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 Chap. VTT.] PROGRESS OF DISCOVERY. 151

The spirit of enterprise which Prince Henry had fostered was not allowed a d. uso. to expire with him ; and under Alonso V., who was then reigning, the African coast was explored ahnost to the equator. John II., the son and succe.ssor of Progicfisof

• • 1 /• T -11 discovery

Alonso, continuing the progress of discovery, was so convinced that India would un.ier ultimately be reached, that, in H8i, he took a step which, though of an extra- a,,!!"*" ordinary nature, appears to have been dictated by sound and far-sighted policy. ■'"'"' " Great exertions had been made by the government of Portugal in fitting out expeditions for maritime discovery ; and now, when they seemed about to be crowned with success, tlie danger was, that other states might step in anil insist on sharing in the fruits. As the best means of preventing this, he sent ambas- sadors to several of tiie leading European courts, and offered them the alternative of either uniting with him, and furnishing men and money to {i«sist in the con- (juests which he was contemplating, on the understanding that a fair proportion of the benefit would be awarded them, or leave him to proceed as hitherto, on his own entire resj)onsibility, and of course, in common fairness, for his own exclusive benefit.

This attempt to form what may be called a joint-stock company, in which Grant from kings were to be the only sluu'eholders, failed. All the crowned heads ap|)lied to, declined to entertain the proposal ; and John took the additional precaution of calling in the aid of the pope, who, in the plenitude of an arrogant power, then undisputed, but soon after to be shaken to its very foundations, drew an imaginary line from north to south, by which he divided the world into two eipial halves, and decreed that discoveries of new countries made from west to east should only be competent, and shouUl belong exclusively to the Portuguese. It seems not to have occurred either to the king ai' the pope that discoveries made from eixat to west might be carried so far as to make this grant futile, and convert it into a great bone of contention.

From this period the King of Portugal assumed the additional title of Lord Overiand

journey to

of Guinea, and evinced a detennination to turn his grant to the best account. tiieEiisi Besides fitting out an expedition, under Diego Cam, who, in 1481, reached 22" of south latitude, and must consequently have been within 12^ of the southern extremity of the African continent, he sent two messenger overland with instructions to discover the country of Prester John, then believed to be a great reality, though since ascertained to have had only a fabulous existence. They were also to ascertain whence the drugs and spices came which the Venetians traded in, and whether there wjis any sailing from the south of Africa to India One of these messengers, Pedro de Covillam, succeeded in reaching India, and obtained much im}M)rtant information; but before the letter conveying it reached Portugal, the great problem had been solved by Bartolommeo Diaz, who had sailed south with thive ships in 1486. After reaching a higher southern latitude than any ])revious navigator, a storm arose which drove him out to .sea. His direction under such circum.stances could not


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 HISTORY OF INDIA.

[Book T.

A.I). ltii:i

Diaz duublo^ tlio Cape of Good Hope.

1)6 accurately ascertained, but lie knew it to he southerly. After tossing about for thirteen days, arul suffering much by a sudden transition of the tJ^niperature from hot to cold, he attemjjted, when tiie st^jnn abated, to regain the land by steering eastward. He readied it; but, to his gi-eat a.stonlshment, discovered that the land which, when he quitted it, lay on his left hand, nearly due noith and south, was now stretching east and west, and trending north-east. The cause was too apparent to leave any room for doubt. He had been carried round the southern extremity of Africa, and was now on its south-eastern coast. He was most anxious to prosecute this auspicious commencement, but his crews refused to follow him, and he was obliged to turn his face homewards. He was so far rewarded, for a few days brought him in sight of the magnificent pro- montory in which Africa terminates. The weather he had met with. and.

Arrival of Columbus in the Tagus.

Cape of Good Hope. — From an old print.

perhaps, also a painful remembrance of the conduct of his crews in forcing him to return, determined him to give it the name of Caho de Todos los Tormentos, or Cape of Storms, but the king, on his return, thinking this name ominous, chose one much more appropriate, and, in allusion to the great promise which the doubling of the promontory held out, called it Cabo de Buena Esperanza, or Cape of Good Hope.

It is singular that, though John survived this cUscovery nine years, he made no attempt to follow it up. One cause of the indifference thus manifested may liave been the mortification which he felt at the still more brilliant success which Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain had achieved by the emplojTnent of Christopher Columbus. This renowned navigator, returning from liis discovery of a New World, arrived in the Tagus in 1493. Before applying to Spain, he had offered his services to Poiiugal, and been refu.sed. "iMiat would John not now have given to be able to recall that refusal? It was too late ; but he had counsellors base enough to suggest that the remedy was stiU in his own hands. He had only to assassinate Coliunbus, and take po.ssession of his papers; his

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 Chap. VI I.]

VASCO DE GAMA'S FIRST VOYAGE.

15;3

discovery would thus die with hiiii. Happily for his owii fame he spurned the ad. 1497. infamous suggestion ; and Columbus, after a becoming reception, not less honour- able to tlie giver than it must have been gratifying to the receiver, continued his triumphant progress to the court of Spain.

John was succeeded in l-i95 by his cousin Emanuel, who was thoroughly Portuguese imbued with the s])irit of enterj)rise which had animated his predecessors, under Timid counsellors were not wanting who advised him to rest satisfied with the ' ""'"^ ' discoveries already made, and not run the risk of impoverishing his hereditary dominions by expensive expeditions, of which it was impossible to foresee the final result ; but his resolution had been formed, and there could be no doubt what it was, when he was seen, in the third year of his reign, fitting out a new expedition for the avowed purpose of not only doubling the Ca])e of Good Hope, but afterwards continuing the voyage without intermission till the coast of India was reached. In this expedition, which consisted of three small ships, carrying 160 men, Bartolommeo Diaz held only a subordinate station. Nor had he even the satisfaction of seeing his discovery prosecuted by others ; for, on arriving at the fort of El Mina, he wsis sent back to Portugal, and not long after his return perished at sea.

The command of the expedition, thus rather ungenerously withheld from Diaz, was conferred on Vasco de Gama, a gentleman of the royal household, who had previously done good sei*vice at sea, and, by his subsequent conduct, justified the choice which had been made of him. After a pompous ceremonial, more in accordance with the great object contemplated by the expedition than with the very inadequate means furnished for its accomplishment, the three small ships left the port of Belem, on Saturday, the 8th of July, 1497- They were accomjxinied by a small l)ark cam-ing provisions, and a caravel, of which Diaz was captain. Ofi" tlie Canaries the vessels encountered a storm, which separated them, but they met again at Cape Verd, which had been fixed as the place of rendezvous. Ha ng next day anchored at Santa Maria, on the African coast, they repaired their damages, and took in water. Diaz, proceeding no farther, returned homewards ; the other vessels pursued their voyage. Another storm, still more violent than tlie former, over- took them ; and they had almost given up all hope of weathering it, when it De canm

^ J t> 1 I o ^ enters the

abated, and they took shelter in a bay, to which they gave the name of Santa bayofsanta Elena. Vasco de Gama attempted to hohl communication with the natives, but Vol. I. 20

Vasco de Gama.

From Vincent's Voyage of Nearchu*.


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I)e Gama's course along east coast of Africa.

His proceed- ings at Mo- sair)bi(iue.

met with an iiiliospital^le reception, which left liini no ineiination tf> ju'olong Iuh stay. He set sail again on the HJth of November, liaving already been more than four months at sea; and two < lays after came within sight of the Cape of Good Hope, which, after tacking about in consequence of baffling winds, they doubled on the 20th of November, amid the sound of music and general rejoicing.

They were now fairly launched on the Indian Ocean, but instead of steering right across it, continued for a time to follow the coast, making careful obser- vations, and daily discovering some new object to excite their wonder. On Christmas, 1497, they saw land, which, in honour of the day, they called Tierra de Natal; and which, still retaining its name, promises to rise into importance as a British colony. The next land visited belonged to the KafFres, with whom they had much friendly intercourse.

In proceeding farther north, the expedition was much impeded by currents, which induced De Gama to give the name of Caho de Corrientes to a prominent headland, and to keep far out to sea in order to avoid the risk of being embayed. Owing to this, Sofala, which was then the great emporium of this part of Africa, was passed without being seen. The natives appeared now to be more civilized than those who had previously been seen, and instead of the timid and suspi- cious looks which others had manifested, made themselves as familiar with the Portuguese as if they had been old acquaintances. As their language wa-s not understood, the conversation by signs was necessarily confined within very narrow limits, but enough was communicated to satisfy Vasco de Gama that they were accustomed to mingle with people in a still more advanced state of civilization. Two chiefs in particular, who paid him a visit in their own boats, gave him to understand that they had seen ships as large as those of the Portu- guese ; and after they had returned to the shore, sent two pieces of calico on board for sale. This cloth, which it is almost needless to mention, takes its usual name from the town of Calicut, excited a particular interest in the Portuguese, because supposing it, perhaps erroneously, to be the product of that city, it was the fii'st specimen of Indian manufacture which they had met with in their voyage. It was regarded as an omen of future success in their great undertaking, and hence Vasco de Gama gave to the stream, at the mouth of which these transactions took place, the name of Rio de Buenos Slnays, or River of Good Signs.

Having again set sail on the 2^i of February, 14?98, the vessels continued their voyage along the coast through the channel of Mosambique, and on arriving opposite to the town of that name, were hailed by a number of little boats, the crews of which made signs to stay for them. The vessels cast anchor, and the boatmen, without showing the least fear, leaped at once aboard, made themselves perfectly at home, ate and di'ank freely, and conversed in Arabic with one of the crew who understood that lanouaore. The intercourse at first


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 Chap Vrr.] VASCO DE GAMA'S FIRST VOYAGE. 1 •'55

promised to be very friendly, but oii its being discovered by the sheikh or chief, ad. w.is. that the Portuguese were not, as he had originally supposed, Turks and Maho- metans, but Christians, his manner suddenly changed, and all his seeming friendship was at an end. Ultimately open hostilities were declared, and the Portuguese avenged themselves by bombarding and destroying the town of Mosambicpie.

