Cite
MLA
“Siege of Chaliyam.” Hindu History, 2026, https://www.hinduhistory.in/battles/siege-of-chaliyam-1571/. Accessed .
APA
Hindu History. (2026). Siege of Chaliyam. Retrieved , from https://www.hinduhistory.in/battles/siege-of-chaliyam-1571/
The garrison surrendered and the fort was demolished; the Portuguese never again held a fort in the Zamorin’s country.
01A fort at the river mouth
After abandoning their fort at Calicut in 1526, the Portuguese won permission from the Raja of Tanur, a vassal of the Zamorin, to build at Chaliyam, where the Chaliyar river meets the sea. From there they watched every ship leaving Calicut. In 1571, while Bijapur besieged Goa and Ahmednagar besieged Chaul, the Zamorin brought his Nair troops by land and the Marakkar boats by sea and closed the fort in.
02Surrender and demolition
With Goa itself under siege, no relief could be spared. The garrison ran out of food, and after a siege of some months its captain, Dom Jorge de Castro, surrendered on terms and marched out. The Zamorin had the fort pulled down, and its stones are said to have gone into the mosque and other buildings of the town. At Goa, de Castro was tried for giving up the fort and executed. The Portuguese never rebuilt it.
Chaliyam was the Zamorin’s greatest success against the Portuguese, and the only victory of the league of 1570–71.
