The city and strait of Hormuz have been at the center of the trade hub of Hormuz since centuries. The US has indicated that it wants the Strait free but Iran is still fighting to retain control over it. The kingdom of Ormuz came into existence around the 11th century and was extremely prosperous until the 14th century AD. Several global traders from Arabia, Persia, China and India traded with it using it as a port city.
The Indian merchants would trade their goods such as their spices, all kinds of cotton, certain natural dyes and most of their agricultural products such as rice and sugar extensively. In turn, the foreigners would export certain rare animals such as their Persian and Arabian horses, their very special Basra pearls, their dry fruits like organic dates and their rare silks like the silks from China- all these were traded very profitably globally.
The Moghuls invaded the city of Hormuz and forced the country to move to the mainland internally. Starting off with Hormuz, the invaders of Mongol began annexing several parts and ports of the rest of the world in a customary fashion all throughout history.
The Ottoman Empire took over Istanbul offsetting the Venetian and Genose merchants that were ruling over the trade routes all the way to China and India historically.
Some European merchants were looking for a sea route to escape from the Ottomans around 15th century AD. It was Vasco da Gama who ruled over the city of Kochi- the 1st ruler to open up the sea route coming in from Europe to India factually. By 1507 Afonso de Albuquerque had expanded his kingdom into Goa, Bombay and Diu, declaring himself to be the Viceroy of India colonially. He wanted to seize Hormuz and build a massive fort out there, so he attacked the Persian and Arabian coastlines rather invincibly.
This made the British jealous- they formed the East India company in 1600- their Captain William Hawkins was sent to the Court of the Mughal king Jehangir. He created a trading post in Surat in 1608 and tried to sell several Indian goods and products to Persia via the sea routes that they had figured out previously. The British outnumbered the Portuguese of Hormuz with help from the Persian king Shah Abbas who went on to set up a trading base in Bandar Abas, creating another Persian port city.
THE EIC formed its 1st Political Resident in Bushehs with a naval squadron under his charge in Hormuz to protect the ships sailing in from Britain with their British subjects and interests in Southern Persia and the Gulf regions chiefly.
Harford Jones reported to the EIC’s Governor in Bombay. The Viceroy of India and also the Governor of Bombay undertook the control of the British Empire from these ports back in time all over the Indian subcontinent geographically. These ports were governed by the Political Residents from the Empire’s Indian Political Service as also by the Indian Navy in Ormuz- this political arrangement went on until the 1930s. In 1930 Reza Shah Pahlovi started asserting the rights of the Persians over all the islands quite greedily.
As of now, 16% of India’s international trade, ½ its crude oil and LNG imports and 2/3rds of its Urea and Ammonia used for its fertilizers are shipped in directly using the Strait of Hormuz from Iran presently.
With inputs from the net and the newspapers available online
