ZAMORIN’S ATTACK ON COCHIN IN 1504 AND ITS DEFENCE 

                WITH THE SUPPORT OF PORTUGUESE;

THE SIX MONTH LONG WAR AT KUMBALAM

AND CONVERSION OF HINDUS INTO

MUSLIM FAITH

 Xavier Master Chembaranjeril (1904-83,) my father’s cousin, told me that, in 1504, the Zamorin of Calicut resolved again to try his strength with the Portuguese and to reduce the State of Cochin to subjugation. With the intention of invading Cochin, the Zamorin formed a combination of a large number of Malabar Rajas and chieftains, a fleet consisting of 280 paraos and other vessels, with a crew of 4000 men, mostly Mohammedans, and a force consisting of 80,000 men under the command of the Elamkur Nambiathiri, the Zamorin’s heir and the Raja of Edappally Swaroopam. His force was supported by artillery, which included five guns constructed by the two Italian deserters. This was at a time when the two Albuquerques sailed from Cochin to Portugal in 1504, leaving   Captain Duarte Pacheco, with about 150 Portuguese army with artillery and 300 native Latin soldiers and some vessels to defend Cochin. The hereditary Oli ‘Desavazhi Nambuthiri’ of  ayanat thayamkeril, ‘Oli Mana’ at Kumbalam, my ancestor, was an ally of Kochi Raja. He and his Nair forces actively assisted the Portuguese in the war against Zamorin.

 

The ‘Nambuthiris’ of the other ‘Illoms/Manas’ at Kumbalam namely Thekkedath (Nambuthiripad,) Mattakkal, Cheruvally, Murikkanampilly, Kannambilly, Mynappilly, Chakkanat, Padinjattezhath, Chala, Uthradath, Pattamana (Bhattamana,) Manath, Kakkanat, Vadakedath, Attuvalli, Puthuvazhath (Puthuva,) Kutarapilly, Punnamthodath (Pazhamthottam,) Illath and Thayyath at Kumbalam and  Punnurkot (Swarnath,) Kizhamana, Edamana, Puthumana, Perumana, Elamana, Memana and Komana  at Panangad, who were ‘Vaishnavites,’ worshippers of Lord Krishna or Mahavishnu, (the Panniyoor faction) and they deserted from the side of Cochin Raja and had joined hands with the Zamorin, who was a ‘Vaishnavite’. Persuaded by aforesaid ‘Vaishnavite’ Brahmins, some of the ‘Nair’ warriors at Kumbalam presently residing in Chakkanat, Pullanat, Chala and Mondoth Nair families’too joined hands with Zamorin’s forces in the war. The Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri failed to win their hearts.

 

However, Oli Nambuthiri succeded in organizing all the other ‘Desavazhis’ and ‘Nair’ Chieftains of nearby desoms especially Paliath Komi Achan (Chennamangalam), Cheraly Kartha (Cheranellur), Mulavukad Kaimal, and Nambuthiris of Ambookkan (Mala,) Katicheeni (Annamanata,) Manavalan (Katamakuty,) Choolackal & Puthully (Karithala & Thrikkanarvattom at Ernakulam,) Kanadan (Thevara,) Kavilparampil (Konthuruthy,) Koithara, Mannully (Kadavanthara,) Palathingal (Nadama,)  Thokalan (Kandanad,) Kottoor (Udaimperur) and Karappuram Kaimal (Karappuram,) and they sent their Nair forces totaling about 50000 men actively supported Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri. The large number of swift vessels like snake boats and Odi-vanchi landed in Padinjare-chira Canal at Kumbalam north, having a total extent of about one Acre 21 cents of land comprised in old Sy. No. 3 & 4 (corresponding to Re Sy. No. 4/6 and 4/3 under block 15 of Kumbalam desom and village, which belonged to the Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri. The Rizopha or Kandal trees standing at the mouth of the canal coumouflaged the canal and the swift vessels landed therein. In ancient period it was through this private canal the Raja of Cochin visited the Oli Nambuthiri, the hereditary Desavazhi of Kumbalam, who resided in Ayyanat Thayamkeril (Oli Mana) located at the north end of Kumbalam. There were two 300 year old huge Sindhoora Payal mango trees standing on in Sy. No. 3 of Kumbalam Village, which is on the western side of Padinjare-chira Canal. At times the oarsmen of swift vessels used to take rest beneath those mango trees.

