Pulicat (Pazhaverkadu) is a historic seashore town in “north of Chennai” in Thiruvallur District, of Tamil Nadu state, South India. It is about 60 km north of Chennai and 3 km from Elavur, on the barrier island of Sriharikota, which separates Pulicat Lake from the Bay of Bengal. Portuguese trading outpost In 1502, the Portuguese traders established […]
The postal history of Portuguese India goes back to the earlier days of the colony. The postal history begins with communication between the Viceroy and the Court atLisbon soon after the conquest of Old Goa by Afonso de Albuquerque in 1510. Letters, written in triplicate, were carried by separate ships because of the hazards of […]
The escudo was the currency of Portuguese India between 1958 and 1961. It was divisible into 100 centavos and was equal in value to the Portuguese escudo. The escudo replaced the rupia at the rate of 1 rupia = 6 escudos. This was due to the respective values of the Indian rupee (to which the […]
The rupia was the currency of Portuguese India until 1958. Before 1871, the rupia was subdivided into 750 bazarucos, 600 réis (singular: real), 20 pardaus or 10 tangas, with the xerafim worth 2 rupias. After 1871, 960 réis or 16 tangas (worth 60 réis) equalled 1 rupia. The rupia was equal in value to the […]
Tangasseri or Thangassery is a heavily populated beach area on the shores of the Arabian Sea in Kollam city, Kerala, India. It is located about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) from the city centre and 71 kilometres (44 mi) from Thiruvanthapuram, the state capital. Archaeologists recently discovered Chinese coins and other artefacts along the coast, which reveal the […]
The Portuguese Cemetery (after the invasion of Dutch, it became Dutch Cemetery) of Tangasseri in Kollam city was constructed in around 1519 as part of the Portugueseinvasion in the city. Buckingham Canal (a small canal between Tangasseri Lighthouse and the cemetery) is situated very close to the Portuguese Cemetery. A group of pirates known as the […]
St. Angelo Fort (also known as Kannur Fort or Kannur Kotta), is a fort facing the Arabian Sea, situated 3 km from Kannur, a city in Kerala state, south India. St. Angelo’s Fort was built in 1505 by Dom Francisco de Almeida, the first Portuguese Viceroy of India and is on the Arabian sea coast about […]
The State of India, Estado da Índia, also referred as the Portuguese State of India (Estado Português da Índia, EPI) or simply Portuguese India(Índia Portuguesa), was a state of the Portuguese Overseas Empire, founded six years after the discovery of a sea route between Portugal and the Indian Subcontinentto serve as the governing body of a […]
A few years after the discovery of Brazil, an expedition led by Martim Afonso de Sousa arrived with his caravels to the Rio de la Plata estuary, with the mission of putting Portuguese possession of landmarks on the left bank of the mouth of the river, having, however, been unable to complete it due to […]
In 1507, a Portuguese fleet commanded by Tristão da Cunha with Afonso de Albuquerque landed at the then capital of Suq and captured the port after a stiff battle. Their objective was to set a base in a strategic place on the route to India, and to liberate the presumed friendly Christians from Islamic rule. […]