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{{short description|Hereditary monarch of historical kingdom in present-day Kerala, India (1124–1806)}}{{pp|small=yes}}{{Use Indian English|date=June 2013}}{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}

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Political and Social Conditions of Kerala Under the Cera Perumals of Makotai (c. AD 800–AD 1124). Kerala. Calicut University Press, 1996, pp. 512.|year_start = 1124 CE|event_end = East India Company|date_end =|year_end = 1806 CE|year_exile_start =|year_exile_end =|event1 =|date_event1 =|event2 =|date_event2 =|event3 =|date_event3 =|event4 =|date_event4 =|event_pre =|date_pre =|event_post =|date_post =|p1 = Chera dynasty|flag_p1 =|image_p1 =|p2 =|flag_p2 =|p3 =|flag_p3 =|p4 =|flag_p4 =|p5 =|flag_p5 =|s1 = Company rule in India|flag_s1 = |image_s1 =|s2 =|flag_s2 =|s3 =|flag_s3 =|s4 =|flag_s4 =|s5 =|flag_s5 =|image_flag =|flag_alt =|flag =|flag_type =|image_coat =|coat_alt =|symbol =|symbol_type =|image_map = |image_map_alt =|image_map_caption = |image_map2 = Zamorin of Calicut.jpg|image_map2_alt =|image_map2_caption = The Zamorin of Calicut (1495–1500) on his throne as painted by Veloso Salgado in 1898Kozhikode>Calicut|capital_exile =|national_motto =|national_anthem =|common_languages = Malayalam|religion = Hinduism|currency = Kozhikode Panam|leader1 = |leader2 =|leader3 =|leader4 =|year_leader1 =|year_leader2 =|year_leader3 =|year_leader4 =|title_leader = |representative1 =|representative2 =|representative3 =|representative4 =|year_representative1 =|year_representative2 =|year_representative3 =|year_representative4 =|title_representative =|deputy1 =|deputy2 =|deputy3 =|deputy4 =|year_deputy1 =|year_deputy2 =|year_deputy3 =|year_deputy4 =|title_deputy =|legislature =|house1 =|type_house1 =|house2 =|type_house2 =|stat_year1 =|stat_area1 =|stat_pop1 =|stat_year2 =|stat_area2 =|stat_pop2 =|stat_year3 =|stat_area3 =|stat_pop3 =|stat_year4 =|stat_area4 =|stat_pop4 =|stat_year5 =|stat_area5 =|stat_pop5 =|footnotes =}}The Samoothiri (Anglicised as Zamorin; Malayalam: {{transliteration|ml|ISO|S�mūtiri}}, {{IPA-ml|sa�mu�d̪iɾi|}}, Arabic: S�muri,BOOK , Portuguese: Samorim, Dutch: Samorijn, Chinese: ShamitihsiMa Huan’s Ying-yai Sheng-lan: ‘The Overall Survey of the Ocean’s Shores’ [1433]. Translated and Edited by J. V. G. Mills. Cambridge University Press for the Hakluyt Society (1970).) was the title of the erstwhile ruler and monarch of the Kingdom of Kozhikode (Calicut) in the South Malabar region of India.BOOK, Krishna Iyer, K. V.,archive.org/details/TheZamorinsOfCalicut, The Zamorins Of Calicut, 1938, Norman Printing Bureau, Calicut, Originating from the former feudal kingdom of Nediyiruppu Swaroopam, the Samoothiris and their vassal kings from Nilambur Kovilakam established Calicut as one of the most important trading ports on the southwest coast of India. At the peak of their reign, they ruled over a region extending from Kozhikode Kollam to the forested borders of Panthalayini Kollam (Koyilandy).Varier, M. R. Raghava. “Documents of Investiture Ceremonies� in K. K. N. Kurup, Edit., “India’s Naval Traditions�. Northern Book Centre, New Delhi, 1997K. V. Krishna Iyer, Zamorins of Calicut: From the earliest times to AD 1806. Calicut: Norman Printing Bureau, 1938. The Samoothiris belonged to the Eradi subcaste of the Samantan community of colonial Kerala, and were originally the ruling chiefs of Eranad.WEB,books.google.com/books?id=7aoJAQAAIAAJ, Culture and Society: A Festschrift to Dr. A. Aiyappan, Balakrishna, N. Nair, Thomson Press (India), Publication Division, 1975, 220, WEB,books.google.com/books?id=n6CNHAAACAAJ&q=Perumals+of+Kerala, Perumals of Kerala: Political and Social Conditions of Kerala Under the Cēra Perumals of Makotai (c. 800 A.D.–1124 A.D.), Narayanan, M.G.S, Xavier Press, 1996, The final Zamorin of Calicut committed suicide by setting fire to his palace and burning himself alive inside it, upon learning that Hyder Ali had captured the neighboring country of Chirackal in Kannur.WEB,www.indiatoday.in/magazine/controversy/story/20130805-govt-monthly-pension-zamorin-royal-dynasty-once-ruled-calicut-764985-1999-11-29, The inheritance of loss: Government decision to grant monthly pension to the Zamorin family, which once ruled Calicut, stirs fierce debate,

Etymology

{{Location map+|Kerala|width=300|float=right }}File:Thali Temple, Malabar District.jpg|260x260px|thumb|Thali Temple (1901), Calicut]](File:Tali 2 choosetocount.JPG|260x260px|thumb|Thali Temple, present day, Kozhikode)The title zamorin first appears in the writings of Ibn Battuta in 1342.K. V. Krishna Iyer, “The Importance of the Zamorins of Calicut�, Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, 37 (1976), pp. 252–259. In the Portuguese Book of Duarte Barbosa (c. 1516), the title of the ruler of Calicut is given as çamidre or zomodri, derived from the local Malayalam s�mūtiri. In Tuhfat Ul Mujahideen written by Zainuddin Makhdoom II in the 16th century CE, the word is pronounced as S�muri. This was once thought to be derived from Sanskrit samudra (“sea“) and have the meaning “lord of the sea�. In fact, the term derives from Sanskrit svami and sri (which in combined form becomes tiri),J. A. Thorne, “Appendix II (c). Royal Titles in Malabar�, in Mansel Longworth Dames (ed.), The Book of Duarte Barbosa, Volume 2 (Asian Educational Services, 1989), pp. 260–262. which Krishna Iyer glosses as “emperor�. He gives the complete title as Svami Tiri Tirumulapad (“august emperor“).The Zamorins used the title Punturakkon or Punthurakon (Victor/Lord of Punthura?) in inscriptions from c. 1100, in palace records known as the Granthavaris, and in official treaties with the English and the Dutch. No records indicate the actual personal name of the ruler. Punthura may be the place of their origin, or a battle-field, or a port of great fame. The title “Kunnalakkon� (“Lord of Hills and Waves“) and its Sanskrit form “Shailabdhishvara� are mostly found in later literary works (such as Manipravalam and Sanskrit poems).BOOK,books.google.com/books?id=n6CNHAAACAAJ&q=Perumals+of+Kerala, Perumals of Kerala: Political and Social Conditions of Kerala Under the Cēra Perumals of Makotai (c. 800 A.D. – 1124 A.D.), Narayanan, M. G. S., 1996, Xavier Press, en,

Seats of power

Thrikkavil Kovilakam in Ponnani served as a second home for the Zamorins of Calicut.Kunhali. V. “Calicut in History� Publication Division, University of Calicut (Kerala), 2004 Other secondary seats of the Zamorin of Calicut, all established at a much later time, were Trichur (Thrissur) and Cranganore (Kodungallur). The 147th Samoothiri Raja, Sree Manavedan Raja, who was married to Bharathy Thamburatty from Nilambur Kovilakam, became the last Zamorin in the dynasty’s 682 year history to hold power over the Guruvayur Temple.WEB,books.google.com/books?id=rRfjAAAAMAAJ, Mediaeval Kerala, Raja, P.K.S, 1953, Annamalai University, The chief Kerala ports under control of the Zamorins in the late 15th century were Panthalayini Kollam, and Calicut. The Zamorin of Calicut derived a greater part of his revenues by taxing the spice trade through his ports. Smaller ports in the kingdom were Puthuppattanam (Kottakkal), Parappanangadi, Tanur (Tanore), Ponnani (Ponani), Chetuva (Chetwai) and Kodungallur (Cranganore). The port of Beypore served as a ship building center.

Calicut

• The port at Calicut held the superior economic and political position in Kerala, while Kollam (Quilon), Kochi and Kannur (Cannanore) were commercially confined to secondary roles. Travellers have called the city by different names – variations of the Malayalam name. The travellers from Middle-East called it “Kalikoothâ€�, Tamils called the city “Kallikkottaiâ€�, for the Chinese it was “Kalifoâ€� or “Quliâ€�.Subairath C.T. “Calicut: A Centri-petal Force in the Chinese and Arab Trade (1200–1500)â€�. Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. Vol. 72, Part-II (2011), pp. 1082–1089
• In the Middle Ages, Calicut was dubbed the “City of Spicesâ€� for its role as the major trading point of Asian spices.WEB,www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture26/lec26.html, Lectures 26–27, Purdue University,www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture26/lec26.html," title="web.archive.org/web/20130201091717www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture26/lec26.html,">web.archive.org/web/20130201091717www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/history/lecture26/lec26.html, 1 February 2013, 23 September 2009, The Chinese and Middle-Eastern interests in Malabar, the political ambition of the newly emergent rulers, i.e., the Zamorins, and the decline of port Kodungallur (c. 1341), etc. boosted the prosperity of the port. The rise of Calicut, both the port and the state, seems to have taken place only after the 13th century.
• Calicut, despite being located at a geographically inconvenient spot, owed much of its prosperity to the economic policies of the Zamorins of Calicut.Sanjay Subrahmanyam. The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650. Cambridge University Press, 2002
• Trade at port Calicut was managed by the Muslim port commissioner known as the Shah Bandar Koya. The port commissioner supervised the customs on the behalf of the king, fixed the prices of the commodities and collected the share to the Calicut treasury.
• The name of the famous fine variety of cotton cloth called calico is also thought to have derived from Calicut.

