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Goa traces
its history to a very ancient period. It
was known for as Gopakappattan. An arrow
from Lord Parsurama's bow fell into the
sea instantly reclaiming the land called
Gomant. This was during the Mahabharat
-- today this reclaimed land is called
Goa!
Through known history, Goa has belonged
to various Kingdoms starting with the
Mauryas under Ashoka in 250 BC. From the
6th to 8th centuries, the Chalukyas
dominated only to replaced by the
Rashtrakutas and in turn the Kadambas
over the next three centuries. Muslim
rule came to Goa towards the end of the
14th century in the form of the
Bahamanis who then lost it and
recaptured it from the Vijaynagar
emperors a century later. The last King
to rule before the Portuguese set foot
was Yusuf Adil Shah of Bijapur. In 1510
Albuquerque captured Old Goa. Over the
next 351 years the Portuguese
consolidated their hold over Goa,
braving a Dutch blockade in 1603 and a
Maratha attack in 1667.The Marathas were
eventually routed in 1739 and thereafter
until the Pinto revolution of 1787 there
was no further threat to their rule.
The 'New conquests' between 1782 and
1791 were the result of four decades of
planning first initiated by King Joao V
of Portugal. When India attained
Independence in 1947, tremendous
pressure was exerted on the Portuguese
to hand over Goa, Daman and Diu. The
Portuguese held on grimly, even using
force on occasion (as in 1955 when a
group of 'satybeacheshis' from India was
attacked). It was a case of delaying of
the inevitable which happened on 19
December 1961 when the Indian Army
marched in, after a Naval Blockade by
the Indian Navy. 26 years later, Goa
attained statehood shedding its
erstwhile 'Union Territory' status on
30/5/1987. |
