Advent of Europeans in India: Portuguese,Dutch, British & More | UPSC Notes

The advent of Europeans in India marked the beginning of a new era in the country's history. From humble beginnings as traders seeking profit, the Europeans would soon emerge as colonial rulers of vast tracts of Indian soil. The Portuguese were the first to come in 1498, led by Vasco da Gama, who arrived on the Malabar Coast. Prior to the formal British empire in India, trade flourished between India and European nations. India and Europe engaged in trade through land routes spanning Syria, Egypt, and the Oxus Valley. The 15th century marked a period of geographical discoveries, with Christopher Columbus finding America in 1492 and Vasco da Gama establishing a new sea route to India in 1498. Following these discoveries, various European trading companies arrived in India, with the Portuguese being the first, succeeded by the British, Dutch, Danes, and French, each eventually aspiring to become political masters of India.

The advent of Europeans in India is an important part of the UPSC IAS syllabus for both the Prelims and Mains exams, as well as the UPSC History Optional paper. Key events, impacts and consequences are high-yield topics for history questions.

About Advent of Europeans in India

Goods from India, highly sought after in Europe, had to traverse various territories, facing tolls and duties imposed by Middle East and North Africa overlords. To enhance profits, European trading companies sought direct trade routes to India. Sea trade encountered challenges like pirates and natural disasters. Historical events, including Arab conquests and the capture of Constantinople, led to the closure of traditional routes. Merchants from Venice and Genoa monopolized European-Asian trade, hindering other nations without Mediterranean ports from participating in lucrative East-West trade.

Timeline of Advent of European in India’

The below table shows the series of events during the advent of Europeans in India:

Arrival of Portuguese in India

The first Europeans came to India in 1498. Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama came from Portugal. The Portuguese came by ship. They wanted to trade with India.

• Before the Portuguese came, Arab traders controlled trade with India. The Portuguese wanted to break Arab control. They wanted to sell things made in Portugal and buy Indian goods like spices.
• Vasco da Gama came to Calicut in India on May 20, 1498. Calicut had a ruler called the Zamorin. He controlled the spice trade. Vasco da Gama wanted to ask the Zamorin for permission to trade.
• The coming of the Portuguese to India changed India forever. The Portuguese conquered parts of India. They made places like Goa, Daman, Diu and parts of Kerala part of Portugal.
• At first, trade with the Portuguese helped Portugal a lot. The Portuguese traded directly with Indian rulers. The Portuguese brought crops like potatoes, chilli peppers and cashews to India.
• But the Portuguese rulers were cruel to Indians. They forced many Hindus and Muslims to become Christians. They took high taxes from Indian traders. They destroyed Hindu temples.
• After the Portuguese, other Europeans like the Dutch, French and British also came to India for trade. They competed with the Portuguese for trade and land in India.
• Other Europeans broke Portuguese control of trade with India. By the late 1700s, the British captured most of the Portuguese areas in India.
• When the Europeans came, many new things came to India. Crops, ideas, religions and goods were exchanged. Indian goods like spices, tea, textiles and opium became important for Europe.
• The coming of the Europeans to India started the time when European countries ruled India. It changed Indian society in big ways.
• The trade with Europeans made some Indians very rich, but many Indian traders lost business. Indian trading on land became less important.
• At first, the Europeans only wanted to trade. But they slowly wanted more land and power in India. The Europeans set up local administrations that became colonial rulers.
• The Portuguese were the first European rulers in India. They made colonies and traded places on the coast. They captured Goa in 1510 and ruled it for over 450 years.
• The Portuguese showed that Europeans had more powerful weapons than Indian rulers. This experience helped other European powers conquer more of India later.
• In short, the coming of Europeans to India changed India forever. It connected India to the world in new ways. But the effect was not all good for India.

Arrival of British in India

The British came to India in the early 1600s. The British East India Company came first for trade. The advent of Europeans in India started with trade, but later the British fought Indian rulers and made India a British colony.

• In 1600, Queen Elizabeth I of England gave a charter to form the British East India Company. The company came to India for trade. The British traded cotton, silk and saltpeter from India in exchange for British goods.
• The East India Company first came to Surat in 1608 and got permission from Mughal emperor Jahangir to trade. The British set up trading posts in Indian coastal cities. They traded Indian goods like spices, silk, indigo dye and saltpeter.
• The advent of Europeans in India helped the British East India Company. Trade with India made a lot of profit for the British company and shareholders. But Indian rulers did not allow the British to expand.
• The British used violence to expand their control. In 1757, the East India Company defeated the Nawab of Bengal and took control of collecting taxes in Bengal. The company became a ruler in Bengal.
• The British East India Company gradually expanded its control. The company defeated Indian rulers in battle and captured their lands. The company's army grew bigger and had modern weapons.
• In 1803, the British East India Company defeated the Maratha Empire in western India and captured large parts of India. By 1857, almost all of India was under direct or indirect British control except some small kingdoms.
• The way the British expanded their control changed over time. Initially, the British captured Indian land by fighting Indian rulers. Later the British used indirect rule and made Indian rulers act as their local administrators.
• The advent of Europeans in India had both good and bad effects. The British brought modern infrastructure like railways, roads, canals and ports. New crops, an education system and a legal system, were introduced. But the British exploited India's resources for their profit.
• The British rule in India was unfair. British officials got high salaries while Indians suffered poverty. British policies negatively impacted the traditional Indian economy. British treated Indians unequally under their own laws.
• The direct British rule of India ended in 1947 when India became independent after the Indian independence movement. But the impact of 200 years of British colonial rule is still seen in India's political system, economy, society and culture.

Arrival of French in India

The French came to India in the 17th century. Like other Europeans, the French came for trade at first. The advent of Europeans in India started with the French East India Company. The company traded with Indian rulers, but it could not expand much.

