British -East India Company.

British East India Company (1600- 1857 AD) formed for the exploitation of trade with East and Southeast Asia and India, incorporated by royal charter on Dec. 31, 1600. Starting as a monopolistic trading body, the company became involved in politics and acted as an agent of British imperialism in India from the early 18th century to the mid 19th century. After 1857 Indian mutiny, crown of England took over the administration of India from East India Company and ruled India till it got independence in 1947.

Copperoon,( Paisa ) English East India Company ,Bombay Presidency, 1674 AD

The earliest pice struck for circulation in Bombay by the English East India Company, i.e. in the time of Charles II . British struck their first coins in Bombay in European style , Their gold coins were named " Carolina ". silver coins “Anglina “ ,from the name ”  England “, their Pice “Copperoon “as they were copper coins . And tin coins  "Tinny". The exchange rate was set at 11 Tinnys =1 Copperoon .and 48 Copperoon =1 Anglina , no gold coins ( Carolinas ) were struck until 1717 AD .

Obv: MON / BOMBAY / ANGLIC / REGIMS / A°9° (1674) (Means Money of Bombay Anglican Regime )   in five lines, within a doted circle, surrounded by an inscription: A: DEO: PAX: & INCREMENTVM 

Rev: The Shield of Arms of the Honorable East India Company within a doted circle surrounded by an inscription: HON: SOC: ANG : IND : ORI : is abbreviated Latin for -" Honorable society  of England for East Indies Trade .

 The Island of Bombay was handed over to Charles II( English Prince ) by Portuguese in the year of 1665 as a part of dowry and regnal year shown in the coin should be counted from 1665 .

 So  Anno 9 means  . 1665 A.D + 9 = 1674 AD

Madras Presidency , Copper Cash - 1731 AD
Obv: A heart shield surmounted by a 4. Triply divided with a letter in each compartment (E - I - C) abbreviation for East India Company. A wavy line above.
Rev: 1731 inside dotted circle .

Ali Rajas of Canannore . (1545 -1870 AD )

 Kannur(Canannore) was ruled by a matriarchial system with a female chief known as Arakkal beevi. One Ali Raja or Aazhi Raja meaning 'Lords of the deep', administered the country in the name of Arakkal Beevi. The Arakkal Swaroopam was the only Muslim principality in the whole of Kerala coast.  1/5 Rupee series  minted   in the Kannur Fort.

Portuguese In India ( 1505 - 1961AD )

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive in India in 1498. The closing of traditional trade routes in western Asia by the Ottomans and rivalry with the Italian states, set Portugal in search of an alternate sea route to India. The first successful voyage to India was by Vasco da Gama in 1498, when he arrived in Calicut, now in Kerala. The Portuguese established a chain of outposts along India's west coast and on the island of Ceylon in the early 16th century. They built the St.Angelo Fort at Kannur to guard their possessions in North Malabar. Goa was their prized possession and, the seat of Portugal's viceroy who governed Portugal's empire in Asia. Portugal's northern province included settlements at Daman, Diu, Chaul, Baçaim, Salsette, and Mumbai. Bombay (Mumbai) was given to the British crown in 1661 as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza. The rest of the northern province, with the exception of Daman and Diu, was lost to the Marathas in the early 18th century. Dadra and Nagar Haveli was acquired by the Portuguese in 1779. Dadra and Nagar Haveli was occupied by the Republic of India in 1954, and Goa, Daman, and Diu were annexed to India in 1961.

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Dutch- India ,STUIVER .Copper Dump 1785 AD

 Obv ;C VOC - Colombo mint .
 (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie.)

  Rev ;STUIVER - 1785 AD

 The Dutch East India Company established trading posts on different parts along the Indian coast. For some while, they controlled the Malabar southwest coast (Cranganore/Cranganor/Kodungallor, Cochin de Cima/Pallipuram, Cochin, Cochin de Baixo/Santa Cruz, Quilon (Coylan), Cannanore, Kundapura, Kayankulam, Ponnani) and the Coromandel southeastern coast (Golkonda, Bimilipatnam, Jaggernaikpoeram/Kakinada, Palikol, Pulicat, Porto Novo/Parangippettai, Negapatnam) and Surat (1616-1795). They conquered Ceylon, nowadays Sri Lanka (1658 - 1796), from the Portuguese. The Dutch also established trading stations in Travancore and coastal Tamil Nadu as well as at Rajshahi in present-day Bangladesh, Pipely, Hugli-Chinsura, and Murshidabad in present-day West Bengal, Balasore (Baleshwar or Bellasoor) in Orissa, and Ava, Arakan, and Syriam in present-day Myanmar (Burma). Ceylon was lost at the Congress of Vienna in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, where the Dutch having fallen subject to France, saw their colonies raided by Britain. The Dutch later became less involved in India, as they had the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) as their prized possession.

