Pinto Revolt

CULTURAL HERITAGE OF GOA
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INTRODUCTION
The fall of Bassein in 1739 signalled the deathknell of the Portuguese empire in the East. But it marked the
beginning of new developments. The history of the colonials was Just taking off. After centuries of almost
unmentioned existence and exclusion from public affairs the people of Goa now began to take their legitimate
place in the scheme of matters.
The post 1750 period witnessed a tremendous change. With the death and burial of the Inquisition" (1812),
religious intolerance was a thing of the past. The period provided the people of Goa opportunities for
self-expression that took the form of revolts and upsurges, lively debates in the press and the like.
Constitutionalism was also experimented with.
These changes were forerunners of events to come in the twentieth century, events which eventually led to
Goa's liberation in 1961.
• The early modern period in history has often been described as the
Age ot Enlightenment.
• It set the ball rolling for the Age of Revolutions.
• Since around 1750, the western world was in the grip of liberal ideas,
paving the way for momentous changes.
• Thirteen American colonies had broken free from England .France was in turmoil caused by an
intellectual movement launched by rousseau ,Voltaire and others .
• jacobin ideas were spreading far and wide in Portugal .

• colonies of spain and Portugal in central and south America were in a state of fermant .
• it is but that the echoes of such fermant and change would be heard in distant goa under foreign
yoke.
Pintos' Revolt of 1787
One such echo was in the form of Pintos' Revolt of 1787. It was a revolt which aimed at
overthrowing the alien government.
It is viewed by some historians as the second anti-colonial revolt in modern times, the
first being the American War of Independence.
• The plot to stage the revolt was masterminded by Fr. Caetano Francisco Couto and Fr. José
Antonio Gonsalves who were discontented with the Portuguese policy of racial discrimination.
• Though possessing the requisite qualifications, they were both denied posts as bishops, although
two bishoprics had fallen vacant.
• Both of them left for Portugual in 1781 to present their case before the concerned authorities. But
in the atmosphere then prevailing in Portugal due to the terror unleashed by Pinan Minaque, the
said clerics were not able to make any headway.
• While in Lisbon they came in contact with José Antonio Pinto's family of Candolim and
Fr. Caetano Vitorino Faria, father of the renowned Abbe Faria.
• They returned to Goa disappointed but firm in their stand that the need of the hour was to
rise up in arms against the Portuguese and free Goa from their rule.
• They were able to obtain approval for their plans from relatives, friends and acquaintances.
• They won over support of several officers of the Bardez and Ponda legions.
• The conspirators used to hold meetings in the palatial mansion of the Pintos at Candolim
which was later to become known as Palacio de Conspiração (Palace of Conspiracy).
❖ ( all the conspirators were men who were involved deep in the Portuguese administration )
❖ 10th August 1787 was set as the date for the revolt.
• But the said Revolt never saw the light of the day.
• On 5th August, five days before the deadline, a clerk at the Aldona comunidade disclosed the plans of
the conspirators.
• At first the Portuguese Governor Cunha e Menezes attached no importance to the disclosure. But later
the authorities swooped down on the conspirators.
• 47 were arrested and placed behind bars.

Of these 17 were priests and 7 were military officers.
• Criminal proceedings were conducted.

By a judgment delivered on 9h December 1788, of the 17 clerics prosecuted, 3 were acquitted
and the rest were deported to Portugal.
• They were imprisoned in the fortress of São Julião de Barra where some ended their days and others
being pardoned were allowed to return to India in 1807.
• Of the laymen, 15 were awarded capital punishment and others were deported, flogged, and
so on.
• Among those who got death sentences, one of them was Manuel Caetano Pinto of the Pinto
family of Candolim.
• They were first tied to the tails of horses and dragged through the streets of the city.
• Later their hands were chopped off and then they were hanged.
• After death, their bodies were quartered.
• Their heads were fixed on stakes and were on display at public places for days together where
they were allowed to rot.
• This was nothing but an effort of the Portuguese government to strike terror in the hearts of the
people of Goa so that they should never in future raise the banner of revolt.
• The ones that evaded capture managed to escape to british india and survived .
• Some went across the sea to foreign lands . Abbe faria who escaped to France
later became an active member in the French revolution.
❖ If this revolt had succeeded . Probably the Portuguese rule would have ended
much earlier and the history would have been very diﬀerent from what we know
today .
What was the reason…
• One of the main reasons for these men to revolt was due to the :
1. Unequal treatment meted to them by the Portuguese in regards to their
European counterparts.
2. Locals were never given higher positions ,which enraged them chalk out a
plan to threw the Portuguese out of goa.
3. Get freedom from the portuguese rule
MAJOR PLANS…
• The conspirators not only planned to overthrow the portuguese but also sustain
it by aligning themselves with mysore state . they had even negotiated with tipu
sultan for that matter .
• The plan was to launch a coup d”etat against the portuguse rule in goa which
once achieved ; tipu sultan would invade and take over goa.
• Thus , even if portuguese tried to take over goa at a later time ,it would be
diﬃcult.
THANK YOU

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CULTURAL HERITAGE OF GOA

• jacobin ideas were spreading far and wide in Portugal .

• 47 were arrested and placed behind bars.

• Criminal proceedings were conducted.

• After death, their bodies were quartered.

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