Aspects of Portuguese Rule in the Arabian Gulf, 152 1-1622
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The University of Hull Aspects of Portuguese Rule in the Arabian Gulf, 152 1-1622 Being a Thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy In the University of Hull By Mohammed Hameed Salman (MA) December 2004 Abstract Summary of Thesis submitted for PhD in history By Mohammed Hameed Salman On Aspects of Portuguese Rule in the Arabian Gulf, 1521 - 1622. This study deals with Portuguese rule over the Arabian Gulf from 1521, after the occupation of Hormuz, Bahrain and Qatif, to 1622 when Portuguese power declined after the capture of Hormuz by an English-Persian alliance. The work is organised into an introduction and five thematic chapters, each of which addresses one or more political and economic aspects of Portuguese rule in this period. The introduction provides a summary of the primary Portuguese sources, and other English, Arabic, and Turkish sources which pertain to the Portuguese invasion of the Gulf. There then follows a short description of the geography of the Gulf. Chapter One deals with Portuguese expansion and objectives in the East. In addition, the chapter discusses the commercial contacts between India and the Gulf before the Portuguese arrived. Particular attention is paid to the political and social structure of Hormuz. Chapter Two discusses the economic life of the Gulf during the sixteenth century and the beginning of the seventeenth century. This chapter also examines the commercial experiences or influences that the Portuguese brought to the people of the Gulf, and the economic aspects of the Portuguese presence. Chapter Three examines the basis and character of Portugal's political administration in the East in general, and in the Gulf in particular. This chapter also addresses relations between the Portuguese viceroyalty and the local governors. Chapter Four opens with a discussion of local resistance in the Gulf against the Portuguese. It deals also with the arrival of the Ottomans in the Gulf in the sixteenth century and their conflict with the Portuguese, and with Portuguese relations with Persia during the reign of Shah Abbas. Finally, Chapter Five assesses the reasons for the collapse of Portuguese domination in the Gulf in 1622 and its effects on the region. It discusses in detail why Hormuz, as one of the most important props of the Portuguese empire in the East, fell as an easy victim, even though it was thriving economically. iA Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Acknowledgements 3 List of Illustrations (Plates, Maps and Tables) 5 Abbreviations 6 Glossary 7 Introduction 9 1. Organisation of the Study 11 2. Review of Sources 14 3. Historical-Geographical Background of Portugal 30 4. Geographical Background of the Gulf 32 5. The Meeting of Civilisations 41 Chapter One: The Discovery and Conquest of the Arabian Gulf 49 1.1 A Gulf 'Power': Hormuz before the arrival of the Portuguese 49 1.2 Political Conditions in the Gulf 61 1.3 The European Context: The Objectives of Portuguese Exploration 68 1.4 The Portuguese Conquest of the Gulf 75 Chapter Two: Shipping and Trade in the Arabian Gulf during the Portuguese Occupation 88 2.1 The Maritime Economy of the Gulf in the Sixteenth Century 89 2.2 Portuguese Shipping and 'Monopoly' in the Gulf 104 2.3. Economic Aspects of the Gulf during the Portuguese Domination 115 2.4. The Cartaz System 132 Chapter Three: Political Aspects of Portuguese Rule in the Gulf 138 3.1. Hormuz: The Centre of Portuguese Rule in the Gulf 141 3.2. Rulers and Ruled in Hormuz 148 3.3. Portuguese Diplomacy in the Gulf: Relations with the Local Powers 157 3.4. The Reality of Portuguese Political Power in the Gulf 167 Chapter Four: Conflict between Portuguese and Islamic forces in the Gulf during the Sixteenth Century 174 4.1. Local Resistance in the Gulf against the Portuguese 174 4.2. Portuguese-Ottoman Confrontation in the Gulf 184 4.3. Conflict between the Portuguese and Safavid Persia 201 Chapter Five: The Collapse of Portuguese Authority in the Gulf 210 5.1. The Challenge of the East India Companies 211 5.2. The Fall of Hormuz in 1622 219 5.3. Postscript: After the Fall 243 Conclusion 247 Appendix I: Lists of Rulers and Officials 258 Appendix II: Documents in Translation 261 Maps and Plates 271 Bibliography 278 2 Acknowledgements It goes without saying that one cannot achieve a study like this without the kind assistance of several institutions, competent scholars and friends. First of all I would like to thank the department of history and the Faculty of Arts at the University of Hull for important financial support to do this study. More especially, I desire to express my deep gratitude to Dr David Starkey and Dr Richard Gorski, under whose supervision this study was written. I wish to express particular thanks Dr Gorski, to