At the
time of the Portuguese arrival in the Asian seas, Malacca, thanks to its strategic
position on the strait bearing the same name, was a remarkable trading center for the
trade and shunting of spices. At that time, Malacca was ruled by a Muslim Sultanate.
The town extended its influence over a vast territory, which included the whole Malaya
Peninsula.
Its port was frequented by a multitude of ships and merchants from all the Asian nations
of the time: Arabia, Persia, China, India, Japan, Indonesia, Ceylon, and Bengal. In it
were gathered and sold all the Asian spices: pepper, cloves, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg,
etc.
After their arrival in India, the Portuguese soon became
aware of the importance of the city. An expedition sailed to Malacca in 1509 but failed,
and many of the Portuguese were captured and imprisoned by the Sultan.
In 1511, the ViceRoy of India, Afonso de Albuquerque, decided to organize an expedition
destined to conquer Malacca. At the head of 1.100 - 1.200 men and 14 ships, Afonso de
Albuquerque arrived in view of Malacca in June of 1511 and immediately demanded the rescue
of the Portuguese that were taken prisoners in the 1509 expedition. The Sultan tried to
gain time to strengthen the town defenses. He was well aware of the small number of
Portuguese troops and was confident on his powerful army of 20.000 men and 2.000 guns.
Albuquerque
wasted no time. At down of 25 July 1511 the Portuguese attacked the town concentrating the
assault on the bridge on the river dividing the town. After a fierce battle the bridge was
conquered by the Portuguese, but at nightfall they were forced to retreat.
After some days of preparations, on 10 August 1511, the Portuguese renewed the attack.
Albuquerque had the assistance of some Chinese junks that were anchored in the port. The
use of a junk offered by the Chinese merchants was decisive, as this junk was used as a
bridgehead. This time the attack was successful and the Portuguese finally succeeded in
establishing a bridgehead in the town.
There were then several days of siege in which the Portuguese bombarded the city. On 24
August 1511 the Portuguese again attacked only to discover that the Sultan had escaped.
With Malacca was now in Portuguese hands, they sacked the town, but following
Albuquerque’s orders, they respected the property of those who sided with them.
B. W. Diffie and G. D. Winius in the book "Foundations of the Portuguese Empire
1415-1580" write: "the capture of Asia's greatest trading city by a mere 900
Portuguese and 200 Indians must rank as an event in the history of European expansion no
less stunning than the better known conquest of Tenochtitlan by Hernando Cortés".
The gate to Albuquerque’s fortress "A Famosa".
Here, the Vice Roy ordered the erection of a large stone monument inscribed with the names
of the men having taken part in the exploit.
MALACCA A PORTUGUESE TOWN
Malacca was one of the three key-points, with Goa and Hormuz, which gave Portugal the
control over the main Asiatic trade routes.
After the conquest, Albuquerque immediately ordered the building of a fortress on the
south side of the river. This fortress was called "A Famosa" and it was finished
in November 1511. Ruy de Brito Patalim was appointed Captain of the "Fortaleza de
Malacca" and about 500 Portuguese soldiers were left as garrison.
Shortly thereafter, Albuquerque prepared the ships for the return with the Malacca’s
booty. However, during the return voyage to Goa his ship "Flor do Mar" sank
during a storm and all the treasures fetched in Malacca’s were lost.
Several Florentine merchants took part in the Portuguese enterprises in Asia. Amongst
them, Giovanni da Empoli, was present in Malacca during the siege and the conquest. He
described his experiences in an interesting letter to his father.
After the conquest of Malacca, Portugal’s policy in the
Malaya Peninsula was either to establish alliances with local rulers or to convince the
adjoining Kingdoms to accept Portuguese suzerainty.
From his base at Johore, the old Sultan of Malacca repeatedly attacked Malacca in 1517,
1520, 1521 and in 1525. At last, in 1583, a peace treaty was signed.
Malacca was repeatedly under siege in 1550, 1567, 1571 and the main enemies were Johore
and Atjeh (in Sumatra).
In Malacca, Albuquerque established a new administration, minted a new currency and built
a wooden chapel close to the fortress.
Adjoining the fortress, a stone church dedicated to "Nossa Senhora da Anunciada"
was erected in 1521, and later to "Nossa Senhora da Assumpção". On 4 February
1558 this church was consecrated as a Cathedral.
Many Portuguese "Casados", mostly artisans, merchants or farmers, settled in
Malacca.
In 1532, the Confraria da Misericórdia was founded and a beautiful wooden hospital for
the poor was also built. The church also started a school.
