Peak of the Melaka Sultanate (1470s)

Timeline

1. 1471–1477West coast of the Malay Peninsula · MalaysiaDuring Sultan Mansur Shah's reign, Melaka's influence extended to Pahang, Johor, and parts of Sumatra's ports, and a syahbandar (harbourmaster) system was established to govern merchant communities of various ethnicities; port duties and warehousing trade brought huge revenues, making Melaka a trade hub linking the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.
2. 1471–1476Port of Melaka · MalaysiaMelaka continuously sent envoys to pay tribute to the Ming dynasty and received investiture confirming it as a legitimate vassal; in the 1470s Ming envoys came to Melaka, and the two sides reached agreements on safe navigation of the strait and tributary trade. Ming political endorsement enhanced Melaka's appeal to surrounding ports, and Chinese merchants settled there in an important community.
3. 1477–1480Strait of Malacca · Southeast AsiaAfter Mansur Shah's death, Alauddin Riayat Shah succeeded him and continued the open-trade policy; by 1480 Melaka had monopolized most of the strait's transshipment trade, with spices, porcelain, silk, and tin goods concentrated and distributed there. The kingdom's zenith laid the foundation for the last golden decade before the Portuguese invasion of the early 16th century.