The vessels again weighing anchor, continued their course northwards, and rrocoe<iiii(8 arrived at the island ot Mombas, with a town oi same name. Here the and Me-

liiida

seeming friendship of the Moors proved as false as that of the inhal)itants of Mosambique ; and Vasco de Gama, believing, on the confession of two Moors, wlu^in he barbarously ])ut to the torture by dropping hot bacon upon their flesh, that a plot had been formed for his destructicni, hastened his departure, and did not again halt till he arrived off Melinda, which delighted the Portuguese, as it reminded them more of home than any African city they had yet seen. It was seated on the level part of a rocky shore, amid plantations of palms and orchards of orange and other fruit trees, covered a large space, and consisted of hoases built of stone, three stories high, and with terraced roofs.

At first the inhabitants, who were probably acquainted with the transac- tions at Mosambique and Mombas, kept aloof, but a good understanding wa.s eventually established; and the king, though a Mahometan, so far forgot his ]M-ejudices that he afforded the Portuguese every facility for obtaining pro- visions, and even made a formal visit in his barge.

It was now unnecessary for the Portuguese to continue their course along the African coast. Their object had been to obtain such information as might enable them to proceed with safety across the ocean towards India. Melinda furnislied them with all that they requu-ed. Four ships from India were then lying in its harbour, and little diffijulty was found in obtaining a pilot capable of acting as their guide. This pilot, named Melemo Kana, was a native of Gu- a Gujemt jerat, and had a thorough knowledge of his profe.ssion. The compass, charts, gaged. and quadrants were quite familiar to him ; and an astrolabe shown him seemed so inferior to other instruments which he had seen used for the same purpose, that he scarcely condescended to notice it. Before leaving Melinda, De Gama was visited by persons belonging to the Indian ships. He imagined them to be Christians, because on coming aboard they })rostrated themselves before an image of the Virgin, probably mistaking it for one of their own idols ; but it is ])lain, from the description given of them, that they were Hindoos. They were clothed in long gowns of white calico, wore their hair, which was long like that of women, plaited under their turbans, and ate no beef

The expedition sailed from Melinda on Tuesday, the 22d of April, l-ti)S, and Arrival on after a prosperous voyage of twenty- three day.s, saw India, on Friday, the 17th olst. of May. They were off the Malabar coast, which was at the distance of eight leagues, and rose high and bold from the sea. Their destination was Calicut,


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 i:)f;

lIISTOIiY C>r INDIA.

fHooK r.

A I) 1498. and as they were con.siderably nortli of" it, they changed their course to Houtli- east. On the 20th they belield, tf> their uii.speakuble delight, the lofty wofxled terraces rising behiml that city, and shortly after ca«t anchor about two leagues below it.

Calicut, situated on the open l>each, without roadstead or harbour, though ]>artially protected by a rocky bank, inside of which small vessels lie tolerably

Calicut,

Itszamorin.

CALicax. — Bran et Hogenburjj, Theatre des prmuipale^s Villes de tuus les UniveiB, 1574.

sheltered, was then the capital of a Hindoo sovereign, who, under the title of samiry or zaniorin, ruled a considerable extent of country in the south-west of the peninsula. This title is probably the corruption of Tamuri, the name of a rajah on whom, according to popular tradition, a prince called Cheruman. after dividing his territories among his other cliieftains, had nothincr more remainincj to bestow than his sword, " with all the territory in which a cock crowing at a small temple here could be heard '^ The territory thus assigned took, from the singular nature of the grant, the name of Colico-du, or the Cock-crowing, which in course of time was metamorphosed into Calicut. This account may be set aside as fabulous ; but it is certain that in whatever way the original nucleus of the territory was acquired, the sword of Cheruman proved the most valuable part of his bequest, and enabled Tamuri to place himself at the head of all his Ijrother chieftains, and transmit his power to a series of successors. One of these had been converted to Mahometanism " by some pilgrims who had been wrecked on his coast while proceeding to visit Adam's Peak in Ceylon ; and, with the zeal of a new convert, set out on a pilgrimage to Mecca. He never returned; but the favour shown to Mahometans during his reign, and the encouragement which, in consequence of his recommendation, they received from his successor, had induced them to settle in great numbei"s, and enabled them to acquire much influence in Cranganore, Calicut, and the surrounding

' Buchanan, Narrative of a Journey frora Madras, tJirouyh Mi/sorc, Canara, and Malabar, vol. ii. p. 47i. ^ Brigg's FcrUhta, vol. iv. p. 531, 532.

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 Chap. VIL] DK GAMA AND THE ZAMOTIIN. 157

districts. Such was the state of matters when the Portuguese arrived, and it is ad hos necessary to attend to it, as furnishing a key to many subsecjuent proceedings.

De Gama having anchored, as ah'eady mentioned, was immediately visited i-in-t land- by some small fishing-boats, and imder their guidance sailed as near to Calicut Portuguese as the depth of water would allow. He had brought several criuiinals from Portugal, whose sentence had been remitted in consideration of the danger to which they were to be exposed by being sent ashore to hold intercom'se with the natives, under circumstances too hazardous to justify tlie em])loyment of any of the crew. One of these criminals was accordingly despatched along with the fishermen, in order that the reception given him might enable De Gama to shape his futm-e com'se. He was immediately surrounded by a crowd whose curiosity could hardly be satisfied, though it was more importunate than rude. As his ignorance of the language made it useless to ask him any questions, they took him to the house of two Moors, one of wliom, called Monzaide — who, from being a native of Tunis, knew him to be Portuguese — gave utterance to his astonishment by exclaiming in Spanish, " The devil take you! What brought you hither r' After some exj)lanations, Monzaide went off with him to the ships, and on approaching De Gama, cried aloud in Spanish, " Good luck 1 good luck! Many rubies, many emeralds! Thou art bound to give God thanks for having brought thee wliere there are all sorts of spices and ]irecious stones, with all the riches of the world." De Gama and his crew were so surprised and affected at meeting with one who could speak their language so far from home, that they wept for joy.

Having learned from Monzaide that the zamorin was then at Ponan}^ a DeCanm village at the mouth of a river of same name, about thii-ty-six miles south from "shore. Calicut, De Gama immediately announced his arrival, intimating at the same time that he was the bearer of a letter to him from his master the King of Portugal, a Christian prince. The zamorin, in aaswer, bade him welcome, and sent a pilot to conduct the ships to a safer anchorage, near a village called Pandarane. He accepted of the services of the pilot, but demurred at first to avail himself of an invitation by the cotwal or chief magistrate, to go ashore and })roceed by land to Calicut. On second thoughts, however, he became con- vinced that tliis was a risk which he ought to run ; and while his brother Paul, who commanded one of the ships, and the other officers, reminded him of the danger to be apprehended, not so much from the natives, whom they insisted on regarding as Christians, as from the Moors, whose deadly enmity they had already experienced on the African coast, he announced his determination, let what would betide him, to go a.shore and leave no means luitried to settle a treaty of commerce and i>er{)etual amity.

On the 28th of May, after leaving orders that in the event of any accident uisfiret befalling him, the vessels were to return home with the news of liis discovery, zilmorin. " he set out in his boat, attended by twelve of his company, with flags waving


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 l-'jS nrSTOUY ]■• INDIA. [Book T.

A.i) ii.is jtiid trumpets Houndinj^. Tlie ootwal was waiting tf> receive liini with 200

nairs, understoorl to he tlx; Mobility of tlte country, and a large [jroniis^mouH

DeG.ama'8 assemblage. Two palantiuias had been T)rovided, one for De Gama and another

fii-st visit to ° ^ ^ '

thozamo- for the cotwal; the rest of the attendants followed on foot. During the jour- ney they paid a visit to a temple built of freestone, covered with tiles, and a« large as a great monastery. In front of it stood a pillar as high as the ma.st of a sliip, made of wire, with a weather-cock on the top, and over the entrance hung seven bells. The interior was full (jf images ; and these, as well as some of the ceremonies, confirming the Portuguese in their previous belief that the natives were Christians, they began to pay their devotions. The dimness of the light did not allow them to see the kind of figures they were worshipjnng, but on looking around they discerned monstrous shapes on the walls, some with great teeth sticking an inch out of their mouth, others with four arms and such frio-jitful faces, that one of the Portuf^uese, on beholdinc; one of them, be- fore which he was making his genuflexion, exclaimed, " If this be the devil, it is God I worship." On approaching the city the multitude became immen.se, and the cotwal halted at the house of his brother, who was waiting, along with a number of nairs, to conduct De Gama with all the pomp of an ambassador into the royal presence. Though almost stifled by the press, he was so much gratified that he could not help observing to those around him, " They little think in Portugal what honour is done us here."

nisrecep- 'pjig palacc, at which they arrived an hour before sunset, had a handsome

tion at tike ^ -^

i.aiacd appearance, and was surrounded by trees, and gardens adorned with fountains. It was entered by a series of five inclosm-es, each having its own separate gate ; and such was the eagerness of the populace to S(^ueeze themselves in, that several were crushed to death. At the grand entrance De Gama was received by the chief minister and high-priest, a little old man, who, after embracing him, took him with his attendants into the presence. The hall of audience was set round with seats, rising as in a theatre ; the floor was carpeted with gi-een velvet, and the walls hung round with silks of diverse colom's. At the head of the hall the zamorin lay reclined on a kind of sofa, with a covering of white silk wrought with gold, and a rich canopy overhead. He was a large, stout man, of dark complexion, advanced in years, and with something majestic in his appearance. He wore a short coat of fine caHco, adorned with branches and roses of beaten gold ; the buttons were large pearls. Another piece of white calico reached to his knees. A kind of mitre, ghttering with pearls and pre- cious stones, covered his head; liis ears were stning with jewels of the same kind ; and both his finders and toes were loaded with diamond rinofs. His aims and legs, left naked, were adorned with gold bracelets. Near him stood two gold basons and a gold fountain ; the one bason contained betel and areca nut, which was handed him by an attendant, the other received it when chewed ; the fountain supplied water to rinse his mouth.

