1. Southeast Asia in the Era of the Spice Trade

2. Mainland States 1500- Southeast Asia relatively stable region
Kingdoms- ethnic, linguistic and cultural characteristics- the rise in these kingdoms after 1500 led to conflict- Thai vs. Burmese (lasted until 1767)
Vietnamese had subdued people’s to the border of the Malaysian peninsula- however by the Vietnam Monarchy (Khmer Monarchy) had disappeared
Muslin merchants were the most influential foreign agents in Southeast Asia- Islamic Trade networks

3. Arrival of Europeans
1511 Portugal seized Melaka (city on the Malay Peninsula)- this area was known to Europeans as the Spice Islands
The arrival of the English and the Dutch shifted the power and influence- both were better financed than Portugal- shift begins in 1600
Similar to the African sphere, mainland Southeast Asia was minimally impacted by the Europeans- Many of the mainland states (versus the Peninsula states) were able to unite and drive out any European movement in the mainland
Europeans did take sides in the internal conflicts of the mainland states- Vietnam was split- North and South

4. Arrival of Europeans
By late the economic opportunities the Europeans were hungry for were limited- most posts were abandoned anywhere but the coasts and only missionaries were left behind but any conversion to Catholicism was met with harsh results
Peninsula and Coastal political unites were not equipped to hold back the Europeans nor did they ant to, it was economically beneficial

5. Religious and Political Systems
Religious beliefs changed dramatically from particularly non-mainland
Christianity, Buddhism and traditional beliefs were interwoven
Southeast Asia evolved into 4 unique styles of monarchy- Buddhist Kings, Javanese Kings, Islamic Sultans, and Vietnamese (Confucius) Emperors