history of Makassar

map of the makassar coastline

Forerunner to the city and trading port of Makassar in estuaries Tallo with small commercial harbor in the area at the end of XV century. Portuguese sources reported that the Tallo trading port was originally under the Siang monarchy around Pangkajene. 

the teritory of Kingdom of Gowa-Tallo

 But in the mid-sixteenth century, Tallo united with a small kingdom called Gowa, and began to break away from the  Siang monarchy, who even attacked and conquer the surrounding monarchys. Due to increasingly intensive agricultural activities in the upstream Tallo, resulting in siltation of rivers Tallo, so that the bookie was transferred to the mouth of the river Jeneberang, this is the area of power development occurs by the noble palace of Gowa-Tallo who later built the fortress defense Somba Opu, which for the next hundred years later become core areas of Makassar.

(Sultan Hasanuddin-King of Gowa XVI)

  

In the reign of King of Gowa XVI also founded Fort Rotterdam in the north, the Government is still  under the rule of the kingdom of Gowa Kingdom, at that time there was an increase in its trade activities of local, regional and international, political sector and the physical development of the sector by the kingdom. This period is the kingdom of Gowa's heyday, but then with the agreement delivers Bungaya Gowa Kingdom at the beginning of the collapse. Makassar is the main export commodities of rice, which can be exchanged for spices in the Moluccas as well as manufactured goods from the Middle East, India and China in the western archipelago. From the report of Merchant Portugal and lontara local records, it is known that an important role in the Merchant's Malay-based trade exchange of agricultural surplus in goods it imports. Empire by conquering surrounding kingdoms, which are generally based agrarian Similarly, the Makassar increase the production of the commodity with the means, even, in attacking the small kingdoms tainnya, nobles Makassar not only mastered the region's agricultural tawannya opponent, but trying also to persuade and force the local merchants to migrate to Makassar, thereby increasing trading activity is concentrated in the new commercial airport. In just a century alone, Makassar became one of the world's leading commercial city inhabited by over 100,000 people (and this includes the 20 largest cities of the world in those days the population of Amsterdam, the largest city of its main enemy, the Netherlands, only around 60,000 people) who cosmopolitan and multicultural. Napier airport developments so rapidly that, thanks to its relationship with changes in the international trading order that time. 

Print of the attack on Makassar, 12th of June 1660.

The main center of trade networks in Malacca was conquered by Portugal in 1511, so in North Java diminished following the defeat of his fleet at the hands of Portugal and the divisions in the kingdom of Mataram. Even when Malacca was taken over by the Netherlands Trading Company East India Company in 1641, many Portuguese traders participate moved to Makassar. Until the first half of the 17th century, Makassar trying to stretch its power to most of Eastern Indonesia by conquering Selayar Island and surrounding areas, kingdoms Wolio in Buton, Bima on Sumbawa, Banggai and Gorontalo on Sulawesi and the eastern parts of North and entered into an agreement with the kingdom -royal in Seram and other islands in Maluku. Internationally, as one important part of the Islamic World, Sultan of Makassar to establish trade relations and diplomatic ties with the kingdom - the kingdom of Banten and West Aceh in Indonesia, Golconda Otoman Empire in India and the Middle East.

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