Panthalayini Kollam

• Also known as “Fandarinaâ€� (Ibn Batutah), and “Shaojunanâ€� (Daoyi Zgilue).Aoyagi, Y., and Ogawa, H., 2004. “Chinese Trade Ceramics of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries in the Malabar Coastâ€�, in N. Karashima (Ed.), Search of Ceramic Sherds in Southern India and Sri Lanka, Taisho University Press, Tokyo: pp. 47–54.
• Located north of Calicut, close to a bay. The geographical location is ideal for the wintering of ships during the annual monsoon rains.Raghava Varier, M. R., 2003. “Pantalayani Kollam: A Medieval Port Town on the Malabar Coastâ€�, in Kesavan Veluthat and P. P. Sudhakaran (Eds.), Advances in History, Essays in Memory of Professor M. P. Sridharan, Professor M. P. Sridharan Memorial Trust, Calicut: 154–179.
• Presence of Chetti, Arab and Jewish merchants among others.Annual Report on Indian Epigraphy, Ins. 98 of 1909

Caste and line of succession

According to K. V. Krishna Iyer, the court historian in Calicut, the members of the royal house of Zamorin belonged to the Eradi subcaste of the sub-caste Samantan of the Nair caste.BOOK, Fuller, C. J.,books.google.com/books?id=yQM4AAAAIAAJ&q=zamorin, The Nayars Today, 1976, CUP Archive, 978-0-521-29091-3, en, BOOK, Krishna Iyer, K. V.,archive.org/details/TheZamorinsOfCalicut, The Zamorins of Calicut, 1938, The Samantas claimed a status higher than the rest of the Nairs. The Hindu theological formula that the rulers must be of Kshatriya varna may have been a complication for the Samantas of the Kodungallur Chera monarch. So the Samantas – already crystallized as a distinctive social group, something of a “sub-caste� – began to style themselves as “Samantha Kshatriyas�. The Samantas have birth, marriage and death customs identical to other Nair communities.The Zamorin follows a matriarchal system where the present king’s sister’s son becomes the next king. The direct sisters of the Zamorin are always married to Nambudiri Brahmin men. Consequently, the Zamorin’s King’s lineage was always half Zamorin and half Nambudiri Brahmin.WEB,archive.org/details/TheZamorinsOfCalicut/page/n18/mode/1up?view=theater, The Zamorins of Calicut, 30 January 2024, In the royal family, thalis of the princesses were usually tied by Kshatriyas from Kodungallur chief’s family, which the Zamorin recognised as more ancient and therefore higher rank. The women’s sambandham partners were Nambudiri Brahmins or Kshatriyas.“After the Tirantukalyanam rite, the Zamorin selects a suitable husband for them. According to the principle of hypergamy, this must be a Nambutiri or Kshatriya. Formerly they were generally chosen, for political and strategic reasons, from the Kshatriya svarupams of Bettam, Kurumbranad, Beypore and Cranganore, though now and then, Nambutiris also came in for the distinction.� p. 8, K. V. Krishna Iyer, Zamorins of Calicut: From the earliest times to AD 1806. Calicut: Norman Printing Bureau, 1938 December.C. J. Fuller. “Changing Cultures: The Nayars Today�. Cambridge University Press, 1976. pp. 116. Royal men married Samantan or other Nair women. Zamorin’s consort was dignified by the title “Naittiyar�.pp. 262, K. V. Krishna Iyer, Zamorins of Calicut: From the earliest times to AD 1806. Calicut: Norman Printing Bureau, 1938 December.The family of chieftains that ruled the polities in premodern Kerala was known as the swaroopam. The rulers of Calicut belonged to “Nediyirippu swaroopam� and followed matriliny system of inheritance. The eldest male member of Nediyirippu swaroopam became the Zamorin of Calicut. There was a set pattern of succession, indicated by sthanams in the royal line. Five sthanams were defined in Calicut. These positions were based on the chronological seniority of the incumbent in the different thavazhis of the swaroopam and constituted what is called in the records as “kuruvazhcha�. Unlike in the case of Cochin (Kochi), there was no rotation of position among the thavazhis. Thus no particular thavazhi enjoyed any privilege or precedence in the matter of succession, as the only criterion for succession was seniority of age.Five sthanams existed in Calicut, each with its own separate property enjoyed in succession by the senior members of the three kovilakams of the family:

• 1st sthanam: the Zamorin of Calicut
• 2nd sthanam: Eranadu Ilamkur Nambiyathiri Thirumulpadu (the Eralppadu). Second in line successor to the throne. Eralppadu’s seat was in Karimpuzha (in the northeastern region of the present-day Palakkad district). This area of Malabar was annexed from Valluvanadu in the leadership of the then Eralppadu.
• 3rd sthanam: Eranadu Moonnamkur Nambiyathiri Thirumulpad (the Munalpadu)
• 4th sthanam: Edattaranadu Nambiyathiri Thirumulpadu (the Etatralpadu) – mentioned in the Manjeri Pulapatta inscription as the overlord of the “Three Hundredâ€� Nairs. The Etatralpadu used to reside in a palace at Edattara near Manjeri.
• 5th sthanam: Nediyiruppu Mootta Eradi Thirumulpadu (the Naduralpadu). Naduralpadu was the former head of the house (Eranadu chief under the Cheras of Kodungallur).

The three thavazhis were:

1. Kizhakke Kovilakam (Eastern Branch)
2. Padinhare Kovilakam (Western Branch)
3. Puthiya Kovilakam (New Branch)

The senior female member of the whole Zamorin family, the Valiya Thamburatti, also enjoyed a sthanam with separate property known as the Ambadi Kovilakam. Women were not allowed to be the ruler of Calicut. And so the oldest male member traced became the next Zamorin.{{wide image|Calicut 1572 (cropped).jpg|1200px| A panorama of port Calicut, shows several types of ships, shipbuilding, net fishing, dinghy traffic and a rugged, sparsely populated interior (Georg Braun and Franz Hogenbergs atlas Civitates orbis terrarum, 1572).}}

Historical overview

File:Chera King’s Sword given to the Zamorin of Calicut.png|left|thumbnail|Portrait of the sword of Zamorins of Kozhikode, which is related to the Legend of Cheraman PerumalsLegend of Cheraman Perumals(File:Sarovaram biopark pic3.jpg|thumb|300px|The Chera king granted the Eradi warrior, as a mark of favour, a small tract of land (“Kozhikode and Chullikkadu“).)File:Map of Kampili kingdom.png|thumb|300px|India in early 1320. Note that most of the parts of present-day state of Kerala was under the sovereignty of the Zamorin of KozhikodeKozhikodeBrahmanic legends such as the Keralolpathi (compiled in its final form c. 17th – 18 century) and the Calicut Granthavari recount the events leading to the establishment of the state of Calicut.There were two brothers belonging to the Eradi ruling family at Nediyiruppu. The brothers Manichan and Vikraman were the most trusted warriors in the militia of the Kodungallur Cheras.WEB,www.kerala.gov.in/history%26culture/intrusion.htm, officialwebsite of, Kerala.gov.in, 30 March 2010, 4 December 2009,www.kerala.gov.in/history%26culture/intrusion.htm," title="web.archive.org/web/20091204110522www.kerala.gov.in/history%26culture/intrusion.htm,">web.archive.org/web/20091204110522www.kerala.gov.in/history%26culture/intrusion.htm, dead, BOOK, Kerala Sanchaaram, Divakaran, Kattakada, 2005, Z Library, Thiruvananthapuram, They distinguished themselves in the battles against the foreigners. However, during the partition of Chera kingdom, the Chera monarch failed to allocate any land to Nediyiruppu. Filled with guilt, the king later gave an unwanted piece of marshy tract of land called Kozhikode to the younger brother Vikraman (the elder brother died in the battle). The king also gifted his personal sword and his favourite prayer conch – both broken – to him and told him to occupy as much as land as he could with all his might. So the Eradis conquered neighbouring kingdoms and created a large state for themselves. As a token of their respect to the Chera king, they adopted the logo of two crossed swords, with a broken conch in the middle and a lighted lamp above it.The port at Kozhikode held the superior economic and political position along the medieval Kerala coastline, while Kannur, Kollam, and Kochi, were commercially important secondary ports, where traders from various parts of the world would gather.The Portuguese, Indian Ocean and European Bridgeheads 1500–1800. Festschrift in Honour of Prof. K. S. Mathew (2001). Edited by: Pius Malekandathil and T. Jamal Mohammed. Fundacoa Oriente. Institute for Research in Social Sciences and Humanities of MESHAR (Kerala) The Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama visited Quilandy (Koyilandy) in 1498, opening the sailing route directly from Europe to South Asia.Eila M.J. Campbell, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, “Vasco da Gama.� Encyclopædia Britannica Online weblink {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230331103648www.britannica.com/biography/Vasco-da-Gama|date=31 March 2023}} The port at Kozhikode acted as the gateway to medieval South Indian coast for the Arabs, the Chinese, the Portuguese, the Dutch, and finally the British. The Portuguese efforts to lay the foundations to Estado da �ndia, and to take complete control over the commerce was repeatedly hampered by the forces of the Zamorin of Calicut. The Kunjali Marakkars, the famous Muslim warriors, were the admiral of the fleet of Calicut. By the end of the 16th century the Portuguese – now commanding the spice traffic on the Malabar Coast – had succeeded in replacing the Muslim merchants in the Arabian Sea. The Dutch supplanted the Portuguese in the 17th century, who in turn were supplanted by the British.WEB,www.britannica.com/place/Kerala, Kerala | History, Map, Capital, & Facts, Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 June 2023, 16 May 2022,web.archive.org/web/20220516134554/https://www.britannica.com/place/Kerala, live, Travancore became the most dominant state in Kerala by defeating the powerful Zamorin of Calicut in a battle located in Purakkad in 1755.BOOK, Shungoony Menon, P., A History of Travancore from the Earliest Times, 1878, Higgin Botham & Co., Madras, 162–164,archive.org/details/ahistorytravanc00menogoog, 5 May 2016, en, In 1766, Haider Ali of Mysore defeated the Zamorin of Calicut and absorbed Calicut to his state.World States Men: Indian Princes Princely states of India {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130113065437www.worldstatesmen.org/India_princes_K-W.html |date=13 January 2013 }} After the Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790–1792), Malabar District including Zamorin’s former territories were placed under the control of the East India Company. Eventually, the status of the Zamorin was reduced to that of a pensioner of the company by 1806.V. V., Haridas. “King court and culture in medieval Kerala – The Zamorins of Calicut (AD 1200 to AD 1767)�. weblink {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913065714shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/handle/10603/131929|date=13 September 2021}} Unpublished PhD Thesis. Mangalore University