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 Chap. Vll.J DE GAMA AND THE ZAMOKIN. lo9

After De Gama entered and made his obeisance accordinjr to the custom of a d hus

&

the country, by bowing his body three times and lifting up liis hands, the zamorin looked kindly at him, recognized him by a scarcely perceptible iiu-li- iheiuur- nation of the head, and ordered liini by signs to advance and sit down near him. The attendants being admitted, took their seats opposite, and were regaled with fruits. On calHng for water to drink, a golden cup witii a spout was brought, but they were told that it was considered bad manners to touch the vessel with their li{)s. The awkwardness of the Portuguese, wlio, in at- tempting to drink by the spout, either choked themselves with the water or spilled it upon their clothes, gave much amusement to the court. De Gama having been asked by the zamorin to open his business, gave him to understand tliat tiie custom of princes in Europe was to hear amba.ssadors in the i)resence of only a few of their chief counsellors. The suggestion was immediately adopted, and the audience took place in another apartment similar to the former, where only De Gama and another Portuguese, who acted as his interpreter, on the one side, and the zamorin, his cliief minister, the comptroller of his household, and his betel-server on the other, Avere present. When asked whence he came, and with what object, De Gama answered that he was an ambassador of the King of Portugal, the greatest prince in all the West, who, having heard that there were Christian princes in the Indies, of whom the King of Calicut was the chief, had sent an ambassador to conclude a treaty of trade and friendship with him. He added, that for sixty years the King of Portugal and his predecessors had been endeavouring to discover India by sea, and had at length succeeded for the first time. In anticipation of this success, the king, his master, had intrusted him with two letters, the delivery of which, as it was now late, he would, with the zamorin's permission, defer till to morrow. De Gama had reason to think he had made a favourable impression, as the zamorin repeated his welcome, made incjuiries as to the distance to Portugal, and the time occupied by the voyage, and declared his willingness not only to recognize the King of Portugal as his fiiend and brother, but to send an ambassador to his coiu-t.

De Gama, after passing the night with his attendants in a lodging specially De aama's

. proposed

provided for them, began next morning to prepare a present for the zamorin. present. He was not well supplied for that purpose ; but after selecting four pieces of scarlet, six hats, four branches of coral, six almasars, a parcel of brass, a chest of sugar, two barrels of oil and two of honey, sent for the royal factor and cot- wal to ask their opinion. On looking at the articles they burst into a laugh, and told him that the poorest merchant who came to the port made a better present. A kind of altercation arose, and at last the factor and cotwal depaiied, after taking his promise that he would not visit the king till they returned to go with him. He waited the whole day, but they never appeared. On the day following, when they arrived, and he complained of their behaviour, they made


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IIIS'I'OKV OF 1M>1A.

[liOOK J.

A I). 1108.

Do (Jama's

Hoooiul visit to tho za- i"<iriii.

King of Por tiigal's letter.

Effect of Moorish intrigues.

light of it and Ijegan to talk indiffereDtly of other matters. The fact wa8 that they had been gained })y the Moorn, who, fearing that their interests might be seriously affected Ijy the opening uj) of a new ti-ade with ?^iro[»e, and the don- sequent decline of that which had hith(rt een carried on hy the Red Sea, were determined to leave no meaas untried to fnistrate the oVjject of the Portu- guese expedition.

When De Gama went to the palace to pay the visit which, according to appointment, should have been paid a day sooner, the effect of the Moorish intrigue was very apparent. He was kept waiting for three hours ; anrl when at last admitted, was told angi'ily by the zamorin that he had waited for him all the day before. He was then asked how it was that, if he came from so great and rich a prince as he represented his king to be, he brought no pr&sent with him, though in every embassy of friendship that must be regarded as a neces- sary credential. De Gama made the best excuse possible in the circumstances, by referring to the uncertain issue of his voyage, which made it imprudent to provide a present which there might V)e no opportunity of delivering, and pro- mising that if he lived to carry home the news of his discovery, a suitable present would certainly arrive. The zamorin, not yet satisfied, observed, "I hear you have a St. Mary in gold, and desire I may have that." De Gama, taken somewhat aback at this demand, replied that the image was not gold, but only wood gilded; and as he attributed his preservation at sea to its influence, he must be excused for not parting with it. The zamorin, quitting the .subject, asked for the two letters, which indeed contained only the same thing in dupli- cate, the one written in Portuguese and the other in Ai-abic. The latter, inter- preted by Monzaide, was in pui-port as follows: — "As soon as it was known to the King of Portugal that the King of Calicut, one of the mightiest princes of all the Indies, was a Christian, he was desirous to cultivate a trade and friendshi]:) with him, for the conveniency of lading spices in his ports; for which, in exchange, the commodities of Portugal should be sent, or else gold and silver, in case his majesty chose the same ; referring it to the general, his ambassador, to make a further report." This letter, and the noble bearing of Yasco de Gama, who throughout the interview behaved in a manner becoming the higli character which he claimed, disabused the mind of the zamorin of the impres- sion received of him throvigh the intrigues of the Moors, who had sedulously circulated a rumour that he was no ambassador, but merely a pu-ate. He there- fore conversed with him in the most friendly manner, and gave him full liberty to bring any merchandise he had with him ashore and dispose of it to the best advantage.

The next day, the 31st of May, De Gama prepared to return to his ships, and was actiially on the way to Pandarane, when the Moors, fearing that if he once got away he would not again return, induced the cotwal, by a large bribe, to hasten after and detain him, so as to afford them an opportunity of disposing


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DE GAM A AND THE ZAMORIN.

IGl

of him summarily. The cotwal accordingly set out in pursuit, and found I)e a.d. urn. Gama luistening on considerably in advance of his attendants. The cotwal ralKed him on his haste, and asked him if he was running away. He answered, "Yes; I am running away from the heat;' and continued his journey, the cot- wal keeping close by him till he reached the village. It was sunset before his men came up, but he called immediately for a boat. The cotwal at first endea- voured to dissuade him, but finding him resolute, pretended to send for the boatmen, while at the same time he sent another messacre, orderineGain.i

forcibly ilo-

cotwal, instead of bringing a boat, told him to

tiiiued ushore

order his ships nearer shore, and on his refusal, threw off all disguise, telling him that as he would not do what he was ordered he should not go on board. De Gama was thus to all in- tents a prisoner. The doors of his lodging were shut, and several nairs with drawn swords kept guard within. Coello meantime had come with his boats within a short distance of the shore ; and, fortunately, by communicating with one of De Gamas sailors, who had been left outside, was apprised of his situation. The cotwal, while he still detained him, seemed afraid to proceed to violent extremes; and after finding that he could not lure the vessels into the harbour, so as to give the Moors an oppoi't unity of destroy- ing them, changed his tactics and asked only that the merchandise should be sent ashore. His object apparently was to appropriate it to himself; and as De Gama's presence interfered with this object, he was easily His release, induced, as soon as the merchandise arrived, to allow him to depart.

De Gama, once free of the cotwal and his associates, determined not again to place himself in their power, but took care by his factor, Diego Diaz, brother of the more celebrated Bartolommeo, who first doubled the Cape, to acquaint the zamorin ^vith the unworthy treatment to which he had been subjected. The zamorin seemed much incensed, and promised both to punish the offenders Traffic and send merchants to purchase the goods. He could scarcely have been sin- cere, for the insolence of the Moors increased ; and the goods, which they took every opportunity to depreciate, found few purchasers. A kind of traffic, how- ever, was established ; and after permission was given to remove the goods from Pandarane to Calicut, as a more suitable market, much friendly intercourse took Vol. I. 21

Ship of Spaik, Fifteenth Century —From EpiiloUk Crutoferi Colom.. Ac. 1 I9.S.

commencoi..

1.


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 H)2

JIIS'IOIIV OF INDIA.

[Book I,

Tiie zamoriii

liooomes

hostile.

De Gama

retaliates.

AC. 1498. place between the Portuguese and the natives. They were not destined, how- ever, to part so amicaljly.

More than two montlis had elapsed since the arrival of tiie Portuguese vessels, and as the north-east monsoon, on which they depended for their return homewards, was about to set in, De Gama, on the 10th of Augast, sent Diego Diaz to the zamorin with a present of scarfs, silks, coral, and other things, and a notification of his intention to depart. He was obliged t^.) wait four days for admission, and was then received with a frowning countenance. The zamorin's mind had been completely poisoned ; and he regarded the Portuguese either as pirates, who had come for plunder, or .spies, who, after acquainting themselves with the country, intended to return with a fleet .sufficient to invade it. Accordingly a guard was set over the house which the Portuguese had used for a factory, preventing all egress; and a proclamation i.ssued prohibiting all intercourse with the Portuguese ships.

De Gama, on learning what had happened, was much incen.sed, Vjut deter- mined to proceed warily, and employ craft against craft. Two days after the

proclamation, four lads arrived in an almadia, with preciotLS .stones for sale. They were suspected to be spies ; but De Gama spoke to them as if he were entirely ignorant of what had taken place in Calicut, and allowed them to depart, in the hope that their return would induce other persons of more conse- quence to pay him a visit. Nor was he mistaken. For the zamorin, convinced by De Gama's conduct that he was ignorant of the detention of his factor Diaz, and his secretary Braga, who were both in the factory when the guard was set over it, sent people on board to keep him amused till he should be able to effect the destruction of his sliips by preparing a fleet in his own ports, or bringing one from Mecca for that purpose. De Gama kept his own coiinsel, till one day when six of the principal inhabitants arrived with fifteen attendants. He immediately seized them, and sent a letter ashore, demanding his factor and secretary in exchange. After some parleying, Diaz and Braga were sent aboard, and the principal inhabitants, who were nairs, were returned. The attendants, however, were detained, on the plea that some of the Portuguese merchandise was stiU unaccounted for. This was mere pretence on De Gama's part, for he had already determined to carry off" the poor natives to Portugal, and exhibit them as the vouchers of his discovery. Immediately after making this announce- ment to those who had been sent for the natives, and desiring them to inform the zamorin that he would shortly return and give him full means of judging

An Almadia. — From Hughen's Discours of Voyages in Indiistan, 15S5.


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 Chap. VII.] PORTUGUESE EXPEDITION UNDER CABRAL. Ido

whether the Christians were thieves, as the Moors had persuaded him, he weighed ..ij. isou. anchor and set sail on his homeward voyage.

