Embedded Files
The island of Singapore was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles, an official of the British East India Company, in 1819. Administered as part of the British Straits Settlements up to 1867, she was thereafter ruled as a crown colony up till 1959, when self-government was attained. Singapore became fully independent on 9 August 1965, after two tumultuous years of "Merger" with Malaysia.
(The Victoria Theatre and Memorial Hall, 1910, located in the heart of the colonial district. The Victoria Theatre was constructed in 1862 as the Town Hall, and the Victoria Memorial Hall was completed in 1905, in memory of Queen Victoria who had died in 1901. These two buildings were joined together as a complex when the Clock Tower was erected in 1906. Now named the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, this grand colonial building is central to the vibrant local arts and music scene today, its enduring legacy further enhanced by a four year, $180 million refurbishment which lasted until 2014. The deliberate preservation of such magnificent buildings in many ex-colonies today remains a seeming paradox in this post-Empire generation)
In the wake of the exuberant jubilee celebrations that gripped Singapore in 2015, it almost seems inconsiderate to remind ourselves that Singapore is a lot more than fifty years old. But it is. Isn’t it? Otherwise we have made a mockery of all our history lessons tracing the island’s development to 1819, and of all the recent scholarship pushing the chronology back even more by another five hundred years.
This debate over years (50 or 700?) underscores the delicate tension between the objective historical understanding of Singapore’s past, and the utilitarian value of “history” for nation-building purposes. However, it is clear that within that long time-frame, Singapore functioned as an active, dynamic and profitable trading port with a burgeoning, settled population since the early 1820s.
She quickly became, after her acquisition by the British East India Company, what one visitor remarked in 1832, “the most thriving colony which the British have in the East Indies.”
The historian C.M. Turnbull’s studied evaluation was that Singapore soon became “one of the most vital commercial keypoints of the British Empire.”
And so, even as scholars and historians continue to ask how old Singapore really is, it is worth the while to be reminded that the island will soon commemorate the bicentennial of the arrival of Stamford Raffles in 1819. And so much of the colonial era, which his coming ushered in, still remains evident in Singapore today.
How well do you know your Singapore?!
Discover more of our rich heritage along with the BBC's Michael Portillo as he travels through Asia by train!
These two episodes are part of the wonderfully evocative BBC series Great Asian Railway Journeys
In 2016, I wrote and printed a little book entitled A Splendid Little Colony: British Singapore 1819 - 1963. I am glad that it is now also available online, hosted by Stephen Luscombe in his excellent site, The British Empire.
VIDEO DOCUMENTARIES
Singapore, crossroads of the East, 1938.
Singapore: Alert in the East 1938
Singapore in the 1930s, before the war.
The colony in 1956 - 57: definitely NOT a mere fishing port!
Raffles Hotel and shopping in Singapore in 1968.
A nostalgic look at old Singapore.
Fascinating Singapore 50 years ago
Documentary history of Singapore in three parts, produced by Discovery Channel -
Take a tour around colonial Singapore today.
Colonial estates and black and white bungalows still in Singapore today - some 500 or more!
British Pathe is a leading multi-media resource library with rare archival footage covering many events and countries over the last century.
Click on the icon on left to view old footage of Singapore.
QUICK LINKS
Your SingaporeCheck out this link if you're new to Singapore or would like some essential information in a minute.
What was Singapore like in her heyday as a colony? Among other things, she was a glamourous and exciting city to be in!
Was life in British Singapore really that bad?
A daring and provocative argument is proposed here.
Start at the Singapore History Museum
This newly renovated museum is the ideal place to start learning about Singapore's history. The museum has a open-approach that allows visitors to follow any narrative they would like, and does not attempt to constrain one's learning to any one "official" story.
The Seattle Times reports on modern Singapore's fascinating colonial heritageRead about an American lady's recent visit to Singapore.
An exhibition on 100 items in colonial Singapore
Curated and presented by the National Library Board.
In 2016 the Singapore National Gallery unveiled a collaborative exhibition with London's Tate Britain, entitled Artist and Empire:(En)countering Colonial Legacies.
(Left) Somerset Maugham in the garden of Raffles Hotel)
Put on your sun hat and walk along the colonial district of Singapore.
An old "black and white" colonial bungalow comes back to life. These bungalows, inherited from a bygone era, remain a source of pride for local residents. This penchant for an icon of colonial days is a delightful mystery for critics of empire. Singapore's black-and-white bungalows: colonial splendour with a dash of history. Read also this article in Mothership, on little-known secrets of these architectural beauties.
Remembering colonial Singapore
A reporter is captivated by a family memoir on life in colonial Singapore.
Singapore in the British Empire
This webpage on Singapore is part of the extensive website The British Empire.
Jean Marshall: At home in Singapore
The English widow of David Marshall, Singapore's first Chief Minister in the 1950s during colonial days, remembers her husband, who served his (and her) country with such distinction.
BIBLIOASIAThis is a most wonderfully laden treasure trove of historical facts, stories, tales and information! Maintained by the National Heritage Board, you will be hard pressed to find better sites dedicated to the heritage of Singapore!
This is a lovely personal blog which documents people, places, images, events and memories of Singapore.
A personal blog with a collection of rare cartoons printed in post WWII colonial Singapore. Useful for insights into the troubles of the time.
Need a nostalgic look back into the Singapore of the 1950s and 60s. This is a good place to start.
Time on your hands? Take a walk and explore the heart of old Singapore; there are also guides to walking through some other equally fascinating "ethnic quarters" on the island too!
A bold re-examination of Singapore's past, undertaken in a series of podcasts by the historian Thum Ping Tjin.
MOMENTOUS EVENTS
other than that momentous event (ie The Fall of Singapore) or that other
momentous event (ie The Separation from Malaysia)
Behind the scenes of Separation in 1965: was Singapore expelled? or was it a separation by mutual consent? Historian Melanie Chew ponders the question and poses her conclusion.
Here is the well-publicised debate between Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam and Singapore historian Thum Ping Tjin as part of the Select Committee hearings on deliberate online falsehoods, convened in early 2018. The two men differed on their interpretation of the 1963 Operation Coldstore.
The Show with historian Thum Ping Tjin. This is the link to the webcasts of Dr Thum.
Dr Thum also has an ongoing podcast series entitled The History of Singapore.
STUDENT ACTIVITY: The 1964 Race Riots
Google Sites
Report abuse