Origins and early history

Rulers of Eranadu

Historical records regarding the origin of the Zamorin of Calicut are obscure. However, it is generally agreed among historians the Eradis were originally the autonomous rulers of the Eranadu region of the Kodungallur Chera kingdom. The Kodungallur Chera kingdom was a congeries of chiefdoms, which were ruled by local chiefs. The office of the chief/senior prince of Eranad (Eralanadu Utaya) is assumed to be hereditary. The earliest reference to the chief and chiefdom of Eranad is the Cochin Jewish copper plate (c. 1000). Old Malayalam inscriptions name two titles for the rulers of Eranad – Manvepala Manaviyata (c. 11 century) and Manavikrama (c. 12th century). In the later period, Manavikrama, Manaveda and Viraraya were the only names given to male members in the royal family, the Zamorin always being known as Manavikrama. Historians assume that Manaveda might be a corruption of the old Malayalam title “Manaviyata�. Scholars tentatively identify Manaviyata and Manavikrama with the titles of the elder and younger brothers of the famous origin legend.The strength of the “Hundred Organisation� of the senior prince of Eranadu was “Six Hundred�. Several organisations with same capacity are also found in Ramavalanadu, Valluvanadu, Kizhmalanadu and Venadu. Scholars come across only one nadu with a stronger force, namely Kurumpuranadu, with a force of Seven Hundred although many lesser ones with Five Hundred of Purakizhanadu, Three Hundred of Nantuzhanadu and others.The following table shows available inscriptions mentioning the rulers of Eranad:{| class=“wikitable� style="text-align:left; font-size:90%“! style="width:140px; text-align:center;� |InscriptionThe table is compiled from V. V., Haridas. “King court and culture in medieval Kerala – The Zamorins of Calicut (AD 1200 to AD 1767)�. Unpublished PhD Thesis. Mangalore University.!Year! style="text-align:center;� |Notes style="vertical-align:top“|Cochin Jewish copper plate of Kodungallur Chera king Bhaskara Ravi (c. 962–1021)|c. 1000|An old Malayalam royal charter in Vattezhuthu and Grantha scripts. Among others, the chief of Eralanadu, Eralanadu Utaya “Manavepala Mana Viyatan�, is a signatory in the charter.As per the charter, while residing at Chera capital Kodungallur, king Bhaskara Ravi granted Jewish merchant Joseph Rabban a plate giving him the proprietorship of the merchant guild Anchuvannam and other 72 special trade privileges. Rabban was also exempted from all payments made by other settlers in the town to the king, and in-turn, all the rights of other settlers in the town were extended to him. The document was attested by the chief feudatories of the Chera king – Govardhana Marthanda (Venadu), Kotha Chirikanthan (Venpalinadu), Manavepala Mana Viyatan (Eralanadu), Rayiran Chathan (Valluvanadu), Kotha Ravi (Netumpurayur-nadu) – and Murkan Chathan the commander of the eastern forces.Anchuvannam was a merchant guild in Kerala organised by Jewish, Christian and Muslim merchants from the Middle East. style="vertical-align:top“|Kollam Rameshwaram temple inscription of Kodungallur Chera king Ramavarma Kulasekhara (c. 1089 – 1122)|1102|An old Malayalam royal order in Vattezhuthu and Grantha scripts.The Chera king Rama Kulasekhara, residing at Kollam, sitting in royal council with Arya Brahmins of the temple, the Four Brahmin Ministers, the Leader of the Thousand Nairs, the Leader of the Six Hundred Nairs of Venadu, Punthurakkon Manavikrama – the chief of Eranadu, and other feudatories, made amends for (some) offence against the Arya Brahmins by donating paddy for daily feeding the Brahmins and leasing out a Cherikkal for that purpose to Venadu chief Kumara Udaya Varma.|Anandapuram temple inscription, Thrissur|Immediate post-Chera Period|A temple inscription recording a resolution of the village council (Urutayavai) of Karimukku. The council prescribed a punishment for those who obstructed the Anandapuram temple functionaries or pilfered away temple properties and prevented the temple rituals. In addition to paying a fine, the offenders would forfeit their place in the assembly and their right to protection from the Eranadu Nizhal (warriors).Rajan Gurukkal, ‘A New Epigraph Referring to Eranadu’, Proceedings of Indian History Congress, pp. 526–531.|Trichambaram temple inscription|Undated(c. 11th century)|An old Malayalam inscription in Vattezhuthu and Grantha scripts.The chief of Eranadu Manavepala Mana Viyatan creates an endowment for Tiruvilakku at Trichambaram temple.|Pulpatta temple inscription, Manjeri|Undated (c. 11th century)|An old Malayalam temple inscription in Vattezhuthu and Grantha scripts.The Six Hundred of Eralanadu and the Three Hundred of Etattirai Nadu, among others, make provision for “uttu� by assigning land to the Pulpatta temple. Fine is prescribed for the violation of the rules. The Uralar are authorised to take over from Pattavalan (officer in charge of collection) in case of obstruction.|Syrian Christian copper plates of Viraraghava|1225|The plates records the grant of certain privileges, concessions and monopolies to Iravi Korthan, the chief of merchant guild Manigramam in Kodungallur. It closes with the statement that it was “issued with the knowledge of Venadu, Odanadu, Eranadu and Valluvanadu“Manigramam was a famous merchant guild (active in southern India and south-east Asia) organised by native Indians.|Muchundi mosque inscription of Punthurakkon|13th century|An old Malayalam – Arabic stone inscription in Vattezhuthu and Arabic. Punthurakkon (ruler of Eranad) creates an endowment for the Muchundi Mosque.Narayanan, M. G. S, ‘The Zamorin’s Gift to the Muccunti Mosque’ in Cultural Symbiosis in Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Historical Society, 1972. As per the Arabic portion certain Shihab-ud-Din Raihan – a freed slave (atiq) of late Mas’ud – purchased land and constructed the mosque.Desai, Z. A, A Topographical List of Arabic, Persian and Urdu Inscriptions of South India. New Delhi: Indian Council of Historical Research, 1989.(File:Pepper091.jpg|thumb|left|Pepper)(File:Ginger in China 01 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Ginger)(File:Cardamom pods - Green BNC.jpg|thumb|left|Cardamom)Although there is no solid basis for the famous partition legend (the Cheraman Perumal tradition) surrounding the end of Kodungallur Cheras, it is a possibility that following the mysterious disappearance of the ruler, the land was “partitioned� and that the governors of different nadus asserted independence, proclaiming it as their gift from the last overlord.There is some ambiguity regarding the exact course of events that led to the establishment of Eradi’s rule over Calicut, their later seat. Some historians are of the view that the Eradi was in fact a favourite of the last Kodungallur Chera king as he was at the forefront of the battles with the Chola–Pandya forces in south Kerala. The Eradi seems to have led the Chera army to victory. The king therefore granted him, as a mark of favour, a small tract of land on the sea-coast Calicut in addition to his hereditary possessions (Eralanadu province). The Eradis subsequently moved their seat to the coastal “marshy lands� and established the city of Calicut.To corroborate his assertion that the Eradi prince was a member of the inner circle of the last Chera king Rama Kulasekhara (c. 1089 – 1122), scholars cite an old Malayalam inscription (1102) found on a granite pillar set up in the courtyard of the Ramashwaram temple, Kollam. According to the inscription, the king, residing at Panainkavu Palace at Kurakkeni Kollam, sitting in council with Arya Brahmins, the Four Brahmin Ministers, the Leader of the Thousand Nairs, the Leader of the Six Hundred Nairs of Venadu, Punthurakkon Manavikrama – the chief of Eranadu, and other feudatories, made prayaschittam (penance) for an offence against the Arya Brahmins by donating cereals for the daily feeding of Brahmins and leasing out a Cherikkal for that purpose to the Venadu chief Kumaran Udaya Varma.Narayanan. M. G. S. “Calicut: The City of Truth Revisited�. University of Calicut, 2006 – Calicut (India)“Manavikrama alias Punturakkon of Eranad – A New Name in the Twilight of the Cera Kingdom in Kerala�, M. G. S. Narayanan. Paper presented at the 18th Annual Congress of Epigraphical Society of India, Pune, 1992.

Cheraman sword

Duarte Barbosa, in the early 16th century, mentions the “Cheraman sword� among the three swords and other royal emblems of the Zamorin usually taken out in ceremonial processions. The sword was worshipped by the Zamorins in their private temple everyday and especially at the time of the coronation. The Cheraman sword was burnt in a surprise attack by the Dutch at Kodungallur (1670) while the Zamorin was residing with Velutha Nambiyar. A new sword was made in 1672 out of the fragments of the old. The broken parts of the 1672 sword, kept in a fully sealed copper sheath, are still worshipped daily in the Bhagavathi temple attached to the palace of the Zamorins at Thiruvachira.

Expansions to central Kerala

The 17th century work, Keralolpathi describes the events following the gift of Calicut to the Eradi prince.Kozhikode and its suburbs formed part of Polanadu ruled by Polarthiri. The Eradi marched with his Nairs towards Panniyankara and besieged the Polarthiri at his base, resulting in a 48-year-long standoff. The Eradi was unsuccessful, and then he propitiated the Bhagavati, bribed the followers of Polarthiri and even the consort of the ruler of Polanadu and won them to his side. Learning of this treachery Polarthiri fled from Kozhikode. The Eradi emerged victorious and shifted his seat from Nediyiruppu to Kozhikode – then also called “Thrivikramapuram�. The Eradis built a fort (Koyil Kotta) at a place called “Velapuram� (port) to safeguard their new interests.Menon. A Sreedhara, “A Survey of Kerala History�, DC Books, 2007 – Kerala (India)The power balance in Kerala changed as Eralnadu rulers developed the port at Calicut. The Zamorin became one of the most powerful chiefs in Kerala. In some of his military campaigns – such as that into Valluvanadu – the ruler received unambiguous assistance from the Muslim Middle Eastern sailors. It seems that the Muslim judge of Calicut offered all help in “money and material� to the Zamorin to strike at Thirunavaya.Smaller chiefdoms south of Calicut – Beypore, Chaliyam, Parappanadu and Tanur (Vettam) – soon had to submit and became their feudatories one by one. The rulers of Payyormala, Kurumbranadu, and other Nair chiefs on the suburbs of Calicut also acknowledged the supremacy of Calicut. There were battles between Calicut and Kurumbranadu for a coastal region called Payyanadu. Payyanadu was a part of Kurumbranadu in early times, and was eventually given as a “royal gift� to Calicut. Calicut easily overran the Kurumbranadu warriors in the battle and Kurumbranadu had to sue for peace by surrendering Valisseri.File:Treasure Boat Shipyard - stele pavilion - Calicut stele - P1080100.JPG|thumb|Modern replica of the stele installed at Calicut by Zheng He. Seen along with other steles in the Stele Pavilion of the Treasure Boat Shipyard in NanjingNanjing(File:Muccunti Mosque Iscription (cropped).JPG|thumb|Muccunti Mosque Inscription. Inscription specifically mentions the word “Punturakkon�)The ruler of Calicut next turned his attention to the valley of Perar. Large parts of the valley was then ruled by Valluvakkonathiri, the ancient hereditary chief of Valluvanadu. The principal objective of Calicut was the capture the sacred settlement of Thirunavaya. Soon the Zamorins found themselves intervened in the so-called kurmatsaram between Nambudiris of Panniyurkur and Chovvarakur. In the most recent event, the Nambudiris from Thirumanasseri Nadu had assaulted and burned the nearby rival village. The rulers of Valluvanadu and Perumpadappu came to help the Chovvaram and raided Panniyur simultaneously. Thirumanasseri Nadu was overran by its neighbours on south and east. The Thirumanasseri Nambudiri appealed to the ruler of Calicut for help, and promised to cede the port of Ponnani to Calicut as the price for his protection. Calicut, looking for such an opportunity, gladly accepted the offer.Assisted by the warriors of their subordinate chiefs (Chaliyam, Beypore, Tanur and Kodungallur) and the Muslim naval fleet under the Koya of Calicut, the Zamorin’s fighters advanced by both land and sea. The main force under the command of Zamorin himself attacked, encamping at Thripangodu, an allied force of Valluvanadu and Perumpadappu from the north. Meanwhile, another force under the Eralppadu commanded a fleet across the sea and landed at Ponnani and later moved to Thirumanasseri, with intention to descend on Thirunavaya from the south with help of the warriors of the Thirumanasseri Brahmins. Eralppadu also prevented the warriors of Perumpadappu joining Valluvanadu forces. The Muslim merchants and commanders at Ponnani supported the Calicut force with food, transport and provisions. The warriors of the Eralppadu moved north and crossed the River Perar and took up position on the northern side of the river. The Koya marched at the head of a large column, and stormed Thirunavaya. In spite of the fact that the warriors of Valluvanadu did not get the timely help of Perumpadappu, they fought vigorously and the battle dragged on. In the meantime, the Calicut minister Mangattachan was also successful in turning Kadannamanna Elavakayil Vellodi (junior branch of Kadannamanna) to their side. Finally, two Valluvanadu princes were killed in the battles, the Nairs abandoned the settlement and Calicut infested Thirunavaya.The capture of Thirunavaya was not the end of Calicut’s expansion into Valluvanadu. The Zamorin continued surges over on Valluvanadu. Malappuram, Nilambur, Vallappanattukara and Manjeri were easily occupied. He encountered stiff resistance in some places and the fights went on in a protracted and sporadic fashion for a long time. Further assaults in the east against Valluvanadu were neither prolonged nor difficult for Calicut.The battles along the western borders of Valluvanadu were bitter, for they were marked by treachery and crime. Panthalur and Ten Kalams came under Calicut only after a protracted struggle. The assassination of a minister of Calicut by the chief minister of Valluvanadu while visiting Venkatakkotta in Valluvanadu sparked the battle, which dragged on for almost a decade. At last the Valluvanadu minister was captured by Zamorin’s warriors and executed at Padapparambu, and his province (Ten Kalams, including Kottakkal and Panthalur) were occupied by the Zamorin. The Kizhakke Kovilakam Munalappadu, who took a leading part in this campaign, received half of the newly captured province from Zamorin as a gift. The loss of this fiercely loyal chief minister was the greatest blow to Valluvanadu after the loss of Tirunavaya and Ponnani.

