Battle of Chaul (1508)
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Chaul was a naval battle between the Portuguese and an Egyptian Mamluk
fleet in 1508 in the harbour of Chaul
in India
. The battle ended in a Mamluk victory. It followed the Siege of Cannanore (1507)
in which a Portuguese garrison successfully resisted an attack by Southern Indian rulers. This was the first Portuguese defeat at sea in the Indian Ocean
.
, and then selling them to the Egyptians and Arabs.
The Portuguese' monopolizing interventions were however seriously disrupting Indian Ocean trade
, threatening Arab as well as Venetian interests, as it became possible for the Portuguese to undersell the Venetians in the spice trade in Europe. Venice
broke diplomatic relations with Portugal and started to look at ways to counter its intervention in the Indian Ocean, sending an ambassador to the Egyptian court. Venice negotiated for Egyptian tariffs to be lowered to facilitate competition with the Portuguese, and suggested that "rapid and secret remedies" be taken against the Portuguese. The sovereign of Calicut, the Zamorin, had also sent an ambassador asking for help against the Portuguese.
Since the Mamluks only had little in terms of naval power, timber had to be provided from the Black Sea
in order to build the ships, about half of which was intercepted by the Hospitallers of St. John
in Rhodes
, so that only a fraction of the planned fleet could be assembled at Suez
. The timber was then brought overland on camel
back, and assembled at Suez
under the supervision of Venetian shipwrights.
and arrived in the Indian port of Diu in 1508 after delays subduing the city of Jeddha. It consisted of six round ships and six great galleys called galleasses. 1500 combatants were onboard, as well as the ambassador of the Zamorin ruler of Calicut, Mayimama Mārakkār
.
The fleet was to join with Malik Ayyaz
, a former Russian slave, who was in the service of the Sultan of Cambay, who was naval chief and master of Diu. The fleet was also planning to join with the Zamorin of Calicut, and then to raid and destroy all the Portuguese possessions on the Indian coast, but the Zamorin, who was expecting the Mamluk fleet in 1507 had already left.
, son of the Viceroy Francisco de Almeida
, were inferior in number with only a light force, and located in the nearby harbour of Chaul
. The rest had sailed north to protect shipping and fight the so- called piracy.
The Mamluks sailed into Chaul and fought for two days inconclusively with the Portuguese, unable to board their ships. Finally, Malik Ayaz sailed in with his own galleys. The Portuguese had to retreat and Almeida's ship was sunk at the entrance of Chaul harbour with Almeida aboard.
Ali Hussain returned to the port of Diu, but from that point abandoned any further initiative on the Indian coast, his ships becoming derelict and his crews dispersing. The Portuguese later returned and attacked the fleet in the harbour of Diu, leading to a decisive victory in the Battle of Diu (1509)
.
These events would be followed by a new Ottoman intervention in 1538, with the Siege of Diu
.
Mamluk
A Mamluk was a soldier of slave origin, who were predominantly Cumans/Kipchaks The "mamluk phenomenon", as David Ayalon dubbed the creation of the specific warrior...
fleet in 1508 in the harbour of Chaul
Chaul
Chaul is a former city of Portuguese India, now in ruins. It is located 60 km south of Mumbai, in Raigad District of Maharashtra state in western India....
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. The battle ended in a Mamluk victory. It followed the Siege of Cannanore (1507)
Siege of Cannanore (1507)
The Siege of Cannanore was a four-month siege, from April to August 1507, when troops of the local ruler , supported by the Zamorin of Calicut and Arabs, besieged the Portuguese garrison at St. Angelo Fort in Cannanore, in what is now the Indian state of Kerala...
in which a Portuguese garrison successfully resisted an attack by Southern Indian rulers. This was the first Portuguese defeat at sea in the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
.
Background
Previously, the Portuguese had been mainly active in Calicut, but the northern region of Gujarat was even more important for trade, and an essential intermediary in east–west trade: the Gujaratis were bringing spices from the Moluccas as well as silk from ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and then selling them to the Egyptians and Arabs.
The Portuguese' monopolizing interventions were however seriously disrupting Indian Ocean trade
Indian Ocean trade
Indian Ocean trade has gained an important role in history, and has been a key factor in East-West exchanges.-Roman period:Since antiquity, Indian Ocean trade had a significant role and led to the development of Roman trade with India....
