FORT KOCHIN
Fort Kochi is a region in the
city of Kochi in the
state of Kerala,
India.
[1] This is part of a handful of water-bound regions toward the south-west of the mainland Kochi, and collectively known as
Old Kochi or
West Kochi. Adjacent to this is
Mattancherry. In 1967, these three municipalities, along with a few adjoining areas, were amalgamated to form the
Corporation of Cochin. Suhas Shivanna IAS is the subcollector and SDM of Fort Kochi.
[2]
History
Parade Ground at Fort Kochi
A
Jain temple in Fort Kochi
Kochi was a fishing village in the
Kingdom of Kochi in the pre-colonial Kerala. The territory that would be later known as Fort Kochi was granted to the
Portuguese in 1503 by the
Rajah of Kochi, after the forces of
Afonso de Albuquerque helped him fighting the forces of
Saamoothiri of
Kozhikode. The Rajah also gave them permission to build
Fort Emmanuel
near the waterfront to protect their commercial interests. The first
part of the name Fort Kochi comes from this fort, which the Dutch later
destroyed. The Portuguese built their settlement behind the fort,
including a wooden church, which was rebuilt in 1516 as a permanent
structure, today known as the
St Francis Church.
Fort Kochi remained in Portuguese possession for 160 years. In 1683 the
Dutch captured the territory from the Portuguese, destroyed many
Portuguese institutions, particularly
Catholic
including convents. The Dutch held Fort Kochi in their possession for
112 years until 1795, when the British took control by defeating the
Dutch. Foreign control of Fort Kochi ended in 1947 with the
Indian independence.
A mix of old houses built by the Portuguese, Dutch and British in
these colonial periods line the streets of Fort Kochi. St Francis Church
was built in 1503 by the Portuguese as a Catholic church.
Vasco da Gama was once buried in this church which now falls under the
Church of South India and is one of the national monuments.
Santa Cruz Basilica, also built by the Portuguese in the 16th century, was later destroyed by the British and rebuilt near the end of 19th century.
[citation needed] The landmark that causes more public and visitor interest is a series of pre-colonial
Chinese fishing nets on the waterfront, believed to have been introduced by Chinese traders in the early 14th century.
First sources
Since
the beginning of Common Era, Arabian and Chinese traders sourced
spices, especially pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, sandal wood etc.
from the Kochi region. Cultivation and trade of these valuable goods
shaped the history of the region. Even today, Kochi is an important
centre of spice export. The
Arabian
traders were the first to know about these spices, and they carried the
highly wanted merchandise to Europe. Centuries later, they were
followed by the Portuguese, then the Dutch, and afterwards the British.
Around 600 AD
Written documents about the
Malabar Coast show that this region had Hindus, Christians, and a Jewish minority.
[citation needed]
Around 1341
The
natural harbour of Kochi was created by a flood that also destroyed the
harbour of the town Kodungallur. Thereafter, the town developed into
one of the most important harbours on the West Coast of India. It
concentrated on the spice trade with China and the Middle East.
Around 1500
During
this period, Calicut was ruled by king Zamorin and Kochi was ruled by
the Maharaja of Cochin. This was the time when the first
Portuguese ships berthed at the Malabar Coast:
Vasco da Gama in Calicut and
Pedro Álvares Cabral
in Kochi. The Maharaja of Kochi felt threatened by the Zamorin of
Calicut, and he hoped that the Portuguese would help him in his defense
from the neighbouring king of Calicut. The Maharaja welcomed the
Portuguese, and they founded their first trading center in Kochi.
However, the Maharaja of Cochin was largely deprived of his power, and
Kochi became the first European colony in India.
[citation needed] The Portuguese put pressure upon the small Jewish community, and even the Syrian Christians as they were practising
nestorianism. The Portuguese tried to merge the
Syrian Christian Church with the
Latin Church.
This created conflict as most of the Syrian Christians were associated
with various churches of the East and rejected the authority of the
Pope and the
Latin Church.Most
of the Christians of pre-Portuguese period were from local castes.
Nambudhiris and Nairs did not become Christians because they did not
want to lose their caste privileges guaranteed in Hinduism.Like the low
caste Muslim converts of Malabar who lost their original caste and
became Moplahs, local Christian converts also lost their caste and like
Moplahs those Christians formed a separate caste with Syriac as their
liturgy. So the Portuguese called the local Christians as Syrian
Christians. Francis Xavier converted several thousands, mostly
fishermen. But intermarriage between Syriac liturgy Christians and Latin
liturgy Christians was common and widespread, because they were all
local converts. Thus the Christian population increased in Kochi.
[3]
Around 1653
Dutch
came to Cochin, at the invitation of a deposed prince of Cochin Royal
Family and the hereditary Prime Minister of Cochin, namely the Paliath
Achan, with the active and open support of the local Syrian Christians
and the Dutch conquered Kochi in 1653. The town was now the capital of
Dutch Malabar and belonged to the worldwide trading network of the
Dutch East India Company. The Dutch also destroyed many Catholic institution in Cochin.
[4]
Around 1760
There came uneasy times for Kochi because of trouble between the regional powers. Kochi was devastated by
Hyder Ali, then later by his son Tipu Sultan. Tipu Sultan subordinated the town temporarily to the kingdom of Mysore.
Around 1790
Kochi
came under the influence of the British around this period. In 1814,
Kochi became a part of the Madras Presidency becoming a part of the
British colonial empire. The British shaped the country until the 20th
century, and Kochi has always been an important harbour and trade
center.
1947
Kochi was made the capital of the Union State Cochin after India gained independence.
1956
The Union State of Kerala was with respect to the Malayalam speaking regions with
Trivandrum
as the capital. In 1956 the first free elections were held and the
Communist Party formed the first government of Kerala, the first freely
elected communist government in the world.
[citation needed]
The Mishkal Masjidh is a four storied mosque at Kuttichira in
Kozhikode city. The mosque is about 700 years old. Originally built of
wood in five stories, the mosque was later rebuilt into the present four
stories. The mosque has 47 doors, 24 pillars decorated with carvings
and a very big prayer call that can accommodate 400 people. [1]
