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Portuguese Conquest of Malacca (1510)

Type Event Region Asia Time 1510–1511

In 1510 Portuguese viceroy Afonso de Albuquerque planned and launched an expedition against Malacca, which fell in August 1511, ending the Malacca Su…

Timeline

  1. 1510Goa · GoaAfter capturing Goa in 1510, Albuquerque viewed Malacca as the next target for controlling the Eastern spice trade. The Malacca Sultanate controlled strait shipping and had executed a Portuguese envoy, providing the direct cause for the expedition.
  2. 1510–1511Strait of Malacca · Strait of MalaccaThe Portuguese fleet, carrying about 1,200 soldiers and numerous cannons, sailed east and reached the waters of Malacca in early 1511, cutting off the city's maritime links with the outside world and bombarding the port to create conditions for a landing operation.
  3. 1511City of Malacca · MalaccaAfter several days of fierce fighting the Portuguese breached the walls, and Sultan Mahmud Shah abandoned the city and retreated. After occupying Malacca, Portugal built fortifications, promoted Catholic missionary work, and established an Eastern trading headquarters, marking the formal entry of European powers into the core trading zone of Southeast Asia.

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