The original seven islands
Map of Bombay in 1893.
The Seven Islands of Bombay (Portuguese: Ilhas de Bom Baim) were 16th-century Portuguese colonial possessions lying off the Konkan region by the mid-west coast of India.
The Seven Islands of Bombay (Portuguese: Ilhas de Bom Baim) were 16th-century Portuguese colonial possessions lying off the Konkan region by the mid-west coast of India.
They were partly handed over to England under this title as part of the dowry of Catherine Braganza when she married Charles II in 1661. The isles and islets had earlier been part of indigenous polities like the Silhara dynasty and the Gujarat Sultanate before they were captured by the Portuguese Armadas in 1534. After acquiring them as through a royal dowry from the Kingdom of Portugal, Charles II leased Bombay and adjacent islets to the East India Company in 1668 for £10 per year (receiving a loan of £50,000 at 6% interest in return for the favor). [1]
By 1845, the islands had been merged [2] into one landmass by means of multiple land reclamation projects. The resulting island of Bombay was later merged with the nearby islands of Trombay and Salsette that lay to its north-east and north respectively to form Greater Bombay. These islands now constitute the southern part of the city of Bombay (Mumbai).
The original seven islands handed over to England were as follows:
There also are several smaller islands that lie to the east of the main seven islands:
Bandra ([bæːɳɖɾa]) is a coastal suburb located in Mumbai, the largest city of the Konkan division in Maharashtra, India. The area is located to the immediate north of the River Mithi, which separates Bandra from the Mumbai City district. It is the third-largest commercial hub in Maharashtra, after the Mumbai City and Pune, primarily aided by the Bandra Kurla Complex.
Worli is a locality in central Mumbai in Maharashtra, India. It is one of the four peninsulas of Mumbai with the others being Colaba, Bandra and Malabar Hill. The sea connects it with Bandra via the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. Historic spellings include Warli, Worlee, Varli, and Varel. Originally Worli was a separate island, one of the Seven Islands of Bombay which were ceded by the Portuguese to England in 1661; it was linked up with the other islands in the 19th century.
Colaba is a part of the city of Mumbai, India. It is one of the four peninsulas of Mumbai while the other three are Worli, Bandra and Malabar Hill. During Portuguese rule in the 16th century, the island was known as Kolbhat. After the British took over the island in the late 17th century, it was known as Kolio.
Salsette Island is an island in Konkan division of the state of Maharashtra, along India's west coast. Administratively known as Greater Mumbai, the Mumbai Suburban district, Mira Bhayander and a portion of Thane district lie within it, making it very populous and one of the most densely populated islands in the world. It has a population of more than 20 million inhabitants living on an area of about 619 square kilometres (239 sq mi).
South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahalaxmi, Byculla and Mazgaon neighbourhoods, and comprises the city's old and formerly main business localities, making it the wealthiest urban precinct in India. Property prices in South Mumbai are by far the highest in India and among the highest in the world. In terms of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, the precinct consists of the constituencies of Colaba, Mumbadevi, Malabar Hill and Byculla.
Mumbai Harbour, is a natural deep-water harbour in the southern portion of the Ulhas River estuary. The narrower, northern part of the estuary is called Thana Creek. The harbour opens to the Arabian Sea to the south. The historical island of Elephanta is one of the six islands that lie in the harbour.
The Worli Fort is a fort in Worli, Mumbai, India. Though often incorrectly assumed to have been built by the Portuguese, the fort was built by the British around 1675 on Worli Hill. Worli Fort overlooked Mahim Bay at a time when the city comprised just seven islands and was used as a lookout for enemy ships.
The history of Mumbai can be traced back to 600 BC, with evidence of the first known settlement of the Harrappan civilization discovered in the region.
The Hornby Vellard was a project to build a causeway uniting all seven islands of Bombay into a single island with a deep natural harbour. The project was started by the governor William Hornby in 1782 and all islands were linked by 1838. The word vellard appears to be a local corruption of the Portuguese word vallado meaning fence or embankment. The seven islets – their anglicised names being Colaba, Old Woman’s Island, Bombay, Mazgaon, Parel, Mahim and Worli – came to the British in 1661 as part of the dowry of Charles II, who married into the Portuguese royal family. Bombay was quickly palmed off to the East India Company for a paltry £10 a year and later the company identified that more land means more money hence got interested in the project.
