<P> The early Europeans were drawn to Southeast Asia by the spice trade . There was a great demand for oriental spices at the time in European markers . The spices from Southeast Asia included pepper, cloves, nutmeg, mace and cinnamon . The spice trade was extremely lucrative and the early Europeans were highly motivated to secure a direct trade route in spices between Europe and Asia . </P> <P> The spice trade was made possible by the maritime trade route . In 1498, the Portuguese navigator, Vasco da Gama, sailed round the Cape of Good Hope and opened up a sea route from Europe to India . Bringing home samples of exotic oriental products, da Gama greatly increased European interest in the new trade route and the new trade route quickly facilitated the expansion of trade . Eventually, the Dutch wrestled control of it from the Portuguese in the 17th century, and in the 18th century, the British gained control of it from the Dutch . Nevertheless, the spice route greatly increased trading activities, deepened the economic relations between Europe and Southeast Asia and as a result, more European merchants found their way to Southeast Asia. Bold text </P> <P> Portugal was the first European power to establish a bridgehead on the lucrative maritime Southeast Asia trade route, with the conquest of the Sultanate of Malacca in 1511 . The Netherlands and Spain followed and soon superseded Portugal as the main European powers in the region . In 1599, Spain began to colonise the Philippines . In 1619, acting through the Dutch East India Company, the Dutch took the city of Sunda Kelapa, renamed it Batavia (now Jakarta) as a base for trading and expansion into the other parts of Java and the surrounding territory . In 1641, the Dutch took Malacca from the Portuguese . Economic opportunities attracted Overseas Chinese to the region in great numbers . In 1775, the Lanfang Republic, possibly the first republic in the region, was established in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, as a tributary state of the Qing Empire; the republic lasted until 1884, when it fell under Dutch occupation as Qing influence waned . </P> <P> During the 16th century, the Europeans viewed Muslim control of the eastern and southern parts of Europe with concern, as both a religious threat as well as an obstacle to trade . To counter this Muslim threat, the Europeans aimed to spread Christianity across the known world . At the same time, they also searched for profitable trading opportunities . This explained why the Portuguese and Spanish came to Southeast Asia and how they managed to establish their trading ports in strategic locations . By the time the British and the Dutch came to Southeast Asia, trade had become the dominant motive, and religion was less important . Aside from Islam being a widely important religion in Southeast Asia, Buddhism and Hinduism were also popular amongst the Southeast Asian population . A key reason for this could be because of the fact that India and China were neighbors to Southeast Asia (1) </P>

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