COLONIALISM

02
By Sukhjit Kaur

BRITISH COLONIALISM

LECTURE OUTLINE
Introduction British Empire Straits Settlements Kingdom of Sarawak

Opening up the Land

British Colonialism

Introduction

Introduction
During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Spain and Portugal pioneered European exploration of the globe and in the process, established large overseas empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires bestowed, England, France and the Netherlands began to establish colonies and trade networks of their own in the Americas and Asia. A series of wars in the 17th and 18th centuries with Netherlands and France left England the dominant power in North Americas and India.

British Colonialism

British Empire

British Empire
The British Empire began to take shape during the early 17th century, with English settlements of North America and the smaller islands of the Caribbean, and the establishment of a private company, the English East India Company, to trade with Asia.

British policy in Asia during the 19th century was chiefly concerned with protecting and expanding India, viewed as its most important colony and key to the rest of Asia.

British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1922, the British Empire held sway over population of 458million people = one-quarter of the world population covered more than 33,670,000km2 = quarter of the worlds land area.

British Empire

The Sun never sets on the British Empire

British Colonialism

Straits Settlements

LECTURE OUTLINE
Penang Malacca Singapore

Straits Settlements

Penang

Introduction
Originally part of the Malay sultanate of Kedah, Penang was ceded to the British East India Company in 1786 by the Sultan of Kedah, in exchange for military protection from Siamese and Burmese armies. On August 1786, Captain Francis Light, known as the founder of Penang, hoisted the Union Jack thereby taking formal possession of Penang and renamed it Prince of Wales Island. It became the first British possession in the Malay States and Southeast Asia.

Introduction
The location of the Island at the opening of the Straits of Malacca attracted the British East India Company to use the island as a natural harbour and anchorage for their trading ships, and as a naval base to counter growing French ambitions in the region. The settlements on the north-eastern tip of the island was named George Town after King George III of the United Kingdom. The settlement was first built around the harbour with Fort Cornwallis forming the islands defense. To expedite jungle clearing by labourers, Light fired silver coins from his ship cannons into the dense vegetation, and the land was cleared in no time.

Introduction
Light declared Prince of Wales Island a free port to attract trade away from Dutch who were then the colonial ruler of the Dutch East Indies. This strategy drew many immigrant traders to Penang. Settlers were allowed to claim whatever land they could clear. By 1789, Penang had 5,000 residents and this doubled by the end of the following decade. Colonial Penang prospered through exports of tin and rubber, which fed the Indutrial Revolution in Britain.

Introduction
Penangs prosperity attracted people from far and wide, making Penang truly a melting pot of diverse cultures. Among the ethnic groups found in Penang were Malays, Acehnese, Arabs, Armenians, British, Burmese, Germans, Jews, Chinese, Gujeratis, Bengalis, Japanese, Punjabis, Sindhis, Tamils, Thais, Malayalees, Rawas, Javanese, Mandailings, Portuguese, Eurasians and others. Though many of them no longer impose a felt presence today, their memory lives on in place names such as Burma Road, Rangoon Road, Siam Road, Armenian Street, Acheen Street, Gottlied Road, Katz Street and the Jewish Cemetary.

Armenian Street

Acheen Street

Northam Road Millionaires Row

Known as European Road because of many European bungalows. The road reflected the decadent lifestyles of the rich and famous who lived along the Millionaires Row

First residential suburb where the elite had their homes along the scenic North Beach. Among them were the early colonial administrators including Raffles. The Penang Club founded in the 1860s was the most exclusive on the settlement.

Northam Road Millionaires Row

Each mansion was set in ample gardens that came with tennis courts, stables, circular driveways, service buildings and sea walls which had to be maintained at high cost against eroding shoreline. The pretty boulevard, through which were driven the guilded horse carriages and later the fancy cars, was lined with shady trees and wide grassy banks. By the 20th century, it was no longer the Europeans who lived there, but the self made local millionaires, and eclectic mansions fine enough for entertaining their European friends. Eventually during the Depression of the 1930s and the Second World War took most of what was left.

Impact of British Rule in Penang

The earliest influence on Malaysian architecture can be traced to the buildings of George Town, a trading post of the East India Company established in 1786. It started with the construction of Fort Cornwallis at the tip of the Northeastern cape of Penang Island. The colonial town spread west and south towards the central range, eventually becoming home to what is today Malaysias largest collection of 19th and early 20th century buildings and of its best examples of Anglo-Indian, Chinese and Indian Muslim architecture.

Built roads and public infrastructure.

Colonial Architecture
Most of Colonial architecture emulated the Neoclassical style prevalent in England at that time. Classicism in architecture refers to ancient Greek and Roman designs used in temples, theatres and other civic buildings. Neoclassicism was brought to Malaya by the British via India, their other colony. The imposing scale and the formal appearance of this architectural style was considered eminently suited to signify dignity, rank and prestige. However, measures were taken to suit the buildings to the tropical environment and climate. British architects successfully designed buildings which combined classical dignity with modifications for the tropics by using devices such as high ceilings, verandas, expansive windows and louvered panels.

