THE FORGOTTEN BATTLES OF CALICUT, 1503 and 1790:STRATEGY, TACTICS AND GEOPOLITICS

About the Book:- This book examines the geopolitical significance of two battles that took place in Calicut on the south western coast of India. The first was a sea battle fought between the Portuguese led by Vasco a Gama and an Indo Arab naval force under the King Zamorin of Calicut in 1503. The result was are volutionary change that took place in the direction, organization, and ultimately in the control of the ancient trans – oceanic trade between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. The second was a land battle that came about in 1790 between the army of the East India Company and the occupying forces of Tipu of Mysore. These battles were separated by a time span of about three hundred years and are classic examples of the transnational background of colonial expansion and the evolution of the emerging world system. The critical point here was the collaboration of the English with the Marathas and the Nizam. This helped the British to defeat Tipu Sultan resulting in the expansion of British colonial power in India. While acknowledging that the success of the Europeans was achieved by their superior firepower, the book explores their understated and underemphasized but highly significant contributions in the avenues of science, technology and political intrigues.