English: View of the British Residency from the opposite bank of a river with local craft seen on the water, from the Kitchener of Khartoum Collection: Miscellaneous views in India, taken in the early 1900s. Quilon (now known as Kollam), the erstwhile capital of Travancore is one of the oldest towns on the Malabar coast. Quilon's natural position made it one of the greatest ports of trade from ancient days. In 1503 the Portuguese established a factory and fort here which were subsequently captured by the Dutch in 1653. It was besieged by Travancore in the 18th century and in the early 19th century British forces were garrisoned here and the town and port continued to develop. Till 1829, Quilon was the capital of the Travancore State with the headquarters of the British Residency situated here.