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Impact of British Rule in Penang

Straits Settlements

Malacca

Dutch pave the way for British Rule

In the Napoleonic Wars, the army of the revolutionary French overran Holland in 1795. The Dutch, fearing their overseas settlements might also be taken over by the French, requested the British to provide protection to all their trading posts.

Dutch pave the way for British Rule

Although the British were expected to occupy Melaka temporarily, their arrival was an important turning point in Malaysian History. In 1824, with the signing of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty, the British exchanged their trading post in Bencoolen (Sumatra, Indonesia) for Melaka. Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 - addressed issues regarding the rights to trade in the Spice Islands. - did not clearly describe the limitations of expansion by either side in the Malay world.

By the end of the 19th century, the British were involved as colonial power throughout the Peninsula.

Impact of British Colonialism in Malacca

In the next 162 years, the British brought about improvements inland and in sea transportation. An Iron Jetty was built at the harbour for streamers in 1880 replacing the wooden jetty.

By 1900 about 320 km roads were constructed in and around Malacca.

Installed telephone and telegram system Built public buildings with emphasis on symmetrical planning, harmonious proportions and the use of classical motifs.

Straits Settlements

Singapore

Introduction
In 1818, Raffles managed to convince Lord Hastings, the then governor-general of India and his superior at the British East India Company, to fund an expedition to establish a new British base in the region. Raffles happened upon the island of Singapore, which upon investigation, seemed to be a natural choice. It lay at the southern tip of the Malay peninsula, near the Straits of Malacca, and possessed an excellent natural harbour, fresh water supplies, and timber for repairing ships. Most importantly, it was unoccupied by the Dutch.

Raffles Plan of Singapore

also known as the Jackson Plan / Plan of the town of Singapore. an urban plan for Singapore drawn up to maintain some order in the urban development of the fledging but thriving colony founded just three years earlier.

Raffles Plan of Singapore

Originally, William Farquhar who had governed Singapore from 1819 to 1823 had allowed the colony to flourish under the sheer volume of trade that passed through her port, but had not organised the colony, and thus it grew haphazardly. Upon his return, Sir Stamford Raffles was displeased by the disorderliness, and formed a town Committee led by Lieutenant Jackson to revise the layout plan of the city. The Jackson plan divided Singapore into ethnic functional subdivisions and lay the colony out in a grid pattern.

Ethnic residential areas were to be segregated into four areas.

Raffles Plan of Singapore

1. The European Town - had residents who consisted of European traders, Eurasians and rich Asians.

2. The Chinese Kampong

- for the ethnic Chinese - located in present day Chinatown - south east of the Singapore river.

Raffles Plan of Singapore

3. Chulia Kampong - where ethnic Indians originally resided - located further north of the Chinese Kampong.

Raffles Plan of Singapore

4. Kampong Glam - consisted of Muslims, ethnic Malays and Arabs who had migrated to Singapore.

- further divided for the Bugis and the Sultan of Singapore.

Colonial Architecture of Singapore

Colonial Architecture of Singapore

Colonial Architecture of Singapore

Colonial Architecture of Singapore

Colonial Architecture of Singapore

British Colonialism

Kingdom of Sarawak

Introduction
Sarawak was part of the Sultanate of Brunei in Borneo. Sarawak was in chaos from piracy and insurgency. Sultan Omar Ali II, the Sultan of Brunei, ordered Pangeran Muda Hashim in 1839 to restore order and it was during this time that James Brooke visited Sarawak. James Brooke was an independent adventurer with his own ship having left military employment in India. Pangeran Muda Hashim requested assistance and Brooke successfully defeated the pirates and insurgents that led to the signing of a treaty in 1841 ceding as a reward Sarawak and Sinian to James Brooke. James Brooke was also bestowed Rajah of Sarawak and founded the white Rajah Dynasty of Sarawak.

White Rajahs
The 3 white Rajahs of Sarawak were; Sir James Brooke (1841-1868) Sir Charles Anthony Johnson Brooke (1868-1917) Sir Charles Vyner Brooke (1917-1946)

Impact
During the reign of the second Rajah, Kuching changed from a ramshackle little place into a town which was clean and had street lights, good roads and fine buildings. One of the first grand buildings to be constructed was the Astana, the Rajahs residence, on the north side of the river overlooking the town.

Impact
Built in 1870, it was a romantic representation of an English country home with whitewashed walls and wood-framed glass windows. Broad, arcaded verandas were incorporated into the design to accommodate the hot, humid weather. Public buildings constructed during this period included the new court house. The other notable buildings were a hospital, the jail and Fort Margherita, which was built in the style of an English castle. The world famous Sarawak Museum and the Pavilion, which became the Medical Headquarters was also built during the reign of the second Rajah.

