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Cochin (now Kochi), on India’s southwest coast, was a Portuguese fortified town from 1500. In 1663 the Dutch East India Company captured the town for its pepper trade. The Dutch reduced the fort by two thirds so that it would be easier to defend. Portuguese monasteries and churches were converted into warehouses.<br/><br/> Known as the Queen of the Arabian Sea, Kochi was an important spice trading centre on the west coast of India from the 14th century. Occupied by the Portuguese Empire in 1503, Kochi was the first of the European colonies in colonial India. It remained the main seat of Portuguese India until 1530, when Goa was chosen instead. The city was later occupied by the Dutch and the British, with the Kingdom of Cochin becoming a princely state.
Ayutthaya (also spelled Ayudhya) was a Siamese kingdom that existed from 1351 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese, Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the walls of the capital, also called Ayutthaya.<br/><br/> In the sixteenth century, it was described by foreign traders as one of the biggest and wealthiest cities in the East. The court of King Narai (1656–88) had strong links with that of King Louis XIV of France, whose ambassadors compared the city in size and wealth to Paris.<br/><br/> By 1550, the kingdom's vassals included some city-states in the Malay Peninsula, Sukhothai, and parts of Cambodia.
Longvek was a city in ancient Cambodia, the capital city of the country after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese in 1431. Little more than a village today in Kampong Chhnang Province, it lies just north of Oudong.<br/><br/> Longvek was chosen by King Ang Chan (Ponhea Chan) after the sacking of Angkor by the Siamese as a new capital because of its more readily defensible terrain. As a result there was a time when Cambodia was often referred to as 'Lovek' or 'Longvek' by foreign travellers.<br/><br/> As early as1609 the Dutch East India Company was sailing to Cambodia to acquire deer hides and ray skins, as well as provisions such as rice, butter, pork and lard, for Batavia. The Dutch trading post depicted in this painting was founded in 1620. The trade results were variable and the company eventually pulled out of Cambodia in 1667.
Banda Neira is the only settlement of significant size on any of the Banda Islands, located in the Maluku province of Indonesia. The town is located on the central island of the Bandas group, Banda Neira, the only one of the islands with enough flat space to allow a small town. Located in Bandanaira are government offices, stores, a wharf, and almost half of the archipelago's 14,000 population.<br/><br/> Banda Neira was once the global center of the trade in nutmeg and mace, as the Bandas Islands were the only source of these valuable spices until the mid-19th century. The modern town was established by members of the Dutch East India Company as the capital of the Governorate of the Banda Islands. The Dutch forced out or exterminated most of the native Bandanese in order to exploit this lucrative resource.
During the 17th century European enterprises were refused entry into Canton. It was only in the 18th century that Europeans were permitted to establish themselves along the Pearl River.<br/><br/> Chinese middlemen sold tea, porcelain and silk to the Westerners, who lived in isolation in their warehouses or 'factiories' on the quay and rarely set foot in Canton itself.
Raibag is a town in the southern state of Karnataka, India. Vijayapur city, formerly Bijapur, is the district headquarters of Bijapur District of Karnataka state. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluka.<br/><br/> Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural importance built during the rule of the Adil Shahi dynasty. Bijapur is located 530 km northwest of Bangalore and about 550 km inland from Mumbai, and 384 km west of the city of Hyderabad.
The Dutch East India Company captured the town of Cannanore (now Kannur) on India’s southwest coast from the Portuguese in 1663. At that time, the Portuguese military position on the Malabar Coast had been seriously diminished so the company met with virtually no resistance.<br/><br/> The region produced pepper and cardamom, the latter spice used to make sweet biscuits. The company ultimately lost Cannanore to the British in 1790.