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The modern
history of Pondicherry, now known as Pondicherry, is largely
dominated by the French, and the impressions of the colonial
rule can still be found out everywhere, from the
symmetrically aligned streets to the layout and design of
the city. Though the credit for the transformation of a
merely fishing village to a big port city goes exclusively
to its colonial rulers, it is not hard to find traces of its
history before the coming of the Europeans, which included
the Portuguese, the Dutch, the English and the Danes in
addition to the French.
Pondicherry has a history that can be said to have begun in
the very first |
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millennium, as the findings of the excavations at Arikamedu
have led us to conclude. It was supposed to be in contact
with the Romans, mainly for trade of dyed textiles,
semi-precious stones and pottery.
Later in its history, it came under the regime of the
Pallava Kingdom of Kanchipuram in the fourth century AD and
after the demise the Pallavas, it was ruled by various
dynasties of the south until the tenth century AD. Before
becoming a part of the Pandya Kingdom in the thirteenth
century, it was ruled for a short time by the Cholas of
Tanjavur. The emergence of the Vijayanagar Empire
overshadowed all its contemporaries in the south, and
Pondicherry remained under their control until 1638. It was
also ruled by the Sultan of Bijapur after the fall of the
Vijayanagar Empire.
When the route to India was discovered by the Portuguese,
Pondicherry began to receive large influx of foreign
merchants, who were found to be different from the early
traders as they sought to establish their rule over here.
The inauguration of a factory by the Portuguese at the
beginning of the 16th century was followed by a series of
establishments from the Europeans of different
nationalities, like the Danes, the Dutch and the French.
Soon the French became the master of the region, who began
an era of colonial rule hardly challenged by any of its
rivals. The French era, which is known to have begun in
1673, remained unchallenged except for sporadic clashes
with, first the Dutch, and later the English. After a
fortification of the town by the Dutch for a period of four
years, the French regained their possession by a treaty with
them in 1699, and within a century, they transformed the
town into one with remarkable lay out and beautiful
architecture.
The skirmishes of the French with the British saw several
ups and downs in history of the eighteenth century
Pondicherry. The French finally came to be the master of the
region once it got hold of it after a peace treaty with
England in Europe. They started to rebuild the city, which
was bruised savagely by the English, and Pondicherry
succeeded to some extent in regaining its lost glory. By
1816, the French got permanent control of the region and did
commendable job in improving its infrastructure, law,
industry and education.
The French left Pondicherry in 1954, seven years after the
independence of India from the British rule. Pondicherry
became a Union Territory of India and a Lt. Governor was
commissioned to rule it on behalf of the Indian President.
The legacy of the French, though still dominates the region,
has now started to fade out, which can be seen in change of
its name from earlier Pondicherry to now Pondicherry.
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