Danish- India ,Tranquebar, Christian VII (1766-1808), 4 kas DAC (Dansk Asiatisk Compagni)1771 AD

 Denmark was a minor colonial power to set foot in India. It established trading outposts in Tranquebar, Tamil Nadu (1620), Serampore, West Bengal (1755) and the Nicobar Islands (1750s). At one time, the main Danish and Swedish East Asia companies together imported more tea to Europe than the British did. Their outposts lost economic and strategic importance, and Tranquebar, the last Danish outpost, was sold to the British in 1845.

Frederik III (1648-70)

Copper 1-cash, Tranquebar

Christian VI (1730-46)

Copper 1-cash, Tranquebar

Roman trade with India During Ancient Sangam Age (200 B.C. to 300 A.D )

This was during the Sangam age in South India — 200 B.C. to 300 A.D. The arts, crafts and literature flourished. There was plenty. The rivers were free flowing and provided a wonderful means to cross vast stretches of interior Tamizhagam, or the land of the Tamils, that, in those days, included Kerala. It was during this period that the Romans travelled east to India for trade.

They came for spices, iron, precious stones, sandalwood, teak and ebony, exotic birds and animals — they even took peacocks back! Indian dancing girls had a special fascination for them, ivory and pearls (found in Tirunelveli), cotton and silk were other items that they were on the look out for. In return, they brought with them pots of gold and silver coins and jewellery, olive oil, wine, blue glass, metal and terracotta artefacts including lamps. Whereas they took back some 120 items, they brought in 30, showing that their need for exporting and trading in Indian goods was high.

As they traded with India through the Sangam period spanning 500 years, they had made many places their home Sangam poems such as the "Ahananooru" and "Purananooru" refer to the Romans as "being loud, of coarse speech, wearing shoes, and a somewhat cruel people".

Roman piece of pottery from Arezzo, Latium, found at Virampatnam, Arikamedu (1st century CE). Musee Guimet.

Southern trade route via the Red Sea and monsoons which started around the beginning of the Common EraAugustus (27 BC – 14 AD). and his conquest of Egypt in 30 BCE.

Another similar Silver Denari of Augustus

Maratha Kingdom, Chatrapati Shivaji. (1674-1680 )

The Maratha Empire or the Maratha Confederacy was founded by the great warrior Chatrapati Shivaji during the year 1674. The Maratha confederacy was established at the area around Pune from Bijapur. The Marathas came to power as the Mughals started to decline around the 17th century. The Marathas were in power from 1674 to 1818 and during the peak of the Maratha rule covered a territory of around 250 million acres. The Marathas were skillful warriors and were fiercely possessive about their land .

The Marathas' rise to power was a dramatic turning point that accelerated the demise of Muslim dominance in India. Maratha chieftains were originally in the service of Bijapur sultans in the western Deccan, which was under siege by the Mughals. Shivaji Bhonsle (1630-80 A.D) is recognized as the "father of the Maratha nation." Shivaji Bhosle, founder of the Maratha Empire, was born in 1630 AD, in the fort of Shivneri, 40 miles north of Pune. By 1647, Shivaji had captured two forts and had the complete charge of Pune. He slowly started capturing forts in the region, Purandar, Rajgad, Torna. In 1659 Shivaji succeeded in killing of famous Adilshahi general Afzal Khan and demoralizing his army. He took advantage of this conflict and laid thefoundation of Maratha Kingdom near Pune, which later became the Maratha capital. Shivaji used guerillatactics and brilliant military strategies to lead a series of successful assaults in the 1660s against Mughal strongholds, including the major port of Surat. He lost to Aurangzeb's General Jai Singh and was arrested in 1666. He made a daring escape and regained his lost territory and glory. By 1673, he had control over most of western Maharashtra and had made 'Raigad' capital. In 1674 he assumed the title of "Chhatrapati" at his elaborate coronation. At the time of his death in 1680, nearly whole of the Deccan belonged to his kingdom .Coins of Maratha rulers include the gold and copper coins which were issued by Shivaji and his successors and the southern Maratha family. The gold coins of both the kings were of `pagoda` type. The coins of Shivaji bore `Chhatrapati` in Nagari on one side and `Sri Raja Siva` on the other side of the coin. Some `pagodas` show a figure of Lord Shiva on one side and a granulated surface on the other without any inscription. These coins were ascribed to the South Maratha family. These gold coins are rare but the copper coins found in large numbers. The legends are the same in the copper and gold coins of Shivaji.