Sultanate of Banten: Map & History
The Banten Sultanate was a Bantenese Islamic trading kingdom founded in the 16th century and centred in Banten, a port city on the northwest coast of Java; the contemporary English name of both was Bantam.
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The Banten Sultanate was a Bantenese Islamic trading kingdom founded in the 16th century and centred in Banten, a port city on the northwest coast of Java; the contemporary English name of both was Bantam. It is said to have been founded by Sunan Gunungjati, who had previously founded Cirebon.
Modern Countries Once Part of Sultanate of Banten
At its mapped extent, Sultanate of Banten covered territory in 1 present-day country. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
States and Provinces
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Sultanate of Banten's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Sultanate of Banten in Depth
Economy
The sultanate's economy was built mainly upon its most important commodity; pepper, thus its international trade mainly consists of this product. At least since the 13th century, the Chinese record Zhu Fan Zhi mentioned that area of both sides of Sunda Strait with its main port of Sin-t'o (Sunda) – which probably refer to the port of Banten, was famous as the producer of excellent pepper. It was one of the main commodities of its predecessor, the ancient Kingdom of Sunda; and the Muslim Banten simply took over the established pepper trade of its Hindu predecessor. Indeed, it was pepper that attracted foreign traders to Banten; from Chinese, Moors, to Portuguese, Dutch, English and Danish merchants has established their export-import business in the port city.
Culture
Attesting to Bantam's renown in Europe is Henry Fielding's play The Author's Farce at whose conclusion the protagonist's problems are neatly solved when he is suddenly informed that he is "The Prince of Bantam", and that as the old "King of Bantam" has died he is to inherit the throne. Fielding and his London audience clearly conceived of "Bantam" as a prosperous country of which it was a great fortune to become the monarch.
Religious tolerance in Banten is well developed. Although dominated by Muslims, certain communities were allowed to build their facilities of worship, where around 1673 several temples had been established in the area around the port of Banten.
Around 1676 thousands of Chinese people sought asylum and worked in Banten.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Banten Sultanate (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Sultanate of Banten: Key Facts
| Capitals | Serang, Banten |
|---|---|
| Form of government | monarchy |
| Founded | 1527 |
| Dissolved | 1813 |
Succeeded by
- Bantam Presidency
Facts from Wikidata Q734867 (CC0).
Sultanate of Banten Map Over Time
Dated world maps on which Sultanate of Banten appears, with the other states of the time.
Sultanate of Banten Timeline
Key historical inflections from foundation to peak territorial expansion
Expansion to peak recorded area of 84,855 km² in 1595 CE.
Sultanate of Banten: Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Sultanate of Banten exist?
The Sultanate of Banten is dated to 1529 CE – 1808 CE, in the Early Modern & Age of Discovery era.
What was the capital of the Sultanate of Banten?
The capital of the Sultanate of Banten was Old Banten.
How large was the Sultanate of Banten at its peak?
At its peak in 1595 the Sultanate of Banten covered about 84,855 km².
How did the map of the Sultanate of Banten change over time?
The Sultanate of Banten appears on 3 dated world maps in the atlas, from 1600 CE to 1800 CE. Each shows its borders in that year next to the other states of the time.
Other Sovereign Realms
High & Late Middle Ages • Capital: Avarga
Early Modern & Age of Discovery • Capital: Söğüt, Bursa, Edirne, Constantinople
Industrial Era • Capital: London
Early Modern & Age of Discovery • Capital: Agra, Fatehpur Sikri, Lahore, Delhi