History
The British made Karwar their district headquarters in 1862. Karwar was an ancient site of sea trade visited by the Arabs, Dutch, Portuguese, French and later the British. Ibn Battuta passed through this route during one or more of his journeys.
Significant and picturesque, the Sadashivgad fort of historical importance is now a popular tourist destination located by the Kali river bridge, which has been built at the confluence of the river and the Arabian Sea.
In 1638 a rival English trading body, the Courteen Association, established a factory at Karwar (actually it is village by name kadwad from which Karwar name is derived & it is situated 6 km eastwards on the banks of kali River). It was trade port frequented by traders from Arabia & Africa. Baitkhol (Current Civil Port of Karwar) port was famous for its natural harbour & The name Baithkhol is an Arabic term, Bait el- Khol meaning bay of safety. Muslin was the chief commodity purchased but Karwar was also a source for pepper, cardamom, cassier and coarse blue cotton cloth. Situated on India's west coast, 50 miles south-east of Goa, Karwar was noted for its safe harbour. In 1649 the Courteen Association united with the Company and Karwar became a Company factory.
In the Treaty of Mangalore(1784) between Tipu Sultan & the East India Company one finds reference of Karwar & Sadashivgad written as Carwar and Sadasewgude.
Karwar was a part of the Maratha Empire during the 18th century. After the defeat of the Marathas in the Third Anglo-Maratha War, it became a part of the British territory. It was a part of the Bombay Presidency until 1950.
Karwar since the records of 1862, the time from which it fell under Bombay Presidency, was described as the first rate harbour between Bombay & Colombo.
Renowned poet Rabindranath Tagore, who visited Karwar in 1882, dedicated an entire chapter of his memoirs to this town.[2] The 22 year old Rabindranath Tagore stayed with his second brother, Satyendranath Tagore, who was the district judge in Karwar.
