Malacca History and Attraction

Melaka or  Malacca, known as the historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among residents, Melaka is the third smallest state of Malaysia after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of Peninsular Malaysia, on the Strait of Melaka. Melaka was surrounding by Negeri Sembilan in the north and the state of Johor in the south. The state 's capital is the city of Malacca. Malacca has been classified as a World Heritage site by UNESCO since the 7th July 2008 together with George Town. Although Malacca was once one of the oldest Malay sultanates, the state has no Sultan today. Instead, the head of State is the Yang di-Pertua Negeri or Governor.

The state of Malacca covers an area of 1,650-feet. km. or 0.5 percent of the entire area of Malaysia. The state is divided into 3 districts, which is central Malacca (Melaka Tengah covering 314 sq-km), Alor Gajah covering 660 sq-km and Jasin 676 covering sq-km. Malacca is located on the southwest coast of the Malaysia peninsula across from Sumatra, the state of Negeri Sembilan to the north and Johor in the east. Malacca is also located about two-thirds of the descente the West Coast, 148 km south of Kuala Lumpur or about 1 1/2 hour driving using PLUS Highway, the capital of Malaysia and 245 km north of Singapore and the basis of a central position on the Strait of Malacca. The capital city of Malacca is strategically located between the two national capitals (of Malaysia and Singapore respectively), and is linked with excellent roads and highways. Malacca is still having its own train station, even if the terminal Tampin, Negeri Sembilan is easily accessible. It has a terminal National Airport located in Batu Berendam.

The offshore Pulau Besar, Pulau Upeh and Tanjung Tuan are also parts of Melaka.

Malacca has a population of 759,000 in 2007, Malay 57%, Chinese 32% including the Peranakan community, Indians including Chitty people, Kristang, people with partial Portuguese descent: a small community.

Big cities are Malacca Town, Alor Gajah, Masjid Tanah, Jasin, Merlimau, Batu Berendam and Ayer Keroh.

Melaka History

The precise origins of Malacca are contested. It seems that Malacca was founded by Parameswara, a Srivijayan prince of Palembang in Sumatra who fled after an attack Majapahit in 1377. He found his way to Malacca in 1400 where he found a good port accessible in all seasons and the strategic location of the narrowest point the Strait of Malacca .

According to popular legend, Parameswara was gray under a tree near a river while hunting, when one of her dogs caught a mouse deer. In self-defense, the mouse deer pushed the dog into the river. Impressed by the courage of the deer and take it as a good omen to overcome the weakness of the powerful, Parameswara decided on the spot to found an empire on which the very place he was sitting. He named 'melaka 'after the tree under which he had taken refuge.

Another version of history said that Parameswara chosen the name 'malacca 'from the Tamil word 'mallakka ', which means upside down or on those returns. Old pictures of the scene where mousedeer kicked the dog shows the dog on the backs fall into the river, hence the inspiration. Parameswara converted to Islam in 1414 and changed its name 'raja Iskandar Shah '. In collaboration with the allies of the mer-people (orang-Laut) wandering proto-Malay Straits privateers, he established that the main international port Malacca by passing ships to call there, and the establishment fair and reliable storage facilities and trade of the Rules of mass Chinese, most of the empire and the merchant fleet took place during the reign of Parameswara, occurred near the Bukit China ( Chinese Hill ), which was among the best Feng shui (geomancy) later in Malacca. Sultan Iskandar Shah died in 1424, and was replaced by his son, Sri Maharaja also known as Sultan Mohammed Shah.

The prosperity of Malacca attracted the invasion of the Siamese. Attempts in 1446 and 1456, however, have been sent by Tun Perak, then Bendahara (a position similar to the Prime Minister). The development of relations between Malacca and China was at that time a strategic decision to repel the attacks more Siamese.

Due to its strategic location, Malacca was a major stopping point of Zheng He 's spectacular fleet. To enhance relations, Hang Li Po, allegedly a princess of the Ming Emperor of China, arrived in Malacca, with 500 participants, to marry Manshur Shah Sultan who reigned from 1456 until 1477. Participants married and people settled mainly in Bukit China (Bukit Cina). A cultural result of the dynamics of trade has been the expansion of the Peranakan people, which spread to other large settlements in the region.

During his first Malacca was a powerful sultanate which extended its domination over the southern Malay Peninsula and much of the island of Sumatra. The increase helped to hold off the Thailand 's south and the encroachment probably accelerate the decline of the Majapahit Empire rival Java has been declining as Malacca is increasing. Malacca was also central in the spread of Islam in the Malay Archipelago.


European colonization

In April 1511, Afonso de Albuquerque set sail from Goa to Melaka with a force of 1200 men and seventeen or eighteen ships. [2] It has become a strategic base for Portuguese expansion in the East Indies. Sultan Mahmud Shah, the last Sultan of Malacca took refuge in the hinterland, and made two incursions intermittently by land and by sea, causing huge difficulties for the Portuguese. In the meantime, the Portuguese built the fort appointed to defend Famosa Malacca (its door is all that remains of the ruins at present). To allay the king of Ayudhya (Siam, Malacca, part of which was) Portuguese sent an ambassador, Duarte Fernandes, who was welcomed by Ramathibodi. In 1511.Finally in 1526, a large force of Portuguese ships under the command of Pedro Mascarenhas, was sent to destroy Bintan, where Sultan Mahmud was based. Sultan Mahmud fled with his family through the Strait of Kampar in Sumatra, where he died two years later.