Two days after their departure, when the ships were lying becalmed a league De Cawn

attiicked

from Calicut, the zamorin's fleet of forty vessels was seen approaching, full of by tiio soldiers. Their object was obvious; but the Portuguese, by means of their tiaet. ordnance, managed to keep them at bay till a gale fortunately sprung up, and they got clear otf, though not without being pursued for an hour and a half De Gama, for a short time, kept near the coast ; and when within twelve leagues of Goa, received the alarming intelligence that the whole coast was in motion, and that in all its harbours vessels were being fitted out for the purpose of inter- cepting him. Longer delay, therefore, seemed dangerous, and he at once put out to sea. The voyage home was tedious and disastrous; but ultimately Belem Anive-sin

Portugal.

was reached in September, 1499, after an absence of two years and two months. Of the original crew, only fifty returned alive. The news of their arrival was hailed with extraordinary demonstrations of joy throughout the kingdom ; and De Gama, after being conducted into Lisbon in triumphal procession, was raised to new honours and liberally pensioned. So elated was King Emanuel with the success of the expedition, that lie forthwith added to his titles that of Lord of the Conquest and Navigation of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia, and the Indies.

No time was lost in fitting out a new expedition on a more extended scale, .socond It consisted of thirteen vessels, containing 1200 men, and sailed from Belem rvpciitioi. on the 9th of March, 1500, under the command of Pedro Alvarez Cabral. Amonjr the captains were Bartolommeo Diaz, the discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope, and his brother, Diego Diaz, who had been factor to Vasco de Gama. The Canaries were seen on the 1 8th ; but from them the coiu-se was so far west- ward that the first land they reached was a new continent, the discovery of which, though little importance ai)pears to have been attached to it at the time, lUtimately proved the most valuable acquisition made by the crown of Portugal. It was Brazil. The expedition again sailed on the 2d of May for the Cape of Good Hope, but was thrown into considerable alarm by the appearance of a comet, which continued to increfise for ten days, and shone so brightly as to be visible both day and night. The di.siisters, of which it was dreaded as the fore- runner, seemed to be realized by the bursting of a storm with suoli suddenness and fury that, before the sails could be furled, four of the vessels, one of them commanded by Bartolommeo Diaz, simk, with every soul on board, and the others were so shattered and filled with water that, had not their .sails been so torn as to leave nothing but bare poles, they must certainly have foundered.

Dreadful as the storm was, it was ultimately weathered, and Cabral found, ^>torm <>n on its abating, that the Cape of Good Hope was already doubled. Continuing *g3 Hope, along the south-east coast of Africii, he fell in with two vessels at anchor near Sofala. They took fright and made for the shore, but were pursued and over- taken. They proved to be Moorish vessels bound for Melinda. As the Portu-


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Vol. III.

FASHIONS FOR FEBRUARY. THE Costumes presented in our plate this month are of unusual beauty, and comprise varieties sufficient to satisfy the most fastidious. Fig. 1. represents a WALKING DRESS, worn with a shawl, splendidly fringed. Close-faced bonnet trimmed plain. Fig. 2. is an OPERA DRESS : the waist pointed. Over this is worn a short mantle, elegantly trimmed with fur. Head-dress of lace, ornamented with roses. Fig. 3. is a WALKING DRESS, half cloak, half pelisse, worn over a rich green silk, and lined with crimson. It is fringed all round, and adorned with tassels. Bonnet close to the face, and decked with marabouts.

WALKING DRESSES.-These are generally destitute of trimming, owing to their being concealed by the mantelet, camail or cloak. Corsage high and plain : sleeves and skirt to match. Velvet dresses are much worn , both for morning and evening toilette, and are made perfectly plain. The other materials in vogue are satins of different colors, China silks, Indian damasks ; levantines and pekins. We notice a costume made up of a dress of black satin, perfectly plain, and sitting close to the figure : over this is worn a surtout of French grey cachemire, fitting to the figure, and attached around the waist with cords and tassels ; long hanging Persian sleeve ; the cloak and sleeve lined throughout with blue gros de Naples, and bordered with round soutache embroidery capote of rich amber gros de Indes, the interior of the brim lined with white, and ornamented with three small puffs of ribbon, interspersed with small green sprigs ; the crown decorated with knots of amber velvet ribbon, and a fancy feather forming a half wreath on the front of the crown : muff of sable, lined with cherry color. Another costume is composed of a dress of blue Pekin silk, the skirt full and long, ornamented down the front with a soutache embroidery, having a row of large buttons decorating the centre ; the sleeves ornamented to match: manteau of rich chocolate satin, opening on each side as well as the front, attached as far as the arm-hole with a broad rouleau or silk cord, finished with a nœud and tassels of the same ; small round collar ; the whole of the mantle surrounded with a broad bias of velvet, headed with a vandyke of narrow silk braid, the lining white taffetas : capote of white velours épinglé, lined with pale pink, the left side trimmed with puffings of white velours épinglé ribbon, surmounting a small bouquet of roses, the puffings of ribbon reaching from the roses to the nœud behind.

BALL DRESSES are now much sought after. We have seen one made of white crêpe, trimmed with an embroidery of ponceau silk and Grecian gold, the dress forming three tunics. Another of three jupes, each embroidered in gold lama ; pointed waist ; tight low body and short sleeves, surrounded with a double square cape, embroidered to match ; coiffure of rich blue velvet, decorated with pearls and a double plume of white ostrich feathers, the under plume falling very low on the left side : this head-dress is worn very much on one side : hair in ringlets. We have noticed also an Evening Dress of a delicate lilac peach-colored satin, the jupe very full, and doubly gauged round the waist ; the bottom of the jupe trimmed with two deep pieces of velvet, of a shade darker than the satin, each piece being on the bias, and divided with a deep flouncing of white lace ; the corsage low, and fitting tight to the figure ; waist à pointe, the top of the corsage ornamented with a double fall of lace ; short tight sleeves, trimmed to match. Another Evening Dress is of rich pink satin, trimmed handsomely round the jupe, with a broad flouncing of sable, headed by one rather narrower, which continues up each side of the front, narrowing toward the point of the waist ; corsage and short sleeves, fitting tight to the figure, and ornamented with sable trimmings ; waist à pointe. The hair arranged in bows behind, and caught with gold cord and tassels. Scarf of striped lama muslin.

BONNETS for promenade are of middling size, decorated with feathers shaded, the same color as the ribbon. Half dress bonnets are of velours royal, blue sapphire, gris Mineral, vert de gris, straw or citron color, and ornamented with marabouts : the interior trimmed with velvet ribbons of a light and lively color. In form, bonnets have undergone a slight change at the ears, t


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 Kit

Jil.ST(JllV OF INJJIA

fli^WK I.

AD. 1M)0

Cabral arrives at Calicut.

Interview with the zamoriii.

Mutual ilisti'ust.

guese were on IViendly terms with its chief" Cahral was sorry for what had liappened, more especially as the most valuable part of the cargo coasisted of gold, which, during the teiTor of the tiight, had been thrown overboard. On expressing his regret, the Moorish captain gravely asked whether he ha/J not some wizard with him, who might conjure it up from the bottom of the sea. At Melinda, where the chief proved as friendly as before, Cabral wa,s funiished with two Gujerat pilots. Under their guidance he made a prosperous voyage across the Indian Ocean, and cast anchor within a league of Calicut on the 1 3th of September.

Shortly after his arrival several nairs came on board, bringing the zamorin's welcome, and making great offers of friendship. Cabral was thus induced to take his ships nearer the city, and sent ashore four natives whom Vasco de Gama had carried off. He afterwards sent a messenger, intimating that he came from Portugal purely to settle trade and friendship ; but, taught by De Gama's expei-ience, he refused to land till hostages were given. This demand produced some delay and altercation, but at last six of the principal natives arrived, and Cabral ventured ashore. The interview took place in a pavilion, erected on purpose, near the water-edge. The zamorin, dressed nearly as when De Gama visited him, dazzled all eyes with the size and brilliancy of the diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and pearls, which studded his girdle and hung from liLs ears, or covered his fingers and toes. His chair of state and palanquin, all of gold and silver, curiously wrought, glistened with precious stones; and, among other articles composed of the precious metals, were three gold and seventeen silver trumpets, and various silver lamps, and censers smoking with perfumes. Cabral, after delivering his credentials, and stating the desire of the King of Portugal t<j enjoy the zamorin's friendship, and establish at Calicut a factory, which should be supplied with all kinds of European goods, and take spices in exchange, or pay for them in ready money, caused the present to be brought in. It consisted of a wrought silver basin gilt, a fountain of the same, a silver cup with a gilt cover, two cushions of cloth of gold, and two of crimson velvet, a cloth of state of the same velvet striped and bound with gold lace, and two rich pieces of arras.

So far all things had gone on smoothly ; but beneath this seeming friendship mutual distrust was at work, preparing for a final rupture. First, the hostages, on learning that Cabral was preparing to retm-n, began to suspect that they might be detained altogether, and endeavom-ed to escape by leaping into the sea. Some succeeded, while those re-captured were treated with .some degree of harshness. Before the misunderstanding thus occasioned was completely cleared up, Cabral proposed to send a message to the zamorin, to ask whether he was willing to finish the aoreeraent which he had begun. So strong was the conviction among the Portumiese that this message would onlv make matters worse, that Fiancisco Correa was the only man in the fleet bold enough to volunteer to carry it. Contrary to expectation, Correa met with a friendly


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 Chai'. A'II] CABRAL'S EXPEDITION. 165

reception, and completed an arrangement by which a regular Portuguese factory a.d. liou. was established in Calicut, under the charge of his brother, Ayres Correa This factor seems to have been very inditlerently qualified for his office; and allowed himself to be imposed upon at all hands, and more especially by the Moors, M'ho had never ceased their intrijjues from the first moment when the Portusfuese made their appearance At their instigation some hostile manifestations were made, particularly by Khoja Comireci, the admiral of Calicut ; and appejwances became so alarming that Cabral deemed it necessary to quit the harbour, and stood out to sea. The zamorin expi'essed deep and apparently sincere regret at the cause of Cabral's removal, and showed a willingness to take whatever steps miglit be necessaiy to restore confidence. He gave orders to prevent the ijiterference of the Moors, removed an officer whom he had placed in the factory, and substituted another, who, he thought, would be more acceptable. He even took the still more decided step of removing the factory from a locality which gave the Moors too great control over it, and gave the Portuguese a perpetual grant of a new house more conveniently situated near the sea-shore. The good effect of these measures was soon visible; and the Portuguese walked the streets of Calicut as safely, and as free from molestation, as if they had been in Lisbon.