Expansions to Kochi

Calicut faced defeat in their next assault on Perumpadappu swaroopam. The combined forces of Perumpadappu and Valluvanadu resisted Calicut warriors and a vicious battle ensued for three days, at the end of which Calicut forces was on the retreat.After a period of uneasy calm in Kerala, Calicut occupied Nedunganadu, a small polity between Valluvanadu and Palakkad (Palghat). Nedunganadu was overran without striking even a single blow. The chief of Nedunganadu surrendered to the Calicut forces at a place called Kodikkuni. Then the Calicut warriors captured a number of smaller villages around Thirunavaya – such as Thiruvegappuram – from Valluvanadu. The Valluvanadu governor tried to overcome the Calicut prince’s advance at Kolakkadu. Near Karimpuzha in Valluvanadu, the untouchables – the Cherumas and Panans of Kotta – resisted the advancing Calicut forces. The Calicut won their affection by gifts and presents. Calicut prince was met by an ancestor of Kavalappara Nair, a vassal of Valluvanadu, at Karakkadu. The chiefs under Palakkad surrendered to Calicut at Vengotri, Nellayi and Kakkathodu. Zamorin of Calicut appointed the Eralppadu as the ruler of southern Malabar region during this time. The provincial seat was at Karimpuzha. Talappilli (present day taluk of the same name and coastal regions from Ponnani to Chetwai) and Chengazhinadu submitted to Calicut without any resistance.(File:Portuguese fort at Calicut (cropped).jpg|thumb|472x472px|left|Portuguese fort at Calicut)Calicut then completed the subjugation Ponnani taluk from Valluvanadu and captured Vannerinadu from Perumpadappu. The Perumpadappu ruler was forced to shift their base further south to Thiruvanchikkulam. When Thrikkanamathilakam near Thiruvanchikkulam came under the Calicut control and Perumpadappu ruler again shifted their base further south to Kochi (Cochin, in 1405).Calicut subjugated large parts of the state of Kochi in the subsequent years. The family feud between the elder and younger branches of the ruling family of Kochi was exploited by the Zamorin of Calicut. The intervention was initiated as Calicut’s help was sought against the ruling younger branch. The rulers of Kodungallur, Idappalli, Airur, Sarkkara, Patinjattedam [Thrissur] and Chittur supported or joined Calicut forces in this occupation of Kochi. Some of these were the vassals of Kochi. The Kochi chief was defeated in a battle at Thrissur and his palace was occupied. But, the defeated chief escaped to further south. Pursuing the chief to south, the Calicut forces under Zamorin penetrated and occupied the town of Kochi. Unable to withstand the attacks, Kochi finally accepted Calicut’s rule. The prince from the elder branch was installed on the throne of Kochi as vassal.The battles against Kochi were followed by a battle against Palakkad and the expansion to Naduvattom by a Calicut prince. Kollengode of Venganadu Nambitis was also put under the sway of Calicut during the time. The severe and frequent battles with Valluvanadu by Calicut continued. But even after the loss of his superior ally Kochi, Valluvanadu did not submit to Calicut. The ruler of Calicut followed a custom of settling Muslim families and the families of other Hindu generals who had allegiance to him, in the captured areas of Valluvanadu. Calicut occupied Valluvanadu (now shrunk to Attappadi valley, parts of Mannarkkad, Ottappalam and Perinthalmanna) but could not make much progress into its hinterland.Calicut was also successful in bringing the polity of Kolathunadu (Cannanore) under their control. During his expansions, the Zamorin occupied Pantalayini Kollam as a preliminary advance to Kolathunadu. Kolathiri immediately sent ambassadors to submit to whatever terms Calicut might dictate. Kolathunadu transferred the regions already occupied to Calicut and certain Hindu temple rights. The stories about the origin of the Kadathanadu ruling family (Vatakara) are associated with battle of the Eradis with Polanadu. When the Zamorin swarmed over Polanadu, he exiled a Polarthiri royal princess and she was welcomed in Kolathunadu (Cannanore) – one of the Zamorin’s rivals polities. After the marriage of a Kolathu prince with this princess the Kadathanadu ruling family was born. The name Kadathanadu refers to as the passing way between Kolathunadu and Calicut.Panikkassery, Velayudhan. MM Publications (2007), Kottayam India Some land and Hindu temple rights were transferred to Calicut during a visit to Kollam by a ruler of the Calicut.K. V. Krishna Iyer, Court Historian of the Zamorins, describes the event: “The nominal reason for the military expedition was to protect the rights of the Brahmins in Quilon. Quilon had earlier opposed the expansion Calicut supremacy south of Kochi (former Perumpadappu). However, the Calicut forces advanced by Chetwai and Kanhur River, Zamorin Maharaja crossed the backwater at Vypin, marching through Chiranganad Karappuram, Payattukad, Alleppey, Trikunnappuzha and Kartikappally, and entered Odanad. Soon, the ruler of Quilon propitiated Calicut by paying the expenses of the battles, ceding the lands known as Munjiramukkattam (Munjiramukkattam was later transferred by the Calicut to the temple of Padmanabha or to Mathappuram shrine). Quilon also agreed to send annual tribute along with the flag of fealty to Tirunavaya for the Mamankam festival.�

Vijayanagara conquests

(File:Uru.jpg|thumb|400px|Large boats built in Calicut)Deva Raya II (1424–1446), king of the Vijayanagara Empire, conquered the whole of present-day Kerala state in the 15th century. He defeated (1443) rulers of Venadu (Kollam, Quilon), as well as Calicut. Fernão Nunes says that the Zamorin and even the kings of Burma ruling at Pegu and Tenasserim paid tribute to the king of Vijayanagara Empire. Later Calicut and Venadu seems to have rebelled against their Vijayanagara overlords, but Deva Raya II quelled the rebellion.{{citation needed|date=July 2021}}As the Vijayanagara power diminished over the next fifty years, Zamorin of Calicut again rose to prominence in Kerala. Zamorin built a fort at Ponnani in 1498.An embassy from the Zamorin of Calicut, in which the chief envoy was a Persian-speaking Muslim, came to the Timurid court of Mirza Shahrukh at Herat in the 15th century. Some Herat officials had, some years earlier, on their return journey from the Sultanate of Bengal, been stranded at port Calicut, and on this occasion had been received by the Zamorin of Calicut. Impressed by the description of the Timurid influence, the Zamorin decided to send his own embassy to Herat.Abdur Razzaq, an employ of Shahrukh, was soon engaged on a mission to Calicut (November 1442 – April 1443). He carried a series of presents from Herat, including a horse, a pelisse, headgear and ceremonial robes. “As for duties [at Calicut], at one-fortieth, and that too, only on sales, they are even lower that at Hormuz [in the Persian Gulf]�, says Abdur Razzaq.While in Calicut, Razzaq was invited by the Vijayanagara ruler Deva Raya II to his court. The envoy arrived from the Vijayanagara king had “asked� the Zamorin to send the Herat envoy on to his court. He also says the king of Vijayanagara does not possess “jurisdiction� over the kingdom of Calicut, but the Zamorin was apparently “still in great awe of the Vijayanagar king�.Muzaffar Alam, Sanjay Subrahmanyam. “Indo-Persian Travels in the Age of Discoveries, 1400–1800�. Cambridge University Press, 2007

Relations with Yuan and Ming China

It is known that the Tang Chinese ships frequently visited the then major Kerala ports such as Kollam for spices (in the 9th–10th centuries). According historians, the “Nanpiraj� mentioned in the Ling daida can be identified with Calicut.From the 13th century, Calicut developed into the major trading centre where the Middle-Eastern and Chinese sailors met to exchange their products. Marco Polo who visited Calicut in 1293–1294 records that the trade in Kerala was dominated by the Chinese. Ibn Batutah refers to the brisk Chinese trade at Calicut. Wang Ta-yuan – during the Yuan period – describes the pepper trade in Calicut in his work “Tao-i-Chih�.Dreyer, Edward L. (2007). “Zheng He: China and the Oceans in the Early Ming Dynasty, 1405–1433�. New York: Pearson Longman.Zheng He (Cheng Ho), the renowned Ming Chinese admiral, visited Calicut several times in the early 15th century. Zheng most probably died at Calicut in 1433 during his seventh voyage to the West.Jung-pang Lo. “Zheng He {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220423200125www.britannica.com/biography/Zheng-He |date=23 April 2022 }}�. Encyclopædia Britannica OnlineA major objective of the first Ming expedition (1405–1407) was the kingdom of Calicut. Historians presume that the fleet stayed from December 1406 to April 1407 at Calicut. Ambassadors from Calicut, among envoys from other states, accompanied the returning (first expedition) fleet bringing articles of “tribute� to Nanking in 1407. On the second expedition, in 1408–09, Zheng He again visited Calicut – stopping as well in “Chochin� (Kochi). The envoys in the second expedition (1408–1409) carried out the formal “investiture� of the Zamorin of Calicut “Mana Piehchialaman�. A memorial inscription was erected in Calicut to commemorate the investiture. The Chinese titles and gifts (brocades and gauzes) were given to the Zamorin and his retinue by the Chinese envoys. Presumably a stay of about four months was made at Calicut, possibly from December 1408 to April 1409. The third expedition (1409–1411) – the first one to sail to beyond India – also visited Calicut. The fleet sailed on from Calicut to Sri Lanka in 1411. The fourth (1413–1415), fifth (1417–1419), sixth (1421–22) and seventh (1431–33) fleets also visited Calicut.John King Fairbank, Denis Crispin Twitchett, Frederick W. Mote. The Cambridge History of China, Volume 7, Part 1. Cambridge University Press, 1978. pp. 233–236. A number of tribute delegations – in 1421, 1423, and 1433, among others – were dispatched by the Calicut rulers to Nanking and Peking. Presents from Calicut included horses and black pepper. Brocades of several types were presented to some of the Calicut envoys.Tansen Sen. India, China, and the World: A Connected History. Rowman & Littlefield (2017) Ma Huan visited Calicut several times, and describes the trade in the region. Fei-Hsin also notices the brisk trade at Calicut.Michael Keevak. Embassies to China: Diplomacy and Cultural Encounters Before the Opium Wars. Springer (2017)Chan, Hok-lam (1998). “The Chien-wen, Yung-lo, Hung-hsi, and Hsüan-te reigns, 1399–1435�. The Cambridge History of China, Volume 7: The Ming Dynasty, 1368–1644, Part 1. Cambridge: Cambridge University PressJOURNAL, Duyvendak, J.J.L., The True Dates of the Chinese Maritime Expeditions in the Early Fifteenth Century, T’oung Pao, 1938, 34, 5, 341–413, J.J.L. Duyvendak, 4527170, 10.1163/156853238X00171, Levathes, Louise (1996). When China Ruled the Seas: The Treasure Fleet of the Dragon Throne, 1405–1433. New York: Oxford University Press.The few remnants of the Chinese trade can be seen in and around the present city of Calicut. This include a Silk Street, Chinese Fort (“Chinakotta“), Chinese Settlement (“Chinachery� in Kappad), and Chinese Mosque (“Chinapalli� in Panthalayini Kollam).Das Gupta, A., 1967. Malabar in Asian Trade: 1740–1800. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Relations with the Portuguese

