4 - Being The Dutch Agents: Portuguese Survival Strategies In Malacca, 1641-1702

Presentation Abstract

This paper describes the portrait of one of the political marginal groups during the Dutch hegemony in Malacca. After the Portuguese surrendered Malacca to the Dutch, the Portuguese-Eurasians were marginalized. The Portuguese-Eurasians survived by serving as Dutch agents. They married Dutch officials who had more income and embraced the new faith to secure their position and social networks. On the other side, they also had their collective projects. They served and assisted the Dutch in reviving Malacca. They were not only working as captains but also as military troops and other household activities. During the official persecution, the Portuguese had been driven to the interior of Malacca. They established the Brothers of the Church, a secret layman’s organization, to regularly resist the official faith. Instead of working for their Dutch master, the Eurasians also conducted private trade. They went beyond the local trade and kept connecting to the Portuguese seaports. The commercial activities seemed to be the other survival feature for the Eurasians in Malacca.