Interestingly enough, despite this being an event of fairly well-known allohistorical potential that is frequently discussed as part of broader AH scenarios, we seem to never have made a dedicated thread about it.
The Kingdom of Sunda was the last major Hindu-Buddhist power in Java, comprising roughly the western third of the island. Under the reign of Sri Baduga Maharaja in the early 16th century, the kingdom was at its peak, but already the threat of the rising power of islamic Demak to the east was felt. Sri Baduga sought to remedy this by allying with the burgeoning Portuguese Empire, newcomers to the region who had shockingly destroyed the powerful Sultanate of Malacca in 1511.
Sri Baduga's first embassy to Malacca in 1512 was seemingly ignored, unsurprisingly since the Portuguese had just captured the city and were unsure if they could even keep such a distant and isolated outpost in a region that they barely knew anything about. His second embassy, however, in 1521, resulted in a treaty of commerce and alliance being signed only a year later. According to the terms of the treaty, the Portuguese would build a fortress at Sunda Kelapa (modern day Jakarta), where they would trait black pepper and protect the Hindu-Buddhist against potential attacks from its rivals.
Unfortunately, because of "troubles in Portuguese India" (I have been unable to find information as to what exactly these troubles were, so if anyone has it that would be very much appreciated) the Portuguese were unable to return to Java until 1526, by which time Sunda Kelapa had been conquered by Demak commander Fatahillah. The Sunda court survived, but was now largely inaccessible to the Portuguese, so the alliance plans were abandoned.
Now, there are two obvious ways of making the alliance successful in an alternate history. The Portuguese could have returned sooner and been able to complete the fortress before any major Demak attack, or, alternatively, Sunda could simply have bought itself more time by obtaining a 'lucky' victory against Fatahillah. In any case, once a fortress could be built Sunda would probably be safe, as European fortifications proved very difficult for local Southeast Asian powers to breach at the time and Portuguese ships were notably superior.
Now, what happens in the long run? I imagine that Demak wouldn't cease trying to attack Sunda and the Portuguese fort, so eventually some kind of retaliation is bound to happen. This may just take the form of a raid, after which a weakened Demak would settle into an uneasy modus vivendi, leading to an east/west split of the island. Alternatively, it can lead to a Portuguese conquest of Demak, but I suspect this is the less likely option.
Whatever the case, there would be at least a large Hindu-Buddhist kingdom in western Java under Portuguese influence. Luso-Sundanese relationships would depend on a number of factors, from a relatively equal alliance to near vassalage. The later is more likely to occur if strong islamic powers continue to threaten Sunda, increasing their dependence of the Portuguese, and/or if they have a lot of succession troubles, which would tend to get settled through Portuguese intervention. The stability and strenght of Sunda as an independent power would also likely determine whether the kingdom remains Hindu-Buddhist or eventually converts to catholicism.
How do you see history progressing from here?
The Kingdom of Sunda was the last major Hindu-Buddhist power in Java, comprising roughly the western third of the island. Under the reign of Sri Baduga Maharaja in the early 16th century, the kingdom was at its peak, but already the threat of the rising power of islamic Demak to the east was felt. Sri Baduga sought to remedy this by allying with the burgeoning Portuguese Empire, newcomers to the region who had shockingly destroyed the powerful Sultanate of Malacca in 1511.
Sri Baduga's first embassy to Malacca in 1512 was seemingly ignored, unsurprisingly since the Portuguese had just captured the city and were unsure if they could even keep such a distant and isolated outpost in a region that they barely knew anything about. His second embassy, however, in 1521, resulted in a treaty of commerce and alliance being signed only a year later. According to the terms of the treaty, the Portuguese would build a fortress at Sunda Kelapa (modern day Jakarta), where they would trait black pepper and protect the Hindu-Buddhist against potential attacks from its rivals.
Unfortunately, because of "troubles in Portuguese India" (I have been unable to find information as to what exactly these troubles were, so if anyone has it that would be very much appreciated) the Portuguese were unable to return to Java until 1526, by which time Sunda Kelapa had been conquered by Demak commander Fatahillah. The Sunda court survived, but was now largely inaccessible to the Portuguese, so the alliance plans were abandoned.
Now, there are two obvious ways of making the alliance successful in an alternate history. The Portuguese could have returned sooner and been able to complete the fortress before any major Demak attack, or, alternatively, Sunda could simply have bought itself more time by obtaining a 'lucky' victory against Fatahillah. In any case, once a fortress could be built Sunda would probably be safe, as European fortifications proved very difficult for local Southeast Asian powers to breach at the time and Portuguese ships were notably superior.
Now, what happens in the long run? I imagine that Demak wouldn't cease trying to attack Sunda and the Portuguese fort, so eventually some kind of retaliation is bound to happen. This may just take the form of a raid, after which a weakened Demak would settle into an uneasy modus vivendi, leading to an east/west split of the island. Alternatively, it can lead to a Portuguese conquest of Demak, but I suspect this is the less likely option.
Whatever the case, there would be at least a large Hindu-Buddhist kingdom in western Java under Portuguese influence. Luso-Sundanese relationships would depend on a number of factors, from a relatively equal alliance to near vassalage. The later is more likely to occur if strong islamic powers continue to threaten Sunda, increasing their dependence of the Portuguese, and/or if they have a lot of succession troubles, which would tend to get settled through Portuguese intervention. The stability and strenght of Sunda as an independent power would also likely determine whether the kingdom remains Hindu-Buddhist or eventually converts to catholicism.
How do you see history progressing from here?