The Bombay East Indians, also called East Indian Catholics or simply East Indians, are an ethno-religious Indian Christian community native to the Seven Islands of Bombay and the neighbouring Mumbai Metropolitan Area of the Konkan division, along the western coast of India.
Mumbai City district is a district of Maharashtra in Konkan Division, India. As a city district, it has no headquarters or subdivisions. It, along with the Mumbai Suburban District, makes up the metropolis of Mumbai. This area is called the "Island City" or South Mumbai or Old Mumbai. It extends from Colaba in the south to Mahim and Sion in the north. The city has an area of 157 km2 (61 sq mi) and a population of 3,085,411.
Fort Vasai is a ruined fort of the town of Vasai (Bassein), Konkan Division, Maharashtra, India. The structure was formally christened as the Fort of St Sebastian in the Indo-Portuguese era. The fort is a monument of national importance and is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India.
The Mazagaon Fort was a British fort in Mazagaon, Bombay, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, built around 1680. The fort was razed by the Muslim Koli general, Yakut Khan in June 1690. The fort was located at the present-day Joseph Baptista Gardens, atop Bhandarwada Hill outside the Dockyard Road railway station.
Isle of Bombay was one of the Seven Islands of Bombay, an archipelago of islands that were, in the eighteenth century, connected to form the area of the modern city of Bombay in India. The island was the main harbour and the Base of the British from where the city expanded.
The Old Woman's Island, also known as Little Colaba is one of the seven islands composing the city of Mumbai, India, and part of the historic Old Mumbai.
Colaba Causeway, officially known as Shahid Bhagat Singh Road, is a commercial street, and a major causeway or land link between Colaba and the Old Woman's Island in the city of Mumbai, India.
Indigenous tribals have inhabited Mumbai (Bombay) since the Stone Age. The Kolis and Aagri were the earliest known settlers of the islands. Between the 2nd century BCE and 10th century CE, the islands came under the control of successive indigenous dynasties: the Satavahanas, Abhiras, Vakatakas, Kalachuris, Konkan Mauryas, Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Silharas & Cholas.
Bombay, also called Bom Bahia or Bom Baim in Indo-Portuguese creole, Mumbai in the local language; is the financial and commercial capital of India and one of the most populous cities in the world. It's also the cosmopolitan city centre of the Greater Bombay Metropolitan Area, and the cultural base of the Bollywood film industry. At the time of arrival of the Portuguese Armadas, Bombay was an archipelago of seven islands. Between the third century BCE and 1348, the islands came under the control of successive Hindu dynasties. The Delhi Sultanate had been ruling the area along with Chaul, New Bombay (Thana) & Damaon; with the local administration at Bassein (Vasai) since the raids of Malik Kafur in the Konkan region and across the Indian subcontinent. This territory in North Konkan along with the Bombay islands were later taken over by the Sultan of Guzerat from 1391 to 1534, when he had declared the end of the suzerainty to Delhi, after the Timurid invasion of it. Growing apprehensive of the power of the Moghal emperor Humayun, Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat was obliged to sign the Treaty of Bassein on 23 December 1534; according to which, the Seven Islands of Bombay, Fort San Sebastian of Bassein in strategic town of Bassein (Vasai), and its dependencies were offered to the Portuguese East Indies. The places were only later officially surrendered on 25 October 1535, by the Sultan of Guzerat.
Bombay, also called Bom baim in Portuguese, is the financial and commercial capital of India and one of the most populous cities in the world.
Sion Causeway is a major causeway in Bombay, India which connects Sion in Bombay with Kurla in Salsette. The construction of the causeway began in 1798 and was completed in 1805 by Jonathan Duncan, Governor of Bombay (1795–1811), at a cost of £5,037. In 1826, its breadth was doubled and improved at a further outlay of £4,000 A volcanic tract extends from Carnac Bunder to Sion Causeway, and forms the entire of the chain of hills bordering the north-eastenn end of the island from the Sewri Fort to Sion.
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