Notes on The Portuguese Colonisation of Malaya
Deleting old communities, so moving info to this journal.
I am not going to list the ENTIRE history of the Portuguese invasion of Malaya, but I am going to concentrate information which I think is significant enough to the relationship between Portugal and Malaya, seeing as Malacca was not the only state that was colonised even though it was the first.
All information gleaned is from Wikipedia. I'll be editing it later for condensation and clarity.
Portuguese Colonisation of Southeast Asia and the spice trade
In April 1511 Albuquerque sailed to Malacca in Malaysia, the most important east point in the trade network where Malay met Gujarati, Chinese, Japanese, Javanese, Bengali, Persian and Arabic traders, among others, described by Tomé Pires as of invaluable richness.
The peninsula of Malacca became then the strategic base for Portuguese trade expansion with China and Southeast Asia, under the Portuguese rule with its capital at Goa. To defend the city was erected a strong gate which, called the "A Famosa", still remains. Aware of Siamese ambitions over Malacca, Albuquerque immediately sent Duarte Fernandes on a diplomatic mission to the kingdom of Siam (modern Thailand), where he was the first European to arrive, establishing amicable relations between both kingdoms. In November that year, getting to know the location of the so-called "Spice Islands" in the Moluccas, he sent an expedition led by António de Abreu to find them, arriving in early 1512. Abreu went by Ambon while deputy commander Francisco Serrão came forward to Ternate, where a Portuguese fort was allowed. That same year, in Indonesia, the Portuguese took Makassar, reaching Timor in 1514.
Departing from Malacca, Jorge Álvares came to southern China in 1513. This visit was followed the arrival in Guangzhou, where trade was established and later would be established Macau trade post.
Invading Malacca
In 1509, Diogo Lopes de Sequeira was sent to Malacca by the king of Portugal with four ships in order to establish contact with the Sultanate of Malacca. Initially, Sequeira was well received by the Sultan Mahmud Syah (1488-1528). Soon however, the Muslim community convinced Mahmud Syah that the Portuguese should be eliminated. Several men were captured and killed, but the ships escaped.
...
Albuquerque then built a fort to strengthen the Portuguese position, the Fort A Famosa, remains of which are still visible to this day. He also dispatched some ships to the "Spice Islands". Albuquerque returned to Cochin in January 1512.
Johor
The new sultan established a new capital by the Johor River and from there, continued to harass the Portuguese in the north. He consistently worked together with his brother in Perak and the sultan of Pahang to retake Malacca, which by this time was protected by the fort A Famosa.
On the northern part of Sumatra around the same period, Aceh was beginning to gain substantial influence over the Straits of Malacca. With the fall of Malacca to Christians' hands, Muslim traders often skipped Malacca in favor of Aceh. Therefore, Malacca and Aceh became direct competitors.
With the Portuguese and Johor frequently locking horns, Aceh launched multiple raids against both sides in order to tighten its grip on the straits. The rise of Aceh encouraged the Portuguese and Johor to sign a truce and divert their attention to Aceh. The truce, however, was short-lived and with Aceh severely weakened, Johor and the Portuguese had each other in their sights again.
During the triangular war, within the Johor empire, Jambi emerged as a regional economic and political power. Soon in 1666, it tried to break free from Johor and between 1666 and 1673, a civil war erupted between Johor and the Sumatran state. The war was disastrous for Johor as Johor's capital, Batu Sawar, was sacked by Jambi. After the sack, the capital of Johor was frequently moved to avoid the threat of attack from Jambi.
In their efforts to keep the sultanate together, the ruler's shifted their centre of power many times from Pekan Tua to Johor Lama (Kota Batu), Seluyut, Tanah Puteh, Batu Sawar and Makam Tauhid during the reign of Sultan Abdul Jalil Shah III (1623-1677). Johor emerged as the most powerful authority along the Straits of Malacca during the reign of Sultan Abdul Jalil Shah III.
Throughout the decade, Jambi continued to exert extraordinary influence on Johor. In 1679 however, Laksamana Tun Abdul Jalil paid Bugis mercenaries to fight alongside Johor against Jambi. Soon afterward, Jambi was brought to its knees.