Active missionary work began in 1545 with the arrival of St. Francisco Xavier.
In 1552 was set up the "Camara" (Municipal Council) of Malacca.
In 1602-1603 the Dutch blockaded Malacca by sea, but
this was only a first timid attempt.
In 1606 Johore and the Dutch concluded an alliance against the Portuguese and in 1607 they
set again the town under siege. Reinforcements from Goa aborted the attempt.
Eredia estimated that the Christian population in Malacca in 1613 was around 7.400. There
were eight parishes in the town.
In 1629 Atjeh made a new great effort, but this time again the Portuguese were victorious.
The Dutch made several fruitless attempts between 1623 and 1627, and in 1633 a blockade
was set up.
The last siege of Portuguese Malacca begun in June 1640 when a combined Dutch-Johore fleet
of 1.500 Dutchmen, 1.500 Malays, 12 Dutch ships, 6 sloops and 40 Johore vessels was sight
off the Malacca port. The siege was extremely hard and nearly 1.500 Dutchmen lost theirs
lives. After five months of siege, the Portuguese defenders were without gunpowder and
with a severe scarcity of food. Despite the difficulties, under the command of Dom Manuel
de Sousa Coutinho, which was sick, they were able to hold out the siege. At the time of
the Dutch attack in June 1640, there was, in Malacca, a garrison of about 50 Portuguese
soldiers, more than 300 Portuguese "Casados" with their families and 2.000 or
3.000 Mestiços and Native inhabitants.
On 14 January 1641, Dutch commander Willmsoon Kartekoe ordered the last desperate assault.
The Portuguese defenders made a fierce final resistance in the Fortaleza Velha and the
Dutch were finally driven back.
Detail of the
gate of "A Famosa" where the Portuguese made the last attempt to resist the
Dutch attack.
In
desperation, the Dutch commander offered to the Portuguese honourable terms of surrender.
The brave (and dying) Portuguese commander accepted the generous terms. Dying two days
later, he was buried by the Dutch with military honours in the church of São Domingo.
The city of Malacca was thus in Portuguese hands from 24 August 1511 till 14 January 1641.
Bibliography:
- Fernandis, Gerard "Save our Portuguese heritage conference 95 Malacca,
Malaysia"
103 pp. Gerard Fernandis, 1995, Malacca, Malaysia.
More info about this book click here.
A very interesting book on the Portuguese heritage and history in Malacca.
- Irwin, G. W. "Melaka fort"
In "Melaka-The Transformation of a Malay Capital c. 1400-1980" Vol. one Edited
by Kernial Singh Sandhu, Paul Wheatley. p. 195-241.
The history of the fort of Malacca during the Portuguese and Dutch time.
- Leupe, P.A. "The seige and capture of Malacca from the Portuguese in
1640-1641"
JMBRAS vol, 14, pt. 1 (1936) pp 1-176.
The occupation of the straits of Malacca 1636-1639, the siege and the capture of Malacca
1640-1641, commissary Justus Schouten's report of his visit to Malacca 1641.
- Noonan, L. "The Portuguese in Malacca: a study of the first major european impact
on East Asia"
In: "Studia" N° 23 April, pp. 33-104 Centro de Estudos Historicos Ultramarinos,
1968, Lisbon, Portugal.
Very interesting.
The coming of the Portuguese, Portuguese rule in Malacca, Malacca's role in Portuguese
colonial strategy, Portuguese-Asian relations in Malacca, the end of Portuguese rule.
- O'Neill, Brian Juan " A tripla identidade dos portugueses de Malaca"
In: "Oceanos" n° 32 Outubro - Dezembro 1997, pp. 63-83
- Sandhu K. and Wheatley P. " Melaka; The Transformation of a Malay Capital c1400 -
1980" ?
816 + 784 pp. 2 volumes, illustrated throughout OUP / Institute of Southeast Asian
Studies, 1983, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
A complete study on Malacca town from the beginning till today, with a bibliography of
Melaka studies.
- Silva Rego, Padre Antonio da "A Comunidade Luso-Malaia de Malaca e Singapura "
In: Actas do V Colóquio Internacional de Estudos Luso-Brasileiros, vol. I, Coimbra, 1964,
pp. 507-512.
Also in: Silva Rego, Padre Antonio da "Dialecto Portugues de Malaca e outros
escritos" 304 pp. (Cadernos Ásia) CNCDP, 1998, Lisboa, Portugal.
