The best of the maritime tales...

Ok West Kalimantan(Borneo), there is a sultan who live in Samba...... hate Arab pirate........., so one day the High Born went to the Dutch to complain of recent increase in pirate raid over the area......

The Dutch being Dutch, went to the Arabs and tell them to camp on land and stay a good boy...... gave them land and title and a share of the area power play.......... today it is the city PONTIANAK.....

So the Dutch was happy now the Arab can do it with legal paperwork........ no more raids..... but legal conflict...................

WDH

 

That's not the way to deal with pirates.

That's the right way :

"1538
The pirate known as Pate-Marcar that infested the Indian seas with 50 ships and 8.000 men disembarked at Beadalla. There, Martim Affonso de Sousa with 400 Portuguese attacks and defeats the pirate. Of the enemy’s fleet that was anchored, 25 sails were set on fire while the remaining where taken as well as 400 canons and 1.500 guns. "
http://www.arscives.com/bladesign/history.htm

 

Bom dia senhor. The Portuguese in Malacca are as dark as night..when in old Malay scripture thay are called 'Benggali Putih' - the white from Bengal( they are as hairy as the Benggalis but with very fair skin).I thought it is the sea and sunburnt that caused them to be dark..when actually they had "populated" with the people of Goa in India..!
Welly do you know what a Pontianak is in Malay..? The Vampire..! So..it is Arab's vampire eh..? Now I know..!

 

Maritime Tales (Swashbuckling Distraction!):

-my list:

1. Patrick O'Brien (of course);

2. C.S. Forrester (Hornblower);

3. Alexander Kent (Bolitho);

4. Dudley Pope (Ramage) (especially fun for anyone who's a fan of Antigua, as Pope used to keep his boat (named "Ramage") in English Harbour and writes about those waters);

5. Joseph Conrad;

And, borrowing someone else's list (Sailing Magazine, March, 2004) (I've read Riddle, and can vouch for that; I'm reading Cocrane; it's great so far!):

Captail Bligh's Portable Nightmare, The Speedwell Voyage, Cochrane, The Prize of all the Oceans, The Black Ship, and Riddle of the Sands.

 

Phew...... a noteworthy list me Lad............ Now back to ye work boy...... and swing more tales of high treason.........

WDH

 

Bom dia, meu amigo. You are more right than you know. Portuguese did not only “populated” with the people of Goa, but “populated” with everybody with whom we had commercial trade.

I am also a school teacher ( kids about 15, 16 years old) and in many years of teaching, I have seen in thousands of their faces the huge genetic pool that we have in our ancestry.

Not like in the US, that is a multicultural society, with Black, Oriental, Jew, Caucasian, but not much mingled yet and with some cultural differences.

Here we have very subtle characteristics in a prevailing pattern. Here some Indian traces, there some Chinese or Indonesian, some African, but in very subtle hues. Of course, If you ask to that beautiful girl with Chinese eyes if she knew about some Chinese in her ancestry, she would tell you no. Those genes have come in the pool many centuries ago. We are not a multicultural society, but a very homogeneous and open society that has learned through the centuries how to integrate huge cultural influences in the pattern of our culture as well as accepted and integrated a lot of genes, mostly from Africa and Asia. The actual Portuguese and the Portuguese culture is the assimilation of all that.

About the word “populated”, that does not mean copulate, but really married, with kids that they regarded as their own breed.

In the Beginning of the XVI century, Portugal had a total population of about 1 million people and we never possessed more than 300 sailingboats. With that and about 15 000 men they have managed to be a world power. They only succeeded because they went native, married the local girls and treated their new populations like their own and managed to make a lot of local alliances.

Boat crews and fortress garrisons were formed by about 1/3 Portuguese, 2/3 Natives, and opposite other colonial powers, they were not forced to enlist, neither they flew at the first opportunity. When attacked in a hopeless way and offered the possibility of running away free, letting the local populations to die, the Portuguese, invariably chose to die fighting with their half-breed sons and local populations.

It was all this that earned the respect of local populations, bringing them a lot of allies and permitting a very small nation to have a huge Empire.

One of the greatest Brazilian poets has said that the biggest Portuguese invention was the “mestiço” (half-breed). He means not the fact of having sons with natives, but for accepting them as equal. I kind of share that opinion.

Sorry for the long post, but I don’t resist to post one of my favorite stories, one of those hopeless situations when they were offered the possibility to escape and live and preferred to die with honor, it is also a story that beguines with a reckless sailor:


In 1537 …
In front of the city of Diu, the Sultan Bahadur Shah was received on a Portuguese ship. The diplomatic conversations did not go well and the Sultan and his entourage left angrily.

