afterward he gave orders to execute the Muslim population. This event marked the end of Muslim rule in Goa under the Adil Shahi sultanate and the start of 450 years of Portuguese rule.

Aftermath

Yusuf Adil Shah died in December 1510, within two weeks of the reconquest, and was succeeded by his young son Ismail Adil Shah. Provincial governors in Bijapur soon displayed rebellious tendencies, creating instability within the kingdom. By some accounts, the minister of the state of Bijapur reached an understanding with the Portuguese: He accepted their possession of Goa on the condition that they would not expand their territory farther.

The hilltop site of the Battle of Goa was commemorated by Albuquerque with the building of a church, now called the Chapel of Our Lady of the Mount. It was completed in 1519.