Page 6 - Macau_Group Project

During the age of discovery, Portuguese
Historical background,
sailors explored the coasts of Asia. After

that, in 1557, the Ming government gave
geographical and natural
consent for a permanent and official
Portuguese trade point at Macau, the
features of the city
Portuguese administered Macao, and
Macau became the first European colony in

East Asia.

For more than a century, Macao thrived as

the principal intermediary in the trade
between Asia and the western world. In

addition, Macao became a strategic point
for western religions. In the 16th century

and 17th century many churches were
built in Macau (黃啓臣，1995), therefore,

nowadays in Macao this religious heritage
can be seen in the array of well-conserved
churches easily. In the 19th century, the

prosperous age of Macao was ended, since
most trading routes to East Asia were

controlled by the Dutch and British. After
the British victory over China in the Opium
War, the more perfect port of Hong Kong

was established, and Macao was lost its
character of the main port (鄧開頌，1995).

Until the 1960s, Macao became a

freewheeling place, because of the
widespread introduction of legalized

gambling, henceforth the gambling
industry as a main and significant strength
of the economy (李鵬翥，2003). Today,

exports join a world-class tourism industry
in making Macao more prosperous, and

the continuing developments have
transformed Macao into a city with many
casinos and luxury resorts.