HISTORY

Ambon was established as a trading port by the Portuguese in the early 1500s but was seized by the Dutch in 1605. It remained under Dutch control for the following three and a half centuries, with the exception of two brief periods of British occupation.

The purpose of this prolonged European occupation was to maintain a world monopoly on the supply of spices, especially nutmeg and cloves that at that time grew only on certain islands near Ambon.

It was not until the Japanese conquest of South East Asia during World War II that the Dutch lost their grip on Ambon and the rest of the Dutch East Indies. After the war, Maluku made a short lived attempt at becoming a sovereign state, but was quickly incorporated into the new Republic of Indonesia that became independent in 1949.

After such a long period of foreign domination, it is remarkable how little European influence remains. Most of Ambon's city buildings were destroyed during World War II and are now modern Indonesian though village houses are still constructed in traditional woven split bamboo with thatched roofs. The Dutch language has almost died out and Bahasa Indonesia is now the language. English is taught in schools these days, so most younger people speak a little. Older people, especially in the smaller villages, may not use official Bahasa Indonesia, speaking instead one of the many Moluccan dialects.

A large proportion of Indonesians are followers of Islam which was brought to this part of the world in the 13th century by Arab traders who were the middlemen of the spice game long before the Portuguese first sailed into this area.