Some less disciplined Portuguese sailors made the Sultan’s boarding the small boat that would take him back a pretty difficult task, one of them managed to hit the Sultan’s head with an oar which caused him to drown.

The shameful action caused an outcry of indignation and revenge which echoed from the Muslim kingdoms of the Gulf of Cambay to Egypt and Constantinople. The Sultan’s widow offered all of her fortune to finance a punitive expedition against the Portuguese.

The Portuguese fortress of Diu had a garrison of 600 Portuguese commanded by D. António da Silveira.

The Turk Suleiman Pasha and the Sultan of Cambay united their armies, and arrived at Diu with 70 Turkish galleys and a land army of 23.000 men. Having taken some Portuguese as prisoners, Suleiman Pasha sent a letter by one of the prisoners to be delivered to D. António da Silveira.

It must be said that Suleiman was a court eunuch that gained power after a Court Coup, having beheaded the entire Turkish royal family and therefore usurping the throne.

When António da Silveira received the letter from the Turk, he turned to his companions saying:

Let us see what does the castrated dog has to say, and read the letter in public.

Suleiman Pasha promised the Portuguese free leave of people and goods as long as they returned to the Coast of Malabar and handed over the fortress and their weapons. Suleiman promised to skin alive all of the Portuguese if they did not obey his conditions, referring that he had the largest army in Cambay, among which were many who participate in the taking of Belgrade, Hungary and the Island of Rhodes.

Finally he asked António da Silveira how would he defend the pig-sty with so few pigs!

D. António da Silveira ordered paper and ink to be brought forward, and in the presence of all, dictated the reply to the Pasha:

“Most honored captain Pasha, I have carefully read your letter.

If in the Island of Rhodes were the knights that are in this pig-sty you could be assured that you would have not conquered it.

You are to learn that here are Portuguese, used to killing many Moors and are commanded by António da Silveira that has a pair of balls stronger than the balls of your canons and that all the Portuguese here have balls and do not fear those who don’t have them”.

A bigger insult could not be imagined.

The Pasha was furious and ordered that the remaining prisoners were killed, and a fight of giants begun.

During more then a month António da Silveira fought bravely, remaining only less than 40 Portuguese capable of fighting, but causing so many casualties to the Turks that these gave up the siege and retired from Diu.

(in Gaspar Correia 1500/1561: “Chronicle of the Feats in India”, vol. IV, pages 34-36)

 

I had gone through that hyperlink provided and history of Malacca is a testimony of their braveness.I'am not very sure wether it is Alfonso de Albuquerque flag ship ' Fla de la Mar' or other ship that got sunk in the Straits of Melaka somewhere in 1513 or 1515 with the loots from Malacca. That ship was found a few years ago..Malaysia is claming it is their heritage since Malacca now called Melaka is part of Malaysia..Indonesia is claiming the relics..because she lie in Indonesian water now..Portugal might claim it is their rights..and the vultures are waiting patiently for the Navy to go slacks..

 

A Richard Bolitho story..The Sloop of War..Sparrow with her twin 36 pounder bow chaser..his first command..sailing from Antigua..with 'litle Admiral' Calcuhoun onboard the Fawn since his flag ship Bacchante is still under repair works..

 

ARI....... your a certified pirate.......

 

Corridor Warrior

My ancestors do prowl the Malay Archipilago waters..with their Lela and Rentaka (cannon and swivel gun..we are the Boogie man..!) and years ago some decided to settledown..now we only prowl the stock market houses..!

 

Is there any underwater submersible available on loan..?The waters around Tanjung Jambu..is shallow..muddy area..but those Navy Oerlikon are real..

 

Vega

All hail to Antonio de Silveria and all those brave men with him - the Portugese have always had the balls (it's just that at times the English are better at kicking them!) Witness the "oldest alliance" US pirates have done well - both together and seperately and 'the populating went well too'

 

Ok tales of olden time........ it is rumour that Brunei Darussalam's old sultan have taken a trip to China to forge alliance with the mainland but because of sickness past away in foreign land. The Emperor, moved with the situation name Brunei land of peace..... later translate in Arabic lang. into Darussalam.........

I couldnt verify this tale but have heard from different sources......

WDH

P.S. It is also rumour that the present sultan have traces of chinese bloodline.......

 

Changed a bit since I was last there then Welly?

But the old place always was kinda special (the whole damn island that is )

 

You should revisit Borneo....... I would give you a beautiful tatoo for free....

Remember the tales of the White Raja of Borneo? Mad British................... Brook

WDH