History of Malacca
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| A'Famosa at Malacca |
Malacca rose from a humble fishing village
to become a major center of the spice trade forming a vital link between
the East and the West. Melaka (Malacca) is rich with history. In fact,
the earliest written records of the country made reference to the
Malacca Peninsula, instead of the Malay Peninsula or Malaya. Since it's
founding, circa 1400, by a fleeing Sumatra prince, Parameswara. The
journey which Parameswara made during his flight to escape the wrath of
the Emperor of Majapahit whom he had unsuccessfully tried to overthrown.
At the height of its power, the Sultanate of Malacca extended its
borders over the whole of peninsula to encompass Pantani in the North
and on the west right into the neighboring island of Sumatra to included
Aru, Rokan, Siak, Kampar and Inderagiri. This was during the mid-1400s.
The Golden Age of the Malacca Sultanate unfortunately lasted only for
less then a century.
In 1511, the first of
many foreign invasions of Malacca took place when the Portuguese
arrived. The Portuguese were determined to control the East-West trade;
so Malacca still retained its importance as a trade center until 1641
when the Portuguese surrendered Malacca to the Dutch. The Dutch who had
a stronger foothold over the Indonesia archipelago swung the trade
center over to Sumatra. In the meantime, Malacca's trade also declined
due to the silting of its port. In 1795 Melaka (Malacca) was given to
the British to prevent it form falling to the hands of the French, where
the Netherlands was captured during the French Revolution. By the time
British took over in 1824, the focus of the trade has shifted from
Malacca to Singapore and Penang. Malacca however becomes the focal again
during the struggle for independence after the Japanese Occupation
during the Second World War and the British Colonial period that
followed. So when Malaya gained its independence, it was only fitting
that the Declaration of Independence was proclaimed in Malacca, where it
all began. In 1989, Malacca has been declared as Malaysia's history
city.
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