A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. II - Robert Kerr
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Having ended their conversation, and confirmed their mutual friendship,
the king rowed through among our ships, examining them with much pleasure
and admiration, and was saluted in passing by many discharges of the
ordnance, at which he and his attendants seemed much delighted. On this
occasion, the general attended upon him in his own boat out of respect,
and the king observed, that he never was so much pleased with any men as
with the Portuguese, and would most gladly have some of them to help him
in his wars. To this the general answered, that if his highness were to
have experience of what they were able to perform, he would like the
Portuguese still better; and that they should certainly give him aid, if
it should please the king of Portugal to send any of his war ships to
Calicut, which he did not doubt would be the case, if it were Gods will
to permit the discovery of that place. After the king had satisfied his
curiosity, he requested of the general, since he would not go himself
into the city, to permit two of his men to go and see the palace,
offering to leave his own son, and one of his chief priests, which they
named Cacis[42], in pledge for their safe return. To this request the
general consented, and sent two of our men along with the king: He, at
his departure, requested that the general would next day, in his boat,
come close to the shore, when he should be gratified with a sight of the
native horsemen going through their evolutions. After this they separated.
Next day, being Thursday, the general and Nicholas Coello went in their
boats well armed along the shore, according to the invitation of the king,
keeping at a small distance from each other for mutual defence in case of
need, where they saw many men skirmishing on the shore. As our boats
approached the royal palace, certain of the kings attendants brought him
in a chair down some stone stairs which led to the water; and, being then
very near the generals boat, the king entered into friendly conversation
with him, and once more entreated him to land and go to the palace;
saying, that his father, who was lame, was exceedingly desirous to see
him, and even offered, that, while the general remained on shore, he and
his children would go on board the ships as hostages for his security.
But our general, still dreading that some bitter treachery might lurk
beneath this honied speech, continued to excuse himself from landing, as
he had not permission from his own prince to do so, and must obey him, in
all things. After this, taking his leave of the king, he rowed past the
ships of the Indian merchants, which he saluted in passing with his
ordnance; and when they saw us pass, they held up their hands, exclaiming
Christe! Christe!
That night, having obtained leave from the king, our men made them a
great feast, with much diversion, also of squibs, firing of guns, and
loud cries. The fleet remained at anchor for two days without any message
from the shore, on which account the general was much distressed, fearing
the king had taken offence at his refusal to go on shore, and might break
the peace and amity between them, and not send him any pilot. But on
Sunday the 21st of April, a person who was in high credit with the king,
came off to visit the general, who was much disappointed when this person
brought no pilot, and again began to entertain suspicions of the kings
intentions. When the king learnt this, and that the general remained
merely for the purpose of having a pilot, he sent him one who was a
Gentile, called _Gosarate_[43] in their language, and whose name was
_Canaca_, sending an apology at the same time for not having sent this
person sooner. Thus the king and the general remained friends, and the
peace continued which had been agreed between them.
"De Barros and Faria give this pilot the name of _Malemo Cana_, and say
that he belonged to one of the Indian ships of Cambaya, then at Melinda.
De Barros adds, that he shewed De Gama a very small chart of the coast of
India, laid down with meridians and parallels, but without rhumbs of the
winds. This pilot shewed no surprise on seeing the large wooden and metal
astrolabes belonging to the Portuguese, as the pilots of the Red Sea had
long used brass triangular instruments and quadrants for astronomical
observations, and that he and others who sailed from Cambaya, and the
ports of India, navigated by the north and south stars, and the
constellations of the eastern and western hemispheres; and, though they
did not use these instruments in navigation, they employed one made of
three pieces of board, similar to the _balhestillia_, or cross-staff of
the Portuguese.
"In a collection of papers published in 1790, called _Documentos
Arabicos_, from the royal archives of Lisbon, chiefly consisting of
letters between the kings of Portugal and the tributary princes of the
east in the sixteenth century, the _zeque, sheik_, or king of Melinda,
with whom De Gama afterwards made a treaty of alliance, and whose
ambassador he carried into Portugal, was named Wagerage[44]."
