Masterpiece of strategic mobility- Part 1

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.. And Portuguese would have left India 3 centuries earlier..- Part 1

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GOA: 1681-1682 Its the summer season and people are busy getting tanned on the beaches of Goa.  However, they do not realize that the same Goa was a fortè of the imperial Portuguese for 4 odd centuries! After Vasco da Gama sailed to India in 1498, the Portuguese gradually became a formidable "trading" entity in India and their power concentrated in the parts of Goa,  northern parts of Konkan, Daman and Diu over the next century. Their power grew so much that in the 17th century the Marathas collaborated with the Portuguese to help build their navy. Gradually as the influence of the Marathas grew, relations between Portuguese and Marathas started straining. These relations remained bitter until the death of Chh. Shivaji Maharaj in April 1680.  Just 3 years after his death, the Marathas launched an offensive against the Portuguese that would have wiped the Portuguese off from India 3 centuries earlier than 1961, when they were actually made to leave India. Let u...
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..And Portuguese would have left India 3 centuries earlier..- Part 2

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GOA: 1683 Now let us move forward to the next part of the offensive of the Marathas on the Portuguese.  As we discussed in the previous blog, the relations between the Marathas and Potuguese deteriorated and the Portuguese eventually decided to capture Ponda, an important fort of the Marathas to counter the reverses faced in North Konkan. In the recently released film "Chhaava" on the life of Chh. Sambhaji Maharaj,  the battle with the Portuguese has been completely left out, maybe due to time constraints.  But this is one of the most fierce battles fought by Chh. Sambhaji Maharaj himself  and would have been a visual treat to watch on the big screen for sure! On 1st November 1683, the Portuguese army crossed the river separating their territory and maratha territory; towards Ponda. Their army is estimated to be around 3200 men combining infantry and cavalry along with some cannons. After defeating the patroling units of the Marathas, they besieged the fo...
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..And Portuguese would have left India 3 centuries earlier..- Part 3

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JUVE (ST. ESTEVAM), GOA: 1683 In the previous blog, we saw how the Portuguese retreated back to their territory in Goa after facing a crushing and humiliating defeat in their attack on Ponda.  In this blog, let us further witness the total humiliation of the Portuguese which even in their own words is a battle so fierce that they had never faced earlier.               Lady virgin church  ( Juve island) Juve Island or St. Estevam as renamed by the Portuguese is situated near a village called Dhavji (Dongium) in modern day Goa.  It was earlier possible to literally walk into Goa from Dhavji in every low-tide of the ocean. To protect themselves, the Portuguese had built a strong fort on the doors of Goa and named it St. Estevam.  Behind this fort laid the maratha territory and in front of it was the Portuguese territory separated by river Mandavi. It was a fort of importance for the Portuguese as it evidently was the l...
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