The Mooi-s, whose resources in intrigue were inexhaustible, determined to Moorish break up this understanding, and tried to effect it by a rather singular expedient. Availino- themselves of the vindictive feelings of the officer who had been removed horn the Portuguese factory, they employed him to persuade Correa that Cabral could not confer a greater service on the zamorin than to capture a large ship, which was bound from Ceylon to Cambay or Gujerat, with elephants. One of these animals, which the zamorin coveted, had been refused ; and as he had thus been unable to obtain it by ftm- means, he would be very glad to obtain it anyhow. The Moors calculated that the master of the vessel, whom they had put on his guard, would be more than a match for the Portu- guese admiral, and, at all events, that the Portuguese, by attacking a vessel with which they had no proper ground of quarrel, would justify the reputation M'hich they had given them as mere depredators. Cabral fell too easily into the snai*e thus laid for him ; but, ai"ter discovering the trick, made the best reparation he could, by restoring the vessel to its owners.

The Moors, disappointed in their object, resumed their former practices, and rortugue-

1 1 • • 1 i> 1 T« 1 • factory

threw many obstructions in the way of the Portuguese; who, in consequence, saw stormed, the time for their departure a]iproaching while their ships remained unladen, Cabral complained to the zamorin, and was authorized to search the vessels of the Moore and take whatever spices were found in them, only paying the original cost prices. The Moors were too numerous and influential to be thus summarily dealt with ; and on one of their ships being seized, obtamed permis- sion from the fickle zamorin to retaliate. They took measui-es accordingly; and


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184 greater. If so be, ’t is hidden from us. All that were present wore brand-new garments. I ween, she never dwelt before in Netherland with such retinue of knights. Though Siegfried was rich in goods, I trow, he never won so many noble men-at-arms, as she saw stand ’fore Etzel. Nor hath any ever given at his own wedding feast so many costly mantles, long and wide, nor such good clothes, of which all had here great store, given for Kriemhild’s sake. Her friends and the strangers, too, were minded to spare no kind of goods. Whatever any craved, this they willingly gave, so that many of the knights through bounty stood bereft of clothes. Kriemhild thought of how she dwelt with her noble husband by the Rhine; her eyes grew moist, but she hid it full well, that none might see it. Great worship had been done her after many a grief. Whatever bounty any used, ’t was but a wind to that of Dietrich. What Botelung’s son had given him, was squandered quite. Rüdeger’s lavish hand did also many wonders. Prince Bloedel of Hungary bade empty many traveling chests of their silver and their gold; all this was given away. The king’s champions were seen to live right merrily. Werbel and Swemmel, the minstrels of the king, each gained at the wedding feast, I ween, full thousand marks, or even better, when fair Kriemhild sate crowned at Etzel’s side.

On the eighteenth morning they rode forth from Vienna. Many shields were pierced in tilting by spears, which the warriors bare in hand. Thus King Etzel came down to the Hunnish land. They spent the night at ancient Heimburg. No one might know the press of folk, or with what force they rode across the land. Ho,


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 166 IIISTOIIY OF INDIA. [B/jok I.

A D :m. having excited n riot, stormed the Poi-tugue.se fjictory. Many of the inmates,

and among others Ayres Correa, the principal fsicUjr, lost their lives. i.i.i„o,u.i8 Cabral, not having received any apology for this outrage from the zamorin,

Calicut. determined to take his own method of revenge, without giving him.self any concern as to the lawfulness of the means. On a sudden, without note of warning, he made a furious onset on ten large ships which were lying in the harljour ; and after a contest, dm-ing which 600 of the Moors and natives perished, gained possession of the cargoes and set the ships on fire. Not satisfied with this, he opened his fire upon the town. Many of its public buildings were destroyed, and the inhabitants, becoming crowded in their flight, fell in great numbers. The zamorin him.self made a narrow escape, as one of his nair.s, who was immediately behind him, was struck down Vjy a cannon-ball. Fiieiidshii) Peace was now out of the question, and open war was declared The Portu-

of Cochin guese, however, had no idea of abandoning their Indian traffic; and on being dispossessed of one factory, immediately looked out for another. Farther soutli than Calicut, and bounding with it, was the kingdom or rajahship of Cocliia It recognized the supremacy of Calicut, but had often aspired to independence, and was therefore easily induced to listen to proposals of amity from the Portu- guese. The power of these new visitors had been signally displayed in their recent contest with the zamorin ; and the King of Cochin could scarcely doul>t that, were their powerful aid secured, the yoke of Calicut might soon be shaken off". Accordingly, when Cabral appeared off" the coast, and stated his desire to make the town and harbour of Cochin the seat of Portuguese commerce, the terms were easily arranged. The rajah, whose name was Truimpara or Trimum- para, at once agreed to give hostages as a security that the Portuguese should not be treacherously dealt with when ashore, only stij^ulating that the two nairs whom he sent for the purpose should be changed daily, as they coiild not eat on shipboard without becoming unfit for the royal presence, or, in other words, losing caste. The Portu- The harbouT of Cocliin, forming one of a series of lagoons which here line the

remove coast, and have occasional openings by which ships can enter, was far superior to that of Calicut ; and the Portuguese saw reason to congratulate themselves on their change of locality ; but recent experience made them cautious, and all that Cabral at first ventured to do Avas to land a factor of the name of Gonzalo Gil Barbosa, a clerk, an interpreter, and four criminals whom he had brought from Portugal, who were to act as servants. Their reception was very gracious : but the court presented none of the dazzling state conspicuous at Calicut. It soon appeared, however, that it possessed more valuable qualities. For every promise made was fulfilled. to the letter; and the lading of the Portuguese vessels with the spices which the country produced in abundance, was accom- plished without delay. This difference of treatment was probably omng, not so much to the personal qualities of the sovereigns of Calicut and Cochin, as to


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 f":

Chap. VII.] THIRD PORTUGUESE EXPEDITION. 1C7

tiieir relative positions — the former considering himself strong enough to make ad looi his will law, and, if so disposed, to play the tyrant, while the latter, writhing under a galling yoke, was convinced that his best chance of escaping it was to tlu-ow himself into the hands of tiie Portuguese. Tiiis feeling of a common interest and a common danger naturally smoothed down many tlifficulties, and made friendship, when once established, firm and lasting.

The impression which the Portuguese had produced, both by the terror of Fnendiy

/. 1 . .1 • ., ., overtures

their arms and the extent of their commercial transactions, was strikingly from other evinced by the anxiety which several native states now manifested to secure ^'^^'^ "* their alliance. From the chiefs of two of these — Cananore, situated consider- ably^ north of Calicut, and Coulan, or rather Quilon, situated considerably south of Cochin, in the state of Travancore — mes.sengers amved to invite the Portu- gne.se to their harbours, promising them .spices on cheaper terms than they could be obtained at Cochin. Cabral was, of course, inchned to open communications in as many quarters as possible, with a view to subsequent traffic; but at the time it was impossible to do more than promise a future visit, as he had more serious work on hand. Just as he was completing his cargo, a formidable fleet, com- y)osed of twenty-tive large ships, and many smaller vessels, appeared off the coast. It wjxs said to have 15,000 soldiers on boai'd, and to be destined to avenge the injuries inflicted on Cabcut. This information was furnisiied by the Rajah of Cochin, who proved his fidelity to his new allies by offering them all the assi.stance in his power ; but Cabral, thanking him for the offer, felt confident that he would prove more than a match for them single-handed. It would seem, however, that tiiis confidence v/as somewhat shaken, for after some manoeuvring with the view of bruiging the enemy to action, he suddenly changed his mind, and saileil away in such haste, that he did not even take time to restore the cabrai ho.stages whom he had received from the rajah. To increase the ignominy of the by the flight, he was pursued a whole day by the Calicut fleet. When it left him ^^t""' * at night he appears to have availed hhnself of the darkness to regain the Mala- bar coast, and anchored in front of Cananore, where he took in 400 quintals of cinnamon. The rajah was so friendly that, supposing the want of money to be the reason why he did not take more, he offered him any additional quantity on credit ; and showed how anxious he was to cultivate the Portuguese alliance, 1>- actually sending an amba.ssador with Cabral to Europe for that purjiose. Nothing of much interest occun-ed on the homeward voyage, and Cabral an-ived in Lisbon on the 31st of July, 1501. Of the ships which originallv formed the expedition only six returned.

Before Cabral s ari'ival a third Portuguese expedition was on its way to India. TUini It had sailed in IMarch, and consisted only of three sliips and a caravel, with expedition. +00 men, under the command of an experienced seaman of the name of Juan de Nueva. His instructions, proceeding on the assumption that Cabral had estab- lished factories at Sotala and at Calicut, were to leave two of the vessels with


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 168

HISTORY OF INDIA.

[lioOK I.

A.D. 1501. their cargoes at the fonner, and proceed with the two others to the latter town. As a precautionary measure the experlition was to call at San Bhis, situated east of the Cape of Good Hope, and wait ten days to give an opportunity of meeting with any of Cabral's ships which might be on their way home. Here they found a letter which had been left for them, detailing the events which had

taken place at Calicut and Cochin. In corLse- «juence of this informa- - ' tion, Juan de Nueva

W-%'

De Nueva arrives at Cocliin.

j*S%'iti?.:

Cananore. — Bnin et Ho^jenburg, 1574.

^' deemed it imprudent to

separate his vessels, and proceeded with the whole for India, arrivinir in November at Anchediva, a small i.sland on the coast south of Goa. Shortly after he anchored off Cananore, the rajah of which was very urgent that he shoidd lade there; but anxiety to learn the state of matters at the factory induced liim t(j decline and hasten on to Cochin.

On arriving, he learned that the rajah, though greatly offended with Cabral for leaving without notice and carrying off his hostages, had proved a faithful ally, and given full protection to all the members of the factory ; but that the Moors had carried their hostility so far as on one occasion to set fire to it, and in various ways, by depreciating the value of their merchandise, had prejudiced the native traders against them to such a degree, that they refused to part with their spices except for ready money. As this was a commodity with which Juan de Nueva was very scantily provided, he immediately retiu-ned to Cananore, where the rajah dealt with him much more liberally, and furnished him with 1000 (quintals of pepper, 50 of ginger, and 450 of cinnamon, together with some cotton cloth, to be paid out of the proceeds of the goods which he had lodged for sale in a Portuguese factory established there. While occupied with these commercial transactions, Juan de Nueva received intelligence that a large fleet belonging to the zamorin was on the way to attack him. The rajah who sent the intelligence advised him to land his men and ordnance, and make an enti'enchment on shore, as the only effectual means of defence. He Defeats the was not SO casily intimidated ; and, on the next da}^ when 1 00 vessels were seen entering the bay, he advanced to meet them, and poured in his shot with such good effect, that the zamorin's commander hung out a flag of truce, and, after a parley, agreed to quit the bay, and make the best of his way back to Calicut

zjimoriii s

fleet

!