, threatening Arab as well as Venetian interests, as it became possible for the Portuguese to undersell the Venetians in the spice trade in Europe. Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
broke diplomatic relations with Portugal and started to look at ways to counter its intervention in the Indian Ocean, sending an ambassador to the Egyptian court. Venice negotiated for Egyptian tariffs to be lowered to facilitate competition with the Portuguese, and suggested that "rapid and secret remedies" be taken against the Portuguese. The sovereign of Calicut, the Zamorin, had also sent an ambassador asking for help against the Portuguese.
Since the Mamluks only had little in terms of naval power, timber had to be provided from the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
in order to build the ships, about half of which was intercepted by the Hospitallers of St. John
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
in Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
, so that only a fraction of the planned fleet could be assembled at Suez
Suez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
. The timber was then brought overland on camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
back, and assembled at Suez
Suez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
under the supervision of Venetian shipwrights.
Preparations
The Mamluk fleet finally left in February 1507 under Amir Hussain in order to counter the expansion of the Portuguese in the Indian OceanIndian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
and arrived in the Indian port of Diu in 1508 after delays subduing the city of Jeddha. It consisted of six round ships and six great galleys called galleasses. 1500 combatants were onboard, as well as the ambassador of the Zamorin ruler of Calicut, Mayimama Mārakkār
Mayimama Mārakkār
Mayimama Mārakkār was an Indian ambassador of the Zamorin ruler of Calicut. In 1504, he went on an embassy to the Mamluk ruler in order to obtain an intervention against the Portuguese who were preying on India....
.
The fleet was to join with Malik Ayyaz
Malik Ayyaz
Malik Ayyaz, called Meliqueaz by the Portuguese was a naval officer and governor of the city of Diu, in the mouth of the Gulf of Khambhat , circa 1507-1509 under the rule of Gujarat Sultanate. He was one of the most distinguished warriors of his time .Meliqueaz was a mamluk of Russian Christian...
, a former Russian slave, who was in the service of the Sultan of Cambay, who was naval chief and master of Diu. The fleet was also planning to join with the Zamorin of Calicut, and then to raid and destroy all the Portuguese possessions on the Indian coast, but the Zamorin, who was expecting the Mamluk fleet in 1507 had already left.
Battle
The Portuguese, under Lourenço de AlmeidaLourenço de Almeida
Lourenço de Almeida , son of Francisco de Almeida, acting under him, distinguished himself in the Indian Ocean, and made Ceylon tributary to Portugal...
, son of the Viceroy Francisco de Almeida
Francisco de Almeida
Dom Francisco de Almeida , also known as "the Great Dom Francisco" , was a Portuguese nobleman, soldier and explorer. He distinguished himself as a counsellor to King John II of Portugal and later in the wars against the Moors and in the conquest of Granada in 1492...
, were inferior in number with only a light force, and located in the nearby harbour of Chaul
Chaul
Chaul is a former city of Portuguese India, now in ruins. It is located 60 km south of Mumbai, in Raigad District of Maharashtra state in western India....
. The rest had sailed north to protect shipping and fight the so- called piracy.
The Mamluks sailed into Chaul and fought for two days inconclusively with the Portuguese, unable to board their ships. Finally, Malik Ayaz sailed in with his own galleys. The Portuguese had to retreat and Almeida's ship was sunk at the entrance of Chaul harbour with Almeida aboard.
Ali Hussain returned to the port of Diu, but from that point abandoned any further initiative on the Indian coast, his ships becoming derelict and his crews dispersing. The Portuguese later returned and attacked the fleet in the harbour of Diu, leading to a decisive victory in the Battle of Diu (1509)
Battle of Diu (1509)
The Battle of Diu sometimes referred as the Second Battle of Chaul was a naval battle fought on 3 February 1509 in the Arabian Sea, near the port of Diu, India, between the Portuguese Empire and a joint fleet of the Sultan of Gujarat, the Mamlûk Burji Sultanate of Egypt, the Zamorin of Kozhikode...
.
These events would be followed by a new Ottoman intervention in 1538, with the Siege of Diu
Siege of Diu
The Siege of Diu occurred when an Ottoman imperial fleet attempted to capture the Indian city of Diu in 1538, then held by the Portuguese.It ended with a Portuguese victory.-Background:...
.