History of malaysia

Malaccan Sultanate

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Establishment

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The port of Malacca on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula was founded in 1400 by Parameswara, a Srivijayan prince fleeing Temasek (now Singapore),[41] Parameswara in particular sailed to Temasek to escape persecution. There he came under the protection of Temagi, a Malay chief from Patani who was appointed by the king of Siam as regent of Temasek. Within a few days, Parameswara killed Temagi and appointed himself regent. Some five years later he had to leave Temasek, due to threats from Siam. During this period, a Javanese fleet from Majapahit attacked Temasek.[citation needed]

Parameswara headed north to find a new settlement. At Muar, Parameswara considered siting his new kingdom at either Biawak Busuk or Kota Buruk. Finding that the Muar location was not suitable, he continued his journey northwards. Along the way, he reportedly visited Sening Ujong (former name of present-day Sungai Ujong) before reaching a fishing village at the mouth of the Bertam River (former name of the Melaka River) and founded what would become the Malacca Sultanate. Over time this developed into modern-day Malacca Town. According to the Malay Annals, here Parameswara saw a mouse deer outwitting a dog resting under a Malacca tree. Taking this as a good omen, he decided to establish a kingdom called Malacca. He built and improved facilities for trade. The Malacca Sultanate is commonly considered the first independent state in the peninsula.[72]

The Zheng He monument, today, marks his stopover at the city.[73]

In 1404, the first official Chinese trade envoy led by Admiral Yin Qing arrived in Malacca. Later, Parameswara was escorted by Zheng He and other envoys on his successful visits. Malacca's relationships with Ming granted protection to Malacca against attacks from Siam and Majapahit and Malacca officially submitted as a protectorate of Ming China. This encouraged the development of Malacca into a major trade settlement on the trade route between China and India, the Middle East, Africa and Europe.[74] To prevent the Malaccan empire from falling to the Siamese and Majapahit, he forged a relationship with the Ming dynasty of China for protection.[75][76] Following the establishment of this relationship, the prosperity of the Malacca entrepôt was then recorded by the first Chinese visitor, Ma Huan, who travelled together with Admiral Zheng He.[77][73] In Malacca during the early 15th century, Ming China actively sought to develop a commercial hub and a base of operation for their treasure voyages into the Indian Ocean.[78] Malacca had been a relatively insignificant region, not even qualifying as a polity prior to the voyages according to both Ma Huan and Fei Xin, and was a vassal region of Siam.[78] In 1405, the Ming court dispatched Admiral Zheng He with a stone tablet enfeoffing the Western Mountain of Malacca as well as an imperial order elevating the status of the port to a country.[78] The Chinese also established a government depot (官廠) as a fortified cantonment for their soldiers.[78] Ma Huan reported that Siam did not dare to invade Malacca thereafter.[78] The rulers of Malacca, such as Parameswara in 1411, would pay tribute to the Chinese emperor in person.[78]

The emperor of Ming dynasty China was sending out fleets of ships to expand trade. Admiral Zheng He called at Malacca and brought Parameswara with him on his return to China, a recognition of his position as the legitimate ruler of Malacca. In exchange for regular tribute, the Chinese emperor offered Melaka protection from the constant threat of a Siamese attack. Because of its strategic location, Malacca was an important stopping point for Zheng He's fleet.[79] Due to Chinese involvement, Malacca had grown as a key alternative to other important and established ports.[a] The Chinese and Indians who settled in the Malay Peninsula before and during this period are the ancestors of today's Baba-Nyonya and Chitty communities. According to one theory, Parameswara became a Muslim when he married a Princess of Pasai and he took the fashionable Persian title "Shah", calling himself Iskandar Shah.[76] Chinese chronicles mention that in 1414, the son of the first ruler of Malacca visited the Ming emperor to inform them that his father had died. Parameswara's son was then officially recognised as the second ruler of Melaka by the Chinese Emperor and styled Raja Sri Rama Vikrama, Raja of Parameswara of Temasek and Malacca and he was known to his Muslim subjects as Sultan Sri Iskandar Zulkarnain Shah (Megat Iskandar Shah). He ruled Malacca from 1414 to 1424.[80] Through the influence of Indian Muslims and, to a lesser extent, Hui people from China, Islam became increasingly common during the 15th century.

Rise of Malacca

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The extent of the Malaccan Empire in the 15th century became the main point for the spreading of Islam in the Malay Archipelago.

After an initial period paying tribute to the Ayutthaya,[41] the kingdom rapidly assumed the place previously held by Srivijaya, establishing independent relations with China, and exploiting its position dominating the Straits to control the China-India maritime trade, which became increasingly important when the Mongol conquests closed the overland route between China and the west.

Within a few years of its establishment, Malacca officially adopted Islam. Parameswara became a Muslim, and because Malacca was under a Muslim prince, the conversion of Malays to Islam accelerated in the 15th century.[54] The political power of the Malacca Sultanate helped Islam's rapid spread through the archipelago. Malacca was an important commercial centre during this time, attracting trade from around the region.[54] By the start of the 16th century, with the Malacca Sultanate in the Malay peninsula and parts of Sumatra,[81] the Demak Sultanate in Java,[82] and other kingdoms around the Malay archipelago increasingly converting to Islam,[83] it had become the dominant religion among Malays, and reached as far as the modern-day Philippines, leaving Bali as an isolated outpost of Hinduism today. The government in Malacca was based on the feudal system.[84]

