The Strait of Malacca

For centuries, ports along the coasts have been more than transshipment sites for goods; they are also places of interaction between people from foreign cultures. The chequered history of the Strait of Malacca and the city-state of Singapore illustrate how maritime transportation has influenced the development of a coastal region in the course of history. The Strait of Malacca is the shortest shipping route between the Far East and the Indian Ocean. Ships have passed through it for centuries, and trading posts grew up from an early stage, which simultaneously became centres of education, science and art. People with different religious backgrounds – Hindu monks, Christian priests, Muslim scholars – from many regions of the world met here. There was lively exchange about navigation techniques and the art of shipbuilding.

An important trading and knowledge centre from the seventh into the thirteenth century was the Buddhist maritime and trading empire ¬Srivijaya, which encompassed parts of the island of Sumatra and the Malayan peninsula as well as the western part of the island of Java. At that time Srivijaya controlled commercial shipping through the Strait of Malacca. The state disintegrated in wars from the end of the thirteenth century, and two important power centres emerged: first Malacca in the fifteenth century, and later Aceh (in northern Sumatra) and Johor (in present-day Malaysia) at the beginning of the sixteenth century. Whereas Aceh was primarily an important Muslim centre of commerce, Johor grew in importance because of the tin mines located in its hinterland and the valuable pepper that was cultivated. The seaport town of Malacca was used mainly by Muslim merchants as a major transshipment port on the route between India and China. In 1511 it was conquered by the Portuguese, not least to weaken the Muslim dominance of shipping in the re-gion. But despite the conquest, the Muslim merchants remained influential in the region, for ultimately they brought fresh impetus to Aceh which remained Muslim-dominated. The seaport of Malacca then deve¬loped into an important centre for European mariners. Various European nations attempted to bring Malacca under their own control by means of blockades and attacks. For instance, the Dutch initially blockaded the seaport of Malacca in 1640 with the aim of cutting off the town’s cargo flows and weakening the influence of the Portuguese. In 1641 they finally captured the town and expanded their territorial power from there. In the following years they took over other seaports in the region, including Aceh, and sporadically diminished the influence of Muslim merchants.

The new major rivals were now British merchants. In 1786 they es¬tablished the port of George Town in Penang on the northwest coast of the Malaysian peninsula. It was later expanded to become a main transshipment port for the British East India Company. To avert conflicts, in 1824 the two powers agreed to divide up the South East Asian region between them. The Netherlands ceded to Great Britain all property rights northward along the Strait of Malacca, and in return received the areas south of the Strait, including some British territory.

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