Fort Geldria

Fort Geldria, located in Pulicat (Pazhaverkadu) in the Tiruvallur district of Tamil Nadu, is the first and only fort built by the Dutch in India during the early 17th century, specifically in 1613. It served as the capital and local governmental center for the Dutch Coromandel region and was strategically positioned on the shores of Pulicat Lake, providing access to the Bay of Bengal and serving to protect trade routes along the Coromandel coast.

The fort was constructed on the foundations of an earlier Portuguese fort after the Dutch defeated the Portuguese in 1609. It was named after Geldria (Gelderland), the native province of Wemmer van Berchem, the Dutch East India Company's General Director. Fort Geldria was fortified and garrisoned with 80 to 90 soldiers, playing a key military and administrative role amid competition between European colonial powers.

While it thrived as a trading hub dealing mainly in cotton fabrics and spices, its prominence declined due to Mughal expansion and competition from the British. The fort changed hands multiple times, including British occupation from 1781 to 1785 and eventual surrender by the Dutch to the British in 1795. The British later demolished the fort around 1804-1805 and took full ownership in 1825.

Today, little remains of the fort except ruins partly hidden by thorny bushes. However, an important surviving feature is the Dutch Cemetery within the fort's grounds, containing 76 well-preserved tombs with distinctive Dutch architecture and carvings, some reflecting skeletal motifs. The site is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India and is near the Pulicat Bird Sanctuary.

Restoration efforts involving collaborations between Indian and Dutch authorities aim to preserve the remaining heritage and the wetland ecosystem. Fort Geldria stands as a significant reminder of early European colonial influence in southern India and Dutch maritime trade history.