'' (1st century CE) As the ancient city of Quilon, Kollam was a flourishing port during the
Pandya dynasty (c. 3rd century BC–12th century), and later became the capital of the independent
Venadu or the Kingdom of Quilon on its foundation in c. 825. Kollam was considered one of the four early
entrepots in global sea trade during the 13th century, along with Alexandria and Cairo in Egypt, the Chinese city of
Quanzhou, and
Malacca in the Malaysian archipelago. It seems that trade at Kollam seems to have flourished right into the Medieval period as in 1280, there is instance of envoys of
Yuan China coming to Kollam for establishing relations between the local ruler and China.
Pandya rule The ancient political and cultural history of Kollam was almost entirely independent from that of the rest of Kerala. The
Chera dynasty governed the area of Malabar Coast between
Alappuzha in the south to
Kasaragod in the north. This included
Palakkad Gap,
Coimbatore,
Salem, and
Kolli Hills. The region around
Coimbatore was ruled by the Cheras during
Sangam period between c. first and the fourth centuries CE and it served as the eastern entrance to the Palakkad Gap, the principal trade route between the Malabar Coast and
Tamil Nadu. However the southern region of present-day Kerala state (The coastal belt between Thiruvananthapuram and Alappuzha) was under
Ay dynasty, who was more related to the
Pandya dynasty of
Madurai than Cheras.
Cosmas Indicopleustes, a Greek
Nestorian sailor, in his book the Christian Topography who visited the Malabar Coast in 550, mentions an enclave of Christian believers in
Male (Malabar Coast). He writes, "In the island of Tabropane (Ceylon), there is a church of Christians, and clerics and faithful. Likewise at Male, where the pepper grows, and in the farming community of Kalliana (Kalliankal at Nillackal) there is also a bishop consecrated in Persia in accordance with the Nicea Sunnahadose of 325 AD." Kollam is also home to one of the oldest mosques in
Indian subcontinent. According to the
Legend of Cheraman Perumals, the first Indian mosque was built in 624 AD at
Kodungallur with the mandate of the last the ruler (the Cheraman Perumal) of
Chera dynasty, who left from
Dharmadom to Mecca and converted to Islam during the lifetime of Muhammad (c. 570–632). According to
Qissat Shakarwati Farmad, the
Masjids at
Kodungallur, Kollam,
Madayi,
Barkur,
Mangalore,
Kasaragod,
Kannur,
Dharmadam,
Panthalayini, and
Chaliyam, were built during the era of
Malik Dinar, and they are among the oldest
Masjids in
Indian subcontinent. It is believed that Malik Dinar died at
Thalangara in
Kasaragod town.
Capital of Venadu (9th to 12th centuries) The port at Kollam, then known as Quilon, was founded in 825 by the Nestorian Christians
Mar Sabor and Mar Proth with sanction from Ayyanadikal Thiruvadikal, the king of the independent Venadu or the State of Quilon, a feudatory under the
Chera kingdom. It is believed that Mar Sapor Iso also proposed that the Chera king create a new seaport near Kollam in lieu of his request that he rebuild the almost vanished inland seaport at Kollam (kore-ke-ni) near Backare (Thevalakara), also known as Nelcynda and Tyndis to the Romans and Greeks and as Thondi to the Tamils, which had been without trade for several centuries because the Cheras were overrun by the
Pallavas in the sixth century, ending the spice trade from the Malabar coast. This allowed the Nestorians to stay in the Chera kingdom for several decades and introduce the Christian faith among the Nampoothiri Vaishnavites and Nair sub-castes in the St. Thomas tradition, with the Syrian liturgy as a basis for the Doctrine of the Trinity, without replacing the Sanskrit and Vedic prayers. The
Tharisapalli plates presented to Maruvan Sapor Iso by Ayyanadikal Thiruvadikal granted the Christians the privilege of overseeing foreign trade in the city as well as control over its weights and measures in a move designed to increase Quilon's trade and wealth. Thus began the Malayalam Era, known as Kolla Varsham after the city, indicating the importance of Kollam in the ninth century. The Persian merchant Soleyman of Siraf visited Malabar in the ninth century and found Quilon to be the only port in India used by the huge Chinese ships as their transshipment hub for goods on their way from China to the Persian Gulf. The rulers of Kollam (formerly called 'Desinganadu') had trade relations with China and exchanged embassies. According to the records of the
Tang dynasty (618–913), Quilon was their chief port of call before the seventh century. The Chinese trade decreased about 600 and was again revived in the 13th century.
