Wikipedia:Today's featured article/November 9, 2019
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The early history of the kingdoms of Gowa and Talloq can be traced back to 1300, when the Makassar kingdom of Gowa emerged as an agrarian chiefdom in the Indonesian peninsula of South Sulawesi. Talloq was founded two centuries later when a prince from Gowa fled to the coast after his defeat in a succession dispute. The coastal location of the new polity allowed it to exploit maritime trade to a greater degree than Gowa. The growth of early Gowa was supported by a rapid increase in wet rice cultivation. Verdant forests were cleared to make way for rice paddies. The population may have increased tenfold between the thirteenth and sixteenth centuries. Gowa and Talloq became close allies in the sixteenth century and dominated most of the peninsula, following wide-ranging administrative and military reforms. Around 1600 the twin kingdoms converted to Islam, defeated their rivals and became the most important powers in eastern Indonesia, with Fort Somba Opu (pictured) as one of their centers. (Full article...)