whom I am indebted for his kindness, valuable help and scholarly guidance throughout my study. I am indebted to the Camöes instituto in Lisbon for its grant of a scholarship to learn Portuguese and for permission to obtain important documents from Portuguese archives. I also wish to express my deep thanks to Dr Maria Matos and Dr José Matias in that institute for the friendship and help which I received from them. I am also grateful for the co-operation of Dr Antonio Dias Farinha in the University of Lisbon and his help in understanding some Old Portuguese expressions. Thanks are due also to Dr Essa Amin and Dr Ali Abahussain; also to Ashoor Hassan, Khaleel Ebrahim, and Mrs Rabab Ali for their special help in translating Persian texts. I owe a heavy debt of gratitude to my wife who has suffered so much to help me to complete this study. Lastly, I desire to make my acknowledgements to friends and colleagues from Oman and Bahrain, for their kind and willing assistance in my study. 3 This thesis is gratefully dedicated to my mother, my wife, my daughters, and my son. List of Illustrations (Plates, Maps and Tables) Table 2.1. Customs Revenues of Hormuz in the 1 540s 90 Table 2.2. The Kingdom of Hormuz's Revenues in 1500 94 Table 2.3. Coins in the Gulf during the Portuguese Period 97 Table 2.4. Hormuz: Annual Revenues, 15 15-1588 (in ashrafis) 126 Table 2.5. The Expenses and Balance of A(fdndega at Hormuz in the Seventeenth Century 130 Table 2.6. Annual Arrivals at Honnuz from the East c.1620 131 Table 3.1. Pay Scales for Officials at the fortress of Hormuz 146 Table 3.2. Officers and Dependents at Hormuz fortress, 1581-1610 170 The original nucleus of the kingdom of Portugal 271 Map of the Gulf and the Arabian Coast in the Sixteenth Century 272 Map of Hormuz and the entrance of the Gulf 273 Plate of Hormuz fortress 274 Map of Portuguese fortresses in the Gulf and Omani coast 275 Map of Persian coast in the sixteenth century 276 Wind systems in the Gulf and Arabian Sea in winter and summer 277 S Abbreviations AHR American Historical Review AHU Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino ANTT Arquivo Nacional da Tone de Tombo (Lisbon) APO Archivo Portuguez Oriental BNL-FG Fundo Geral Biblioteca Nacional de Lisboa C C Corpo Cronológico (in the ANTT) Cart. Ormuz Cartas de Ormuz a D. João de Castro Doe. Document DRI Documentos Remetidos da India ou Livros das Monçôes D UP Documentacdo Ultramarina Portuguesa El Encyclopedia of Islam, New edition fi., fls. Folio(s) GEPB Grande Enciclooédia Portuguesa e Brasleira EcHR Economic History Review IESHR The Indian Economic and Social History Review JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society JOS Journal of Omani Studies JEH Journal of Economic History JRAS Journal of the Royal Asiatic society liv. Book SEHME Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East 6 Glossary A icaide Portuguese official; 'chief of the sea' Bab A narrow strait; a gate Bahar Persian unit of weight; in different parts of Asia, it was worth about 210-30 kg Caffila Caravan Cámara municipal Municipal chamber of a city or town Cap itdo-mór Captain-Major Carreira da India Cape route or trade route via the Cape of Good Hope Cartaz A passport or safe-conduct for a ship, given in exchange for a fee or as a diplomatic privilege Casa da India The 'India House' in Lisbon, at which goods arriving from Asia were unloaded and auctioned, and customs- duties collected Casado Literally a married settler, and in fact used as a juridical category to denote a permanent resident of a settlement at times sub-divided into 'white' (branco) and 'black' (preto) Coja Or Khwaja in Persian, a respected person Cruzado Portuguese coin, worth 360 reis and 2.00 ashrafis in the sixteenth century, and 400 reis in the seventeenth century Dhow Largest lateen-rigged Arab or Indian ship of the time Dom A title of the Portuguese nobility, from the Latin dominus, abbreviated as D. The feminine is Dona Ducat A gold coin, originally Venetian but used also in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe Estado da India Portuguese 'State of India' Faramãn Arabic (in Persian farman), an order or decree from the Shah of Persia Fazenda Real Portuguese Royal Treasury Feitor Factor, Crown or private trading agent Feitoria Factory, Crown trading post Fidalgo Literallyfilho de algo, 'son of a somebody'; a member of the upper nobility, corresponds to Spanish hidalgo Fusta A small ship with Latin shape Grab Arabic: ghurab (crow), a coasting vessel ranging up to 300 tons, with one or two lateen-rigged masts according to size: smaller ones also carried oars Imám Religious leader Jabal Hill or mountain JazIrat An island; sometimes a peninsula Khulas Type of date famous in the Gulf Khür Bay or creek; a deep channel between shoals 7 Lascar Arabic: askar, most commonly a native sailor but, at that time, also