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 Chap. VII.] EXPEDITION UNDEIi DE GAMA. 169

This failm-e made such an impression on the zamorin that he proposed terms of a.d 1502, accommodation. Juan de Nueva, probably feeling that his powere were not ~

sufficient for transacting basiness of so much importance, set sail for Europe. His homeward voyage was prosperous, and he arrived safely with all his ships.

The accounts brought home by Cabral satisfied the King of Portugal that Expidition he must either fit out his expeditions on a scale of greater magnitude, or d"'cr!.nr" desist from the attempt to establish a trade in the East. The latter alter- native was not to be thought of; for even under tlie most adverse circum- stances the profit had counterbalanced the loss. It was therefore determined that the next expedition would be more adequate to the objects contemplated. These were not merely to overawe any of the native Indian princes who might be disposed to be hostile, but to chastise the insolence of the Moors by attacking then* trade in its principal seat. Accordingly, the expedition now fitted out consisted in all of twenty- shii)s. The c(jmmand, at first offered to Cabral, was ultimately given to Vasco de Gama, who was to proceed directly to India with ten ships ; while his brother, Stephen de Gama, and Vicente Sodre, were each to have the command of a squadron of five, and clear the sea of Moors, the one by scouring the Malabar coast, and the other by cruizing off" the entrance to the Ked Sea.

Viisco de Gama, honoured with the title of Admiral of the Eastern Seas, set «'» " "'

title

sail with Vicente Sodre on the 3d of March, 1502, before Juan de Nuevas i-etm-n; Stephen de Gama did not leave before the 1st of May. Having doubled the Cajie of Good Hope, and sailed up the east coast of Africa, for the purpose of establishing factories at Sofala and Mosambique, Vasco de Gama, after waiting till he was joined by his brother, continued his course acro.ss the Indian Ocean, and had arrived within sight of Mount Dilly, a little north of Cananore, when lie fell in with a large ship belonging to the Sultan of Egypt. It was richly laden, and had on board many Mahometans of rank and wealth, bound on a jiilgrimage to Mecca. He immediately attacked it, anil ca])tm'ed it after a vigorous resistance. To liis di.sgi-ace he made an atro- "« capt.-.res eious use of his victory Going on board, he called the principal pa.ssengers shiji before him, and onlered tliem to produce whatever property they had in money or in goods. They declared that most of both had been left in Calicut ; but on his throwing one of them bound hantl and foot into the sea, and threat- ening to treat all the others in the same way, they became temfied, and yielded to his demand. He had thus secured a rich prize by questionable means, and ought at all events to have been satisfied with it. In.stead of this he acted as if he had thrown aside every feeling of humanity, and resolved to ])lay the barbarian, not for the jirofit, but merely for the plea-sure it afforded. After dividing tiie plunder among his crews, and removing all the children to his own ship, in order to fulfil a vow which bound him to make monks of all the males he should thus ca])ture, he forced all the jiassengei's and crew of the Vol. I. 22


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 170 HISTORY OF INF'IA. [Rook [.

A.D. 1502. Moorisli vessel below, and, iiaving nailed down the hatches upon thern, t^jld hi8 brother to set it on fire. Tiie fiendish (jrder was executed; but the unhapjiy victims, rendered desperate, made superhuman efi^orts, and having broken o[)en

DeGama's the liatchcs, succecdcd in (juenching the flames. Had they been the giiiltiest wretches possible, instead of being for the most part inoffensive pilgi-ims, they had now surely done enough to save their lives. But no. Their destruction had been ordered, and Vasco de Gama was not to be satisfied with less. Stephen, who proved himself no unwilling instrument in his brother's hands, was told to board, and made the attempt, but met with such a reception from the Mahometaas, when they saw that no mercy was to be expected, as compelled him to retire. Had De Gama been acting tmder a sudden burst of passion, he had now full time to cool, for night came on, and nothing more could be done till moi-ning. Wlien he rose, it was only to repeat liis inhuman order : the vessel .was again boarded and set on fire, and 300 persons, of whom tliirty were women, were burned to death, or drowned, or slaughtered- Of all who were in the vessel when the capture was made, not a soul escaped except the children, whom this bloody baptism initiated into the Romish faith.

His arrival After this iufamous transaction one almost shudders to mention the name of

at Gauanore

Vasco de Gama, but the course of the narrative cannot in the meantime proceed without him. In his next proceeding, the caution which he used, when he thought it possible that his own life might be in danger, contrasts strangely with the recklessness he showed when iniquitously di.sposing of the lives of others. Having anchored off" Cananore, he desired an interview with the rajah ; but as the captivity he had suffered at Calicut on his first voyage seemed still upper- most in his mind, he adopted the device of having a wooden bridge, which projected a considerable way into the water. At the end of this bridge, which was covered with carpets, a pavilion was reared to form the hall of audience. The rajah made his appearance first, attended by 10,000 nairs, and advanced to the pavilion amid the beating of drums and floiu-ishes of trumpets. De Gama came accompanied by all his boats, adorned with flags, and took his place in the pavilion, under a salute of artillery. The result of the interview was a treaty of amity, and the estaljlishment of a Portuguese factory at Cananore. His pro- From Cananore De Gama continued his course to Calicut, and, making his

ceediiigs at

Calicut appearance unexpectedly in the roads, captured several small boats, containing about fifty natives. Whatever just cause of quarrel he may have had with the zamorin, these poor creatures were not implicated, and yet, on not obtaining redress for the destruction of the Portuguese factory, and the loss of lives occa- sioned by it, he hung them up at the yard-arm, and, after they were dead, cut oft' their arms and feet, and caused them to be carried ashore, with a message to the zamorin, that similar treatment was in reserve for himself for his repeated breaches of faith. To show that he was in earnest, he ordered three ships to stand in as near as possible to the town, and open their fii'e upon it. The royal


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 Chap. VII.] DK CxAMA RETURNS HOME. 171

•

palace was one of the many buildings thus demolished. Without waiting tt^ ad. i5u3. ascertain the effect, he left Vicente Sodre with a squadron to scour the coast and destroy the Moorish trade, and set sail for Cochin. Here matters were easily re-established on their former friendly footing, mutual presents were ex- changed, and a commercial treaty of a more formal nature than that previously existing was concluded.

The next proceeding of the zamorin was very inexciLsable, and, indeed, looks Treachei-y of as if he had determined to put hnnself entirely m the wrong. Hearing that De Gama was lading at Cochin, he sent a messenger, iiiating him to Calicut, and promising that everything would be arranged to his entire satisfaction This was rather a slender foundation on which to negotiate ; but peace with Calicut was felt to be so desu-able that De Gama determined to make one effort more to secure it, and .set out alone, leaving all his other shij)s behind. The temptation was too strong for the fickle and tortuous court of Calicut ; and De Gama, instead of the friendly reception which he had anticipated, wjis set upon by a large fleet of small vessels, and very narrowly esca])ed being made prisoner. Fm'ther negotiation was of course impossible, though he ought certainly to have disdained to take the petty revenge of putting the zamorin's messenger to deatli.

The details of the conflicts which ensued possess little interest. In one of Rotun. of them De Gama, after putting to flight a large number of small vessels, captured oanm to two large Moorish ships, whicii proved valual)le prizes, both of them being "'"'**■ richly laden, wliile on board one of them was an image of gold of thirty pounds weight, with emeralds for its eyes, a robe curiously wrought and set with pre- cious stones for its covering, and on its bi'east a large ruby. Having again visited Cananore, and united with its rajah and that of Cochin in forming a kind of triple alliance, for mutual defence, De Gama, leaving Vicente Sodre with his squadron, sailed for Europe on the 20th of December, 1503, but did not reach Portugal till the following September. He had again proved himself an able navigator; but his proceedings had rather tarnished than increased liis fame. His sovereign, however, was satisfied ; and rewarded him with the title of Count of Vidogueii-a.

Before De Gama departed, the Rajah of Cochin had made him aware of xiie zamorm tlireatening messages which lie had received from the zamorin. Ihe penl to attack which a faithful ally was thus exposed, entitled his case to a more careful ^ '"' consideration than it received, and he was left exposed to the full fmy of the zamorin's revenge. Nor was it long before it overtook him. De Gama's depar- ture was too favom-able an opportunity to be lost, and hostile preparations on a most formidable scale were immediately commenced. In the vicinity of Ponany, about sixteen leagues north of Ctn^hin. .')0,000 men were assembled. Before commencing operations the zamorin asked nothing more than the siuTender of the Portuguese who had fixed tlieir residence in Cochin. The population


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 172

HISTORY OF INDIA.

[Book I.

AD 1501. were urgent that the demand slioulfl be complied with, but the rajah stood finn, and, though his force was comparatively insignificant, advanced to the enc^junter. The contest, however, was too unequal ; and he was driven from post to post, till he was at last obliged to abandon his capital, and seek an asylum in the island of Vaipi, or Vipeen, in its vicinity.

Arrival of While iu this extremity he received no support from Vicente Sodre, who

Alfonso Al-. ., ,.

bunuorquB. Kept cruizmg about raakmg captm-es, but on some shallow pretext or other refused to give any direct assistance. Powerful aid, however, was approach- ing. Nine ships had sailed from Lisbon, in three equal .squadroas, under the

respective commands of Alonso or Alfonso

Albuquerque, Francisco Albuquerque, and Antonio Saldanha. Tlie last was to cruize in the mouth of the Red Sea ; the others were to proceed directly to India. Franci.sco Albuquerque arrived first, and with a con- siderable addition to his squadron, in con- sequence of having fallen in with some of the ships belonging to Vicente Sodi-e. This powerful reinforcement completely changed the a-spect of affairs, and tlie zamorin wa.s defeated at every point. Triumpara, in the joy of his heart, not only conferred new privileges on the Portuguese, but gave them permission to build a fort.

