After the voyages of Vasco da Gama, a powerful Portuguese Navy took control of the Indian Ocean in the early 16th century. It threatened the coastal cities of the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent, which was a grave hazard to the Turk dominance in the area and their intermediation of the spice trade. They used to buy spices from Indian merchants and sell them to Venetians for sale in Europe at a huge profit.

To undermine the Muslim trade and consolidate the Portuguese position in India, Francisco de Almeida, a nobleman, soldier, and explorer from Portugal, was appointed the first Portuguese viceroy in India in 1505. Almeida’s initial efforts, however, met with strong resistance and the Portuguese squadron was beaten by the combined Egyptian and Gujarat navies in a naval action off the coast of Diu (formerly Div) in 1507. Almeida’s son was killed in the battle. The focus was on Diu, as apart from its strategic location and status as a major port, as long as it remained in Muslim hands – the Turks and the Egyptian Mamluks would always find a foothold in Gujarat.

Almeida avenged his defeat in the naval Battle of Diu in 1509 by annihilating both navies and is credited with establishing Portuguese authority in the Indian Ocean.

Almeida was succeeded by Alfonso de Albuquerque (1453 –1515), a Portuguese general, admiral, and statesman, who served as viceroy of Portuguese India from 1509 to 1515. During his tenure, he expanded Portuguese influence across the Indian Ocean and built a reputation as a fierce and skilled military commander. In December 1512, after receiving permission from his King, he sent Ambassador Tristao Dega to the Gujarat Sultan with a number of presents, with three requests: Permission to construct a fortress at Diu for the security of the subjects of King of Portugal; an undertaking that the Gujarat traders were to send all the merchandise only to Goa with the assurance of finding all that they required for the homeward bound cargo at Goa; and lastly a promise that the Gujarat ruler should not receive the Turks at any of the Gujarat ports in view of the traditional enmity between the Portuguese and the Turks.

On the Indian side, Sultan Muzaffar Shah II, the eldest son of Sultan Mahmud Begada, was ruling Gujarat (1511 to 1526). It was during his reign that the diplomatic intercourse between Gujarat and Portuguese power in India was pushed forward with considerable vigour. The Sultan was ably assisted by Malek Ayaz, a Georgian slave who ruled the Arabian Sea for four decades from the tiny Island of Diu of the Saurashtra coast. Rising from the ranks, he became admiral of Gujarat besides being the governor of Diu.

In 1513, Albuquerque, after an ineffectual attempt to take Aden, sailed with his whole fleet to Diu, with the ostensible purpose of getting his ships repaired and reinforced with water and other required stuff for the journey to Goa. He met Diu Governor Malek Ayaz, and with his consent he left behind a ship named Enxobregas, laden with merchandise at Diu in charge of one Fernao Martinez Evangelho as the factor.

On the way to Goa, Albuquerque met Tristao Dega at Chaul, who had been sent as Ambassador to the Gujarat Sultan. Dega conveyed a letter from Malek Gopi, the Hindu governor of Surat , manifesting a desire to serve the King of Portugal. The Sultan had, however, declined the request for a Portuguese fort at Diu, evidently on the advice of Ayaz, although he offered certain other islands along the Gujarat coast where the Portuguese could make a settlement. The Sultan agreed, though, to not allow Turks to enter his territory. As a return gesture, the Portuguese agreed to repair and return a Gujarat ship captured by them earlier.

Fernao Martinez Evangelho, who had been left behind as the factor in Diu by Albuquerque, doubled as a political agent. He reported two important issues: that a ship had arrived with an envoy from Egypt carrying rich presents for the Gujarat Sultan as well as the Bijapur Sultan and encouraging them to make war on the Christians and offering support for the same. The second being that Malek Ayaz had set out to meet the Sultan with lavish gifts to discuss the issue of Diu as well as to win over friends in the court.

The second report on Ayaz was more serious for Albuquerque, who responded with a political embassy to Sultan Muzaffar II in 1514. Led by Ambassador Diego Fernandez de Beja and James Teixeira, it was perhaps the most imposing embassy during the period. It carried many valuable presents for the Sultan along with 20 horses equipped with harnesses. Two agents, Pero Queimado and a Hindu named Ganapati, well acquainted with the Gujarati language, were sent in advance to inform the Gujarat ruler of the embassy and to request the safe conduct of the Ambassadors and their retinue.

