Situated at approximately 10km east of Panjim, Old Goa (Velha Goa) is a historical city, founded in the 15th century on the banks of the Mandovi river by the rulers of the Bijapur Sultanate, to replace Govapuri, used as a port by the Kadamba and Vijayanagar kings. It served as capital of Portuguese India from the 16th century until its abandonment in the 18th century due to a plague. It is said to have once been a city of nearly 200,000 where from, before the plague, the Portuguese traded across continents. As center of Christianisation in the East, the city was evangelised by all religious orders, since all of them had their headquarters there. It was incorporated into the Republic of India in 1961, together with the rest of Goa.
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