 

Mohammedan and Nair forces of Zamorin advanced through the territories of friendly chiefs towards Kumbalam. They deviously took a circuitous land route via Aluva-Muvattupuzha and then through the River Muvattupuzha, and camped at Kanjiramattom and Chembu on their way with the intention of camping at Panangad, our neighbouring Island. Another troop of Zamorin’s forces camped at Pukkattupady, Kizhakkambalan, Pallikkara and Kakkanad belt and went through River Katambra and then settled at Nettoor, another neighbouring Island. On their way, these troops camped out in various places. Naturally, they had co-habitation with lots of women of varied castes, voluntarily and/or involuntarily. They also had contacts at South-Vaduthala and Chandiroor. The ‘Naduvazhi Kaimal’ of Karappuram (ruler of present Cherthala taluk) sent his Nair forces and flushed out those Zamorin’s forces. The Zamorin’s forces made several unsuccessful attempts to penetrate the landing places in Palluruthi through the ‘Kayal,’ Vembanad Backwater passes on either side of Kumbalam Island. Their attempts were thwarted by Captain Duarte Pacheco and his forces hand in hand with another 50000 Nair forces led by the Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri. Pacheco had the advantage of well-trained, disciplined, courageous and deft men at the cannons. Those cannons were muzzle loading. When preparing to fire, the gunners would ran gunpowder and a cannon ball down the bore of the barrel from the muzzle. When ready to fire, a lighted portfire was applied to the vent. The Portuguese cannons with a few meters extra and effective range with iron cannon balls than the Zamorin’s low range cannons with breakable laterite-stone-balls became the deciding factor in the war. Pacheco had also the advantage of information. The alert spies of ‘Oli Desavzhi Nabuthiri,’ my ancestor, gave advance information about the planning and the movement of Zamorin’s forces, and this helped Duarte Pacheco to erect a stockade in mid-channel, running the whole length of the ford at Palluruthi, just before the time appointed by the Zamorin for making the first attempt to cross it. On the advice of the Italians a night attack was planned with disastrous results; the Zamorin’s forces attacked each other furiously in the darkness and many were killed before the mistake was discovered. The setting in of south-west monsoon and the spread of epidemics including Cholera was disadvantageous and caused heavy casualty to the Zamorin’s forces. In the six months long war, the Zamorin lost about 33000 (20000 of his men in battle and another 13000 by Cholera) out of the 80000 strong Mohammedan and Nair forces who supported him. But the Portuguese lost only one life. Because of the unimaginable number of deaths on the opposite side, the Portuguese were considered as rude, cruel and merciless, and their period as blood-stained. But the success was due to their weapon and discipline of their forces. Before the arrival of the Portuguese the wars in Malabar were only disorderly quarrels of the armed men. Their weapons were bows and arrows, and swords and spears. The success in those wars depended upon the number of weapons and the muscle-power of the soldiers. The style of war of the Portuguese was different. Their weapons were guns and gunpowder. Fighting was systematic and orderly. Consequently they used to thrash the enemies miserably. The Portuguese proved that the power flowed from the barrel of the gun. The Zamorin’s attempt ended in a fiasco and he had to retreat. The State of Cochin remained invincible and the fortress of the Kochi Raja at Fortcochin impregnable. Captain Pacheco received the admiration from Kochi Raja. Kamouvens, a young Portuguese poet, who came to India as a convict praised the triumph of Captain Duarte Pacheco in his poetry namely “Luciyad.” There is a saying in Malayalam, “Pata pedichu Panangad chennappol pata kuntham-kuthipitichingottu,” which meant “Frightened by the military movement he went to Panangad where he faced a military with spears in their hands.” Fredaric Dnverse too says that the military under the joint command of Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri and Portuguese military evacuated Zamorin’s forces camped at Panangad Island.