Having thus procured a pilot, and provided all things necessary for the
voyage, De Gama departed from Melinda for Calicut, on Friday the 26th of
April 1498[45], and immediately made sail directly across the gulf which
separates Africa from India, which is 750 leagues[46]. This golf runs a
long way up into the land northwards; but our course for Calicut lay to
the east[47]. In following this voyage, our men saw the north star next
Sunday, which they had not seen of a long while; and they saw the stars
about the south pole at the same time. They gave thanks to God, that,
whereas it had been represented to them, that in this season, which was
the winter of the Indies, there were always great storms in this gulf,
they now experienced fair weather. On Friday the 18th of May, twenty-
three days after leaving Melinda, during all which time they had seen no
land, they came in sight of India, at eight leagues distance, the land
seeming very high. Canaca, the pilot, tried the lead and found forty-five
fathoms, upon which he altered his course to the south-east, having
fallen in with the land too far to the north. Upon the Saturday, he again
drew near the land, but did not certainly know it, as the view was
obscured by rain, which, always falls in India at this season, being
their winter. On Sunday the 20th of May, the pilot got view of certain
high hills which are directly behind the city of Calicut, and came so
near the land that he was quite sure of the place; on which he came up
with great joy to the general, demanding his _albrycias_, or reward, as
this was the place at which he and his company were so desirous to arrive.
The general was greatly rejoiced at this news, and immediately satisfied
the pilot, after which, he summoned all the company to prayers, saying
the _salve_, and giving hearty thanks to God, who had safely conducted
them to the long wished-for place of his destination. When prayer was
over, there was great festivity and joy in the ships, which came that
same evening to anchor two leagues from Calicut. Immediately upon
anchoring, some of the natives came off to the ships in four boats,
called _almadias_, inquiring whence our ships came, as they had never
before seen any resembling their construction upon that coast. These
natives were of a brown colour, and entirely naked, excepting very small
aprons. Some of them immediately came on board the general, and the
Guzerat pilot informed him these were poor fishermen; yet the general
received them courteously, and ordered his people to purchase the fish
which they had brought for sale. On conversing with them, he understood
that the town whence they came, which was in sight, was not Calicut,
which lay farther off, and to which they offered to conduct our fleet.
Whereupon the general requested them to do this; and, departing from this
first anchorage, the fleet was conducted by these fishermen to Calicut.
Calicut is a city on the coast of Malabar, a province of the second India,
which begins at the mount of Delhi, and ends at Cape Comory, being sixty-
one leagues in length, and fifteen leagues broad[48]. The whole of this
country is very low, and apt to be covered with water, having many
islands in its rivers, which flow into the Indian Sea. This country of
Malabar is divided from the kingdom of Narsinga by a very high hill. The
Indians report that this land of Malabar was covered by the sea of old,
which then reached to the foot of the hills, and thence to a hill, where
now the islands of the Maldives are found, which were then firm land; and
that in after times it destroyed that latter country, and laid bare the
country of Malabar, in which are many pleasant and rich cities, dependent
upon trade, which they carry on principally with Calicut, which exceeds
all cities of our days in riches and in vice. Its foundation and rise was
as follows: In ancient times, this country of Malabar was entirely ruled
by one king, who dwelt in the city of _Coulan_. In the reign of the last
king of this race, named _Saranaperimal_[49], who died 600 years ago, the
Moors of Mecca discovered India, and came to the province of Malabar,
then inhabited by idolaters, and governed by an idolatrous king. From the
time of the coming of these Moors, they began to reckon their years as we
do, from the birth of our Saviour[50]. After the coming of the Moors into
Malabar, they insinuated themselves so much into the confidence of the
before-mentioned king, that he became a convert to their law, renouncing
the religion of his country, and embracing Mahometism with such zeal,
that he resolved to go and end his days in the temple of Mecca. Having
thus resolved, out of love to the Mahometan sect, to abandon his kingdom,
he called his kindred together, and divided all his territories among
them, reserving only twelve leagues of country near the place where he
intended to embark, not then inhabited, which he bestowed upon one of his
cousins who acted as his page. To this kinsman he gave his sword and
turban, as ensigns of dignity; commanding all the other nobles, among
whom he had distributed the rest of his territories, to obey this person
as their emperor, the kings of Coulan and Cananor only excepted; whom
also, and all the others, he debarred from coining money, which was only
to be done by the king of Calicut. Having thus given away his whole
dignities and possessions, and set every thing in order, he embarked from
the place where Calicut now stands; and because this king embarked from
that place on his pilgrimage to Mecca, the Moors have ever since held
Calicut in so high devotion, that they and all their posterity would
never take their lading from any other port. From that time forwards,
they discontinued trade with the port of Coulan, which they had used
formerly, and that port therefore fell to ruin; especially after the
building of Calicut, and the settlement of many Moors in that place[51].
