Abstract
Abstract A crucial asset for cross-cultural communication during the early modern period, diplomatic gifts have been traditionally associated with courtly diplomacy and peaceful encounters. However, recent scholarship on this topic has emphasized how gifts can reveal bitter political rivalries and asymmetries of power. Building on this line of inquiry, this article explores the complex roles of gifts in the dynamics of cross-cultural violence on the frontiers of the Iberian empires in Southeast Asia. Through the examination of a wide array of sources, I aim to show how gift-giving turned into one of the multiple factors fueling the violent conflict between Moluccan sultans and Iberian authorities in the region between 1575 and 1606.
Highlights
In 1605 Said Syah, Sultan of Ternate, sent a letter to King James I of England rejecting the latter’s demand to establish a factory on his island
For European audiences, the diplomatic negotiations between the Sultan of Ternate and the European rulers was of outstanding interest due to the ongoing global spice wars
Any reader familiar with the history of the Dutch and English East India companies would consider the letter as a precedent of their violent rivalry in the Spice Islands.[3]
Summary
In 1605 Said Syah, Sultan of Ternate, sent a letter to King James I of England rejecting the latter’s demand to establish a factory on his island. European representatives through gifts and tributes.[8] It was precisely because both parts relied on their own understandings of gift-giving as a tool for political competition that gift-exchange frequently triggered conflicts.[9] Building on this scholarship, recent literature on global gifts has emphasized the important role played by diplomatic gifts and tributes in the understanding of political rivalries and shifting power balances across cultural divides.[10]. These works have mainly focused on courtly encounters and the dyadic interaction that characterized diplomacy at the highest levels.
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