On the arrival of Alfonso Albuquerque new energy was thrown into the Portuguese operations, and many successful expeditions were made both by land and sea. The eflfect of these wa.s manifested in various ways. In the south Coulan, or Quilon, then under female government, made a voluntary offer to lade two ships, and consent to the establishment of a factory; while the zamorin, dispirited by a series of disastrous defeats, was compelled to sue for peace. It was granted, but on terms so disadvantageous, that he availed liimseLf of the first pretext for a rupture, and was soon again at open war. For some reason not explained the two Albuquerques, at this very time, wdien theii' presence seemed more necessary than ever, set sail for Europe, lea^^ng only Duarte Pacheco with the ship which he commanded, two caravels, and 110 men, for the defence of Cochin. Francisco Albuquerque appears to have perished in a storm, for he was never more heard of; Alfonso, reserved for greater things, amved in safety, bringing with him for the king forty pounds of pearls, a diamond of remarkable size, and two horses, a Persian and an Arab, the first of the kind which were imported into Portugal.

The zamorin had become convinced that he would never be able single-

The .lbu- (luerqnes sail for Europe.

Alfon'so de Albuquerque. From a print after Silva.


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 Chap. VII.] LOPE SOARE/. 173

handed to overcome the Portuguese; and therefore, in again preparing to take ad. 1505 the field, made it his first business to strengthen himself by entering into a coalition with neighbouring states. In this he found little difiiculty, for the Portuguese were not only viewed with jealousy as strangers, but had pursued a The zamouu very reckless course at sea, attacking and making prizes of all vessels of what- coalition ever country, whenever they found any pretext for stigmatizing tliem by the name of Moors. We have already met with instances of this kind candidly confessed, or rather complacently dwelt upon by themselves ; and it can scarcely lie doubted that tlie in.stances which they have not recorded were still more Tiumerous. Be this as it may, the coalition soon assumed a very formidable appearance; and while a niunerous fleet, provided with nearly 400 cannons, prepared to bomlmrd Cochin from the sea, an army, estimated at 50,000, begun to apj)roach it by larul.

Triumpara was dismayed, and apparently with good reason, for not only Heroism of was the enemy in overwhelming force, but his subjects, under the influence of i-acheco. terror, began to desei't. The only person whose courage remained luishaken was the Portuguese captain, Duarte Paeheco, who, when the rajah came to him in the greatest alarm, and spoke of surrender, scouted the idea, assuring him that a valiant defence woidd certainly prove successful. This was no empty boast. Paeheco made all his arrangements with so much skill, and carried them out with so much resolution, that the confederates were ultimately obliged to retire with a severe loss. Attempts were repeatedly made to renew the attack, but the result was always the same ; and the zamorin with his allies had the mortification of seeing all their efforts baffled by a mere handful of Europeans. Seldom has there been a more striking example of what one daring spirit can accomplish than was furnished by Paeheco in this struggle. In the course of it the zamorin had lost 18,000 men, and was now so humbled as gladly to accej)t of terms of peace from his o^vn tributary Rajah of Cochin. As we shall not again meet with Paeheco, we may here conclude his history. It is a melancholy one. A fleet of thirteen ships, of larger dimensions than had ever before been built in Portugal, having arrived under the command of Lope Soarez, Paeheco, though treated with merited distinction, was superseded, and invested Avith the government of El Mina, on the west coast of Africa. Here it was thouijht that his private fortune, to which he was too heroiccilly dispo.sed to give much atten- tion, would be improved. This object was entirely defeated by a violent faction, which first thwarted his measures, and then had the audacity to seize his person on a false ciiarge, and send him home in chains. After languishing for a His fate, time in prison he obtained an honourable acquittal, but it was too late. The ungrateful return for his di.stingaished services had broken his heart, and he died either in prison or shortly after he was released from it.

Lope Soarez, soon after his arrival, moved up to Calicut, and was met by a messenger from the zamorin, who was now willing to com])ly with every


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 174

IIISTOHV OF INI>IA.

[Book I.

A I) I. mi:

llulioill'.'ihli.' conduct i)f the za- moriii

He is do

f Jilted l)y

Lape

Soarez.

(lemaiKl made upon liiiii except one. This was t<> deliver up an Eur<;p«ian, a native of Milan, who liad entered his service, and taught him the art of aisting cannon, along with other important naval and military improvements. To his honour the zamorin demurred to tlie delivery of an individual who.se only offence was the ability and fidelity with which he had served him Soarez unable or unwilling to appreciate the hoiK^ur and justice of the zamorin's refusal, immediately bombarded the town, and laid the greater part of it in ashe.s. This work of destruction accomplished, he immediately proceeded to another, and treated the town of Cranganore, which had adhered to the zamorin, in the same way. His next exploit began more ominously, but ended still more triumph- antly. In sailing north from Cranganore to attack Ponany, he was met V>y the zamorin's fleet, and driven into a bay. Here he found himself in imminent peril ; for in addition to the fleet before which he had been obliged to retiie, seventeen large Moori.sh ship?, well provided with cannon, and carrying 4000 men, were waiting to receive him A fierce conflict ensued; but ultimately, with a very trifling loss to the Portuguese, all the ships of the enemy with their rich lading were destroyed. Soarez, thinking he had now done enough to justify his return, left four ships at the fort of Cochin, and set sail for Europe with the

Lisbon. — From Bnin et Hogenburg, 1.574.

Don Fran ciiico .VI- nieidas arrival
 * is viceroy

remainder. His arrival at Lisbon, on the 22d of July, 1506, was gladly wel- comed, as no richer cargo in goods and prizes had ever retuiTied from the East. The next Indian armament fitted out by Portugal was on a more magnificent scale than any which preceded it. It consisted of twenty-two ships, cari-}ing, in addition to the crew, 1500 fighting men, and was placed under the command of Don Francisco Almeida, who bore for the first time the proud title of Viceroy of India. His arrival in India took place in 1507. The first land reached was the island of Anchediva, where, as it occupied a commanding position on the coast, and had become a common station for Portucruese vessels, he built a fort. On arriving at Cochin, where he intended to have rewarded Triumpara, the old and


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 Chap. VI I.]

NATIVE COMBINATION.

175

faithful ally of the Portuguese, with a crown of gold, set with jewels, which he had brought from Portugal for the purpose, he was astonished to find that he liad retired from the world, to spend the remainder uf his days as a solitary devotee. His nephew was reigning in his stead, and received the crown from the hands of Almeida during a pompous ceremonial. It is probable that he did not understand all that was meant by it, for from that day he was to be regarded, not as an independent sovereign, but a vassal holding his crown during the
 * )leasure of the Portuguese.

Before Almeida arrived, the zamorin had once more placed all his fortunes on a venture; and, as if fully aware that the struggle in which he was about to engage would prove decisive of his fate, left no means unemployed to insure .success. At this time a powerful dynasty was reigning in the Deccan over territories which included a considerable tract of sea-coast, from Goa northwards, while tiie kingdom of Gujerat or Cambaya had risen to be a great naval power. Both of these states had been wantonly attacked by the Portuguese, and their commerce had suffered severely before they were aware of having done anything to provoke hostility. Naturally exasperated, they entered with readiness into

A.D 1507

Native coin- tiiiiation .'igiiiiist tlii- Portuguesc.

.;<!!

HiRDs EYE View ok Alexandria — Kroni Bnui et Uogenburg, 1&T4.

a combination intended to banisli the Portuguese for ever from the Et.

The Mameluke sultan at once responded to the call thus made upon him, Thcsiun and the more readily that his attention had previously been di-awn to the sub- S^t." ject from another quarter. The success of the Portuguese in the East was already telling powerfully against the lucrative trade which the Venetians had long been accustomed to regard as their special monopoly. Goods brought into the Levant, either overland or by way of Alexandria, had so heavy a burden of


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lIISTOilV OF INDIA.

[Book I.

tiaiis.

An Egyptian flejt fitted out.

AD. 1507 transport and taxation to l^uar, that they could not possibly wjmpete with tiie

comparatively inexpensive i)rocess of a single voyage, however long, from the

port of lading to the port of delivery. The Venetians thas found themselves

Intrigues of undersold in every European market, and became perfectly aware that they

theveue- j^yj^t, either destroy the Portuguese trade or be destroyed by it. Their first endeavour was to work upon the fears of the King of Portugal and the pope, by instigating the sultan to send a tlireatening letter t(^ Lisbon and Rome, inti- mating that if the Portuguese did not forthwith relinquish the new course of navigation, by which they had penetrated into the Indian Ocean, and cease from encroacliing on a commerce which had been carried on from time imme- morial between Asia and his dominions, he would put to death all the Chris- tians in Egyi^t, Syria, and Palestine, bum their churches, and demoli.sh the holy sepulchre itself

This menace having failed to produce the effect anticipated, the Venetian.s did not scniple to urge the sultan to take the remedy into hLs own hands, and. in accordance with the invitation given by the zamorin, become a powerful auxiliary in the crusade against the Portuguese. There was only one difficulty. The Egyptian fleet in its actual state was overmatched by that of Portugal. If the war was undertaken, the first thing necessary would be to build a new fleet. Egypt had no proper timber for the purpose. How, then, was it to be obtained ? The Venetians were not to be balked of their object by such an ob.stacle. Had they not whole forests of naval timber in Dalmatia? and ha'ing gone so far why need they scruple to place them at the disposal of the sultan, who. after hewing down as much as he required, might easily transport it by a well known route to the Red Sea? Such was the plan actually adopted; and Europe saw the maritime power which had taken a prominent part in the cnisade of Christian piinces against Mahometans, as zealously engaged in promoting a Mahometan crusade against Christians.

By these extraordinary means a fleet of twelve ships of war ha^^ng been built and fully equipped, set sail for the Indian coast in 1507. It carried 1500 men, and was commanded by an experienced officer, whom Ferishta calls Ameer Hoosseiu, and the Portuguese Meer Hashim. It sailed first to Gujerat, where Mullik Eiaz, admiral of Mahmood Shah I., who was then reigning sovereign of that kingdom, was prepared to join it with a squadron which would more than double its numbers and streng-th. Almeida seems not to have been aware of the danger which threatened liim till he was almost overtaken by it. His tactics obviously should have been to attack the Tirrkish fleet on its passage. In this way it might not liave been difficult for him to beat his enemies in detail. He may have been prevented by obstacles of which we are not aware ; for after he had resolved to pursue this obvious course it was found to be too late. His son Lorenzo, whom he had despatched with eleven sail to intercept the sultan's fleet, having been detained, first off Cananore, where he

It^ arrival in lii:lia.


