Singapore as a British colony

Singapore as a British colony

The earliest known settlement on Singapore was in the 2nd century AD. It was an outpost of the Sumatran Srivijaya empire, and was named Temasek, or 'sea town'

Between the 16th and early 19th centuries, it was ruled as part of the Sultanate of Johor.

In 1819, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles arrived and signed a treaty with the sultan of that time, Sultan Hussein Shah, on behalf of the British East India Company. He developed the southern part of Singapore as a British trading post.

In 1824, the most of Singapore became a British possesion, and in 1826 it became part of the Straits Settlements, a British colony.

British Malay Flag

Why did the British choose Singapore?

-Singapore was located in an area in which the Dutch mainly ruled, so the Brittish colonised Singapore in an attempt to break the Dutch's dominance.

-Singapore had a deep harbour and was sheltered.

-Singapore was located on the main trading route between the West and the East, the Straits of Malacca.

-In 1824, the British and the Dutch signed the Anglo-Dutch treaty, giving the British control over the whole of Malaya, including Singapore.

On the 8th of Febuary 1942, the Japanese invaded Singapore and conquered it within 7 days.

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called it "the worst disaster in British history".

The Japanese occupied Singapore until the British repossessed it in September 1945 after the Japanese surrender.

Singapore's first general election, in 1955, was won by the pro-independence David Marshall, leader of the Labour Front. Demanding complete self-rule, he led a delegation to London but was turned down by the British. He resigned on return and was replaced by Lim Yew Hock, whose policies convinced Britain to grant Singapore full internal self-government for all matters except defence and foreign affairs.

David Marshall

Singapore declared independence from Britain on 31 August 1963, before joining the new Federation of Malaysia in September along with Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak, but on the 9th of August, 1965, it seperated fronm the the federation. For the first time, Singapore was an independent nation.

Federation of Malaysia Flag

SINGAPORE NOW

The Republic Singapore of Singapore is one of the most urbanised cities in Asia. It has a population of 5 million people, of whom about 3 million were born locally. Most are of Chinese, Malay or Indian descent. There are four official languages: English, Chinese, Malay, and Tamil. One of the five founding members of the Association of South East Asian Nations, it is also a member of the Commonwealth.

Current Republic of Singapore Flag

Thank You lah!

Singapore