(File:Vasco Da Gama welcomed by the Zamorin.jpg|thumb|left|Vasco Da Gama welcomed by the Zamorin) {{See also|Portuguese India Armadas}}(File:VASCO DA GAMA LANDING AT KALICUT.gif|thumb|right|Vasco da Gama landing in Calicut – a modern depiction (1911) by Allan Stewart)(File:Portuguese Coin released in commemorate Vasco da Gama’s Landing in Calicut (cropped).jpeg|thumb|Portuguese coin issued to commemorate Vasco da Gama’s landing in Calicut)(File:Vasco Da Gama, 1525-50 ca. 02.jpg|thumb|295x295px|Vasco Da Gama)(File:EPJA4qZWoAAKVRJ.jpg|thumb|Nairs of Malabar in Les Voyages du sieur Albert de Mandelslo by Pierre van der Aa in Leiden (1720))(File:An alliance of arabs and malabar locals attack the Portuguese in Calicut. c1600.png|thumb|Arabs and Malabar locals attacking the Portuguese in Calicut)(File:Duarte Pacheco’s victory at Battle of Cochin (1504) (cropped).jpg|217x217px|thumb|Duarte Pacheco’s victory at the Battle of Cochin (1504))(File:Kunhali-Sword.JPG|thumb|right|The sword used by Kunjali Marakkar, preserved at Kottakkal Mosque, Vadakara)The landing of Vasco da Gama in Calicut in 1498 has often been considered as the beginning of a new phase in Asian history during which the control of the Indian Ocean spice trade passed into the hands of the Europeans from Middle Eastern Muslims. The strong colony of foreign merchants settled in Calicut was hostile, but Zamorin welcomed the Portuguese and allowed them to take spices on board. In Portugal, the goods brought by da Gama from India were computed at “sixty times the cost of the entire Asia expeditionâ€�.T. G. Percival Spear. “European activity in India, 1498 – c. 1760â€� Encyclopædia Britannica Online weblink {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230306022832www.britannica.com/place/India/Rajasthan-in-the-18th-century#toc47001|date=6 March 2023}}The Portuguese initially entered into hostile conflicts with the Zamorin of Calicut and the Middle Eastern (Paradesi) merchants in Calicut. Within the next few decades, the Estado da Ã�ndia also found themselves fighting with several leading Mappila trading families of Kerala (esp. the Kannur Mappilas, led by Mammali and the Marakkars of the Pearl Fishery Coast). Kingdom of Calicut, whose shipping was increasingly looted by the Portuguese, evolved into a centre of resistance.Prange, Sebastian R. Monsoon Islam: Trade and Faith on the Medieval Malabar Coast. Cambridge University Press, 2018. The Portuguese maintained patrolling squadrons off the Kerala ports and continued their raids on departing native fleets.Subrahmanyam, Sanjay.“The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650â€� Cambridge University Press, (2002) Mappila and Marakkar traders actively worked in the kingdoms of Malabar Coast and Ceylon to oppose the Portuguese.Sanjay Subrahmanyam. “The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650â€�. Cambridge University Press, 2002 Naval battles broke out across Konkan, Malabar Coast, southern Tamil Nadu, and western Sri Lanka. Marakkars transformed as the admirals of Calicut and organised an effective collection of vessels to fight the Portuguese.Harold V. Livermore. “Afonso de Albuquerqueâ€�. weblink {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317083625www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/13157/Afonso-de-Albuquerque|date=17 March 2020}} Encyclopædia Britannica OnlineThe Kunjali Marakkars are credited with organizing the first naval defense of the Indian coast.NEWS, Singh, Arun Kumar, Give Indian Navy its due,www.asianage.com/opinion/columnists/110217/give-indian-navy-its-due.html, 23 January 2021, The Asian Age, 11 February 2017, 25 September 2021,web.archive.org/web/20210925000822/https://www.asianage.com/opinion/columnists/110217/give-indian-navy-its-due.html, live, Tuhfat Ul Mujahideen written by Zainuddin Makhdoom II (born around 1532) of Ponnani in 16th-century is the first-ever known book fully based on the history of Kerala to be authored by a Keralite.A. Sreedhara Menon. Kerala History and its Makers. D C Books (2011)WEB,www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2704/stories/20100226270407900.htm, A G Noorani. Islam in Kerala. Books, 21 June 2023, 10 May 2022,www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2704/stories/20100226270407900.htm," title="web.archive.org/web/20220510060620www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2704/stories/20100226270407900.htm,">web.archive.org/web/20220510060620www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2704/stories/20100226270407900.htm, live, Roland E. Miller. Mappila Muslim Culture SUNY Press, 2015 It is written in Arabic and contains pieces of information about the resistance put up by the navy of Kunjali Marakkar alongside the Zamorin of Calicut from 1498 to 1583 against Portuguese attempts to colonize Malabar coast. It was first printed and published in Lisbon. A copy of this edition has been preserved in the library of Al-Azhar University, Cairo.Francisco de Almeida (1505–1509) and Afonso de Albuquerque (1509–1515), who followed da Gama to India, were instrumental in establishing the Império Colonial Português in Asia. By the mid-16th century, the Portuguese managed to curtail the vital trade between Calicut and the Middle East. In the end of the century, Kochi was the dominant seaport in Kerala, having surpassed both Kannur and Calicut. The Portuguese set about breaking the monopoly which Venetians and the Egyptians had so long enjoyed in the trade with Asia. The Egyptians and the Ottoman Turks realised the danger, but internal complications between them gave the Portuguese an opportunity.K. K. N. Kurup, ed., India’s Naval Traditions. Northern Book Centre, New Delhi, 1997 Ponnani Muhammed Kunjali Marakkar was eventually executed by the combined effects of the Kingdom of Calicut and the Portuguese state in 1600.{| class=“wikitableâ€� style="text-align:left; font-size:90%â€�! style="width:140px; text-align:center;“| Date! style="text-align:center;“| Event style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Vasco da Gama lands in Calicut, and is warmly welcomed by the Zamorin of Calicut. Much to the delight of the discontented Middle Eastern merchants, da Gama’s “ordinaryâ€� trade goods were hardly suitable for trade in Calicut. The merchandise he carried – no gold and silver – only came handy in the trade on the West African coast. However, the Zamorin of Calicut gave his sanction for opening trade, and assigned a small warehouse with Nairs to guard it and brokers sell their goods.Logan, William. Malabar. District Manual. Asian Educational Services, 1887.Sale and purchases fails to meet the expectations. Da Gama demands Kerala spices in return for his unsalable wares. The Zamorin replied that he should buy what he needed for gold and silver instead of dumping his stock in exchange, and he must pay the usual Calicut customs duties. After some confusion – the warehouse was robbed once – the fleet leaves Calicut in August. They also took with them some on-board Mukkuvar.It is also known that da Gama erected a padrão in the kingdom of Calicut.The fleet makes interactions – and trade – with Zamorin’s rival chief, the Kolathiri (Cannanore) on their return journey. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Pedro Alvares Cabral reaches Calicut, rich presents were exchanged, and a treaty of friendship, “as long as the sun and moon should endureâ€�, was entered upon. The Zamorin was pleased with return of the Mukkuvas whom da Gama had taken to Portugal. Cabral manages to obtain the permission to construct a trading post in Calicut. The Zamorin nominates a Mappila named Koya Pakki as the Portuguese broker in Calicut. At the request of the Zamorin, Cabral captures a Kochi vessel passing the port Calicut. The vessel is subsequently restored to the chief of Kochi.HTTPS://WWW.BRITANNICA.COM/BIOGRAPHY/PEDRO-ALVARES-CABRALWEBSITE=ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICAARCHIVE-DATE=13 APRIL 2020URL-STATUS=LIVE, style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The merchants of Calicut appear to have effectually prevented the Portuguese from obtaining any large supply of spices. Cabral accused the Muslim merchants of deliberately outbidding them, and sending away all the spices that came to the market. The Zamorin permitted Cabral to search the Middle Eastern ships and “take whatever he found them after paying to the owners what they had themselves had paid and the customs duties to Calicut officersâ€�. Cabral seized a Middle Eastern ship at midnight and transfers all its spices to his depot. A general riot is broken out in Calicut. Around 50 Portuguese sailors at the depot are massacred, a few taken captive, by the Muslims. The depot is razed.The Portuguese seize ten of the Zamorin’s Muslim ships, at Calicut, execute their crews, and set fire to them and leave port Calicut by bombarding it. Around 600 Malabarians are killed. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese, led by Pedro Ã�lvares Cabral, reach the port of Kochi. Kochi Raja, a chieftain at the time, was subordinate to the Zamorin of Calicut. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese conclude a treaty with the chief of Kochi Tirumalpadu; an alliance of friendship was signed, allowing them to open a factory (trading post). Cabral is permitted to trade for spices, with which he loads his six remaining ships.A Calicut fleet, carrying around 1500 men, appears off the harbour of Kochi. The Calicut fleet holds off. Cabral chases them, but is overtaken by a violent storm which carries him to the sea. He later sails to Kannur, and from there proceeds to Europe. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| João da Nova is despatched from Portugal to India. He anchors at Anjediva in November and from there sails to Kannur. While travelling from Kannur to Kochi the fleet attacks and captures a Muslim vessel opposite to the Calicut. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| About 180 Calicut vessels filled with Muslims arrive at Kochi from Calicut, for the purpose of attacking the Portuguese. John de Nueva fires cannon at them, sinking a large number of vessels.The Muslims persuade native merchants all of over Kerala to refuse to trade their spices and textiles with the Portuguese.Owing to the generosity of the chief of Kochi alone, his ships are soon loaded with spices and textiles, and the fleet departs for Europe.The First Battle of Cannanore between the Third Portuguese Armada and Kingdom of Cochin under João da Nova and Zamorin of Kozhikode’s navy marks the beginning of Portuguese conflicts in the Indian Ocean. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Implicit Understandings, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 665 pp, 1994, 302. {{ISBN>0-521-45880-3}} However, the burning and sinking of the ship is not related by any contemporary and reliable sources. Some assume that the description may be “legendary or at least exaggeratedâ€�.Da Gama is warmly welcomed by Kolathiri at Kannur, and arranges a treaty of commerce. Kolathiri agrees to supply spices at the Kochi prices and obtain “passesâ€� (cartazes) for the ships his subjects. He next divides his fleet; one portion of it is to wage war on all native vessels except those of Kannur (Kolathunadu), Kochi (Permpatappu) and Quilon (Kollam ), which are to be protected by “passesâ€� obtained from the factors at Kannur and Kochi respectively.Vincent de Sodre mistreats Khoja Muhammed Marakkar – a wealthy Muslim from Cairo – who had insulted the Kolathiri.Sailing southwards, da Gama is informed by a Brahmin messenger that the Zamorin have arrested the Muslims who were guilty of the outrage on the trading depot. Da Gama was offered a large sum to pay for the factory goods. He sent back word to say that he did not want money, and also mistreated the Brahmin messenger. Some historians assume that this was an attempt to lure da Gama to Calicut, and then to apprehend him. Da Gama – who certainly thought so – fires cannon at the port Calicut, and kills around 40 natives. The Zamorin tries to counterattack in vain. To starve the city of Calicut the Portuguese plunders rice shipments from Mangalore. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Da Gama reaches Kochi and signs a treaty of commerce with the rulers of Kochi and Kollam. A factory is set up at Kochi by da Gama; its first factor is Diogo Fernandes Correia. The fleet then sails to Kannur, defeating two squadrons of a Calicut Arab Muslim fleet on the way, and then for Europe on 28 December.While at Kochi (1502), da Gama was visited by a deputation of Christians from Kodungallur.Zamorin of Calicut, after the departure of the Armada, demands to the ruler of Kochi the Portuguese factors left at Kochi should be given to him. The demand is refused by the ruler of Kochi. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese crown the new ruler of Kochi, effectively making him a vassal of the King of Portugal. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Cranganore>Kodungallur. Narayanan, and his two nephews, are slain in the battle and the Calicut forces cross the backwater to Kochi. The wounded Kochi chief escapes to the island of Vypin with the Portuguese. The Calicut forces burn Kochi. As the monsoon has begun, the Calicut forces, leaving a strong detachment at Kochi, retreat to Kodungallur.Two Italians desert to the side of the Calicut during these battles (these men later construct five big guns for the Calicut). style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Francisco de Albuquerque, sailing from Kannur, reaches Kochi. The Calicut’s blockading forces are easily defeated at Vypin island, and are driven back to Kodungallur. The Portuguese take Edappalli (Repelim).Albuquerque obtains permission to build a fort – Fort Manuel, the first Portuguese fort in Asia – at Kochi. Soon, Afonso de Albuquerque, his brother, arrives at Kochi with three more ships.The Portuguese are starved of spices and textiles at Kochi by the Zamorin of Calicut and the Muslims merchants. Their fleet moves south to Quilon, and with aid of local Christian merchants easily procure the spices, and obtain permission to open a factory. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Albuquerque leaves Malabar, his ships laden with spices. Before doing so he concludes a short-lived treaty with the Zamorin of Calicut. The peace is broken by the murder of six Malabarians by the Portuguese. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Pacheco and a small garrison of 150 men guard Fort Manuel. Around 57,000 Nairs from all over the kingdom of Calicut, assisted by 5 cannon guns and 160 paraos, attack Pacheco at the Edappally ferry. He manages to drive back the enemy several times. The Kochi Nairs provide little help in opposing the Calicut forces. As the monsoon sets in, cholera breaks out among the Calicut forces. The Zamorin of Calicut at last gives up the attempt in despair. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Pacheco quells a partial outbreak at Kollam. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Pacheco defeats the Calicut troops at Chetwye. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Suarez de Menezes arrives in Kannur. He unsuccessfully tries to rescue some of the prisoners taken at Calicut in Cabral’s time. He cannons the city of Calicut and sails to Kochi.The fleet raids and burns the city of Kodungallur, held by Patinjattedam chief under the Calicut. The Portuguese spare the Christian houses, shops and churches, but they loot those of the Jews and Muslims. style="vertical-align:topâ€� AUTHOR=ROBERT SWELL ARCHIVE-DATE=29 SEPTEMBER 2007 URL-STATUS=LIVE, , Book 1, Chapter 10. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Fort Anjediva>Anjediva Fort. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Building of St. Angelo Fort, Kannur commences. De Almeyda is visited by a Vijayanagara delegation. Francisco de Almeyda arrives at Kochi. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Murder of the Portuguese factor António de Sá and his 12 men by a mob in Kollam. Lorenzo de Almeyda, finding 27 Calicut vessels at Kollam, engages and sinks them all. Francisco de Almeyda is crowned the new chief in Kochi. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Diu, India>Diu (ruled by Malik Ayaz).Muzaffar Alam, Sanjay Subrahmanyam. Writing the Mughal World: Studies on Culture and Politics. Columbia University Press, 2012. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Lourenço de Almeida>Lorenz de Almeyda intercepts an armada of 210 large vessels of Turks (Ottoman) and Muslims whom the Zamorin had launched against Kannur. Around 3,000 Muslims are killed in the assault and the Portuguese loss is very trifling. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Joined forces of Kannur and Calicut attack St. Angelo Fort. The old Kolathiri – the original friend of Vasco da Gama – has died and the new ruler is already displeased with the Portuguese for harming prominent Muslims merchants at Kannur. Combined forces, including around 60,000 Nairs, lay siege to the St. Angelo Fort. Brito, the Cannanore Commandant, resists the Malabaris for four months. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese, assisted by eleven ship under da Cunha freshly arrived from Europe, break the blockade. The ruler of Kannur is forced to accede to the sailors. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese under Almeyda attack Ponnani, destroying the town and shipping. 18 Portuguese are killed in the assault on the place. A number of Muslims take an oath to die as “matrysâ€� on this occasion.As per some historians, as result of the assault, the family of Marakkars relocated from Ponnani to Puthupattanam (in North Malabar). The Zamorin of Calicut later appointed Marakkar I as his admiral. Kutti Ali served under Marakkar I.Menon. A. Sreedhara. Kerala History and its Makers. D. C. Books (Kerala). pp. 101–107. Some scholars identify the first Marakkar Kutti Ahmed Ali with Muhammed of Kochi. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Battle of Chaul, killing Lourenço de Almeida>Lorenzo de Almeyda in the process. The Egyptian force of 1500 Mamluks also includes Calicut’s ambassador to Cairo, Mayimama Marakkar. Mayimama Marakkar is also killed in the action. The alliance between Amir Hussain and Malik Ayaz begins to fall apart. Ayaz enters into secret negotiations with de Amleyda. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| De Almeyda – with a fleet carrying 1300 Europeans, among others – sails to Kannur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Mahmud Begada>Sultan of Gujarat, the Burji dynasty, and the Zamorin of Calicut with support of the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire in Battle of Diu (1509)>Battle of Diu marks the beginning of Portuguese dominance of the Spice trade and the Indian Ocean.De Almeyda counter-attacks and defeats the Egyptian navy, which is assisted by Calicut forces, at the Battle of Diu. The defeat off Diu is a major blow to the Muslims.WEB,www.britannica.com/place/Portugal/Control-of-the-sea-trade#toc23769, Portugal – History, People, & Points of Interest – Control of the sea trade, britannica.com, 13 March 2018, 27 December 2017,web.archive.org/web/20171227002053/https://www.britannica.com/place/Portugal/Control-of-the-sea-trade#toc23769, live, Amir Hussain, though wounded, flees to the Gujarat capital. He eventually reaches Cairo in December 1512. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| A new fleet arrives from Europe. Albuquerque takes charge as Capitão-Mor. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Fernando Coutinho arrives at Kannur. He brings instruction from Lisbon that Calicut should be destroyed. Such had been, it is said, the counsel sent to Europe by the Kolathiri and by the chief of Kochi.Governor Albuquerque and Fernando Coutinho lands in the city of Calicut. Fernando Coutinho and his men are slain in this misguided adventure, Albuquerque is shot, and the Mananchira palace is sacked and set on fire. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Chief of Kochi decides to relinquish the throne. Albuquerque eventually succeeds in preventing the abdication. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Governor Albuquerque takes Goa – Adil Khan is absent from the place – and it finally supplants Kochi as the chief Portuguese settlement in India. Among others he is assisted by the 300 hand-picked Nairs from Kannur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Albuquerque takes Malacca in the East Indies. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Albuquerque establishes schools for the benefit of 400 natives who have converted to Christianity in Kochi. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Albuquerque lands at Calicut and has an interview with the Zamorin. Calicut and the Portuguese sign a treaty giving the Portuguese the right trade as “they pleasedâ€�, and to erect a fort in the kingdom of Calicut. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Fort Calicut is built on the right bank of the Kallayi river near the city of Calicut. Albuquerque grants the Zamorin a certain number of cartazes for the merchants based at Calicut, enabling them to resume trade with Aden, Jiddah and Gujarat. The Zamorin sends envoys to the King of Portugal with a letter expressing his readiness to supply goods. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Hormuz Island>Hormuz (Ormus) in the Persian Gulf. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Lopo Saores demands that the Zamorin should repair to Fort Calicut and wait upon him. Hostilities are averted only by the good sense of the captains posted in the fort. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Assassination attempt on the Zamorin. The Portuguese invite the Zamorin to a house within their fort under the pretext of presenting the king with some gifts. The Zamorin, with the help of a Portuguese officer, escapes from the fort. The officer is later banished with all kin to Kannur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| One of Kochi chief’s nobles invades some lands belonging to one of the Zamorin’s barons. This leads to a general battle, and the Kochi chief suffers a defeat. style="align:topâ€�| Kochi Nairs, assisted by some men sent by Governor Sequeiro, invade Chetwai. But the Kochi chief is soon outnumbered, and is pursued right up to his capital. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Muslims, under the leadership of Kutti Ali, capture ten Portuguese vessels, and raid Kochi and Kodungallur harbours. The Muslims later insult the Governor Duarte de Menezes. In 1524 he bombards Fort Calicut. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Duarte de Menezes comes to Fort Calicut. The Zamorin is dead and his successor (1522–1531) does not favour the Portuguese alliance. Kutti Ali anchors his fleet of 200 vessels at Calicut, to load eight ships with spices, and to dispatch them with a convoy of 40 vessels to the Red Sea before the very eyes of the Portuguese. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The King of Portugal sends Vasco Da Gama again to India. His mission is to reform the abuses which had crept into the administration in India. The ruler of Kannur (Kolathiri) surrenders a “pirateâ€� chief called Bala Hassan to da Gama, who is thereupon thrown into a dungeon in Cannanore Fort. This man is related to the family of the Arakkal chief. Martu Alfonso de Souza under his orders relieves Calicut, engages the famous Kutti Ali’s fleet and drives it to Kannur. Kutti Ali finally abandons his ships. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Muslims, with Calicut’s approval, make an onslaught on the Kodungallur Jews and Christians. They kill many Jews and drive out the rest to a village to the east. When the fleet attacks Christians, the Nairs of the place retaliate, and drive all Muslims out of Kodungallur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Dharmadom>Dharmapattanam and at Mahe are destroyed. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| A Portuguese navy led by new Viceroy Henry Menezes raids Ponnani and Pantalayini Kollam, and burns the towns. Pantalayini Kollam is defended by 20,000 Nairs and Muslims. On reaching Calicut, he earlier found that the place had been attacked by the Calicut forces. Kutti Ali in retaliation storms the port of Kochi, sets fire to the Portuguese ships, and manages to get away unhindered.The Nairs of the chief of Kurumbranad and Calicut forces invest Fort Calicut (Siege of Calicut). They are helped by a band of Muslims under the command of a European engineer. Kutti Ali’s ships blockade the port. Captain Lima, with 300 men, defends the fort. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Zamorin himself marches in with an additional force. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Siege of Calicut (1526)>later abandoned and partially destroyed by the Portuguese. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Viceroy Sampayo attacks Purakkad, a Calicut ally, and obtains a very rich booty.Kutti Ali is taken prisoner after a battle off Barkur. The Zamorin’s fleet suffers severe reverses. Pachachi Marakkar and Ali Ibrahim Marakkar leads the Zamorin’s fleet. The first foray of the fleet is against the Portuguese settlement in Ceylon. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Thirty Portuguese ships blockade the Calicut coast. A peace treaty is signed between Nunho de Acunha and the Zamorin of Calicut. Fort Chaliyam, south of Calicut, is constructed. The fort is “like a pistol held at the Zamorin’s throatâ€� as it is a strategic site, only 10 km south of Calicut.Kutti Ahmed Ali Marakkar (Marakkar I) is killed. His place is taken up by Marakkar II. Kutti Pokker Ali, son of Kutti Ali, can be identified as the second Marakkar. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Mass conversion of the Paravas of the Pearl Fishery Coast. valign=“topâ€�| The Marakkar raids the Nagipattinam settlement of the Portuguese. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese fleet withdraw their forces to face Turkish admiral Suleiman Pasha. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Cranganore Fort>Fort Cranganore is erected.|1538LAST=SUBRAHMANYAMYEAR= 2012ISBN=9780470672914, en, style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Calicut enters into an agreement with the Portuguese. The Malabarians again agree to accept the Portuguese “passesâ€�. The wedge between the Zamorin and the native Muslims widens. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Pattu Kunjali Marakkar (died c. 1575.) leads the Calicut navy. He is assisted by Ponnani Kutti Pokkar. Chinna Kutti Ali sues for peace with the Portuguese (Goa). The defeat of Ibrahim and Pattu Marakkar and the killing in Ceylon of a third notable was one factor that forced Chinna Kutti Ali to this move.|1542|Afonso de Sousa launches expeditions against Bhatkal, apparently as “anti-Mappilaâ€� measure. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese assassinate Abu Bakr Ali, the qazi of Kannur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Battles by Calicut near Kochi. The Portuguese make descents on the coastal towns, particularly on Pantalayini Kollam, destroying mosques and houses, and killing one-third of the inhabitants.The Portuguese manage to reach an accommodation with some Middle Eastern merchants, such as Khoja Shams ud-Din Gilani of Kannur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Zamorin receive assistance in heavy guns landed at Ponnani, brought there by Yoosuf, a Turk who sailed against the monsoon. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Peace between the Zamorin and the Portuguese on the condition that “passesâ€� should be taken by traders. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Muslims of North Malabar begin hostilities, and then make the usual submission and agree to take out the “passesâ€�. The Muslim sailors come under enormous pressure under these stringent measures. The Muslims organise in small fleets of boats to engage with the Portuguese shipping. The Portuguese continue hostilities against the Zamorin and the Malabarians. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Goa Inquisition>Inquisition is established at Goa. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Portuguese are besieged in their fort at Kannur, but the attack is repulsed. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Zamorin and his Muslim allies attack the Kochi chief at or near Kodungallur. Two Kochi princes are killed in the engagement. The Portuguese enlarge and strengthen the Fort Cranganore. Jews finally desert Anchuvannam and migrate to Kochi. They reside within the fort limits. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Kutti Poker of Ponnani captures a Portuguese ship. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Jew’s Town is built, and the Jews in a body moved into the town from the Kochi fort limits. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Kutti Poker of Ponnani captures a second Portuguese ship. Around 1000 Portuguese sailors from these ships are killed. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Kutti Poker makes a successful raid on Mangalore Fort. His fleet falls in with a Portuguese fleet as he is returning south off Cannnanore, and he and all his sailors are killed.Zamorin of Calicut forms alliances with rulers of Ahmadnagar and Bijapur. style="vertical-align:topâ€�Siege of Chale>Siege of Fort Chaliyam. The Zamorin is assisted by the naval forces of Marakkar III (Pattu Kunjali Marakkar). style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Fort Chaliyam surrenders to Calicut. The Zamorin destroys the fort. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Chaliyam is burnt by the Portuguese. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Parappanangadi town is burnt by the Portuguese. Pattu Kunjali Marakkar (Marakkar III) obtains permission from Zamorin to build a fortress and dockyard at Puthupattanam (Kottakkal). This fort later came to be called “Fort Marakkarâ€�.“The rise in Ponnani of Pattu Kunjali Marakkar appeared to have signalled a real threat to rulers such as the Kolathiri and the Samoothiri as much as to the Portuguese.â€� – Sanjay Subrahmanyamin “The Political Economy of Commerce: Southern India 1500–1650â€�, Cambridge University Press (2002) style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The fleet of Muslim ships, carrying rice, is seized by the Portuguese and 3000 sailors are killed. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Peace negotiations between Calicut and the Portuguese. The Zamorin refuses to agree to construct a fort at Ponnani. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Zamorin visits Kodungallur. The Portuguese continue hostilities against the Zamorin and the Malabarians. The rice embargo results in the Famine of 1579. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Calicut shifts policy towards the Portuguese because of his estrangement with the Marakkar who begins to defy the Zamorin. Treaty of peace with Viceroy Mascarenhas. He sanctions the Portuguese to build a factory at Ponnani. The decision is much resented by the Marakkars, and they strengthen Fort Marakkar. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Zamorin allows the Portuguese to build a factory at Calicut. He lays the foundation of the church, granting them the necessary land and building materials. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Possible date of the succession of Marakkar IV (Ponnani Muhammed Kunjali Marakkar). Another date in the 1570s a few years after the erection Fort Marakkar is also proposed. Muhammed is probably the nephew of the third Marakkar. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| The Zamorin has grown nervous about the royal pretensions of the Marakkar. The Marakkar has styled himself “King of Muslimsâ€� and “Lord of the Indian Seasâ€�. Father Franciso de Costa is sent to Calicut. Agreement between the Zamorin and the Portuguese on Marakkar IV. The allies decide to proceed together against Fort Marakkar – the Calicut forces by land the Portuguese by sea. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| Forcible subjection of the Syrian church to Rome at the Synod of Diamper. The Archbishop of Goa, Alexis Menezis, visits Kottakkal in 1599.(First) Siege of Fort Kottakkal (Fort Marakkar) from land by the Calicut forces alone. The siege ends in a frustrating defeat of the Calicut forces. Marakkar IV calls himself “Defender of Islamâ€� and the “Expeller of the Portugueseâ€�.Treaty between the Zamorin of Calicut and the Portuguese. He declares that he would from then on cease persecuting Christians, permit the erection of churches in the kingdom of Calicut, support the Synod of Diamper, release all Christian prisoners, and provide spices for the ships of the Portuguese at the usual prices. In return the Portuguese agree to grant him “cartazesâ€� every year for ships bound for Jiddah, Bengal, Aceh and the Canara. Most importantly the Zamorin anticipate their help in a joint attack on Kunjali Marakkar’s fort at Ponnani. style="vertical-align:topâ€�| (Second) Siege of Fort Marakkar by the combined forces of the Portuguese (under Andre Furtado) and the Zamorin of Calicut. The assault on the fort is begun by the Nair force consisting 6,000 men.The Portuguese execute Marakkar IV, who surrendered in person to the Zamorin, at Goa. The Zamorin took over Fort Marakkar and the town of Kottakkal.The relations between the Zamorin and the Portuguese again reverts.

