The Dowry of Bombay
It is something of an oxymoron to imagine that a king, a veritable emperor, would be forced to marry for money, and yet, that is precisely the fate that befell Charles II of England. Charles II had not had a very happy life – at least, not by monarchical standards. His father had been deposed and then beheaded, at the end of an English Civil War (in 1649) which had led to Oliver Cromwell[1] declaring England to be a republic. Notwithstanding his love for a good beheading, it is safe to assume that Oliver did not fancy the royalty.
While parliamentary rule prevailed in the England, Charles II had to maintain his head on his shoulders by seeking refuge in various European courts. Upon Oliver Cromwell’s death in 1658, the parliamentary republic crumbled (ironically, on account of his son succeeding him – not the best advert for a republic). In 1660, Charles II returned to the England and monarchy was restored. As a blue- blooded royal, Charles II was unsurprisingly keen to order a few beheadings himself. Determinedly, he did not let the small matter of Oliver Cromwell already having died, stand in the way of his plans. Oliver Cromwell’s corpse was exhumed, hung, beheaded and the severed head placed on a spike above Westminster Hall. It is hard to imagine that this decorative motif enhanced the London skyline, but the monarch’s desire probably trumped the architect’s.
Unfortunately, by the time Charles II reclaimed the throne, he was incredibly broke and not unlike the parents of many Indian men, he decided to earn a fortune through marriage. The Portuguese princess, Catherine of Braganza, was identified as the most suitable combination of bride and bank, and negotiations were initiated to draft a marriage treaty. The Portuguese were at war with the Spanish[2] and conflicting with the Dutch, so alliance with England was an attractive proposition.
The marriage treaty (image below) was sealed in 1661 with the Portuguese offering: 2 million Portuguese Crowns, the right of English merchants to trade in Portugal and the Portuguese empire, and the ports of Tangier and Bombay[3]. In return, the English composed a poem, an extract of which is below[4]:
“England and Portugal are one in FameThere is no difference ‘twixt ‘em but in Name, Lisbon is London Tagus Thames, and then, The Portugues are become Englishmen The English, Portugues, both meet in hearts, Thus Providence unites remotest parts”
It would not be an exaggeration to say that this was not a fair deal. The marriage took place the next year in England.
Source: Royal Museums GreenwichUnfortunately for the English, the negotiating party that finalized the marriage treaty had skipped Geography 101 and Contract 101 in college. For one thing, they believed that Bombay was ‘within a very little distance’ from Brazil[5]. A cursory glance at a map of the world created by Nicolaes Visscher in 1658 (image below), shows just how deluded it was for anyone to believe that Bombay and Brazil were neighboring lands. It is no wonder that Oliver Cromwell was so exasperated with the royalty and peerage.
Source: Wikipedia CommonsMore damagingly though, the English failed to realize that the treaty was not drafted to their advantage. The clause of the treaty that conferred English sovereignty over Bombay was as follows: “…the King of Portugal with the assent and advice of his Council gives, transfers, and by these presents grants and confirms unto the King of Great Britain, his heirs and successors for ever, the Port and Island of Bombay in the East Indies…”[6] The use of the singular was critical.
The Bombay of 1660s was worlds apart from what it is today. For one thing, the construction of the Bandra Worli Sea Link had only just begun. The Bombay of then was quite literally fragments of lands with connecting swamps, that would be swallowed by the sea at high tide. The seven original rocky islands that today comprise South Bombay were: Bombay (the largest central landmass that today includes the Fort area and Girgaum), Colaba, Old Woman’s Island (said to be a British corruption of its earlier name, Al Omani’s Island[7]), Mazgaon, Parel, Mahim, Worli[8]. Separated from these, was the larger landmass of Salsette (with Bandra at its southern tip).
Source: Wikipedia CommonsWhen the English set sail in 1662 to assume ownership of these lands, they were blithely unaware of any of this. Much to their chagrin and surprise, they discovered that the Portuguese were not really in the mood to co-operate. In Europe, the canniness of the Portuguese had already come to the fore when they substituted the dowry of promised gold with sacks of sugar and spice[9]. The English fleet met similar reception when it reached Bombay and was informed by the Portuguese that the marriage treaty did not include the dependencies of Bombay (the other islands around the central Bombay island) since it referred to the singular ‘Island of Bombay’. This was unacceptable to the British; dominion over the solitary island of Bombay in the middle of (literally) a sea of Portuguese territories was untenable. However, the terms of the treaty were quite clear. To quote Samuel Pepys[10], the English belatedly realized that they had been ‘choused’[11].
As negotiations continued, the English fleet, having been rebuffed at Bombay, sought refuge in Anjediva (an island off Goa). Reportedly, nearly 300 lives were lost to the 'deadly climate' while they waited for the deadlock to be resolved. It seems that the Portuguese Viceroy tried his best to cling on to even the single island of Bombay and wrote the following words to his King: “…India will be lost the same day in which the English nation is settled in Bombay.”[12] Prophetic words indeed, but ultimately, to no avail. The Portuguese King decided to honor the treaty and in January, 1665, the English, at last, acquired possession of the Island of Bombay and ineluctably changed the history of our country.
[1] Incidentally, Oliver Cromwell was related (via a few hops, skips and jumps) to the more famous Cromwell, Thomas – who was Prime Minister to Henry VIII and the reason why Ms. Hilary Mantel has won two Booker Awards.[2] In 1580, Spain had taken advantage of a succession war and subsumed Portugal to form the Iberian Union. However, by 1640, the Portuguese had become restless and yearned to re-establish their rule. Eventually, they succeeded in ousting the Spanish from Portugal when [3] https://www.rmg.co.uk/discover/behind-the-scenes/blog/very-royal-wedding-charles-ii-and-catherine-braganza[4]Aqua Triumphalis (1662), John Tatham (available at: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo/A63171.0001.001/1:7.2?rgn=div2;view=fulltext) [5]Bombay in the Making (1661 – 1726), Phiroze B. M. Malabari[6] Ibid[7] The name could be attributed to the fact that the deep – sea Koli fishermen of the island were known as ‘Al Omanis’; ‘Oman’ being the Persian name for the Arabian Sea. (The Rise of Bombay: A Retrospect, Stephen Meredyth Edwardes) [8] See: City of Gold: The Biography of Bombay, Gillian Tindall [9]https://www.algarvehistoryassociation.com/en/portugal/43-catherine-of-braganza-by-peter-kingdon-booker[10]Sameul Pepys’ diary is an authoritative source of events that transpired during this period and is available online. This particular entry (dated May 15, 1663) can be accessed at: https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1663/05/[11]Meaning to cheat or trick. This has now been inducted into my list of Ten Words I Love (which is topped by hullabaloo).[12]Bombay in the Making (1661 – 1726), Phiroze B. M. Malabari