As the Moors are merchants of most extensive dealings, they have rendered
Calicut, as the centre of their trade, the richest mart of all the Indies;
in which is to be found all the spices, drugs, nutmegs, and other things
that can be desired, all kinds of precious stones, pearls and seed-pearls,
musk, sanders, aguila, fine dishes of earthen ware, lacker[52], gilded
coffers, and all the fine things of China, gold, amber, wax, ivory, fine
and coarse cotton goods, both white and dyed of many colours, much raw
and twisted silk, stuffs of silk and gold, cloth of gold, cloth of tissue,
grain, scarlets, silk carpets, copper, quicksilver, vermilion, alum,
coral, rose-water, and all kinds of conserves. Thus, every kind of
merchandize from all parts of the world is to be found in this place;
which, moreover, is very quiet, being situated along the coast, which is
almost open and very dangerous. Calicut is surrounded by many gardens and
orchards, producing all the herbs and fruits of this country in great
abundance, having also many palms and other sorts of trees, and abounds
in excellent water. This part of India produces but little rice, which is
a principal article of food in these parts, as wheat is with us; but it
procures abundance of that and all other kinds of provisions from other
countries. The city is large, but the dwellings consist only of straw
huts; their idol temples, and chapels, and the kings palace excepted,
which are: built of stone and lime and covered with tiles; for, by their
laws, no others are permitted to build their houses of any other material
than straw. At this time, Calicut was inhabited by idolaters of many
sects, and by many Moorish merchants, some of whom were so rich as to be
owners of fifty ships. These ships are made without nails, their planks
being sewed together with ropes of _cayro_, made of the fibres of the
cocoa-nut husk, pitched all over, and are flat-bottomed, without keels.
Every winter there are at least six hundred ships in this harbour, and
the shore is such, that their ships can be easily drawn up for repairs.
"The subjects of the following digression are so intimately connected
with the first establishment of the Portuguese in India, as to justify
its introduction in this place, which will greatly elucidate the
narrative of Castaneda; and its length did not admit of being inserted in
the form of notes. It is chiefly due to the ingenious and Reverend James
Stanier Clarke, in his Origin and Progress of Maritime Discovery,
extracted by him from various sources."
"The name of this country, Malabar, is said to be derived from _ulyam_,
which signifies, in the original language of that part of India,
_skirting the bottom of the hills_, corrupted into Maleyam or Maleam,
whence probably came Mulievar, and Mala-bar. In a MS. account of Malabar,
it is said that little more than 2300 years ago, the sea came up to the
foot of the _Sukien_ mountains, or the western _gauts_. The emerging of
the country from the waters is fabulously related to have been occasioned
by the piety or penitence of Puresram Rama, who prayed to _Varauna_, the
God of the ocean, to give him a track of land to bestow on the Bramins.
Varauna accordingly commanded the sea to withdraw from the _Gowkern_, a
hill near Mangalore, all the way to Cape Comorin; which new land long
remained marshy and scarcely habitable, and the original settlers were
forced to abandon it on account of the numerous serpents by which it was
infested: But they afterwards returned, being instructed to propitiate
the serpents by worshipping them."
"At first this country was divided into four _Tookrees_ or provinces,
these into _Naadhs_ or districts, and these again into _Khunds_ or small
precincts. The Bramins established a kind of republican or aristocratical
government, under a few principal chiefs; but jealousies and disturbances
taking place, they procured a _Permaul_ or chief governor from the prince
of Chaldesh, a sovereignty in the southern Carnatic: Yet it is more
likely that this sovereign took advantage of the divisions among the
chiefs of Malabar, to reduce them under his authority. These permauls or
viceroys were for a long while changed every twelve years; till at length
one of them, named Sheo-Ram, Cheruma Perumal, or Shermanoo Permaloo, the
Sarana-perimal of Castaneda, became so popular that he set his master
_Kishen Rao_, the rajah of Chaldesh, at defiance, and established his own
authority in Malabar. An army was sent into Malabar to reduce the country
again to obedience, but it was defeated, and from this event, which is
said to have happened 1000 years ago, all the rajahs, chief _nayres_, and
other lords of Malabar, date the sovereignty and independence of their
ancestors in that country."