The two Portuguese Ambassadors reached Surat in March 1514. The Sultan having instructed the Surat officials to give them permission, they were allowed to disembark and lodged in the house of the brother of Malek Gopi. Around this time, they received information that Malek Gopi was out of favour with the King on account of the antipathy of the Muslim nobles who considered him to be anti-Muslim and overly friendly with the Portuguese. Initially, the Ambassadors wanted to return to Goa at this turn of events. However, when told it would be discourteous to the Sultan, they proceeded towards Champaner. The Ambassadors, however, could not meet the Sultan at Champaner, as he had left to deal with the Idar rebels. Instead they met Malek Gopi, who told them that Malek Ayaz had come to the Sultan’s court and had strongly advised the Sultan not to grant a site for the fortress at Diu to the foreigners, as the eventual objective of the Portuguese was to wrest his kingdom from him.

The two envoys finally met the Sultan at Ahmedabad , where, after presenting valuable gifts, they made a strong case for a Portuguese fort at Diu so that their property was not exposed to robbery and men to slaughter. They added that the injuries inflicted upon the Portuguese in the south at Quilon (now Kollam), and Calicut may have been prevented if they had a fort at Diu. A further bait of enhanced trade and custom revenues to Gujarat was dangled as a result of this supposedly true friendship between the Portuguese and the Gujarat Sultan.

The request for a fort at Diu was, however, not granted, but the Portuguese were offered other sites at Broach (now Bharuch), Surat, Mahim or Dumas. This was not acceptable to the envoys in the absence of any instructions from the Portuguese sovereign on this issue. A further point of contention was that the Portuguese insisted on Gujarat ships not carrying on trade with Aden and other ports of the Red Sea, as the Portuguese were at war with them. This obviously meant a huge dent in Gujarat trade with these states, which apart from being a major source of income to the traders was a huge source of revenue to the Sultan. As an alternative, the Portuguese offered safety for Gujarat ships for their voyages to Malacca, Pegu, Martban, Bengal and Hormuz – all of which were aligned to the King of Portugal. The envoys added that the King of Portugal was at war with Aden and other ports on the Red Sea and once that issue was resolved, the Gujarat ships may be able to safely trade with those areas.

The main objective of the parleys between the Portuguese and the Sultan for a permission for a Portuguese fort at Diu not being achieved, the Portuguese mission returned to Goa after five and a half months. The scenario underwent a change when Albuquerque was replaced by Diogo Lopes de Sequiera, in 1515, as the Portuguese Governor in India, with express instructions to build a fort in Diu. The new Portuguese Governor Sequiera visited Diu towards the end of 1520. It appears Malek Ayaz showed such a bold front that the Portuguese Governor was obliged to sail back to Goa. The wise Diu Governor, nevertheless strengthened the fortifications of Diu. The mouth of the harbour was well guarded by a chain and fully replenished with magazines to meet a possible Portuguese attack.

Finding that this request for a fort at Diu had been denied, the new Portuguese Governor decided to achieve his objective by force. In February 1521, he arrived again in Diu with 42 ships and 2,000 European and 1,800 native troops. However, the preparations of Malek Ayaz, made such an impression that the Council of War of the Governor refused to fight and sailed on to Hormuz. The Gujarat Flotilla under the leadership of Malek Ayaz, with the effective use of artillery, so scared them that they had to make good their escape. Before leaving, the Portuguese left Diogo Fernandez as an envoy.

Subsequently, again towards the end of 1521, the new Portuguese Governor Sequiera tried to build a fort at Muzaffarabad, now called Jafrabad (in Amreli district). However, the captive Muslims in the fleet who came to know about the plan, set fire to the ship carrying the magazine and other critical arms. With this, Lopez was forced to give up all attempts to build a fortress at Muzaffarabad.

Sequiera, thereafter, turned his attention to Chaul, where necessary permission had been obtained from the Sultan of Bijapur to erect a fort. Here, too, Malik Ayaz’s naval force defeated the Portuguese designs. The reason for his intervention was that the Sultan of Bijapur had joined the Muslim alliance in 1507, which defeated Almeida. Subsequently, many Mamluk soldiers who were part of the alliance, which lost the 1509 battle of Diu, had joined the Bijapur forces. This was a golden moment for Diu Governor Ayaz, in particular, and Gujarat troops in general.

According to eminent historian Makrand Mehta, Malek Ayaz was a Georgian Gujarati who always fought the Portuguese throughout his life and created a milieu for international trade, provided security to the trading vessels, constructed a fortress and put chains to prevent unwanted vessels from coming into the port of Diu.

He also managed to stall a Portuguese fortress in Diu, for as long as he was governor of Diu. The fort would be built only in 1535-1536, long after his demise in 1522. His life is of landmark importance to Gujarat business and political history.