Malacca's reign lasted little more than a century, but during this time became the established centre of Malay culture. Most future Malay states originated from this period.[71] Malacca became a cultural centre, creating the matrix of the modern Malay culture: a blend of indigenous Malay and imported Indian, Chinese and Islamic elements. Malacca's fashions in literature, art, music, dance and dress, and the ornate titles of its royal court, came to be seen as the standard for all ethnic Malays. The court of Malacca also gave great prestige to the Malay language, which had originally evolved in Sumatra and been brought to Malacca at the time of its foundation. In time Malay came to be the official language of all the Malaysian states, although local languages survived in many places. After the fall of Malacca, the Sultanate of Brunei became the major centre of Islam.[85][86]

16th–17th century politics in Malaya

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From the 15th century onwards, the Portuguese started seeking a maritime route towards Asia. In 1511, Afonso de Albuquerque led an expedition to Malaya which seized Malacca with the intent of using it as a base for activities in Southeast Asia.[41] This was the first colonial claim on what is now Malaysia.[54] The son of the last Sultan of Malacca, Alauddin Riayat Shah II fled to the southern tip of the peninsula, where he founded a state that which became the Sultanate of Johor in 1528.[41] Another son established the Perak Sultanate to the north. By the late 16th century, the tin mines of northern Malaya had been discovered by European traders, and Perak grew wealthy on the proceeds of tin exports.[55] Portuguese influence was strong, as they aggressively tried to convert the population of Malacca to Catholicism.[41] In 1571, the Spanish captured Manila and established a colony in the Philippines, reducing the Sultanate of Brunei's power.[86]

Dutch fleet vs Portuguese armada

The Dutch fleet battling with the Portuguese armada as part of the Dutch–Portuguese War in 1606 to gain control of Malacca

After the fall of Malacca to Portugal, the Johor Sultanate on the southern Malay peninsula and the Sultanate of Aceh on northern Sumatra moved to fill the power vacuum left behind.[41] The three powers struggled to dominate the Malay peninsula and the surrounding islands.[55] Meanwhile, the importance of the Strait of Malacca as an east–west shipping route was growing, while the islands of Southeast Asia were themselves prized sources of natural resources (metals, spices, etc.) whose inhabitants were being further drawn in the global economy.

In 1607, the Sultanate of Aceh rose as the most powerful and wealthiest state in the Malay archipelago. Under Sultan Iskandar Muda's reign, the sultanate's control was extended over a number of Malay states. A notable conquest was Perak, a tin-producing state on the Peninsula.[55] During the Battle of Duyon River, Iskandar Muda's disastrous campaign against Malacca in 1629, the combined Portuguese and Johor forces managed to destroy all the ships of his formidable fleet and 19,000 troops according to a Portuguese account.[87] Aceh forces were not destroyed, however, as Aceh was able to conquer Kedah within the same year and took many of its citizens to Aceh. The sultan's son-in-law, Iskandar Thani, the former prince of Pahang later became Iskandar Muda's successor.

In the early 17th century, the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, or VOC) was established. During this time the Dutch were at war with Spain. Backed by the Dutch, Johor established a loose hegemony over the Malay states, except Perak, which was able to play-off Johor against the Siamese to the north and retain its independence.[88] The Dutch did not interfere in local matters in Malacca, but at the same time diverted most trade to its colonies on Java.[41]

Johor Sultanate

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Johor was part of the Malaccan Sultanate before the Portuguese conquered the port town of Malacca in 1511. At its height, the sultanate controlled modern-day Johor, several territories by the Klang and Linggi rivers, Singapore, Bintan, Riau, Lingga, Karimun, Bengkalis, Kampar and Siak in Sumatra.[89] The Portuguese and Johor were frequently in conflict in the 16th century, most notable of their conflicts was the 1587 siege of Johor. During the Triangular war, Aceh launched multiple raids against both Johor and Portuguese forces to tighten its grip over the straits. The rise and expansion of Aceh encouraged the Portuguese and Johor to sign a truce to 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 rule of Iskandar Muda, Aceh attacked Johor in 1613 and again in 1615.[90]

In the early 17th century, the Dutch reached Southeast Asia. At that time the Dutch were at war with the Portuguese and allied themselves to Johor. Two treaties were signed by Admiral Cornelis Matelief de Jonge on behalf of the Dutch Estates General and Raja Bongsu (Raja Seberang) of Johor in May and September 1606.[91] The combined Johor-Dutch forces ultimately failed to capture Malacca in 1606. Finally in 1641, the Dutch and Johor headed by Bendahara Skudai, defeated the Portuguese in the Battle of Malacca. The Dutch took control of Malacca and agreed not to seek territories or wage war with Johor. By the time the fortress at Malacca surrendered, the town's population had already been greatly decimated by famine and disease.[92]

With the fall of Portuguese Malacca in 1641 and the decline of Aceh due to the growing power of the Dutch, Johor started to re-establish itself as a power along the Straits of Malacca during the reign of Sultan Abdul Jalil Shah III (1623–1677).[93] Jambi emerged as a regional economic and political power in Sumatra. Initially there was an attempt of an alliance between Johor and Jambi by way of a promised marriage. However, the alliance broke down and the Johor-Jambi war (1666–1679) ensued between Johor and the Sumatran state. After the sacking of Batu Sawar in 1673, the capital of Johor was frequently moved to avoid the threat of attack from Jambi.[94] The sultan escaped to Pahang and died four years later. His successor, Sultan Ibrahim Shah (1677–1685), then engaged the help of the Bugis in the fight to defeat Jambi.[95] Johor would eventually prevail in 1679, but also ended in a weakened position as the Bugis refused to return to Makassar where they came from. On top of this, the Minangkabaus of Sumatra also started to assert their influence