Vijayanagara Empire and the downfall of the Portuguese

The origin of 'Bisnagar' as how it emerged from Vijayanagar, is quite unknown. But the Vijayanagara Empire has always been mentioned as 'Bisnagar' on almost every European map. The empire that extended all across the Carnatic region of Deccan between 1336 to 1646, broke into various independent kingdoms of south India and played major role in military conflicts - both regional and with Europeans. Although the entire region collapsed under the name of Carnatic during the East India Company's era from the 18th century, it were the Portuguese whose role was apparently more excruciatingly intolerant in the 16th-17th centuries.

One reason why the Portuguese could never establish their supremacy on Indian kingdoms as much as later the British did was their great degrees of intolerance, mass religious conversions, continuous series of wars and battles and a failure to undermine the military potency of Indian kingdoms. By early 16th century, Portugal had its colonies and trading centers at few minor ports in west African kingdoms and some coastal regions of modern-day Brazil. But when they soon expanded their domains on the Indian subcontinent, it attracted a series of other European traders and merchants - some with the sole intention of trading, others to establish their dominions. But for the first 200-250 years, none prevailed in conquering even a single regional kingdom although their influence and trading factories were mushroomed all across the western and eastern coasts. But one particular incident that involved southern powers is interesting to note down.

History is proof that whenever any European force has attacked any Indian dominion, the regional kingdoms joined hands keeping their personal enmity aside. Hence when in early 16th century the Muslim kingdoms of Bijapur (spelled as Visapor) and Gujarat were attacked by the Portuguese, the Hindu empire of Vijayanagara stretched its arms of allying. Before its disintegration in 1646, Vijayanagara Empire contained all the areas of Malabar and Coromandel. Hence ports such as Barcelor (Basrur), Cannanore (Kannur), Cochin (Kochi), Negapatan (Nagapattinam), Cauverypatnam (underwater ruined city on the coast of Tamil Nadu near Nagapattinam) etc. became Dutch, Danish, French and Portuguese trading hubs. Two of the key battles that were fought against the Portuguese - one at San Thome, Mylapore by the de-facto Vijayanagara ruler Rama Raya himself, and another at Goa led by Vitthala Nayaka and Nayaka of Keladi (in Karnataka), both in 1558.

The 1558 campaign where the Portuguese were brutally defeated started the decline of Portuguese ambitions in India. The next century would be even more cruel as now another European power to take over the Portuguese were the Dutch and the former suffered numerous defeats at Indian hands. 17th century emerged as a competitive era between the Dutch and the newly arrived British, eclipsing the Portuguese to mere port towns of Goa, Daman, Diu and later, Nagar Haveli, thus losing all their influence on the Indian coasts. The French secured their prominence by constantly allying with Indian kings and battling against the British - a force that shall turn the Indian history upside down in the coming centuries. But it was the British who learned quickly the ways of not dealing with Indian kingdoms in safeguarding their positions on the subcontinent.

The map here shows a disintegrated Vijayanagara Empire as sketched by Giacomo Cantelli, an Italian cartographer. The names of places here are archaic, European and hardly translatable. But few notable mentions are places such as Madraspatnam (spelled as Madraspatan; the original village on which Madras/Chennai was established) and Bhagyanagar (spelled as Bagnagar; the former name of Hyderabad), Karnataka (spelled as Carnatica), the submerged city of Kaveripattinam (spelled as Cauerypatnam which was supposedly a French trading post) near today's Puhar town of Mayiladuthurai district of Tamil Nadu, etc. The map also shows the kingdoms of Cananor (Cannanore or Kannur), Samorino (Zamorins), Cocino (Cochin or Kochi), Mesul, Maleas, Gingi, Tanaior (Tanjore), Madure (Madurai) and Tecaneuti - all former parts of the Vijayanagara Empire.