Impact
The 100-year rule of the Brooke Raj bequeathed a distictive civic architectural heritage to Kuching, one which reflected the British origin of the Brookes. They brought with them a colonial style characterized by classical proportions and scale, pillars and white stucco walls. The biggest influence on traditional local architecture was the introduction of new building materials. Atap and ironwood shingles were replaced by clay tiles and reinforced concrete, making traditional structures in Kuching almost obsolete.

British Colonialism

Opening up the Land

Tin Mines
Although tin had been mined manually by Malays for centuries, it was the discovery in Perak , in 1848 and from 1870 onwards, of major tin deposits that propelled Straits Chinese entrepreneurs and, later, European capitalists to invest in new techniques.

By the turn of the century, Malaysia was the worlds largest tin producer.
The towns in Perak and Selangor, including Kuala Lumpur, which served the tin mines and growing rural communities, grew from ramshackle settlements of wood and thatched roof houses into neat, colonial towns.

This saw large scale migration of Chinese coolies into the tin districts.

Tin Mines

Areas with tin mining in the Malaysian Peninsular 1.PERAK 1.Larut 2.Kinta Valley 2.SELANGOR 1.Kanching 2.Kuala Lumpur 3.Sungai Ujong 4.Lukut 3.NEGERI SEMBILAN 1.Rasah

Tin-mining towns - Taiping

Railways + Roads
The British colonial administration were quick to spot the benefits of building an infrastructure of roads and railways linking mining areas to the west coast of the Peninsula. Between 1885 and 1895, railway lines were constructed to link tin mines in an east-west direction directly to a coastal port. Towards the end of the century only did the focus shift towards building railways and roads to link the urban centres along the West Coasts.

Plantations
The Colonial Administrates also recognized only too clearly that mining was a nonrenewable resource, and that it was desirable to place the economy on a better long term footing.

Agriculture appeared to be the answer.

The beginning of the 19th century had witnessed modest attempts to plant spices in Penang, and later Singapore.

Plantations
Agriculture in the country would have faced ruin had it not been for the introduction some years earlier of rubber from Brazil. The result was a dramatic rubber boom. This fueled the agricultural development of the country. Vast clearance in the early years of the century required enormous numbers of workers, far more than the country itself was capable of providing. As a result, large number of Tamils from Southern India were recruited.

Early Kuala Lumpur

EARLY KUALA LUMPUR. In the course of 80 years, from 1959 to 1939, Kuala Lumpur grew from a small trading post in the remote interior into the largest town in the Malay Peninsular, with a population of more than 120,000. From a collection of shanties, Kuala Lumpur changed into a town of shophouses, bungalows and untidy and insanitary areas of workingclass settlement sprinkled with a few prestigious government buildings.

1880 Kuala Lumpur

Early Kuala Lumpur 1880s

A view of Kuala Lumpur showing the thatched / atap houses of the Chinese and Malay quarters sited in the native town on the east bank of the Klang River. The boundary between the Malay quarter and the Chinese settlement was a rough track, nowadays Jalan Tun Perak. In 1880 the administrative capital of Selangor was moved from Klang to Kuala Lumpur.

Early Kuala Lumpur 1890s

Early Kuala Lumpur 1900s

Two storey brick shophouses replaced atap sheds after a fire in 1881 destroyed most of the houses in the narrow streets of congested Chinatown. To make the best use of limited space, the individual plots had a narrow street frontage but greater depth. Pedestrians used the covered pavements in front.

Permanent Infrastructures
In the year 1890, Maxwell suggested to the Straits Government for the public infrastructures to be permanent and to be more beautiful and pleasing. This is due to the strategic location of KL and its potential to become one of the main cities.

To get the new proposal going, Maxwell reshuffled the whole public works department. 1891, he employed the well known engineer C. E. Spooner from Ceylon as Chief Engineer of Selangor.
Spooner had previously worked in the Ceylon Public Works department. In Selangor, he introduced / imported buildings that were in the style of Raj/ Mohgul.
The New Government Office

Permanent Infrastructures

Permanent Infrastructures KL Town Hall 1904

Permanent Infrastructures General Post Office 1906

Permanent Infrastructures Railway Station 1911

An early picture of Kuala Lumpur railway station, the citys oldest railway station. Built in 1910, forming the central point of Malayas rail transport system.

Designed by A. B. Hubback, who was responsible for many of the buildings around
Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. Hubback created a unique Moorish/ colonial building style, featuring arches, domes, and minarets

Permanent Infrastructures Railway Station 1911

Mounbatten Road Jalan Tun Perak

Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman

Hill Stations
Malaysias four principal hill stations Penang Hill, Maxwells Hill (Bukit Larut), Frasers Hill and Cameron Highlands owed their origin and early development to the British colonialists. They sought an escape from the hot, humid and unhealthy conditions of the lowlands.

Hill Stations
Known as change-of-air stations or sonatoria, each was small and isolated and mainly comprised a collection of bungalows perched on ridges or strung along the flanks of hills. The architecture was influenced by the romantic ideals permeating the middle class in Britain in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Hill Stations

COLONIALISM

02

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