I am not going to list the ENTIRE history of the Portuguese invasion of Malaya, but I am going to concentrate information which I think is significant enough to the relationship between Portugal and Malaya, seeing as Malacca was not the only state that was colonised even though it was the first.
All information gleaned is from Wikipedia. I'll be editing it later for condensation and clarity.
Portuguese Colonisation of Southeast Asia and the spice trade
In April 1511 Albuquerque sailed to Malacca in Malaysia, the most important east point in the trade network where Malay met Gujarati, Chinese, Japanese, Javanese, Bengali, Persian and Arabic traders, among others, described by Tomé Pires as of invaluable richness.
The peninsula of Malacca became then the strategic base for Portuguese trade expansion with China and Southeast Asia, under the Portuguese rule with its capital at Goa. To defend the city was erected a strong gate which, called the "A Famosa", still remains. Aware of Siamese ambitions over Malacca, Albuquerque immediately sent Duarte Fernandes on a diplomatic mission to the kingdom of Siam (modern Thailand), where he was the first European to arrive, establishing amicable relations between both kingdoms. In November that year, getting to know the location of the so-called "Spice Islands" in the Moluccas, he sent an expedition led by António de Abreu to find them, arriving in early 1512. Abreu went by Ambon while deputy commander Francisco Serrão came forward to Ternate, where a Portuguese fort was allowed. That same year, in Indonesia, the Portuguese took Makassar, reaching Timor in 1514.
Departing from Malacca, Jorge Álvares came to southern China in 1513. This visit was followed the arrival in Guangzhou, where trade was established and later would be established Macau trade post.
Invading Malacca
In 1509, Diogo Lopes de Sequeira was sent to Malacca by the king of Portugal with four ships in order to establish contact with the Sultanate of Malacca. Initially, Sequeira was well received by the Sultan Mahmud Syah (1488-1528). Soon however, the Muslim community convinced Mahmud Syah that the Portuguese should be eliminated. Several men were captured and killed, but the ships escaped.
...
Albuquerque then built a fort to strengthen the Portuguese position, the Fort A Famosa, remains of which are still visible to this day. He also dispatched some ships to the "Spice Islands". Albuquerque returned to Cochin in January 1512.
Johor
The new sultan established a new capital by the Johor River and from there, continued to harass the Portuguese in the north. He consistently worked together with his brother in Perak and the sultan of Pahang to retake Malacca, which by this time was protected by the fort A Famosa.
On the northern part of Sumatra around the same period, Aceh was beginning to gain substantial influence over the Straits of Malacca. With the fall of Malacca to Christians' hands, Muslim traders often skipped Malacca in favor of Aceh. Therefore, Malacca and Aceh became direct competitors.
With the Portuguese and Johor frequently locking horns, Aceh launched multiple raids against both sides in order to tighten its grip on the straits. The rise of Aceh encouraged the Portuguese and Johor to sign a truce and divert their attention to Aceh. The truce, however, was short-lived and with Aceh severely weakened, Johor and the Portuguese had each other in their sights again.
During the triangular war, within the Johor empire, Jambi emerged as a regional economic and political power. Soon in 1666, it tried to break free from Johor and between 1666 and 1673, a civil war erupted between Johor and the Sumatran state. The war was disastrous for Johor as Johor's capital, Batu Sawar, was sacked by Jambi. After the sack, the capital of Johor was frequently moved to avoid the threat of attack from Jambi.
In their efforts to keep the sultanate together, the ruler's shifted their centre of power many times from Pekan Tua to Johor Lama (Kota Batu), Seluyut, Tanah Puteh, Batu Sawar and Makam Tauhid during the reign of Sultan Abdul Jalil Shah III (1623-1677). Johor emerged as the most powerful authority along the Straits of Malacca during the reign of Sultan Abdul Jalil Shah III.
Throughout the decade, Jambi continued to exert extraordinary influence on Johor. In 1679 however, Laksamana Tun Abdul Jalil paid Bugis mercenaries to fight alongside Johor against Jambi. Soon afterward, Jambi was brought to its knees.