Relations with the Dutch and English

In 1602, the Zamorin sent messages to Aceh, where the Verenigde Zeeuwsche Compagnie had a factory, promising the Dutch a fort at Calicut if they would come and trade there. Two factors, Hans de Wolff and Lafer, were sent on an Asian ship from Aceh, but the two were captured by the chief of Tanur, and handed over to the Portuguese. These men were later hanged in Goa.A Dutch fleet under Admiral Steven van der Hagen arrived in Calicut in November 1604. It marked the beginning of the Dutch presence in Kerala and they concluded a treaty with Calicut on 11 November 1604. By this time the kingdom and the port of Calicut was much reduced in importance, which was also the first treaty that the Dutch East India Company made with an Indian ruler. The treaty provided for a mutual alliance between the two to expel the Portuguese from Malabar. In return the Dutch East India Company was given facilities for trade at Calicut and Ponnani, including spacious storehouses.The Dutch, some fifteen years after the Zamorin first asked for help, had promised much and delivered almost nothing. The Zamorin finally turned to the English. In September 1610, the English factors at Mocha were approached by the head of the Mappilas there to their shipping in the region from the Portuguese fleets.The arrival of British in Kerala can be traced back to the year 1615, when a group under the leadership of Captain William Keeling arrived at Kozhikode, using three ships.BOOK, Sreedhara Menon, A., Kerala Charitram, 2007, DC Books, Kottayam, 978-81-264-1588-5,books.google.com/books?id=FAlXPgAACAAJ&q=%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%87%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%B3+%E0%B4%9A%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%82, 19 July 2020, 13 November 2021,web.archive.org/web/20211113141403/https://books.google.com/books?id=FAlXPgAACAAJ&q=%E0%B4%95%E0%B5%87%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%B3+%E0%B4%9A%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%BF%E0%B4%A4%E0%B5%8D%E0%B4%B0%E0%B4%82, live, It was in these ships that Sir Thomas Roe went to visit Jahangir, the fourth Mughal emperor, as British envoy. The British concluded a treaty of trade (1616) under which, among others, the English were to assist Calicut in expelling the Portuguese from Fort Kochi and Fort Cranganore. The English set up a factory at Calicut, and a factor, George Woolman, is sent there with a stock of presents. But the Zamorin soon found the English as unreliable as the Dutch where military aid was concerned. The factory was wound up in March, 1617.Later in 1661, Calicut joined a coalition led by the Dutch to defeat the Portuguese and Kochi and conducted a number of successful campaigns. Travancore became the most dominant state in Kerala by defeating the powerful Zamorin of Kozhikode in the battle of Purakkad in 1755. As a result of the Kew Letters, the Dutch settlements on the Malabar Coast were surrendered to the British in 1795 in order to prevent them being overrun by the French. Dutch Malabar remained with the British after the conclusion of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, which traded the colony with Bangka Island.

