Malacca is famed as the place where the history of Malaysia began. It been founded in 1396 by Parameswara, an exiled prince from Sumatra. It thrived as a port-of-call to many ship and merchant from China, India, Arabia and Europe. In 1511, it fell into the hands of the Portuguese and subsequently to the Dutch in 1641, after a fierce battle with the former. In 1795, the Dutch relinquished control of Malacca to the British to prevent it from falling into the hands of the French, when the Netherlands was captured during the French Revolution. It was returned to the Dutch in 1818 under the Treaty of Vienna but was later exchanged by the British for Bencoleen, Sumatra. From 1826 onwards it was ruled by English East India Company in Culcutta together with Singapore and Penang under the Straits Settlements Administration. After World War II, nationalistic sentiments began to spread in the country, culminating in the proclaimed of independence by Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, Malaysia’s first Prime Minister at the Padang Pahlawan (Warrior’s Field) at Bandar Hilir, Malacca on 20th February 1956.

Malacca is rich in history and the many relics of the past will take visitors on a nostalgic journey that goes back to 600 years of a glorious and colourful past.

PLACES OF INTEREST

• Hang Li Po's Well This 15th century’s Ming emperor’s daughter, Hang Li Poh was sent to marry Sultan Mansor Shah, the Sultan of Malacca to seal relations between the two countries. A well was built and named after the Princess for the personal use of her followers and today the well has acquired the reputation of a wishing well and it is believed that anyone who throws a coin into the well will return to Malacca.



• Bukit Cina Bukit Cina is a gift from the Sultan of Malacca to her wife, Hang Li Poh and her followers which tell the history of the Ming Dynasty in Malacca. It consists of 12,000 graves and said to be the largest one outside China.



• Stadthuys It is the most imposing relic of the Dutch period in Malacca and was built between 1641 and 1660 which is believed to be the Oldest Dutch building in the East. It used to be the residence of the Dutch Governors and portray the Dutch masonry and woodworking skills.



• A Famosa (Porta De Santiago) The remains of the Portuguese fortress, A,Famosa was constructed by Alfonso d’Albuquerque in 1511. Today, only a small part of the fortification remains due to long seize by the Dutch in 1641 caused severe damage.



• Saint John's Fort The Dutch constructed this fort during the third quarter of the 18th century and was once a private Portuguese Chapel dedicated for Saint John the Baptist.



• Saint Paul's Church A Portuguese captain known as Duarte Coelho built this chapel in 1521. The Dutch renamed it Saint Paul’s Church in 1753 and was later turned into Dutch burial ground for their notable dead. One of the most significant grave are where Saint Francis Xavier was buried in 1553 and the remains were later transferred to Goa in India. A marble statue of Francis Xavier commemorates his internment here over 400 years ago.



• Christ Church The Church was built in 1753 as the principal place of worship replacing St. Paul’s Church. The British turned it into Anglican Church but the Dutch originals dated back over 200 years still remains.



• History Museum The museum consists of authentic historical artifacts of Portuguese and Dutch.



• Sam Po Kong Temple The temple was built in 1795 and was dedicated to the Chinese ambassador Admiral Cheng Ho and relates to one of his trip to China where his ship was saved by a fish known as Sam Po Kong and eventually named after the fish.



• Cheng Hoon Teng Temple This temple is the oldest Chinese temple in Malaysia which was built in 1646 and has an inscription commemorating the first visit of Admiral Cheng Ho, the Ming emperor’s ambassador to Malacca.



• The Ethnographic Museum This museum shows the local culture and traditions including displays of the elaborate marriage ceremonies of the various communities.



• Maritime Museum This museum is the replica of Portuguese ship 'Flor de la Mar' and offers pictorial details of Malacca history during the Portuguese time.



• Portuguese Settlement This is a typical Portuguese fishing village with the Portuguese descendants living here since four centuries.



• Portuguese Square This Portuguese square styled after a typical Portuguese Mercado and was built in the late 1980’s for the descendants of the Portuguese and Malay intermarriages 400 years ago retain their own culture and lifestyle. This square is noted for a one-stop centre for the Portuguese cultural dances and food.



• The Proclaimed Of Independence Memorial Building The memorial is housed in a British villa dating from 1912 and the memorial contains manuscripts, video tapes, films and slides depicting the events leading up to independence in 1957.



• Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum Strait Chinese or the Baba and Nyonya are Chinese of noble descendants who adopted much of the Malay culture. This museum is a 19th century Peranakan ancestral home which had been turned into a Baba-Nyonya Museum. The museum has mixture of Chinese, Victorian and Dutch designs.



• Literature Museum This museum contains old scripts which highlight the Malay literature at the time when Malacca was a prominent power.



• Cultural Museum (Malacca Sultanate Palace) It is a wooden replica based on the original 15th century of a Malacca Sultan’s palace houses the Cultural Museum. The exhibits are on Malacca Culture including clothes, weaponry, stone inscriptions, etc.



• Royal Malaysian Navy Museum This museum houses the navigation equipments used on board during the olden days including salvaged remnants of pottery from the Diana which sank in Malacca in 1817 while on voyage from Canton in China to Madras in India. Those salvaged including tons of precious chinaware.



• Jonkers Street This street is known worldwide among collectors for antiques dated back 300 years such as eastern relics in the form of sculptures, stones, metal ware, pottery and furniture ; a place to shop and bargain for these antiques.



• Malacca’s Chinatown This colourful and fascinating area consists of a row of old fashioned shop houses, temples and mosques which retains the heritage of old Malacca.



• Kampung Kling Mosque This mosque has Sumatran and Javanese influence and are evident in the watch tower styled minaret.



• Tranquerah Mosque This more than 150 years old mosque has Sumatran design. The mosque is unique because instead of minarets, a pagoda has been built in its place. The tomb of Sultan Hussain of Johore who signed the concession of Singapore to Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819 is within its grounds.



• Kampung Hulu Mosque It is indeed one of Malaysia’s oldest mosques and was built in 1728 with a unique architectural style and can be found only in Malacca.



• Malacca River Cruise A daily river cruise passes through the downtown area where you can observe the heritage and lifestyle of Malacca, typical Malay village houses and some of the landing points during colonial era.



• Crocodile Farm This farm houses more than 1,000 crocodiles of different species with the main attractions include albino crocodiles.



• Butterfly Farm The farm houses more than 200 species of Butterflies and also has varieties of snakes, scorpions, lizards apart from a museum displaying over 400 insect specimens.



• Reptile Park The Park houses more than 1,000 snakes indigenous to Malaysia with rare species of albino snakes.



• Malacca Zoo It is known for one of the best Zoo in Malaysia with collection of domestic animals in their natural surroundings and habitats. The latest attraction is Night Zoo for those interested in watching the animals active at night.



• Trishaw Ride



• A Famosa Water World A'Famosa Water World which occupies a land area of 20 acres is the only water theme park of its kind in the southern region of this country and comprises of slides and pools of every kind. The park has lots of interesting and unique features such as choices of water slides - all designed to suit even the most sophisticated water enthusiasts.



• And many more exciting places