Mirabilia Descripta by Bishop Catalani gives a description of life in Kollam, which he saw as the Catholic bishop-designate to Kollam, the oldest Catholic diocese in India. He also gives true and imaginary descriptions of life in 'India the Major' in the period before
Marco Polo visited the city. Sulaiman al-Tajir, a Persian merchant who visited Kerala during the reign of
Sthanu Ravi Varma (9th century CE), records that there was extensive trade between Kerala and China at that time, based at the port of Kollam.
Kollam as "Colombo" in the Catalan Atlas (1375) (top, flag: ) and the "King of Colombo" (Kollam) at the bottom (flag: , identified as Christian due to the early
Saint Thomas Christianity there, and the Catholic mission under
Jordanus since 1329) in the contemporary
Catalan Atlas of 1375. Several of the location names are accurate. The caption next to the southern king reads: "Here rules the king of Colombo, a Christian." In the 13th century CE,
Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I, a
Pandya ruler fought a war in Venadu and captured the city of Kollam. The city appears on the
Catalan Atlas of 1375 CE as Columbo and Colobo. The map marks this city as a Christian city, ruled by a Christian ruler. They were the first Europeans to establish a trading center in Tangasseri, Kollam in 1502, which became the centre of their trade in pepper. In the wars with the Moors/Arabs that followed, the ancient church (temple) of St Thomas Tradition at Thevalakara was destroyed. In 1517, the Portuguese built the St. Thomas Fort in Thangasseri, which was destroyed in the subsequent wars with the Dutch. In 1661, the
Dutch East India Company took possession of the city. The remnants of the old Portuguese Fort, later renovated by the Dutch, can be found at Thangasseri. In the 18th century, Travancore conquered Kollam, followed by the British in 1795. Thangasseri remains today as an Anglo-Indian settlement, though few Anglo-Indians remain. The Infant Jesus Church in Thangasseri, an old Portuguese-built church, remains as a memento of the Portuguese rule of the area. File:Quilon 1505 verbessert.jpg|Kollam in the 1500s File:Quilon 1670 verbessert.jpg|Capture of Kollam in 1661 File:A view of Coylang Wellcome L0038178.jpg|Kollam in the 1700s
Battle of Quilon The
Battle of Quilon was fought in 1809 between a troop of the Indian kingdom of Travancore led by the then Dalawa (prime minister) of Travancore,
Velu Thampi Dalawa and the
British East India Company led by Colonel Chalmers at
Cantonment Maidan in Quilon. The battle lasted for only six hours and was the result of the East India Company's invasion of Quilon and their garrison situated near the Cantonment Maidan. The company forces won the battle while all the insurrectionist who participated in the war were court-martialed and subsequently hanged at the maidan.
Travancore Rule In the early 18th century CE, the
Travancore royal family adopted some members from the royal family of
Kolathunadu based at
Kannur, and
Parappanad based in present-day
Malappuram district. Travancore became the most dominant state in Kerala by defeating the powerful
Zamorin of
Kozhikode in the battle of
Purakkad in 1755. The Government Secretariat was also situated in Kollam till the 1830s. It was moved to Thiruvananthapuram during the reign of
Swathi Thirunal.
Excavation at Kollam Port seabed Excavations have gone on at
Kollam Port premises since February 2014. The team has uncovered arrays of antique artifacts, including Chinese porcelain and coins. A Chinese team with the Palace Museum, a team from India with Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR) discovered Chinese coins and artifacts that show trade links between Kollam and ancient China. ==Geography==