Kerala History - Cochin

The Chera kingdom was the central part of Kerala during the Sangam period. Cheran Chenguttavan was the most prominent king of the Chera kingdom. Muziris, the most prominent port of that time, was in the Chera kingdom. The Chera kings had trade relations with foreign countries. After the Sangam Period, Earlier Chera Kingdom disintegrates. However, it seems that the Chera power was restored in 800 AD. After that Kerala had grown into a single kingdom during the reign of the Kulasekhara Empire, which ruled from the 9th century to the early 12th century AD. Mahodhayapuram was its earlier capital. The four important states of the Kulasekhara Empire were Kolathunad, Ernad, Cochin (Perumpadappu) and Venad. The Kulasekhara Empire disintegrated in the first half of the 12th century due to the constant attacks of the Cholas. Subsequently, these regions were divided into several princely states. Innumerable princely states became independent in the Cochin region. They are Cochin, Edapalli, Alangad, Paravur, Anjikaimal, Kodungallur, Villarvattom etc.

Cochin Kingdom

The Cochin Dynasty is also known as Perumpadappu Swaroopam. After the time of the Kulasekharans who ruled from Mahodayapuram, Perumpadappu Swaroopam became an independent dynasty. The early headquarters of Perumpadappu Swaroopam was in Mahodayapuram. Later, the headquarters was shifted to Tripunithura. The main reason was the attack of the Zamorins. In 1341, the Kodungallur port was destroyed in the flood of Periyar. When the Periyar started flowing in a different direction, a new port was formed in Kochi. This was also a reason for shifting the headquarters of the Cochin kingdom to Tripunithura in 1405. The lords of Edappally, a Namboothiri dynasty, had connections with Perumpadappu Swaroopam. Through this, Kochi and Vypinkara came under the power of Perumpadappu Swaroopam. In the 15th century, Perumpadappu Swaroopam had five branches. In all these five villages, the elder began to be known as Perumpadappu Mooppil. The first foreigner to write about Kochi was the Chinese traveler Ma Huan, who visited Kochi in 1409. The Italian traveler Niccolo Conti, who visited Kochi in 1440, also wrote about Kochi. The Venetian merchant Cesare Federico and the Englishman Ralph Fitch described Kochi. There are references to the Perumpadappu Swaroopam in the works Shukasandesam and Unniyadi charitham, which are believed to have been written in the 14th century.

The arrival of the Portuguese gave the Cochin Dynasty a crucial place in the history of Kerala. At that time, the greatest ruler of Kerala was the Zamorin of Kozhikode. Kochi was also a vassal of the Zamorin. Therefore, the kings of Kochi did not have complete freedom of administration. The Zamorin also interfered significantly in administrative matters. The kings of Kochi were disappointed and helpless due to the Zamorin's interference. The Portuguese arrived in Kochi in 1500, when they wanted to get rid of the Zamorin's domination. The king of Kochi, Unni Godavarma Thirumulpad, received Cabral with great pomp. At that time, there were conflicts between the Zamorin and the Portuguese. The Portuguese and the King of Kochi entered into trade agreements. The Portuguese tried to enlist the King of Kochi against the Zamorin. In 1503, the Zamorin attacked Kochi. Three members of the royal family of Kochi were killed in the encounter at Palliruthi. The King of Kochi fled to Vypin Island to escape the Zamorin. But the Portuguese stepped in to save Kochi. They rescued the King and brought him back to Kochi. Vasco da Gama first arrived in Kochi in 1502. Kesavarama Varma was a powerful ruler of the Cochin Dynasty who ruled from 1566 to 1601. He went to Kashi and died there in 1601. In the 16th century, the Portuguese had complete control over the administration of Kochi. But by the 17th century, the Dutch had taken over.

Even the succession of the Cochin dynasty was decided by the Dutch. However, after the Dutch were defeated by Marthanda Varma of Travancore in the battle of Colachel in 1741, the Dutch grip loosened. In 1785, the Dutch fort in Cochin was captured by the British. With this, Dutch rule in Cochin came to an end. Later, Cochin came under the control of the British. In 1791, the King of Cochin entered into an agreement with the British. In 1795, the Fort Cochin area came under the direct control of the British. It was during the reign of Rama Varma Sakthan Thampuran, who ruled Cochin from 1790 to 1805, that the kingdom of Cochin achieved comprehensive progress. After Sakthan Thampuran, sixteen kings became the rulers of Cochin within a century and a half. The post of Prime Minister of Cochin was held by the Paliathachan. The headquarters of the Paliam family was Chendamangalam. Komiachan was the chief among them. In 1808, Paliathachan joined forces with Veluthampi Dalava of Travancore to resist the British. But in the end, he was defeated and had to surrender to the British. The British exiled Paliathachan to Madras. The last Maharaja to rule Cochin was Parikshith Thampuran. He was the king of Cochin during the merger of the two kingdoms, Travancore and Cochin. The first democratic government in Kochi came into power in 1946.

Rulers of Cochin Kingdom

Shakthan Thampuran

Shakthan Thampuran was born in 1751 in a place called Vellarappilly. At the age of ten, he was appointed as the fourth chief. From then on, his bravery and ruthlessness began to be revealed and he was given the name 'Shakthan'. The Sankunni's Aithihyamala narrates that the name came from his strict method of punishing criminals. He is known as the most powerful king of the Cochin kingdom. Shakthan Thampuran's reign marks the end of the dominance of the landlords in the history of the Cochin kingdom and the beginning of the modern era. The threat of powerful lords and the pottis, the sons of the Uran clan of the Vadakkumnathan temple and the Perumanam temple in Thrissur, posed a serious threat to the state's authority. Shakthan Thampuran took strict measures to suppress their power and consolidate his dominance. He added the properties of the lords to the Pandaravaka and demoted them. The government directly took over the administration of the Devaswom.

He paid special attention to issues such as transportation , sanitation , etc. He built roads across the country and planted trees on both sides of the roads for shade. It was during his time that the teak forest in front of the Vadakkumnathan temple in Thrissur was cleared and turned into a square and made it suitable for the locals to walk around. Therefore, he is described as the architect of the city of Thrissur. He was famous as a capable ruler, a cunning and far-sighted statesman and he started the Thrissur Pooram. His place in the history of the Cochin kingdom is like that of Marthanda Varma in the Travancore kingdom.

Paliathachan

The Prime Ministers of the Cochin Kingdom were famous by the name 'Paliathachan'. The Paliathachans held the position of Minister Chief of the Cochin Kings from 1632 to 1809. Even during the reign of Sakthan Thampuran, the position of Dalawa was held by Paliathachan. When the last Paliathachan of Cochin, Govindan Achan, was fighting the English, he formed an alliance with Veluthampi, the Dalawa of Travancore. 'Exile the British from Travancore and Cochin!' With this aim, the Veluthampi Dalawa of Travancore and the Minister Paliathachan of Cochin made a secret pact against the British. This was at the beginning of the nineteenth century.

Veluthampi and Paliathachchan then sought help from the French in Mauritius and the Zamorin of Kozhikode. Along with loyal soldiers like Chembil Arayan, Paliathachchan attacked the British Residency at Bolgatty in Cochin in 1808. However, Lord Macaulay, the British representative there, know about the attack in advance through spies and escaped by ship. The English settled their feud by attacking Cochin. They captured Paliathachchan and exiled him.