• In 1604, a French trading company called 'The Company of Merchants of France Trading to the East Indies' was formed. This became the French East India Company.
• The company got permission from the Mughal emperor Jahangir to trade in India in 1615. The French set up trading posts in Surat and Masulipatam. They traded Indian textiles, silk, saltpetre and spices for French wine, metals and luxury items.
• The French East India Company brought new crops to India, like potatoes, cauliflower and peas. French missionaries also came and converted some Indians to Christianity.
• But the French company could not compete well with the British and Dutch East India Companies. The French lacked political and military support from the French government.
• The French formed alliances with Indian rulers to fight the British. In 1746, the French and Nizam of Hyderabad fought British forces but lost the battle. The French could not expand much beyond trading posts.
• From 1750, the French tried to expand their power by fighting Indian rulers. In 1759, the French captured Yanam from the Dutch, but they lost it to the British in 1778.
• The French captured Mahé, Karaikal and Chandernagar from Indian rulers in the 1720s and 1730s. They ruled these places as French India until Indian independence in 1947.
• The French rule in India was mostly through alliances and intervention, unlike direct rule by the British. The French helped Indian rulers fight the British at times.
• The advent of Europeans in India connected India and France. New crops, culture, words and architecture came to India through the French. But the French aimed for profit and political influence, not the welfare of Indians.

Arrival of Dutch in India

The Dutch also came to India for trade during the advent of Europeans in India. The Dutch East India Company ruled parts of India for almost 200 years.

• In 1602, the Dutch formed the Dutch East India Company to trade with Asia, including India. The company got permission from the Mughal emperor Jahangir to trade in India in 1605.
• The Dutch East India Company established trading posts in Indian coastal cities. They traded Indian textiles, spices and saltpeter for Dutch metal wares, textiles and spices. The company brought new crops like potatoes and tulips to India.
• The Dutch focused on spices, especially in Indonesia. They captured many Portuguese trading posts in India and Indonesia from the early 1600s. They broke the Portuguese monopoly on eastern spices.
• The Dutch used violence to gain a monopoly on the spice trade from India. In 1653, the Dutch East India Company attacked and conquered the city of Cochin in Kerala from the Portuguese and local rulers.
• The Dutch captured many Indian ports, including Nagapattinam (1658), Pulicat (1660), Chinnapatnam (1662), Calicut(1663) and Cochin (1702) by defeating local Indian rulers and Portuguese forces.
• The Dutch ruled these captured areas as Dutch-India territory. They charged high taxes to local people. But the Dutch focused more on capturing Indonesian islands for spices rather than ruling India.
• The British East India Company attacked the Dutch areas in India during the 18th century. In 1795, the British captured all the remaining Dutch possessions in India and Indonesia.
• Though the Dutch controlled parts of India for almost 200 years, their impact was limited. They did not transform Indian society like the British. But they stimulated European competition in India and Southeast Asia.

European Settlement In India

The advent of Europeans in India started with trade but later led to some permanent European settlements in India. The Portuguese, French and British established settlements and colonies in India.

• The Portuguese were the first Europeans to settle in India. They established trading posts that later became permanent colonies. In 1510, they captured Goa from the ruling Sultanate and made it the capital of Portuguese India.
• Goa became a major center of Portuguese settlement, culture and governance in India. The Portuguese ruled Goa and surrounding areas for over 450 years. Many Portuguese settled in Goa and married local women.
• The Portuguese also established colonies at Daman, Diu, Mumbai and Kerala coast. They intermarried with local people and settled permanently in these areas. But the permanent Portuguese population in India remained small.
• The French also established some permanent colonies in India like Puducherry, Chandernagar, Mahe and Yanam. The French interacted little with local people and had separate residential areas. Still, some permanent French settlements happened in these colonies.
• The British established some permanent military stations in India, which later evolved into civil settlements and towns. Cities like Delhi, Calcutta (Kolkata), Chennai(Madras), Mumbai(Bombay) and Pune became Anglo-Indian settlements.
• Initially, British soldiers, officials and traders settled down in India. Later Indian mixed-race people like Anglo-Indians also emerged. By the early 1900s, many British civilians permanently lived in major cities of British India.
• Still, the permanent European population in India remained tiny compared to the overall Indian population. Most Europeans came to India for a few years to work and then returned home.
• The British and other Europeans largely lived separately in India. They formed legislative councils with minimum Indian representation. European women and children began settling in India only after the mid-19th century.
• The permanent European settlements in India ended after Indian independence in 1947. Most Europeans left India, and their properties were taken over by the Indian government. Still, some Anglo-Indians remain in India, especially in the northeast.

Conclusion

Though the advent of Europeans in India was for trade and power, some permanent European settlements happened in the colonies of Portugal, France and Britain. Still, the overall European population remained small and largely separate from the Indians. After Indian independence, permanent European settlements in India came to an end. Though mixed-race populations like Anglo-Indians emerged, cultural interaction between Europeans and local people was limited during colonial rule.

Key Takeaway for UPSC Aspirant French Territories: The main French territories in India were Pondicherry, Mahe, Karaikal Yanam, and Chandernagore. Colonial Competition: Colonial powers like Portuguese, Dutch, French, Britain competed with each other for gaining dominance over India. Trade Monopoly: Among all Europeans, Portuguese were the first one who monopolized the spice trade and established strongholds in Goa, Daman, Diu, and other coastal areas Battle of Plassey: This battle in 1757 was a pivotal event in Indian history, marking the beginning of British dominance in India.  Battle of Buxar: This battle in 1764 was a significant turning point in Indian history. This battle solidified British power in India after the earlier victory at Plassey.