If strangling Muslim trade in the Red Sea was the ultimate goal, Malacca, “the center and terminus of all the rich merchandise and trades,” was a critical and connected part. It was “the source of all the spices, drugs and riches of the whole world…the route by which more pepper came to Mecca than via Calicut.” Its capture would throttle Cairo, Alexandria, and Venice and hinder the spread of Islam: “whoever is lord of Malacca has his hand on the throat of Venice,” in the words of Tomé Pires.
