The area of Melaka Town has several attractions such as Dutch Square, Christchurch, City Hall, Clock Tower, St. Paul's Church, A & # 39; Farmosa. I will examine them one by one.
Dutch Square
This is where the locals call & # 39; red squares & # 39 ;. The first thing that catches the eye is the bright red paint on the buildings around Dutch Square. Contrary to popular belief, the Dutch did not paint the place red. In fact, the buildings were actually built with open face bricks, but as the bricks began to leak, the Dutch covered them with plaster and painted them white. The British then painted vivid salmon pink, and now the Malacca City Council painted them red.
However, there are still many theories about why the place is painted red. Some are quite interesting. Some say the Dutch were painted red to copy a Dutch red brick stone house because they missed their homeland. Another person says the British painted them red because they wanted to separate the British buildings from the Dutch buildings. Yet another thing was that the locals hated the colonial Dutch and peeled the building with betel trees that spit red juice, so the building had to be covered with red paint.
Whatever the origin, the red color attracts many young newly-married Chinese couples in Malaysia that use the Netherlands Square as the backdrop for wedding photography. In Chinese culture, red symbolizes prosperity.
There are many colorful tricycles around, and the whole place is lively and lively.
The nearby fountain is a Queen Victoria fountain built in 1901 by the British to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee. Walk around it and you will see the Queen's sculpture.
Christchurch
Christchurch, an impressive red building in Melaka Town, is the oldest Protestant church in Malaysia. It is also the oldest Dutch church built outside the Netherlands.
After 12 years of construction, it was completed in 1753. The church uses traditional Dutch church architecture. Rectangular plan, huge walls, red granite blocks, Dutch roof tiles. Bricks are specially imported from the Dutch state of Zeeland. This church was built to commemorate the Dutch rule in Melaka and provide a place of worship for the Dutch. In fact, the road where Christchurch stands is called Jalanguereha or Church Street.
Don't miss the impressive white cross and bell at the top of the church. Bell and Weathercock were actually added by the British after temporarily taking over Melaka from the Dutch. But there are unusual facts about the bell. The inscription dates back to 1698, 55 years before the church was built, suggesting that it could be used for other purposes before it was hung on the church.
Inside Christchurch, look for handmade legs made over 200 years ago. Don't miss the huge overhead beam that supports the roof. They are actually cut from a single tree and have no joints. The walls also have decorative fan lights and plaques to remember those who died in this tropical country. The strange thing about these plaques is that they are Catholic in nature but are placed in the Protestant Church. Historians think highly religious Dutchmen could not do it, and speculate that they might have been installed there by the UK instead. There are wooden nameplates to commemorate the local planters who died during World War II, and many have Armenian inscriptions. Two of them said, “Greeting! You reading this tablet in my grave where I am sleeping now. Let me know the freedom of my brothers. For them, I shed many tears. I was hoping that a good shepherd would continue to dominate and take care of sheep that were in vain throughout the world. "
Another way of reading: “I, Jacob, an Armenian of the honorable family and the grandson of Chamier, was born in Persia, near Inefah, where my parents sleep forever. And my body was placed in this place on the purchased ground.
A brass Bible with the first line of John's Gospel in Dutch. And finally, you can find the famous & last night's paintings.
The church used to be Dutch Lutherans, but now the British Church.
Stadthuys
Stand at the fountain facing Christchurch and you will see the town hall on the right.
Built in 1650 after the Dutch occupied Malacca from the Portuguese, it served as the official residence of the Dutch governor. It is modeled after the Old Town Hall in Hoorn, the Netherlands. Stadthuys is considered the oldest Dutch building in the east. Until the end of the Dutch administration, the building also served as the city's citizen's center. When Britain took over, they continued to use it as a civic center. Many important decisions affecting the history of Malaysia were made within the four walls of Stadthuys. There is now a museum of history, ethnology and literature.
Recently, excavations revealed that there was once a Portuguese settlement under Stadthuys. You can see the drainage system as soon as it is discovered and actually entered. There are also sea stones and wells, which are probably Portuguese. In fact, if there is a parking lot in front of Stadthuys, historians believe that the original part of A & # 39; Farmosa Fort is underneath.
Looking at Stadthuys, it is not difficult to imagine that the governor is standing on the balcony, but a smartly dressed Dutch army paid attention in the square and expressed salute.