"After some time, Shermanoo-Permaloo, either became weary of his
situation, or from attachment to the Mahometan religion, resolved to make
a division of Malabar among his dependents, from whom the present
chieftains are descended. Such is the current story among the inhabitants
of Malabar; yet it is more probable that his dependent chieftains,
disgusted with his conversion to the religion of Mahomet, revolted from
his authority, and contrived this story of his voluntary surrender and
division of his dominions, to justify their own assumptions. After this
division of his kingdom, it is said that an _erary_, or person of the
cast of cow-herds, originally from the banks of the Cavery, near Errode
in the Carnatic, who had been a chief instrument of the success of
Shermanoo-Permaloo in the war against rajah Kishen Rao, made application
to Shermanoo for some support. Having very little left to give away,
Shermanoo made him a grant of his own place of abode at Calicut, and gave
him his sword; ankle-rings, and other insignia of command, and presented
him with water and flowers, the ancient symbols of a transfer of property.
It is said that this cowherd rajah was ordained principal sovereign over
the other petty princes among whom Malabar was divided, with the title of
Zamorin, and was authorized by Shermanoo to extend his dominion over all
the other chieftains by force of arms. His descendants have ever since
endeavoured, on all occasions, to enforce this pretended grant, which
they pretend to hold by the tenure of possessing the sword of Shermanoo
Permaloo, and which they carefully preserve as a precious relic."
"From the period of the abdication of Shermanoo, to that of the arrival
of the Portuguese at Calicut, the Mahomedan religion had made
considerable progress in Malabar; and the Arabian merchants received
every encouragement from the Samoories or Zamorins, as they made Calicut
the staple of their Indian trade, and brought large sums of money yearly
to that place, for the purchase of spiceries and other commodities. As
the rajahs of Cochin and other petty sovereignties on the coast, were
exceedingly jealous of the superior riches and power of the zamorins, and
of the monopoly of trade enjoyed by Calicut, they gave every
encouragement to the Portuguese to frequent their ports; from whence
arose a series of warfare by sea and land, which has finally reduced them
all under subjection to the Europeans."
"According to an Arabian author, _Zeirreddien Mukhdom_, who is supposed
to have been sent to assist the zamorins and the Mahomedans in India, in
their wars with the Portuguese, Malabar is then said to have been divided
among a multiplicity of independent princes or rajahs, whom he calls
_Hakims_, some of whom commanded over one or two hundred men, and others
one, ten, fifteen, or even as high as thirty, thousand, or upwards.
The three greatest powers at that time were, the _Colastrian_[53] rajah
to the north, the zamorin of Calicut in the centre, and a rajah in the
south, who ruled from Coulan, Kalum, or Coulim, to Cape Comorin,
comprehending the country now belonging to the rajah of Travancore."
"We now return from this digression, to follow the narrative of the
Portuguese Discovery and Conquest of India, as related by Castaneda."
So great was the trade and population of Calicut and the surrounding
country, and the revenues of its sovereign through these circumstances,
that he was able to raise a force of thirty thousand men in a single day,
and could even bring an hundred thousand men into the field, completely
equipt for war, in three days. This prince, in the language of the
country, was styled the Zamorin, or Samoryn, which signifies Emperor; as
he was supreme over the other two kings of Malabar, the king of Coulan
and the king of Cananor. There were indeed other princes in this country,
who were called kings, but were not so. This zamorin or king of Calicut
was a bramin, as his predecessors had been, the bramins being priests
among the Malabars. It is an ancient rule and custom among these people,
that all their kings must die in a pagoda[54], or temple of their idols;
and that there must always be a king resident in the principal pagoda, to
serve those idols: Wherefore, when the king that serves in the temple
comes to die, he who then reigns must leave his government of temporal
affairs to take his place in the temple; upon which another is elected to
take his place, and to succeed in ruling the kingdom. If the king who is
in possession of the temporal authority should refuse to retire to the
pagoda, on the death of the king who officiated in spirituals, he is
constrained to do so, however unwilling.
