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AL FORMOSA Melacca 02

AL FORMOSA Melacca 02

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32 views3 pages

AL FORMOSA Melacca 02

AL FORMOSA Melacca 02

Uploaded by

pesa77
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
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History

[edit]
Main articles: Capture of Malacca (1511), Portuguese Malacca, and Dutch Malacca
In 1511, a Portuguese fleet arrived under the command of Afonso de Albuquerque.
His forces attacked and defeated the armies of the Malacca Sultanate. Moving
quickly to consolidate his gains, Albuquerque had the fortress built around a natural
hill near the sea. Albuquerque believed that Malacca would become an important
port linking Portugal to the Spice Route in China. At this time other Portuguese were
establishing outposts in such places as Macau, China and Goa, India to create a
string of friendly ports for ships heading to Ming China and returning home
to Portugal.

Hundreds of slaves were used to build this fort.[4] Its materials included using the
rubble of destroyed Malaccan mosques and tombs. The fortress once consisted of
long ramparts and four major towers. One of the towers was a 60-m tall four-
storey keep, known as A Famosa ('The Famous'), which was the tallest building in
the region from 1512 until it was destroyed by the Dutch in 1641.[5] Other parts of the
fortress included an ammunition storage room, the residence of the captain, and an
officers' quarters. There were also town houses inside the fortress walls. As
Malacca's population expanded it outgrew the original fort and extensions were
added around 1586.

The fort changed hands in 1641 when the Dutch drove the Portuguese out of
Malacca.[6] The Dutch renovated the gate in 1670, which explains the logo "ANNO
1670" inscribed on the gate's arch. Above the arch is a bas-relief logo of the Dutch
East India Company.

The fortress changed hands again in the late 18th century when the Dutch handed it
over to the British to prevent it from falling into the hands of Napoleon's
expansionist France. The English were wary of maintaining the fortification and
ordered its destruction in 1806. The fort was almost totally demolished but for the
timely intervention of Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore, who
was sent on sick leave from Penang to Malacca in 1807. It was Captain William
Farquhar, tasked with the destruction of the fort and town, who decided to save two
of the gateways to the fort,[citation needed] including the Santiago Gate, as well as the
Stadthuys, church and jail.

Partial restoration
[edit]
In late November 2006, a part of the fort, believed to be the Middelburg Bastion, was
accidentally uncovered during the construction of 110 meter revolving tower in
Malacca Town.[7] The construction of the tower was ceased and its site was
subsequently shifted to the popular district of Bandar Hilir on Jalan Merdeka where it
was officially opened to the public on 18 April 2008. Malacca Museums Corporation
suspects the structure was built by the Dutch during the Dutch occupation of
Malacca from 1641 to 1824. Earlier in June 2004, a watchtower named Santiago
Bastion was discovered during the construction of Dataran Pahlawan.[8] In 2006-
2007 the Middelburg Bastion was restored.[9]
Gallery
[edit]

Malacca including the tower of the A Famosa fortress (1550–1563)

The town and fortress of Malacca (1780)

Reconstruction of watchtower on top of the unearthed remains

Malacca sanitary sewer line ruin

Malacca Fortress

View of the fortress during 1860s to 1900


References
[edit]

1. ^ "Where's Malaysia? Exhibition". Bank Negara Malaysia. Archived from the


original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2021. Fortresse de
Malacca, better known as A Famosa, is a Portuguese fortress located in
Malacca, Malaysia. It is among the oldest surviving European architectural
remains in Asia. The Porta de Santiago, a small gate house, is the only
remaining part of the fortress still standing.
2. ^ Bremner, M. J.; Blagden, C. O. (1927). "Report of Governor Balthasar Bort
on Malacca 1678". Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic
Society. 5 (1 (99)): 1–232. ISSN 2304-7550.
3. ^ A Famosa. Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 31 May 2023
4. ^ "Kota A Famosa". Malaysia National Archives. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
5. ^ Macgregor, Ian (1955). "The Portuguese in Malaya". Journal of the
Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 28 (2). Retrieved 15
September 2020.
6. ^ Borschberg, Peter., “Ethnicity, Language and Culture in Melaka during the
Transition from Portuguese to Dutch Rule”, Journal of the Malaysian Branch
of the Royal Asiatic Society, 83.2, (2010): 93-117; Borschberg, P., The
Singapore and Melaka Straits: Violence, Security and Diplomacy in the 17th
Century (Singapore: NUS Press, 2010).
7. ^ Lee, Cynthia. New Straits Times. Excavation for Malacca tower project
unearths ruins of Dutch fort[permanent dead link]. 1 December 2006
8. ^ The Star. Old watchtower may be under site. 4 December 2006.
9. ^ Weebers, R.C.; Ahmad, Y. (2014). "Interpretation of Simon Stevin's ideas
on the Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie (United East Indies Company)
settlement of Malacca" (PDF). Planning Perspectives. 29 (4): 543–555.
Retrieved 16 September 2020.

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