British colonisation 1819

1942

1825 survey map. Singapore's free port trade was centred at Singapore River for
150 years. Fort Canning hill was home to its ancient and early colonial rulers.
In 1819, Thomas Stamford Raffles arrived and signed a treaty with Sultan Hussein
Shah of Johor, on behalf of the British East India Company, to develop the sout
hern part of Singapore as aBritish trading post. In 1824, the entire island, as
well as theTemenggong, became a British possession after a further treaty with t
he Sultan.[17] In 1826, Singapore became part of theStraits Settlements, under t
he jurisdiction of British India, becoming the regional capital in 1836.[18]
Raffles Place c.1900.
Prior to Raffles' arrival, there were only about a thousand people living on the
island, mostly indigenous Malays along with a handful of Chinese.[19] By 1860,
the population had swelled to more than 80,000 and more than half were Chinese.
Many immigrants came to work at rubber plantations and, after the 1870s, the isl
and became a global centre for rubber exports.[17]
After the First World War, the British built the large Singapore Naval Base. Lie
utenant General Sir William George Shedden Dobbie was appointed General Officer
Commanding of theMalaya Command on 8 November 1935, holding the post until 1939;
[20]