It Is Not Known When The Old City Was Founded,
But Some Authentic Writings Mention That Martrasat, King Of That
City
above 100 years before, believed in one God, the incarnation of the Son,
and the Trinity in Unity; besides
Which, a copper crucifix was found
affixed to a wall when the city was taken. These Christians may have
been descendants from the converts to the true faith through the
ministration of the holy apostle Thomas.
About the year 1300 the Mahometans began to conquer India[115]. The
first who attempted this with great power was Shah Mahmud
Nasraddin[116], king of Delhi, who came down with a powerful army from
the north, and conquered all the gentiles as far as the kingdom of
Canara. He returned to Delhi, leaving Habed Shah to prosecute the
conquest, who became so powerful by his valour and conduct that he coped
with his master; and his nephew Madura prosecuting his enterprise after
the decease of Habed, cast off his allegiance to the king of Delhi, and
having possessed himself of the kingdom of Canara, called it the Deccan,
from the various nations composing his army, this word having that
import in their language[117]. Too great an empire is always in danger
of falling to pieces. Mahmud Shah[118], being aware of this, used every
possible precaution for his safety, which was effectual for some time;
but at length several of the governors of this extensive empire erected
their provinces into independent sovereignties. The greatest of these
was he of Goa, the sovereign of which about the time of the Portuguese
coming into India was named Sabayo, who died about the time that
Albuquerque went against Goa; upon which Kufo Adel Khan, king of
Bisnagar possessed himself of Goa, and placed it in the hands of his son
Ismael. The other princes were Nizamaluco, Mudremaluco, Melek Verido,
Khojah Mozadan, Abexeiassado, and Cotemaluco, all powerful but some of
them exceedingly so[119]. Sabayo was born of very mean parentage at Saba
in Persia, whence his name; but having long served the king of the
Deccan with great fidelity, had a grant of the city of Calberga, whence
he extended his conquests over the Pagans of Bisnagar, and reduced Goa
which had belonged to the Moors of Onor, killing Malek Husseyn its
prince or ruler who defended it with a garrison of twelve hundred men.
Goa had several dependencies, with which and the other territories he
had acquired Sabayo, became the most powerful prince in these parts, and
was consequently hated by them all. He maintained himself however
against all his neighbours while he lived, sometimes by means of force,
and at other times by profound policy; but his death produced great
alteration.
[Footnote 115: From various circumstances in the context, the word
India, is here evidently confined to the peninsula to the south of the
Nerbudda, called generally Deccan, or the south. - E]
[Footnote 116: He was the sixth king of a dynasty of Turks from Persia,
which founded the kingdom of Delhi in 12O2, or rather usurped it from
the family of Ghaur, who conquered it in 1155 from that of Ghazni, which
had subdued all India in 1001 as far as the Ganges. Mahmud Shah Nasr
Addin began his reign in 1246, so that the conquests mentioned in the
text must have happened considerably before 1300. - Astl. I. 71. 2.]
[Footnote 117: Deccan or Dakshin signifies the south, and is properly
that portion of India which lies between the Nerbudda and Kistna river.
It would far exceed the bounds of a note to illustrate the Indian
history, which is very confusedly, and imperfectly stated in the
text. - E.]
[Footnote 118: In the text of Faria named Mamud-xa, and probably the
same person named immediately before Madura. - E.]
[Footnote 119: These names are strangely corrupted in the Portuguese
orthography of Faria, and the princes are not well distinguished. Only
three of them were very considerable: Nizam Shah, or Nizam-al-Mulk, to
whom belonged Viziapour; Koth, or Kothb-shah, or Kothb-al-Mulk, the same
with Cotamaluco of the text, who possessed Golconda; and Kufo Adel Khan,
called Cufo king of Hidalcan in Faria, who held Bisnagar. - Astley, I.
71. d. - The great king of Narsinga is here omitted; which Hindoo
sovereignty seems at that time to have comprised the whole of southern
India, from the western Gauts to the Bay of Bengal, now the high and low
Carnatic with Mysore. - E.]
Having sailed from Onor accompanied by Timoja, Albuquerque came to
anchor off the bar of Goa on the 25th of February 1510. As it was
necessary to sail up the northern arm of the bay or river, on the bank
of which the city was situated, Albuquerque sent his nephew Antonio de
Noronha, accompanied by Timoja, to sound the channel. A light vessel of
easy draught of water which led the way gave chase to a brigantine
belonging to the Moors, which took shelter under protection of a fort or
blockhouse, erected for protecting the entrance of the harbour, which
was well provided with artillery and garrisoned by 400 men, commanded by
Yazu Gorji, a valiant Turk. Seeing the other vessel in chase, Noronha
pressed after him; and though the fort seemed strong, they attacked and
took it after a stout resistance, during which the commandant lost
greater part of one of his hands, yet persisted to defend his post till
deserted by his men, when he too retired into the city. In the mean
time, in emulation of his new allies, Timoja attacked and took another
blockhouse on the continental shore of the channel leading to Goa, which
was defended by some artillery and forty men. After these exploits the
channel was sounded without any farther obstruction.
Next day, as Albuquerque was sailing up the channel to proceed in his
enterprise, he was met by Mir Ali and other chief men of the city, who
came to surrender it to him, only stipulating, that their lives,
liberties, and goods should be secured.
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