On the history trail: A religious war waged against the Portuguese

The total annihilation of the Portuguese, a dominant naval power with advanced artillery is one of the most glorious chapters of Maratha history. The Portuguese controlled several strategic posts on the west coast extending from Goa to Daman. These fortified enclosures served as impregnable defences to any attacks from land or sea.

 

The Peshwa desired to extend the Maratha dominion along the west coast and protect the interests of the Hindus who were subjected to unmentionable atrocities by the Catholic fanatics. The news of their deplorable persecution of Hindus for decades reached Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, the Peshwa and important Maratha commanders.

 

The Portuguese came down heavily on non – Christian residents in the land they had invaded and occupied. They demanded tribute from ships plying on the west coast and constantly interfered with the native chieftains.

 

The religious zeal of the Portuguese reached great heights striking fear in the hearts of the Hindus of the coastal regions. They terrorized the natives and forced villages to convert to Christianity using unspeakable barbaric means and heinous forms of torture listed in the manuals approved by The Vatican.

 

Examples of their unethical forced conversions to Christianity were written in detail in the letters to the Peshwa and Maratha chiefs. On the demise of the head of a Hindu family, the young children would be abducted by the Catholics and compelled to embrace Christianity by kissing the cross.

 

Hindus were forbidden to practise their festivals, religious rites and rituals and yearly ceremonies. Temples were desecrated, looted and severely damaged. Churches built from the rubble of the temples were raised on their sites.

 

Hindu men of stature would be falsely accused, imprisoned and forcibly converted to Christianity after his children were thrown into boiling water and boiling oil and his wife would be tied up, violated by the Catholics and then have her breasts removed when alive with special devices sanctioned by The Vatican.

 

Peshwa Bajirao’s father, the late Balaji Vishwanath had by 1719 annexed the districts of Kalyan, Jawhar and Ramnagar. In 1730, Pilaji Jadhav conquered Kamba, an important Portuguese outpost.

 

The new Portuguese Governor Count de Sandomille, a religiously intolerant and ruthless man took charge of the Portuguese lands in April 1732. His sadistic attitude towards Hindus during the nine years of his term compelled the Marathas to open immediate hostilities.

 

The Portuguese held two posts in the north at Bassein (Vasai) and Thana. The former had already been fortified while the latter was comparatively weak. Sensing that the Marathas had grown tired of his high – handedness towards the Hindus, the new Governor quickly gave the order to fortify Thana and build a fort that would directly threaten the Maratha posts of Kalyan and north Konkan district.

 

Even before the fortifications of Thana were completed, the Marathas began military operations against the Portuguese in the summer of 1737. Chimaji Appa sent an army to capture Thana on 26 March 1737.

 

The Marathas completed the fortifications of Thana and improved the defences of the outpost to serve as a formidable base for an attack on Bassein. Several villages on Salsette Island surrendered in April 1737. Dharavi fell in May 1737 and Santa Cruz in June 1737.

 

Written by Lakshmi Subramanian

 

* Information about Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj is taken from archives