Question

Write short note on:

Cartaz

Answer 1

1. Cartaz is the Portuguese naval licence in the Indian Ocean.
2. The Cartaz usually carried details like the name of the vessel (ship), the name of the captain of the ship, the port of departure and arrival, the list of weaponry on the ship loaded for the purpose of self-defence, etc.
3. It became required for the Indian rulers to obtain a Cartaz from them in order to travel on the Indian Ocean once they subsequently established their solid authority over it.
4. The ships were either taken by force or sunk if the local rulers ventured to sail the seas without a Portuguese licence.
5. The Portuguese had grown to such an extent that even the powerful Sultanates and Mughals in the south had to get a licence from them.