The Strait of Hormuz. It is at its narrowest 34 miles wide.
At the top of the map the city of Bandar Abbas is shown. It is the main base of the Iranian Navy. It was formerly known as Cambarão and Port Comorão to the Portuguese, Gombroon to the English and as Gamron or Gumrun to the Dutch.
Marco Polo visited the port in 1272 and 1293. In 1497, European colonialists headed by Vasco da Gama landed in the region. In 1508, the Portuguese, led by Alfonso de Albuquerque invaded the area with 7 warships, they conquered the city in 1514. Backed by the English navy, the city was recaptured by Shah Abbas the Great from the Portuguese in 1614.
Dutch trading post in Gamron (Bandar Abbas) in 1704 (source).
In 1616 the English East India Company established a trading post in Bandar Abbas. The Dutch wanted to compete so the Dutch East India Company dispatched ships to the city. The first Dutch ships arrived in 1623 and a trading post (a factory) was set up. They improved the relations with the local government by helping them with the expulsion of the Portuguese from Oman. The factory was in operation until 1758.
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Thanks Rob, I know next to nothing about the history of Persia during the time of European Colonialism. Now I know something.
ReplyDeleteIt put the current quarrels into perspective realizing we have been fighting over there since the 16th century...
ReplyDelete