SHANTARAM ~ Mumbai History
Mumbai - Gateway to India
Located upon seven merged islands off the west coast of India, Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, is not only one the world's most highly populated cities; it is also India's commercial and entertainment capital. Home to the country's major financial institutions and the Hindi film and television industry known as Bollywood, Mumbai attracts migrants from all over the Indian subcontinent and is one of the major driving forces behind the booming Indian economy.
Bombay originally received its name from the Portuguese term meaning "good bay". The group of seven islands the city was built upon, originally part of the kingdom of Ashoka, passed hands during the many centuries before from one Hindu ruler to the next. The area was then ruled by the Mohammedans of Gujarat for two hundred years and taken over by the Portuguese in 1534. The Portuguese built several forts and churches in the area and formed the basis for the mega city's later form, also laying the groundwork for the slow assimilation of the seven islands into a single unified municipal area.
After centuries of rule, Portugal ceded the islands to England in 1661. The British Crown then leased them to the British East India Company in 1668. Bombay's deep harbor was ideal for the company's first port in the subcontinent and brought a rapid increase in revenue and steady population growth to the area. This famous business venture proved to be so profitable that the company eventually transferred its headquarters here in 1687, thus marking the establishment of Bombay as being India's principal trading center.
The moderate policies of the British Governors who administered the islands throughout the 18th century added to the area's continued growth and prosperity. The British actively sought to attract Muslim and Hindu traders, manufacturers and ship builders to the area. Island defenses were also continually fortified and social stability was provided for through the British constituting courts of law. When the Sepoy Mutiny broke out, however, mismanagement and corruption within the East India Company could no longer be denied, leading to a crisis within the ruling circles. Soon after, in 1858, the islands reverted to the British Crown.
Continue reading in part two of our Mumbai history series