Thangasseri is a beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

 town on the shores of the Arabian Sea

Arabian Sea

The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...

 in Kollam

Kollam

Kollam , often anglicized as ', is a city in the Indian state of Kerala. The city lies on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake on the Arabian sea coast and is situated about north of the state capital, Thiruvananthapuram...

 city, Kerala

Kerala

or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

.It is located around 5 km from the city center and 71 km form capital city Thiruvanthapuram.

History

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to establish a trading center in Tangasseri, Kollam in 1502, which became the centre of trade in pepper. In the wars with the Moors/Arabs that followed, the ancient church of St Thomas was destroyed. In 1517, the Portuguese built the St. Thomas Fort in Thangasseri, which was destroyed in the subsequent wars with the Dutch. The ruins of the Fort can still be seen in Thangasseri. In 1661, the Dutch took possession of the city. The remnants of the Dutch forts can be found at Thangasseri. In the 18th century, Travancore conquered Kollam, followed by the British in 1795. Thangasseri remains today as an Anglo-Indian settlement, though few Anglo-Indians remain. The Infant Jesus Church in Thangasseri, an old Portuguese-built church, remains as a memento of the Portuguese rule of the area.

Tourist attractions

Thangasseri, the picturesque seaside village has a three kilometre long beach on which stands a 144 feet tall lighthouse - a silent sentinal warning seamen of the treacherous reefs of the Thangasseri, since 1902. Ruins of Portuguese / Dutch forts and 18 century churches, a three km long beach, 2.5km break water and a century old lighthouse.

Thangasseri Fishery harbour

Fishery harbour at Thangassery is proposed as a basin for traditional fishermen.This has been achieved by the construction of two breakwaters. The length of main breakwater is 2100m and that of leeward breakwater is 550m. Sufficient beach length for providing beach landing facilities for all operational crafts is provided in the harbour.