Stadthuys is a great starting point to learn more about the historic city of Melaka. Inside, there are brilliant past exhibits of Melaka, including the influence of Malacca and China. You can also see the profound influence of the three major colonists of Malacca, Portuguese, Dutch and British. You can see the Dutch governor's room.
In Stadthuys, there is a statue of Admiral Chen Ho in the courtyard on the right. He is a famous sailor from China, leading the expedition to the end of the world.
Stadthuys is now designated as a national heritage.
Holy Paul's Church
Climbers heading to the top of the hill greet the white statue of St. Clement Francis Xavier when they climb the top of the hill. St. Francis climbed this hill and prayed at this church as an Asian missionary for 11 years. He was admitted to many miracles, including raising the rights of the dead in this church. One story tells that when St. Xavier arrived in Melaka, he greeted the locals and began calling the names of the children who surround him. There was also an explanation that he was on a boat in the Malacca Sea when the storm occurred. The saint took out the cross and dipped it into the sea, and the storm quickly disappeared. However, the cross slipped from the hand and fell into the sea. The next day when they arrived safely on the shore, a crab came out of the sea and carried his cross vertically between the claws of the cross and ran towards the saint. Before the cross crustaceans returned to the sea, the saint kneeled in prayer.
Sharp tourists will notice that the right arm of the statue is missing. This statue, built very recently in 1952, was supposed to be consecrated one morning, but it fell due to a tree falling on its arm. To date, it stands in front of Paul's church without the right arm.
St. Paul's Church was built in 1521 by Portuguese captain Duartecoello. Formerly called "Nosaseñola". Or & # 39; Our Lady of the Hill & # 39; and was used as a chapel. When the Dutch took Malacca from the Portuguese, the church was used as a place of prayer for 112 years until a church was built under the hill. It was Dutch who renamed Nosa Senhora to St. Paul's Church. After Christchurch was built, this place was no longer needed as a place to pray, but became a burial place. When the British took over Melaka in 1824, the church of St John's Church Paul lost its tower. However, the British added a lighthouse before that. Instead of being used as a place of worship, the church became a convenient warehouse for British gunpowder.
There are many tombstones engraved with Dutch words inside. These are the many Dutch colonial tombstones that left their homes to settle in this strange and tropical land. Many of them are prominent pioneers in the Netherlands and Portugal. Also, you will now see an open tomb covered with grill. This was a temporary nine-month burial site of St. Francisco Xavier before his body was taken to Goa, India. His meat was fresh and was said to have shed blood from his fingers when he was accidentally cut while being dug. In order for him to be normalized as a saint, his right arm was severed because the church needed a relic. It was said that fresh blood spilled again when cut.
Now, do you remember the statue on the way without the right arm? Is it just a coincidence? The decision is up to you.
Around the church is the Strait of Malacca. You may have a glimpse of an isolated oil tanker today, where India, Arabia, China, and other trade ships once took space, and later a terrible number of Dutch and Portuguese warships arrived.
& # 39; Famosa
The Santiago Gate, or the gate of St. George James in English, is the only remaining entrance to a huge fortress called A & # 39; Famosa, which was built after Portugal occupied Malacca in 1511.
A & # 39; Famosa took five months and many lives with the use of forced labor, with many tomb disturbances and many flattening buildings. Initially, the fortress had four towers and a wall thickness of 2.4 meters. 70 cannons were placed around to protect it. But still, after a long siege attack, the Dutch could not be stopped. Eventually in 1641, the Dutch assaulted the fortress, rebuilt it, and placed a crest on the gate. This can be seen until today.
But back to the Netherlands, everything was not going well. Napoleon invaded the Netherlands and Prince William fled to London. So he asked the British to protect all Dutch settlements so that the Dutch would not fall into the hands of the French. As a result, the British ruled Melaka. But Britain wasn't keen to keep it because defending Melaka meant squeezing their workforce. Therefore, the British governor at that time ordered the destruction of this fortress stone. However, forced workers could not dismantle it, and there was an endless story that prevented workers from seeing and destroying the spirit of people who broke this wall and died. The story of illness, accidents, and death began to spread among workers, and finally the governor ordered the walls to be blown with gunpowder.
The dismantling news reached the ear of a young British civil servant named Stanford Raffles. He tried to persuade his boss to defend the fort, but eventually he was able to defend this gate.
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