The siege of Malacca occurred in 1568, when the Sultan of Aceh Alauddin attacked the Portuguese-held city of Malacca. The city had been held by the Portuguese since its conquest by Afonso de Albuquerque in 1511.[2][3]
Siege of Malacca | |||||||
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Part of Acehnese-Portuguese conflicts | |||||||
Portuguese map of the city of Malacca besieged in 1568 | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Portuguese Empire Sultanate of Johor |
Aceh Sultanate Kalinyamat Kingdom Ottoman Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Leonis Pereira Muzaffar II of Johor | Alauddin al-Kahar | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
A few hundred men |
15,000 men[1] 400 Ottoman gunners[1] 300 ships[1] 200 cannons[1] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Few |
3,000 dead Several more wounded |
The offensive was the result of a pan-Islamic alliance to try to repel the Portuguese from Malacca and the coasts of India.[4] The Ottomans supplied cannonneers to the alliance, but were unable to provide more due to the ongoing invasion of Cyprus and an uprising in Aden.[4]
The army of the Sultan was composed of a large fleet of long galley-type oared ships, 15,000 troops, and Ottoman mercenaries.[2][3][5][6][7] The city of Malacca was successfully defended by Dom Leonis Pereira, who was supported by the king of Johore.[2]
Other attacks on Malacca by the Acehnese would continue during the following years, especially in 1570.[2] The offensive weakened the Portuguese Empire. In the 1570s, the Sultan of the Moluccas was able to repel the Portuguese from the Spice Islands.[4]