明朝與馬六甲王朝之關係：戰略前沿的建立和喪失

Ming China and Malacca: Establishment and Loss of a Strategic Front

馬六甲雖不能說是三佛齊王朝的繼承者，但可以稱為承繼三佛齊之後的流亡政權，它以一個小漁村發展為控制馬六甲海峽的國家，其領地包括馬來半島南半部和蘇門答臘的東部。馬六甲之所以能夠成為馬六甲海峽的重要國家之關鍵因素，是獲得中國之支持和保護，阻止暹羅的入侵，使它能發展成為重要的貿易港口。明朝控制了馬六甲海峽的兩個港口：馬六甲和舊港，以及跨越安達曼海東西兩岸的蘇門答剌和錫蘭。馬六甲成為明朝在西洋的前沿據點。然而，馬六甲最終不敵西洋船堅砲利，而為葡萄牙所滅，明朝亦無能為力出兵協助。馬六甲海峽猶如明朝時期的外緣戰略線，此線不能守，外力將逐步進逼中國本土。果然葡萄牙乃進而在1557年入據澳門，開始西洋勢力在中國建立橋頭堡的首例。尤可見馬六甲之失陷對中國海防影響重大。

Although Malacca can not claim to be successor to the Sri-Vijaya empire, it can still be regarded as a remnant of that empire that survived its fall. Malacca developed from a small fishing village into a state that once controlled the Malacca Strait. Under the reign of Mansur Shah, Malacca expanded to occupy Rokan, Indragiri, Siak and Kampar; Pahang, Terengganu, Kelantan, Johor and Kedah became vassal states of Malacca. A key factor in Malacca’s success was her dependence upon China’s support and protection in preventing invasion by Siam. The Ming empire took control of the two ports in the Strait of Malacca, Palembang and Malacca, and Malacca became the forward stronghold of the Ming empire in the Western seas. However, in the end Malacca was unable to resist Western naval strength, falling into Portuguese hands with Ming China powerless to come to her aid. The Strait of Malacca had seemingly formed part of the strategic line around Ming China; with this strategic line broken, Western powers would gradually be able to close in on the coast of China herself. Consequently, Portuguese ships landed in Macau in 1557, for the first time allowing a Western power to establish a bridgehead in China. Clearly, the fall of Malacca to Portugal had a serious impact on the coastal defense of China.