Fig.10.1. The Dutch symbol which has been carved in an old building in Colombo.the 15th century, was very interested in explorative
affairs.
He ran a naval school in Portugal and taught
subjects such as naval craft, mapping and
astronomy in that. Because of these reasons,
the Portuguese were in the forefront more than
other Europeans in the effort of finding a new sea
route to Asia. With the arrival of the Portuguese
national Vasco De Gama to Calicut in 1498
after travelling round Africa, the European
domination over Asia started. After the arrival
of the Portuguese to Asia, other Europeans such
as, the Dutch, the English, and the French too
arrived in Asia and spread their power over
various regions. Thus, the Europeans extended
their power over Asia for about 450 years from
the beginning of the 16th century.
The Europeans came to Asia with several
objectives. Gaining economic benefits,
propagating their religion and winning the
international reputation were major among them.
The objectives of the arrival of the Europeans to
Asia had differences according to the political
and economic changes that took place in Europe
during the period from the 16th century to the
20 th century.The major objectives of the arrival of the
Portuguese to Asia were gaining economic
benefits and propagating Roman Catholic
religion. Their purpose was to defeat the Muslims
and take over the trade monopoly in Asia since
the Muslims had the trade monopoly, when they
arrived in Asia. The Portuguese knew that they
could gain a huge profit by that. After the arrival
of Vasco De Gama to Calicut, the statement
they made that “we arrived here in search of
the Christians and spices” clearly shows their