- Silva Rego, Padre Antonio da "A Cultura Portuguesa na Malaia e em Singapura "
Comunicaçao apresentata a reuniao conjunta da Academia Internacional da Cultura
Portuguesa e do Conselho Geral da Uniao das Comunitades de Cultura Portuguesa, 28 May
1968.
Also in: Silva Rego, Padre Antonio da "Dialecto Portugues de Malaca e outros
escritos" 304 pp. (Cadernos Ásia) CNCDP, 1998, Lisboa, Portugal.
- Sousa Pinto, P. J. de "Portugueses e Malaios: Malaca e os Sultanatos de Johor e
Achém 1575-1619"
334 pp. maps, Fundaçao Oriente, 1997, Lisbon, Portugal.
Malaca e o Estado da India: enquadramento economico, quadro politico militar; Malaca e a
geopolitica dos estreitos 1575-1619, Portugueses e Malaios, a cidade de Malaca.
- Sousa Pinto, P. J. de "Capitaes e casados: um retrato de Malaca nos finais do
seculo XVI"
In: "Oceanos" n° 32 Outubro - Dezembro 1997, pp. 45-60
- Sta Maria, Bernard "My people, my country. The story of the Malacca Portuguese
community" ?
236pp. Malacca Portuguese Development Centre, 1982, Malacca, Malaysia.
Draws attention to role of lay groups in keeping the faith particularly during the Dutch
period.
- Sta Maria, Joseph "Where do we go from here ?"
89 pp. Joseph Sta Maria , 1991, Malacca, Malaysia.
- Subrahmanyam, Sanjay "Commerce and conflict: two views of Portuguese Melaka in the
1620s" ?
In: Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, n° 19(1), March 1988, pp.62-79.
- Teixeira, Manuel "The Portuguese missions in Malacca and Singapore
(1511-1958)" ?
3 vols. Agência Geral do Ultramar, 1961, 1963, Lisbon, Portugal.
- Thomaz, Luís Filipe Ferreira Reis "Early Portuguese Malacca"
196 pp. CTMCDP - IPM, 1998, Macau
From: Thesis "Os Portugueses em Malaca: 1511-1580" Faculdade de Letras da
Universidade de Lisboa, 218 pp. maps 2 voll. 1964, Lisboa.
This volume comprises three essays on the city of Malacca and its society, during the
first decades of Portuguese rule.
- Thomaz, Luis Filipe Ferreira Reis "The Indian merchant communities in Malacca under
the Portuguese rule" ?
In: Souza, T. R. de (ed., ) "Indo-Portuguese History: Old issues, new questions"
Concept, New Delhi, 1985, pp.56-72.
Malacca 1630s. from
the "Livro das Plantas das Fortalezas, Cidades e Povoaçoes do Estado da India
Oriental" 1600s.
The
descendants of the Portuguese of Malacca still today speak Creole Portuguese (Papia
Kristang), they are Christians and have Portuguese surnames.
The Eurasian community has 12.000 members in the Malaya Peninsula.
ILHA
DAS NAUS: the first line of defence at sea of the fort of Malacca
The Portuguese called Ilha das Naus (Pulau Java or Pulau Melaka) a small island outside
the harbour of Malacca.
In 1606/1615 the Portuguese stationed a battery on this island. On the Ilha das Naus
the Portuguese planned a fort 60 feet square. As late as 1638, however, only the
foundations of the Ilha das Naus fort had been laid, and its walls were still not finished
when the Dutch invasion force sailed into Malacca Harbour two years later. For this
reason, the Portuguese, in 1640, had to abandon their partly finished fort without a shot
being fired.
Shortly afterwards the conquest of Malacca, the Dutch, completed the Portuguese fort on
the Ilha das Naus (called by them Red Island).
MUAR:
a Portuguese fort in Malay Peninsula
The Portuguese had a second fort in Malay Peninsula, this fort was in Muar, and it now
vanished.
Was built by Eredia in 1604 at the mouth of the Muar river. The fort was triangular with
round ramparts.
An old map of
the Portuguese fort in Muar.
PACEM-PASSUMAH:
a Portuguese fort in Sumatra
The actual name should be Pueek ( 05.09N -97.13E ).
The fort was built in 1520/21, and its life was short, Gaspar Correia is positive (Lendas
da India,Tomo II ,Parte II ,pp.795 : "...e puserão fogo á fortalesa,que tudo foy
feito em cinza: o que foy em Maio de 1524."
The fort , was square with a wooden "tranqueira" (palisade) and was built near
the seashore.
