Transcript Was there Singapore before 1819?

Was there
Singapore
before 1819?
Things to note…
• Temasek
Singapura
• Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals)
-Refers to written accounts on historical
events
- Tells that Singapore known as Temasekmeaning sea Town or Sea port
Things to note…
• Munshi Abdullah (p3)
• Sang Nila Utama
• Legend???
Things to note…
• Historians?
• Wang Dayuan (p5)
• Archaeological Evidence
(p 7/8 }
• Parameswara (p9)
The Singapore Stone (p16)
Who was
the founder
of
Singapore?
Sir Stamford Raffles?
Born: 6-Jul-1781
Birthplace: Caribbean
Ocean
Died: 5-Jul-1826
Location of death:
London, England
1819
Why was Singapore chosen
Why British needed a new port
in the Malay Archipelago…
1. To break Dutch monopoly of trade in the
Malay Archipelago
 Dutch – biggest rival of British in MA
 Dutch controlled most of MA trade
 Restricted British and other Europeans to
trade only at Batavia in Java.
 Charged high fees for use of port and heavy
taxes on goods bought and sold.
2. To protect Britain’s trade with China
• Early 19th Century…Britain had lucrative
trade with China
• Needed a suitable port for British to
stopover to replenish supplies .
• British ports of Penang n Bencoolen not
suitable.
3. Unsuitability of Penang & Bencoolen
• Both ineffective
• Penang – too far north of Straits
of Melaka
• Bencoolen – at the wrong side of
Sumatra
Penang and Bencoolen –
NOT suitable
• Not located near the main trading areas in
the Malay archipelago
• Not along the China trade route
• British had profitable trade with China
• Needed a suitable port along the China
trade route
Sir Stamford Raffles
• 1818- appointed Lieutenant-Governor of
Bencoolen
• Saw Dutch spreading monopoly of trade to
more areas
• Felt British needed a new port to compete
with Dutch
• Needed a port near the Malay archipelago
& near Melaka
Search for a
new settlement
Raffles
Farquhar
28 January 1819
• Raffles sighted
Singapore
• Island covered in jungle
• Small groups of Malays,
Chinese and Orang Laut
seen
• Malays lived in villages in
N. bank of S’pore river
• Temenggong was incharge
Chinese grew gambier
Why was Singapore chosen?
1. Good location
- Located in the middle of the Malay Archipelago
- Located along the China trade route
- Could protect ships sailing from India to China
2. No Dutch on the island
3. Plenty of drinking water
4. Deep harbour
5. Harbour protected from strong winds
29 January 1819
• Raffles landed with Farquhar
• Met Temenggong
• Temenggong informed Raffles that Singapore
was part of the Johor-Riau Sultanate
• Sultan Abdul Rahman controlled Singapore
• Only Sultan could give British permission to set
up a trading settlement
• Sultan under Dutch control
Solution
• Brought Sultan’s elder brother, Hussein, to
Singapore secretly
• Recognised him as the rightful ruler of the
Johor-Riau Sultanate
• Renamed him Sultan Hussein
• Obtain Sultan Hussein’s permission to
start a trading settlement
6 February 1819
Treaty signed by Raffles, Sultan Hussein
and the Temenggong of S’pore
Treaty
• A written
agreement
between two or
more
governments or
groups of people
Terms of 6 Feb 1819 Treaty
1. British would be
allowed to set up a
trading settlement in
the southern part of
Singapore.
2. Sultan would receive
$5,000 a year
3. Temenggong would
receive $3,000 a year
6 February 1819 Treaty
• Only gave British permission to set up a
trading settlement in Singapore
• British did not own Singapore
After the signing of the
Treaty
A British Flag was raised on
Singapore
How did the Dutch and the British react to
the 6 Feb 1819 treaty?
• Dutch:
very angry with Raffles
 claimed that Singapore belonged
indirectly to them.
 made official protests to the British
• British government
 Not happy with Raffles for
starting a dispute between Britain
and Holland
• British East India Company
 Unhappy with Raffles for making
the Dutch angry
(remember: the Dutch still controlled
the Malay Archipelago trade
routes)
Why did Britain and Holland decide not to go
to war over Singapore?
• Britain
Did not wish to antagonise the
Dutch
Needed to use Holland as a
friendly and strong buffer state
against enemy countries in
Europe
• Holland:
Did not want to anger
Britain
Holland was nearly
bankrupt due to the
Napoleonic Wars
Holland could not afford
any more wars
Solution
• Negotiated for a peaceful settlement
• The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 17 March 1824,
also called the Treaty of London
Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824
• Signed by Holland and Britain
• Holland and Britain agreed to share influence over the
Malay Archipelago
• Areas north of the Straits of Melaka – British influence
• Areas south of the Straits of Melaka – Dutch influence
• Singapore and Malay Peninsula would come within the
British sphere of influence
• Melaka went to the British; the Dutch got Bencoolen
Map…
Singapore – possession of Britain?
• 29 January 1819: Raffles landed on Singapore
• 6 Feb 1819: Raffles, Sultan Hussein and Temenggong
signed a treaty allowing British to start a trading
settlement on Singapore
•
17 March 1824: Britain and Holland agreed that
Singapore would come within British sphere of influence
• 2 August 1824: The British government officially signed a
treaty with Sultan Hussein. Singapore would belong to
Britain in exchange for large sums of money.
The New Settlement
• Raffles was off to Bencoolen after 6 Feb
1819, where he was Lieutenant-Governor.
• The job of starting the settlement fell to
William Farquhar, who became Singapore’s
first Resident.
WILLIAM FARQUHAR --------->
Farquhar’s Problems
1. Singapore was covered
with jungle
 Farquhar’s men had to
clear the land at the
Singapore River so that
they could build huts to
live in
2. Had to defend Singapore
 Had to build gun
positions and mounted
guns facing the big sea
Farquhar’s Problems
3. Needed people to trade and live in
Singapore
 Settlements must have people
 Invited people from Melaka to settle in
Singapore
 Stationed officials to invite passing ships
to stop by Singapore
Farquhar’s Problems
4. Food
 Singapore was a fishing village
 People from Melaka who had come down brought with
them food such as chickens, ducks and fruits, which they
sold at high prices
5. Violence and disorder
 A lot of crime
 Farquhar started a police force, but it was too small to
keep law and order successfully
6. Pests
 Rats and centipedes
 Kill a centipede/rat, get money
 Successful campaign!
The ‘Real’ Founder of Singapore
• Raffles?
• Farquhar?
• John Crawfurd?
(See textbook, pages 32-34 and 36-39)
One reason why Raffles chose Singapore
was because of her harbour. She had a very
good harbour that made her a very good
choice as a port. Singapore’s harbour was
deep and very safe. Ships were sheltered
from strong winds. Further, Singapore was
ideal as she was located along the China
trade route. Singapore would be able to
provide facilities for British ships coming
from China to dock, refit and replenish
History of Singapore
before 1819
Archeological evidence
Archeological evidence
• Artefacts found
• E.g – Singapore stone of 12th or 13th
century
• 1843-British blew up the stone
• No one can read the writing on the stone
Significance of the Singapore
Stone
• Tells us:
1. History of Singapore goes far back
before Raffles
2. People who lived in Singapore could read
and write