Timor-Leste's Colonial Heritage from the Early Modern Era to the Second World War

Abstract

The study of Timor-Leste's colonial heritage requires analysis over four centuries of history. The country has been historically underestimated despite its limited resources, resilience and agency. Traditional academic views influenced by a military-oriented framework fail to explain how Timor-Leste survived and maintained its culture under imperialism and colonialism. Timor-Leste has proven to be a pivot in Asia, an actor to be watched, whose circumstances have had consequences elsewhere. This study adopts a small states perspective and a multilingual methodology to understand the strategic value of Portuguese Timor and explore its unique challenges of state formation from the early modern era up to the Second World War. Show more