It soon became clear that Portuguese control of Melaka does not mean that they now controlled Asian trade centered around him. Their Malaccan rule has been severely hampered by administrative and economic difficulties. Rather than realize their ambition to dominate trade in Asia, the Portuguese have fundamentally changed the management of the network. The port centralized exchange of wealth exchange in Asia has now disappeared, along with a Malaysian state to police the Strait of Malacca, which makes it safe for commercial traffic. Trade is now scattered over a number of ports among bitter war in the Strait. Ruins of Fort A Famosa attracted millions of tourists each year of Melaka

The Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier spent several months in Melaka in 1545, 1546 and 1549. In 1641 the Dutch defeated the Portuguese in the capture of Melaka, with the help of the Sultan of Johor. The Netherlands has decided to Malacca from 1641 to 1795, but they are not interested in developing a commercial center, placing greater importance to Batavia (Jakarta) in Indonesia as their administrative center. However, they still built their history better known as Stadthuys or red building.

Melaka was ceded to the British in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 in exchange for Bencoolen on the island of Sumatra. From 1826 to 1946 Melaka is governed, first by the British East India Company and then as a Crown Colony. It is part of the Straits Settlements, together with Singapore and Penang. After the dissolution of this crown colony, Malacca and Penang joined the Malay Union, which later became Malaysia.

The old city of Melaka was inscribed on the World Heritage List on July 7 in 2008 with George Town, the capital of Penang.

The Malays are the first settlers of Malacca since 1400, form the largest community. The Malacca Malays are rich culture of their daily life to the building arts. The famous Malacca steps or Tangga Melaka are common to the front of many houses in Malay of Malacca.

Two of the most important museums of Melaka are the Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum and the Melaka Sultanate Palace Museum.

Malacca is well known for its food. The most remarkable of all is the traditional Malay dishes like Ikan ASAM pedas, sambal belacan and cencaluk. Belacan, a variety of Malaysian shrimp paste, is prepared from fresh tiny shrimp of a species known as geragau in Malay. They are mashed into a paste and buried for several months. The fermented shrimp are then dug up, fried and hard pressed in cakes.Belacan is used as an ingredient in many dishes, or eaten on its own with rice. A preparation is sambal belacan, made by mixing with belacan pepper, minced garlic, shallots and sugar paste and then fried. The aroma of frying mixture may be unpleasant for Westerners who are not accustomed to this, but is a delight for connoisseurs of Asia. Melaka is also famous for satay celup. Raw fish and meat are skewered on sticks, which is then cooked in peanut sauce. Satay is often celup self-service where you pay for the sticks.

It is also Baba-Nyonya cuisine is a blend of Chinese (mainly southern Fujian Hokkien or influence), Portuguese, Dutch, Indian, British and Malaysian cooking with most dishes are spicy in nature. Interesting dishes include the Peranakan ITEK Tim (a soup containing vegetables and salted duck), Pong The Ayam (chicken casserole with brown salty bean sauce is usually served with potatoes) and the famous Nyonya Laksa. Chicken Rice Ball is another dish popular with Chinese tourists.

Malacca 's ethnic Portuguese population are descendants of Portuguese settlers of the 16th and 17th centuries. Even to this day, many traditions passed since the Portuguese occupation are still practiced, ie Intrudu Portuguese word Entrudo (a festival of water that marks the beginning of Lent, the period Catholic fasting), branyu (traditional dance), Santa Cruz (an annual festival of street celebrations).

Portuguese settlers contributed dishes like Devil 's Curry egg tarts and Portuguese to the city 's already rich cuisine. Ikan Bakar (roasted fish) restaurants Umbai, Serkam and Alai are also popular.

Melaka Attractions

A Famosa Fort: Built by the Portuguese in 1511, he suffered serious structural damage during the Dutch invasion. The plan by the British to destroy it was abandoned following the intervention of Sir Stamford Raffles in 1808.

St. John 's Fort: Reconstruction by the Dutch in the third quarter of the 18th century, the guns in this strong point inwards towards the continent, because at that time, the threat of Malacca was mainly came from the land rather than the sea

St. Peter 's Church: Built in 1710 under the Dutch administration, the church is the oldest Catholic church in Malaysia. Its facade and decorative embellishment is a mixture of Eastern and Western architecture. Its bell was delivered from Goa in 1608.

St. Paul 's Church: Built by the Portuguese captain, Duarte Coelho, this church was named Our Lady of the Hill , but was later turned into a cemetery by the Dutch for their noble death, and has renamed St. Paul 's Church . Currently, the church is part of Malaccan museums. The body of St. Francis Xavier was buried here temporarily before being taken to Goa, India.

Christ Church: Built in 1753, the structure reflects the architecture of Dutch origin. The share housing construction craft benches of the church, joined ceiling skylights, a copper replica of the Bible, a stone written in Armenian language, and a replica of The Last Supper .

Francis Xavier Church: This Gothic church was built by a French priest, the Rev. Fabre, in 1849, to celebrate St. Francis Xavier, who is also known as Apostle of the Orient . St. Francis Xavier is credited for his Catholic missionary work in Southeast Asia during the 16th century.

Stadthuys: Built in 1650 as the residence of the Dutch governor and his deputy, the structure reflects Dutch architecture. It is now the Museum of History and Ethnography . The museum exhibits traditional wedding clothes and artifacts of Melaka, dating back to its days of glory.

Jonker Street: (Jalan Hang Jebat): This street is famous for its antique goods. It is also famous for its carnival-atmosphere nights during the weekend.

Portuguese Square: Perhaps the right to deduct expression strong affinity for Portugal would be 'mini Lisbon '. Located in the Portuguese settlement of the square is the culmination of Portuguese culture in all its splendor and color.

Cheng Hoon Teng: The oldest Chinese temple in Malaysia.

To attract more tourists to Malacca, the state government built a new attractions such Menara Taming Sari and Eyes of Malacca.