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 Chap. VIT] LORENZO KILLED. 177

attacked and, with scarcely any loss, destroyed a native squadi'on far larger than ad. isot

his own, and afterwards at Anchediva, where sixty Moorish and native vessels had made an attempt on the fort, arrived in the harbom- of Choul, or Chowul, about twenty-three miles south of Bombay, jast in time to see the Egyptian admiral enter it. A tierce conflict immediately ensued, and was continued a navai without any decided advantage till night separated the combatants. Next day an immense preponderance was given to Ameer Hoossein by the arrival of Mullik Eiaz with the Gujerat fleet. Lorenzo, still undismayed, immediately renewed the battle, but found the Egyptian admiral a much more formidable antagonist than he had been accustomed to deal with. After another day's fighting had left the victory undecided, the Portuguese ships were so much shattered that it was determined by a council of war to take advantage of the niijht and effect a retreat.

Lorenzo, who had previously incurred his father's displeasm'e, by declining on Heroism of

^ . . Almeida's

one occasion to lorce the fleet oi the zamorin to action, wtis very reluctant son. i,o- to take a step which would justly be considered as an acknowledgment of defeat, and continued to linger on till the day began to dawn. He had by this time consented to retreat, and several of his vessels had set sail. Unfortunately when he began to follow, his ship grounded, and after some ineffectual efforts to tow it off", the rest of the squadron continued their flight, and left him to his fate. He might have escaped in his boat, but at )uce made up his mind to sell his life as dearly as possible, and die at his post. The enemy at first attempted to board, but was so bravely resisted, that he adopted the more cjiutious method of keeping at a distance and pouring in his shot. Lorenzo, having been struck by a ball, which broke his thigh, ordered himself to be placed against the mainmast, and there remained, encouraging his men, till another ball broke his back and killed him. Tiie shij) shortly after sunk. Of His death, its crew of 100 men only nineteen escaped. According to Faria y Sousa, the whole loss of the Portuguese amounted only to eighty-one men, while the enemy lost 600. The Mahometan account given by Ferishta is very different. After mentioning that the Portuguese flag-ship, valued at a crore of rupees (a million sterling), was sunk, and every man on board perished, he adds, that the Mahometan fleet returned victoriously; for although 400 Turks were honoured with the crown of mtu'tyi-dom, no fewer than 3000 or 4000 Portuguese infidels were at the same time sent to the infernal regions.

Vol.. r.


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 178

HISTORY OF INDIA.

[Book I.

CHAPTER VIII.

Portuguese progress in the East — The viceroyships of Francisco Almeida and Alfonso Albuquerque.

CiR.

A.D. 1508,

Alfonso Al- biKinerqiie returns to India.

11 is expedi- tion to tlie Persian Uuif.

l U E Portu^iese were now fully committed to their career of oiK^uest, and successive armaments, on a grand scale, quitted I Lisbon for the East. One of the.se, under Tristan da Cunha, consisted of thirteen vessels, and 1*300 fighting men. Another, of twelve vessels, sailed under the command of Alfoaso Albu- querque, who, after performing sevei'al exploits on the African coast, and taking effectual measures to cripple the trade from India by the Red Sea, continued along the coast of Arabia, and entered the Persian Gulf, determined to stiike a still more fatal blow. There the Mahometan traffic with India was still active. Albuquerque, in whom great military and political talents were com- bined, at once perceived liow an effectual interdict might be laid upon it. The only thing necessary for this purpose was to make himself master of the city of Ormuz, situated on an island in the mouth of the gulf In this way he could

J^ completely command

the passage, and jjlace the trade at liis mercy. After the capture of Muscat, and several other places of minor importance, he pro- ceeded to the execution of his grand enterprise. His design had been penetrated; and in.stead of being able to take the city by sui'prise, as he had anticipated, he found it defended by a fleet of 400 vessels, sixty of them of large size, and by an army of 30,000 men. To show how far he was from being dismayed at these preparations, he immediately advanced into the harbour, and anchored among five of the largest ships, firing his cannon as if in defiance. After waiting for a message from the king, but receiving none, he sent him his ultimatum, which, considering the relative position of the parties, was cer- tainly of a very extraordinary and arrogant description. It was to the effect that lie had come with orders to take the King of Ormuz imder his protection,

Ormuz. — Brun et Hogenbiirg, 1374.


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 Chap. VIIT.] ALMEIDA SUPERSEDED. 'ITU

on the condition of paying a reasonable tribute to Portugal, or to treat him as a d^'iooo. an enemy by declaring war against him.

There was little room to doubt which of the alternatives, thus arbitrarily Aibuquer-

1 • c • n 'l"® attacks

])laced before him, the sovereign of Ormuz would accept, but as his fortinca- onmu. tions were not yet completed, it was important to gain time; and solely with that view, instead of sending a resolute defiance, he entered into negotiation. Albuquerque saw what wtis intended, and at once brought matters to a point, by telling the messenger that when he next came, it must be with either an acceptance of peace, or a declaration of war. There had never been any room for choice, and the message accordingly was, that Ormuz was in use not to pay, but to receive tribute. Albu(iuerque lost not a moment in commencing a cannonade which must have caused feaiful slaughter, as not only were the walls, shore, and vessels crowded with combatants, but even the tops of the houses were covered with spectators. The Persians, in the meantime, were not idle, and made two furious onsets ; but neither in weapons nor discipline could they cope with the Portuguese, and the sea is said to have l^een coloured with their blood. With the loss of only ten men, Albuquerque burned, sunk, or otherwise destroyed all the ships of Ormuz, and received a tiag of tiiice with an offer Siii)mi8«ioii to comply with all his demands. The terms were, the annual pajTuent of Persians. SI bout £2000 as tribute to the Kinfj of Portuo-al, and trround on which to build a fort. No sooner were the terms arranged, than the fort was immediately commenced, and carried on with such ra])idity, as to assume shai)e in the course of a few days.

Khojah Attar, who governed Ormuz in the name of Sailaddin, who was a minor, had no sooner made the arrangement than he re})ented of it. From the destruction which Albuquerque had caused, he had formed an extravagant idea of the force under his command ; and was astonished above measure, on learning that it did not muster above 460 men. He therefore prepared anew for hos- tilities, and dexteroush' av^ailed himself of a mutinous feelinsr amonjj the inferioi- Portuguese commanders, to escape the consequences. Albuquerque, after venting his rage by some very barbaroas proceedings, was obliged to depai-t and si)end the winter at Socotra, which had become a Portuguese conquest. Having again returned, he gave formal notice of his arrival to the government of Ormuz, and was immediately informed that the tribute stipulated would be paid, but that he would not be j^ermitted to build the fort. He would fain have resumed the siege, but more important interests required his presence in India. He iiad been appointed viceroy.

Almeida, in the midst of his preparations to avenge the death of his son, Almeida received the mortifying intelligence that he had ])een superseded in his govern- avenge hu ment. Obedience to the royal mandate wsis, of course, his duty; but both *"* ri'vengeand ambition pointed to an opposite comvse, and he detennined to follow it at all hazards On the pretext that the ])nblic iutere-t would not allow him.


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 180 HISTORY OF TNT)TA. (Book 1.

A.a"i509. in present circum.stanceH, to demit his autliority, he refased to resi^ the insigriiu of office; and leaving Albuqueique, who was in no condition t<j force him, i(} devour his disappointment as he could, set out without him at the head of a tilTrol powerful armament. While proceeding northwards along the coast, in search Dabiu of the combined Egyptian and Gujerat fleets, he stopped at Anchediva, and there received information which determined him to make the important com- mercial city of Dabul, situated on the coast about half-way between Goa and Bombay, the first object of attack. It belonged t^; a king of the Deccan, who had joined the zamorin's confederation, and assisted him with ship.s. In Almeida's view this was sufficient to ju.stify any severity; and, without any note of warning, he suddenly commenced his attack both by sea and land, and never desisted till he had laid Dabul in ashes. An immense plunder might have been obtained; but fearing the effect upon his troops, he chose i-ather to hurn than to preserve the booty. 11.; dufeats From this achievement, which certainly added little to his laurels, Almeida

the Tui-kish _ -^ '

ami Gujerat procecded to Diu, finely and strongly situated on an island of the same name, on the southern shore of the peninsula of Gujerat. Here he found Ameer Hoossein and Mullik Eiaz, with their fleets. Had they remained in their position under the batteries of Diu, as the Gujerat admiral strongly urged, Almeida, if he had ventured an attack at all, must have made it under great disadvantage; but the Egyptian admiiul, who was naturally of a chivalrous temper, and perhaps also rendered over-confident by his recent success, when Lorenzo was slain, disdained to be cooped up in a harboiu", when he could meet his enemy in the open sea, and sailed out, displaying more valour than discretion. The conflict, after raging furiously for some time, terminated in a glorious victory gained by the Portu guese, who, however, converted it into an indelible disgrace, by an atrocioas massacre. Several days after the battle was fought, and they had sailed away for Cananore, they murdered all their prisoners in cold blood. There is no possible excuse for the atrocity ; and the only explanation given is, that Almeida's revenge coiild not otherwise be satiated. The defeat had so dispirited ]Iullik Eiaz that he made overtures of peace. They were readily listened to ; and he might have obtained advantageous terms, if he would have stooped to the meanness of delivering up his Eg}^)tian colleague. As much to his honour as to the disgrace of the Portuguese for making such a demand, he at once gave it a peremptory refusal.

He retains Almeida, liaviug returned to Cochin, was again pressed by Albuquerque to

the viceroy-, , , , ,.

ship. resign the viceroyship, which he had persisted in holding, in defiance of the

mandate of his sovereign. So far from complying, he took the extraordinary step of seizing the person of his competitor, and sending him as a prisoner to the fort of Cananore. He would probably have completed the treasonaljle course to which he was now committed, by declaring himself independent, had not the ojjportune arrival of Don Fernando Coutinho, with a large fleet and