Diu

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Diu
Diu - fort
Diu - fort
Waters Arabian Sea
Geographical location 20 ° 43 ′  N , 70 ° 59 ′  E Coordinates: 20 ° 43 ′  N , 70 ° 59 ′  E
Diu (India)
Diu
length 13.1 km
width 3.5 km
surface 38.8 km²
Residents 52,074 (2011)
1342 inhabitants / km²
main place Diu

Diu ( Gujarati : દીવ Dīv ) is an island formerly under Portuguese rule, almost 39 km² in size with approx. 55,000 inhabitants, off the south coast of the Indian state of Gujarat . Together with the small village of Ghoghla on the mainland, it forms one of the three districts of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu .

location

The island of Diu, which is a maximum of about 30 m high, is connected to the village of Ghoghla on the mainland opposite by a bridge. The city of Rajkot is about 250 km (driving distance) to the north; Ahmedabad , the capital of Gujarat, is about 375 km northeast.

Panorama of the city of Diu (around 1600)

population

Approx. 93.5% of the population are Hindus and around 6% are Muslims ; the rest belong to religious fringe groups such as Jains , Sikhs and Christians. Unlike in most regions of northern India, the proportion of women is higher than that of men, but this is largely due to their migration to the regional and supra-regional economic centers.

economy

Many of the island's residents work in agriculture and fishing ; the residents of the city of Diu make their living mainly from handicrafts and retail trade. Since the last decades of the 20th century, inner-Indian tourism has played a major role , also because of the evasion of the alcohol ban in Gujarat.

history

Map of the city of Diu and the fort (1729)

On February 3, 1509, Francisco de Almeida and 23 Portuguese ships succeeded in the naval battle of Diu , destroying a united Egyptian-Arab-Indian fleet . This sea ​​battle was in its effects one of the most important battles in world history, since the victory of the Portuguese ushered in their supremacy in the Indian Ocean, diverted essential flows of goods and financial flows to new trade routes to Europe, established the upswing of Lisbon and Antwerp as world trading centers and created the conditions that Asian goods (not just spices ) became directly accessible to Europeans.

With the construction of a fort on the eastern tip of the island, Nuno da Cunha incorporated the island into the Portuguese colonial empire in 1535 . The Sultan of Gujarat tried unsuccessfully between 1537 and 1546 to recapture the island after initially entering into an alliance with Portugal . The fortress that was destroyed in the process was rebuilt by João de Castro and can still be visited today.

After Goa and Ormuz, Diu was the most important customs post for the Portuguese in Asia. Diu also had the right to self-government based on the Portuguese model.

On December 19, 1961, Diu was occupied by India as part of a 36-hour war. The war killed 22 Indians and 30 Portuguese. India's sovereignty over the island was only recognized by Portugal in 1974 after the Carnation Revolution .

Attractions

The colonial-era buildings (fort and churches) in the city of Diu were largely built in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries; St. Paul's Church in particular has baroque architecture that is well worth seeing . For most Indians, however, the island's numerous sandy beaches are the focus of interest.

Web links

Commons : Diu  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Diu - Census 2011
  2. ^ Peter Feldbauer: The Portuguese in Asia. 1498-1620. Revised new edition. Magnus-Verlag, Essen 2005, ISBN 3-88400-435-2 , p. 129.
  3. ^ Peter Feldbauer: The Portuguese in Asia. 1498-1620. Revised new edition. Magnus-Verlag, Essen 2005, ISBN 3-88400-435-2 , p. 89.
  4. KC Praval: Indian army after Independence. Lancer, New Delhi et al. 2009, ISBN 978-1-935501-10-7 , p. 214 ff.