Mysore occupation and the decline of the Zamorin

{{See also|Mysorean invasion of Kerala}}(File:The series of steps leading into the moat between two bastions.jpg|thumb|left|Palghat Fort)It was in 1732, at the invitation of the chief of Palakkad, that Mysore forces marched to Kerala for the first time. They appeared again in 1735, and in 1737 they raided the Zamorin’s frontier outposts. In 1745, the Mysore forces fought three battles with the Calicut warriors. In 1756 they invaded Calicut for the fifth time. The chief of Palakkad had placed himself under the protection of the King of Mysore, agreeing to pay an annual tribute of 12,000 fanams. The Faujdar of Dindigul, Hyder Ali, sent Mukhdam Sahib, with 2000 cavalry, 5,000 infantry, and 5 guns to Kerala. The Zamorin tried to buy off the enemy by promising (Treaty, 1756) to refrain from molesting Palakkad and pay 12 lakh rupees for the expenses of the expedition. However the Zamorin was unable pay anything to Hyder Ali.In 1766, 12,000 Mysore forces under Hyder Ali marched to Malabar from Mangalore. Mysore’s intentions were made easy by the help they received from the Muslims in Malabar. Ali Raja of Kannur, a Muslim ruler in northern Kerala, also helped the invading forces. Thiyyar formed part of the army of the Zamorin of Calicut, which fought against Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. The Zamorin bestowed upon Thiyya army head of the Cherayi Panicker.BOOK, M.S.A.Rao, 1987, social movements and social transformation a study of two back word,books.google.com/books?id=wWEiAQAAMAAJ&q=cherayi+panicker, manohar publication., 24, 9780836421330, R.Ranganatha Puja,(1948) Vol.1 Legacy: The world’s heritageâ€� {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230410015803books.google.com/books?id=yLg1h6j5HcQC&q=cherayi+panikar |date=10 April 2023 }} Basel mission book depot, page. 183BOOK,books.google.com/books?id=NhNuAAAAMAAJ&q=Calicut:+The+City+of+Truth+Revisited, Calicut: The City of Truth Revisited, 9788177481044, Narayanan, M. G. S., 2006, University of Calicut, The Mysore army conquered northern Kerala up to Kochi with relative ease. Hyder Ali inflicted a major setback on the Calicut warriors at Perinkolam Ferry on the Kotta River. As Mysore edged closer to the outer reaches of the city of Calicut, the Zamorin sent most of his relatives to safe haven in Ponnani, and from there to Travancore, and to avoid the humiliation of surrender committed self-immolation by setting fire to his palace at Mananchira (27 April). Hyder Ali absorbed Malabar district to his state.Logan, William. Malabar. Asian Educational Services, 1887.(File:Kozhikode railway station.jpg|thumb|260x260px|Calicut Railway Station was established during the Colonial rule)But as soon as the Haider Ali marched to Coimbatore, Nair rebellions broke out in Malabar. Some members of the Zamorin family rebelled against the Muslim occupiers. This included the Eralpadu Krishna Varma with his nephew Ravi Varma. The princes were aided by the British East India Company.WEB,voiceofdharma.com/books/tipu/, Tipu Sultan â€” Villain Or Hero?, Voiceofdharma.com, 30 March 2010, 29 April 2011,voiceofdharma.com/books/tipu/," title="web.archive.org/web/20110429185939voiceofdharma.com/books/tipu/,">web.archive.org/web/20110429185939voiceofdharma.com/books/tipu/, live, In 1768 the Zamorin prince was restored in Calicut, agreeing to pay an annual tribute to Mysore. For nearly six years till 1774 nothing was heard about Hyder Ali. In 1774, Mysore forces under Srinivasa Rao occupied the city of Calicut. The prince retired to Travancore in a native vessel. The baton of resistance now passed to his nephew Ravi Varma. Ravi Varma helped the Company occupy Calicut in 1782. By the Treaty of Mangalore, concluded in 1784, Malabar was restored to Mysore. In 1785 the oppression of revenue officers led to a rebellion by the Mappilas of Manjeri. As a reward for aiding to put down the rebels, and partly as an incentive, Tipu Sultan settled upon Ravi Varma a pension and a jaghir’’ in 1786. The peace was soon broken and Tipu sent 6,000 troops under Mon. Lally to Kerala.Lord Cornwallis invited the Kerala chiefs to join him in 1790, promising to render them in future entirely independent of Mysore and to retain them upon reasonable terms under the protection of the company. Prince Ravi Varma met General Meadows at Trichinopoly and settled with him the terms of the Calicut’s cooperation. After the Third Mysore War (1790–1792), Malabar was placed under the control of the company by the Treaty of Seringapatam.In the settlement negotiations with the Joint Commission in 1792, the Zamorin proved recalcitrant. To pressure him, a portion of his former territories (Payyanadu, Payyormala, Kizhakkumpuram, Vadakkampuram and Pulavayi) was leased to the ruler of Kurumburanadu as manager for the East India Company. Finally, after prolonged negotiations, the hereditary territory of the Zamorin, together with the coin mint and the sea customs, was leased back to him. He was also temporarily given jurisdiction over the petty rulers and, as a mark of the Zamorin’s exceptional position in Malabar, the revenue fixed for Beypore, Parappanadu and Vettattunadu was to be paid through him. As previously noted, these tax-payment and jurisdictional arrangements were terminated later and the Zamorin of Calicut became a mere pensioned landlord receiving the “malikhanaâ€�. On 1 July 1800, Malabar was transferred to the Madras Presidency. On 15 November 1806 the agreement upon which rested the future political relations between the Zamorin of Calicut and the English was executed.

Governance

(File:The Palace of the Zamorin of Calicut (cropped).jpg|thumb|400px|The Palace of the Zamorin of Calicut in 17th century – from Dutch archives)According to historian M. G. Raghava Varier, at the peak of their reign, the Zamorin’s ruled over a region from Kollam to Panthalayini Kollam (Koyilandy). The hereditary local chiefs, more or less independent in their region, acknowledged the over-lordship of the Zamorin in Calicut. The local magnates – conferred with privileges and titles by the Zamorin – were more dependent on Calicut. In times of battles the chiefs and magnates provided the warriors to the Zamorin and were protected in turn when an enemy made encroachment to their dominions.Some of the local chiefs had the investiture ceremony, rather similar to that of the Zamorin of Calicut, some claimed kshatriya status, and some of them even used the title “Raja�. Vettam Udaya Mootha Kovil, Thirumanassheri Namboothiri, Thalappalli Punnathoor Nambadi, Thalappalli Kakkattu Nambadi, Vannilassheri Padinjare Nambadi, Parappur Karippuva Kovil, Chittoor Namboothirippadu, Manakkulathil Mooppil, Parappur Valavil Kovil, Parappur Kayyavil Kovil, Venginnadu Nambadi, Kurumburanadu Madampu Unithiri were some of the local chiefs of the kingdom of Calicut.K. V. Krishna Iyer, the court historian in Kozhikode, explains;Apart from the southern half of Kurumburanadu, Payyanadu, Polanadu, Ponnani, Cheranadu, Venkadakkotta, Malappuram, Kappul, Mannarakkadu, Karimpuzha, Nedunganadu, Naduvattom, Kollangode, Koduvayur, and Mankara the kingdom of Kozhikode included the following territories as tributary polities: Kottayam, Payyormala, Pulavayi, Tanore, Chaliyam, Beypore, Parappanadu, Thirunavaya, Thalapalli-Kakkad, Thalapalli-Punnathoor, Chittoor, Chavakkad, Kavalappara, Edappally, Patinjattedam, Cranganore, Kollengodu, Cochin and all of its vassal polities, Paravur, Purakkad, Vadakkumkur, Tekkumkur, Kayamkulam and Quilon.The kingdom only included the following territories during the late 18th century:Payyanadu, Polanadu, Ponnani, Cheranadu, Venkattakkotta, Malappuram, Kappul, Mannarkkad, Karimpuzha, and Nedunganadu. The Zamorin claimed to be – with more or less influence – the paramount sovereign over Payyormala, Pulavayi, Beypore, Parappanadu, Tanore, Talapalli, Chavakkadu and Kavalappara. Kozhikode had also taken possession of the more full and immediate sovereignty over Kollangode-Venginnadu, Koduvayur and Mankara.The Zamorin was assisted in the work of government in Calicut by four hereditary chief ministers called “Sarvadhi Karyakkar� and number of ministers called “Karyakkar� and “Polttis�. The Karyakkar were appointed and removed by the Zamorin. Adhikaris, Thalachennavars, Achanmar and temple functionaries also belonged to the Polttis. There were ritual specialists like Hindu priests of the palaces, astrologers etc. as well as various occupational groups like physicians, weavers, and militiamen all of whom were attached to the royal establishment.

Sarvadhi Karyakkar

• Mangattachan – the prime minister
• Tinayancheri Elayatu
• Dharmothu Panikkar – the instructor-in-arms who commanded the Calicut forces
• Varakkal Paranambi – treasury and accounts
• Ramachan Nedungadi

Shahbandar Koya

Although the Zamorin of Calicut derived greater part of his revenue from taxing the Indian Ocean spice trade, but he still did not run a fully developed mercantilist state. The Zamorins left trade in the hands of Paradesi (Middle Eastern) and Kerala Muslims.Shahbandar Koya (sometimes Khwaja, popularly known as the “Koya of Kozhikode“) was a privileged administrative position in Calicut. The Shahbandar was the second most important official in most Asian polities after the ruler.Eric Tagliacozzo, “An Urban Ocean, Notes on the Historical Evolution of Coastal Cities in Greater South East Asia�, in David R. Goldfield (ed.), Journal of Urban History, Vol. 33, No. 6, (London: September 2007), p. 913. Trade at the port of Calicut was controlled by this Muslim merchant-cum-port commissioner. He supervised customs on the behalf of the king, fixed the prices of the commodities, and collected the share to the treasury. As the farmer of customs he also had right collect brokerage and poll tax at the port.According to tradition, it was a merchant from Muscat, Oman who induced to the Zamorin to the conquer Valluvanadu. The Koya was subsequently appointed as the “Shahbandar� by the Zamorin of Calicut. He is also given “all the privileges and dignities of a Nair chief, jurisdiction over all the Muslims residing in the bazaar of Calicut, the right to receive a present from the Ilavar (the Tiyyar), the Kammalar (the smiths, carpenters, stone workers etc.) and the Mukkuvar whenever the Zamorin conferred any honours on them on ceremonial occasions�.

Revenue and trade

The major sources of revenue for the kingdom of Calicut were:{{colbegin}}

• Taxing trade via ports
• Cherikkal lands (royal estates, agricultural lands owned by the Zamorin)
• Amkam (fee for permitting to hold a trial by battle)
• Chunkam (tolls and duties)
• Ela (proceeds of lands confiscated)
• Kola (forced contribution for emergencies)
• Tappu (mulets/unconditional offences)
• Pizha (fines)
• Purushantaram (vassal succession fee)
• Pulyatta pennu (the proceeds from the sale of out-cast women) etc.
• Tirumulkalcha (gifts on various occasions)
• Virinnamittu panam (amount for the royal feast)
• Kannukku panam (amount presented for the death rituals) etc.

{{colend}}The Zamorin of Calicut derived greater part of his revenues by taxing spice trade.Chakravarti, R., 2012. Merchants, Merchandise and Merchantmen: The Western Sea-board of India and the Indian Ocean (500–1500 CE). In Om Prakash (Ed.), History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian Civilization, Vol. VIII (1), Centre for Studies in Civilization, Delhi: 59–116. Trade – both coastal and overseas – was dominated the Muslims, though Jews, Chettis from Coromandel Coast, and Vanias from Gujarat all traded in and from Calicut. The Muslim traders included natives (Mappilas and Marakkars) as well as Muslims from the Middle East. The foreigners dominated the lucrative Indian Ocean spice trade.The goods carried across the Arabian Sea included spices – pepper, ginger and cardamom – and trans-shipped textiles, and coconut products. The import into Calicut consisted of gold and copper, silver, horses (Kannur especially), silk, various aromatics, and other minor items. The Indian coastal trade network encompassed commodities such as coconuts, coir, pepper, cardamom, cinnamon and rice. Rice was a major import item into the kingdom of Calicut from Canara and Coromandel Coast. Low-value but high-volume trade in foodstuffs that passed through the Gulf of Mannar was also handled by the native Muslims from Malabar Coast. The local people were suppliers and consumers of goods in Kozhikde ports.Karashima, N., (Ed.), 2002. Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds. Taisho University, Tokyo.{| class=“wikitable mw-collapsible� style="text-align:center; font-size:90%; float:left; margin-left:15em�! Maritime corridor! Nature! Dominant community| West Asia – Malabar Coast (Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf)| International / overseasArabs>Muslims from the Middle East| East Asia – Malabar Coast (Pegu, Mergui, and Melaka in Myanmar and Malaysia and points east)| International / overseasMappila Muslims>Mappilas and Marakkars)| East Coast of India – Malabar Coast (Canara, Coromandel Coast and Bay of Bengal shores) and Maldives, and Ceylon| Domestic / coastalChettiar>Chettis from Coromandel Coast| Gujarat – Malabar Coast| Domestic / coastalGujarati Muslims>Muslims, and Vanias from Gujarat| Malabar coastal| Domestic / coastal| Muslims – MappilasThe coins minted in Calicut included Panam (made of gold), Taram (made of silver) and Kasu (made of copper). The officer in-charge of the mint was called the “Goldsmith of Manavikraman�. The royal mint was destroyed in 1766.

• 16 Kasu = 1 Taram
• 1 Taram = 1 Portuguese Real (Approx.)BOOK, Longworth Dames, Mansel, An account of the countries bordering, Haklyut Society, 1518, London, 52–53,
• 16 Tarams = 1 Panam

Ma Haun’s Table (1409)

* 1 Kochi Panam = 15 Tarams

Holzschuher’s Table (1503)

Gold coins: *Calicut/Kannur/Kochi Panam (15 carats gold) **19 Panams = 1 cruzado (Portuguese) or ducat (European) * Kollam Panam (19 carats gold) **12 Panams = 1 cruzado (Portuguese) or ducat (European) Silver coins: * [All Malabar Coast] Taram **16 Tarams = 1 Panam Copper coins: * Kollam Kasu **15 Kasus = 1 Panam