With the subdivision of the Bahmani kingdom after 1482, Goa passed into the power of Yusuf 'Adil Khan, the Muslim king of Bijapur, who was its ruler when the Portuguese first reached India. The city was attacked in March 1510 by the Portuguese under Afonso de Albuquerque. The city surrendered without a struggle, and Albuquerque entered it in triumph.
Three months later Yusuf 'Adil Khan returned with 60, 000 troops, forced the passage of the ford, and blockaded the Portuguese in their ships from May to August, when the cessation of the monsoon enabled them to put to sea. In November, Albuquerque returned with a larger force and, after overcoming a desperate resistance, recaptured the city, massacred all the Muslims, and appointed a Hindu, Timoja, governor of Goa.
Goa was the first territorial possession of the Portuguese in Asia. Albuquerque and his successors left almost untouched the customs and constitutions of the 30 village communities on the island, abolishing only the rite of suttee (sati; the immolation of widows on the funeral pyres of their husbands).
Goa became the capital of the whole Portuguese empire in the east. It was granted the same civic privileges as Lisbon, reaching the climax of its prosperity between 1575 and 1600. The appearance of the Dutch in Indian waters precipitated the decline of Goa. In 1603 and 1639 the city was blockaded by Dutch fleets, though never captured, and in 1635 it was ravaged by an epidemic. In 1683 a Mughal army saved it from capture by Maratha raiders, and in 1739 the whole territory was attacked by the same enemies and saved only by the unexpected arrival of a new viceroy with a fleet.
The seat of the government was moved to Mormugão (now Marmagao) and in 1759 to Panjim (now Panaji). Cholera epidemics were one of the chief reasons for the migration of the inhabitants from Old Goa to New Goa. Between 1695 and 1775 the population of Old Goa dwindled from 20,000 to 1,600; and in 1835 the city was inhabited by only a few priests, monks, and nuns.
During the 19th century, events of importance affecting the settlement were its temporary occupation by the British in 1809 as a result of Napoleon's invasion of Portugal; the governorship (1855-64) of Count de Torres Novas, who inaugurated a great number of improvements; and the military revolts of the second half of the century. The most notable of these was the revolt of Sept. 3, 1895, which necessitated the dispatch of an expeditionary force from Portugal. The infante Affonso Henriques, Duke de Oporto, accompanied this expedition and exercised governor's powers from March to May 1896.
After Indian claims on Goa in 1948 and 1949, Portugal came under increasing pressure to cede Goa, with its other possessions in the subcontinent, to India. In mid-1954, Goan nationalists seized the Portuguese enclaves of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and established a pro-Indian administration. Another crisis occurred in 1955 when satyagrahis (nonviolent resisters) from India attempted to penetrate the territory of Goa. At first the satyagrahis were deported; but later, when large numbers attempted to cross the borders, the Portuguese authorities resorted to force, and casualties were inflicted. This led to the severance of diplomatic relations between Portugal and India on Aug. 18, 1955. Tension between India and Portugal came to a head when on Dec. 18, 1961, Indian troops supported by naval and air forces invaded and occupied Goa, Daman, and Diu. Portuguese India was, by constitutional amendment, incorporated into the Indian Union in 1962.