South Goa

The place was founded in 1543, and remained in Portuguese hands until 1961, when Goa was annexed to India.

According to history it is believed that in 1510 the Portuguese established a colony in the state of Goa. During the 17th and 18th centuries the Portuguese further expanded their colony to the present boundaries.

Sanguem and the adjoining areas were under the reign of the King of Soonda during the 16th century. After the Portuguese invasion, Sanguem, along with Ponda, Canacona and Quepem was merged with the Portuguese territory in 1791.

The Portuguese arrived here in 1510 and ruled the region through the 16th to 18th centuries.

Margao in pre-Portuguese times was one of the important settlements in Salcete and known as Matha Grama (the village of Mathas) as it was a temple town with nine Mathas in temple schools. Most of the inhabitants were Brahmins (GSB and Daivajnas). It was then famous for its many bea utifully built temples. Long before the Portuguese came here, it had a university with a library.[citation needed] During the Portuguese conquest in 1543, Hindu temples were demolished and Catholic churches were built in their place.[citation needed] Almost all traces of Hindu settlements were wiped out.[citation needed] The first church to be built in Margão, and its replacement in 1579, were destroyed by raiders along with the seminary that had been built alongside.[citation needed] The present church was built in 1675.[2][3]
The initial settlement of Margao grew from the site of the ancient Damodar Temple. The original temple was demolished and the temple tank was filled up to be replaced by the Holy Spirit church and church grounds[citation needed]. The Hindus carried their deity Damodar (a form of Lord Shiva) across the Zuari Agranashini river to the Hindu territories held by the Sonde rulers.[citation needed] While the western side of the Church developed as a market place, the settlement grew on the eastern side, that is, the Borda region, with the church at its core and extended outwards.
The Holy Spirit main square is defined on one side by the church with its baroque architecture and the parochial house, and on the other side by the palatial mansions of affluent elite Catholics, positioned in a row. The Associação das Communidades building and the school being the odd exceptions. They add to its character and sense of scale. They have a maximum height of two stories, and balcões and varandas facing the square. Parallel to the church square is the commercial street (old market). There is also a landscaped area next to the church called Praça da Alegria (joy square).
Margao's importance as an administrative and commercial area grew with the increasing dependence of the surrounding towns and villages; leading to the administrative centre with the town hall at its centre being built in the south. The commercial market became attached to it and was hence called maud-gao or the market town of Goa, and since then the city has grown towards the east.
In 1961, Goa was incorporated into the Indian Union, and Margao was declared as the administrative centre of the district of South Goa.

The history of the region dates back to the advent of the Portuguese in 1510, who ruled the region from the 16th to 18th centuries. Thereafter, the region was ruled by Hindu, Muslim and Portuguese rulers over the centuries, which is reflected in the monuments and relics present in the destination. Some of the notable attractions of the region are the various churches, which were constructed by the Portuguese.

Ceded to the Portuguese by the Raja of Sund in the treaty of 1791, Goa's far south - Canacona district - was among the last parts of the territory to be absorbed into the Novas Conquistas, and has retained a distinctly Hindu feel.

The history of Canacona states that it was a part of Kingdom of Sonda, a fragment of the mighty Vijayanagar Empire. But the Raja of Sonda got into trouble in 1764, when Hyder Ali of Mysore attacked him. The King asked the Portuguese for asylum and handed Canacona over to them, later it was merged into the state of Goa in 1794. Canacona came under Portuguese influence and went through many conversions in the 18th century. Like most of Goa, you will find little European impact in this pastoral part of Goa.