Tag: albanian

An Albanian in 16th century Gujarat

JUST AS THE ALBANIAN Skanderbeg (Gjergj Kastrioti: c1405-1468) heroically resisted the invasion of his country by the Ottomans in the 15th century, Khwaja Safar, also an Albanian, bravely led forces opposed to the Portuguese, who were attacking his adopted country, Gujarat (India) during the 16th century.

Khwaja Safar was a soldier; a merchant; the treasurer of Cairo; advisor to the Sultans of Egypt and Gujarat; and the Governor of the city of Surat. His parents were Albanian, yet he is remembered by a name which is not Albanian. You can discover why this is when reading my book about his extraordinarily fascinating life. “An Albanian in India” is available both as a paperback and a Kindle (eBook) from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0D7HX2B8Q – more about the book below the image.

MORE ABOUT THE BOOK:

At the end of the 15th century, the Portuguese discovered a sea route between Europe and the Indian Ocean via the Atlantic and the Cape of Good Hope. This allowed them to transport highly prized goods (such as spices and jewels) to Portugal from India and further east, without them having to pass overland through the Middle East and Mediterranean countries. During the overland journey, the goods attracted high customs duties that increased their final prices. The route via the Atlantic avoided these taxes and increased the profits that the Portuguese could make when they sold these products in Europe.
Within the Indian Ocean, the Portuguese encountered competitors: traders and ships from places including Egypt, Turkey, Persia, Gujarat, and Arabia. For at least 50 years, the Portuguese used force ruthlessly to dominate trading – to stifle free trade – in the Indian Ocean. They achieved this by aggressively imposing conditions that made it both costly and difficult for their competitors to trade.
This book is about an adventurous man, Khwaja Safar, who offered his services to the Egyptians, Turks, and Gujaratis during their attempts to combat and limit the activities of the Portuguese. He was born in Europe, a Christian of Albanian parentage. Later, he converted to Islam in Egypt, and played a significant role in trying to evict the Portuguese from 16th century India.
Khwaja’s life began in Puglia. After serving as a soldier in Italy, he went to sea as a trader. During his travels, he reached the Red Sea, where he was abducted by a Mamluk admiral and taken to Cairo. From Egypt, he travelled to Yemen, and then to Gujarat in western India, where he became a formidable opponent of the Portuguese.

Adam Yamey’s book, illustrated with maps and pictures, describes Khwaja Safar’s exciting life and the author’s visits to places where he made his mark in India.

An Albanian in Gujarat

While visiting the former Portuguese colony of Diu, an enclave on the south coast of the Saurashtrian peninsula of Gujarat, I came across an open space that provides great views of the fortresses.

DIU MON

It contains a tall, bulky, four-sided column with longitudinal striations. Wire hoops serving as simple steps provide a means of reaching the column’s flat square summit. This is a monument built by the Portuguese to honour of the Gujarati General Khadjar Safar (known by the Portuguese as ‘Coge Cofar’).  The Gujaratis and the Portuguese were enemies and a siege occurred in 1546. This siege of Diu was won by the Portuguese, but Safar was remembered for his bravery. I have seen a picture of this column taken in the 1950s, when it bore a plaque in Portuguese that read in translation: “The tomb of Coge Cofar, instigator of the second siege of Diu. Commander-in-chief of the Turkish and Janissary troops from the kingdom of Cambaya, imposers of the siege of this Fort. In May of the year of 1546, he was killed by a stray bullet that came out from the Fort, penetrated the Turkish forces, and blew off his head. He was brave and courageous.”

Kuzhippalli S Mathew writing in his Portuguese and the Sultanate of Gujarat, 1500-1573 relates that Khwajar (or Khadjar) Safar was born in Italy of Catholic parents, probably Albanians. A successful trader, Safar, with his three boats loaded with valuable spices and drugs, was captured by a general of the Sultan of Cairo, who encountered him in the Straits of Mecca. The captive so impressed the Sultan that together they began planning ways to oust the Portuguese from the Indian Ocean trading arena. Portugal’s activities were wrecking the import of spices to Europe via Egypt. The Sultan gave Safar command of vessels to attack the Portuguese in India. By 1508, he had already fought with the Portuguese near both Chaul and Diu. After many adventures amongst which he fled from Egypt, converted to Islam, and even served the Portuguese briefly, he became an important person in the Sultanate of Gujarat. Both Khadjar Safar and his son Muharram Rumi Khan were killed during the siege of 1546.

This is an excerpt from Travels through Gujarat, Daman, and Diu by Adam Yamey.

Available from Lulu.com, and on Amazon Kindle