In between the Medieval Era and the rise of Colonial Era of British Empire, India saw the coming of Europeans started by Vasco de Gama's maritime success to find out for Europeans a new sea route to India in 1498 surfaced the way for direct Indo-European commerce. The Portuguese soon established trading-posts in Goa, Daman, Diu and Bombay (presently Mumbai). The next to come were the Dutch, the British - who founded a trading-post in the west-coast port of Surat in 1619 - and the French. The inner struggles among Indian Kingdoms provide chances to the European traders to step by step founded political influence and conquer lands. Though these transcontinental European powers were to assure several regions of southern and eastern India during the following century, they would eventually lose all their territories in India to the British islanders, with the exclusion of the French outstations of Pondicherry and Chandernagore, the Dutch port of Travancore and the Portuguese colonies of Goa, Daman, and Diu. . |
