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Estado da India
The Estado da India (1505-1961) was the name the Portuguese gave to that part of their empire which stretched from India to East Asia. However, in its widest sense, the name includes all Portuguese colonies east of the Cape of Good Hope and...
Definition
Portuguese Empire
The Portuguese Empire was established from the 15th century and eventually stretched from the Americas to Japan. Very often a string of coastal trading centres with defensive fortifications, there were larger territorial colonies like Brazil...
Definition
Portuguese Goa
Goa, located on the west coast of India, was a Portuguese colony from 1510 to 1961. The small coastal area was conquered by Afonso de Albuquerque (c. 1453-1515) and became an important trade hub for the Eastern spice trade. Goa was the capital...
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Port of Kollam, India
An early 17th-century illustration of Kollam (Quilon) in southern India which became a colony of the Portuguese empire in 1505. Part of the Portuguese Estado da India, a fort was built at Kollam in 1515.
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The Portuguese Conquest of India
Throughout the 15th century, the Portuguese Crown yearned for a piece of the Far Eastern spice trade. For centuries this trade had been dominated by the Venetians who obtained pepper, cloves, nutmeg, ginger and cinnamon from their Middle...
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Portugal & the Age of Exploration
The Portuguese built an empire from 1420 onwards that was largely composed of trade centres dotted around the coasts of three continents. This colonial enterprise was driven by a search for African gold, Asian spices, and Christian kingdoms...
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The English and Dutch East India Companies' Invasions of India
In the early 17th century, the Dutch and English East India Companies turned their eyes towards India, as part of their grand schemes to develop extensive trade networks across the Indian and China Seas. They were faced with two significant...
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Portuguese Nobles in India
A c. 1540 illustration of Portuguese nobles in India. The Portuguese had many coastal colonies in India, part of the Estado da India. From the Códice Casanatense (Biblioteca Casanatense, Rome)
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Map of Goa, c. 1750
A c. 1750 map of Portuguese Goa in India, capital of the Estado da India or Portuguese empire in the East.
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Portuguese Nobleman
A c. 1540 illustration of Portuguese nobleman and his entourage in India. The Portuguese had many coastal colonies in India, part of the Estado da India. From the Códice Casanatense (Biblioteca Casanatense, Rome)