 

Since the Portuguese left Calicut after destroying their fortress in 1526, they had several brushes with the Zamorin, in which the latter lost heavily both in men and property. In 1531, the Portuguese cruisers captured twenty-seven richly laden ships belonging to the Zamorin, and in 1534, Zamorin was defeated six times successively in attempting to force the backwater pass at Kumbalam. Exhausted by these losses, Zamorin saw fit to bury the hatchet and forget the past and at last he pleaded for peace and a treaty advantageous to the Portuguese was concluded in 1540, which lasted for some years.

 

The six months long war with Zanorin of Kozhikode (in 1504 and several other attacks that continued till 1536) thrusted great financial burdens and liabilities on Oli ‘Desavazhi’ Nambuthiri. In order to defray the expenses for the war, he had assigned his inter-mediary Kanom right alone (a right to receive Kanartham, a negligible amount) in some items of his ancestral properties at Kumbalam and the adjacent and adjoining Islands of Panangad including Udayathumvathal, Cheppanam and Chathamma The major chunks of inter-mediary jenmom right in our ancestral properties were bought by persons like Dhamodharan Nambuthiripad of Thekkedath Mana, Narayanan & Parameswaran Nambuthiri of Puthuva Mana, Chummar Kandan Nambuthiri of Vadakkedath Mana, Punnurkot (Swarnath) Mana now at Pankode, Narayanan Bhattathiripad of Mambat-illom, Paliath Raman Valia-Komi Achan, at Chennamangalam, Kunchu Kartha or Cheraly Kartha at Cheranellur, Choolackal Mana at Ernakulam, Kanadan Mana at Thevara and Kottoor Mana at Udaimperur, Kumbalam Devaswom and some items were bestowed as Pandaravaka Kanom. However, my Desavazhi ancestors retained the possession and enjoyment of the said properties. Some of the Desavazhis, of other desoms in erstwhile state of Cochin, who were in financial difficulties assigned some of their valuable landed properties to Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri and some of the properties situated in the neibouring desoms were directly managed by Oli Desavazhi Nambuthiri and/or through his agents. I appreciate the selflessness of my ancestor, Oli Nambuthiri; he suffered the financial losses in the larger interest of the sovereignty, integrity and security of the erstwhile State of Cochin, and to preserve the dignity and honour, and life and property of his subjects, who were dependant on him.

 

Those Nair families with whom the Mohammedan men among Zamorn’s forces had polluted were subsequently out-casted and ostracized by the Nair community. Later, they were converted into the Muslim faith. Some of these converts belonged to the prominent Nair families like Mundempilly, Ponnapilly, Murikkel presently at Kumbalam and Vathapilly, Arupilly and Eramangalam at Panangad were some of the important Nair families converted into the Muslim faith. Likewise, the polluted Nair families at Nettoor, the neibouring Island, too were converted into Muslim faith.

 

The decentralized set up of ‘Desavazhis’, who were financially stable and had adequate military strength, was always a headache for the colonialists. The ‘Desavazhis’ often refused to oblige the Europeans, and there were a lot of small fights here and there, which caused casualty to the colonialists. For instance, in 1516 some Portuguese men went on a hunting spree and they shot down a few peacocks at Puthencruz. The Nairs protested stating that the peacock is the vehicle of Lord Muruga. A fight that ensued between the Nairs and the Portuguese men at Puthencruz resulted in the killing of four Portuguese men. Pursuant to the above incident, the Kochi Raja issued a Royal Proclamation, “Nobody shall shoot or kill peacocks,” one of the first ordinances to protect wild life.

Excerpts from

 

MEMOIRS

 

An autobiography

by

Joseph J. Thayamkeril

Lawyer, Kochi, Kerala, India.

josephjthayamkeril.blogspot.com