of the Keladi kingdom. Under the provisional treaties between the Portuguese and the Bednore rulers, and the Padroado, the Christians were allowed to build churches and help foster the growth of Christianity in South Canara. The arrival of the British and the Dutch halted the activity of the Portuguese, and they were gradually unable to send the required number of missionaries to Mangalore. Shivappa Nayaka had previously expelled the Portuguese from their forts a little before 1660, which brought about considerable changes in the ecclesiastical situation. The appointment of the Vicar Apostolic of Mangalore was felt by the Holy See to be of critical importance. Nayaka pressured the church authorities to appoint a native priest as the Vicar Apostolic, which resulted in the appointment of Fr. Andrew Gomez to the post; however, he died before the nomination papers could reach Mangalore. At the recommendation of the Vicar General of Verapoly, Mons. Joseph Sebastiani, Pope Clement X appointed Bishop Thomas de Castro, a Goan Theatine and Bishop of Fulsivelem, as the Vicar Apostolic of Propaganda Fide in the Vicariate of Canara on 30 August 1675, for the purpose of providing spiritual leadership to the Canara Christians. After his consecration, he first went to Calicut and then moved to Mangalore, where he served from 1677 to 1684. In 1677, Bishop de Castro entered into a conflict with the Archbishop of Goa, Dom Frei for disregarding the Padroado. Consequently, they did not cede the jurisdiction to him despite the Pope's letter of appointment. The Padroado–Propaganda conflict which ensued divided the Catholics of Canara into two sides—those who recognised the authority of the Padroado Archbishop in Goa versus those who supported de Castro. The Portuguese refused to recognise Bishop de Castro's appointment and vigorously opposed his activities. Archbishop Brandão's sudden death on 6 July 1678 further complicated matters, and the Cathedral chapter administering the Archdiocese of Goa following the vacancy created by his death, forbade the Canara Catholics from receiving the sacraments from the bishop or from priests appointed by him. In his turn, Bishop de Castro excommunicated those Catholics who were obedient to the Padroado authorities in Goa and their priests. In 1681, the Holy See appointed another Goan priest Fr. Joseph Vaz, as the Vicar Forane of Canara; he was asked not to submit to Bishop de Castro unless he showed the letter of appointment. However, after being convinced of its legitimacy,