The kings and nobles of Malabar are of a brown complexion, and go naked
from the waist upwards, all the under parts of their bodies being clothed
in silk or cotton Vestments; yet they sometimes wear short gowns on their
upper parts, called _basus_, of rich silk, or cloth of gold, or of
scarlet, splendidly ornamented with precious stones, of all which the
zamorin hath great store. They shave their beards, leaving only the hair
on their upper lips, and do not shave the head like the Turks. In general,
the natives of this country, even of the higher ranks, use little state
in their households, and are very sparing in their diet; but the zamorin
is served with considerable splendour. These kings or nobles never marry;
but every one has a mistress of the Nayre cast, which, among the Malabars,
are considered as the gentry; even the zamorin has only a mistress, who
has a house of her own near the palace, and a liberal allowance for the
charges of her household and maintenance at her own disposal. Upon any
dislike or difference, he may always leave her for another. The children
are only considered as the offspring of the mother, and have no right or
title to inherit the kingdom, or any thing else belonging to the father;
and when grown up, are only held in that rank or estimation which belongs
to the blood or parentage of their mother. Brothers succeed to brothers;
and in lack of these, the sons of their sisters, who do not marry, and
have no certainty respecting the fathers of their children; as they are
very free and dissolute in their manners, choosing paramours as they
please.
These sisters of the zamorin, and other kings of Malabar, have handsome
allowances to live upon; and when any of them reaches the age of ten,
their kindred send for a young man of the Nayre cast, out of the kingdom,
and give him great presents to induce him to initiate the young virgin;
after which he hangs a jewel round her neck, which she wears all the rest
of her life, as a token that she is now at liberty to dispose of herself
to any one she pleases as long as she lives.
When these kings are at war with each other, they often go personally
into the field, and even join personally in fight upon occasion. When one
of them dies, the body is carried out into the fields, and burned on a
pile of sanders, and of another sweet smelling wood called _aguila_, all
his brothers and kindred, and all the nobles of the country being present
at the ceremony; which is uniformly postponed to the third day after
death, that all may have time to gather from a distance, and may have an
opportunity of being assured whether his death was natural, or caused by
violence: Since, if he died by the hand of any one, all are bound to
prosecute revenge. After the body is burnt, and the ashes buried, the
whole company shaves every part of their bodies, even to the youngest
child of these idolaters. This is their token of mourning; and during the
ensuing thirteen days, they all refrain from chewing betel, any one
infringing this law being punished by cutting his lips. During this
period of thirteen days, he who is to succeed to the throne must abstain
from all exercise of government, that any one who pleases may have an
opportunity of urging any valid objection why he should not acquire the
vacant government. After, this the successor is sworn before all the
nobles of the country, to preserve and enforce all the laws and customs
of their ancestors, to pay the debts of his predecessor, and to use his
utmost endeavours to recover any portion of the kingdom that may have
been lost. While taking this oath, having his sword in his left hand, he
holds in his right hand a burning candle, on which is a gold ring, which
he touches with his fingers. After this they throw some grains of rice
over him, using many other ceremonies, and numerous prayers, and then
worship the sun three times. When all these ceremonies are gone through,
all the _Caymayles_, or lords of noble birth, taking hold of the candle,
take an oath to be true and faithful subjects to the new king.
After the end of the thirteen days mourning, they all begin to chew betel,
and to eat flesh and fish as formerly, the new king alone excepted. He is
bound to mourn for his predecessor during a whole year, chewing no betel,
eating no flesh or fish, neither shaving his beard nor cutting; his nails
during all that time. He must eat only once a-day, washing himself all
over before this single meal, and devoting certain hours of every day to
prayer. After the expiry of the year, he uses a certain ceremony for the
soul of the king his predecessor, much like our solemn dirge; at which
100,000 persons are often assembled, among whom he distributes large alms.
When this ceremony is ended, the prince is confirmed as inheritor of the
kingdom, and all the people depart.