Events
Parameswara founded MalaccaParameswara established the Hindu Kingdom of MalaccaParameswara converted the Hindu Kingdom of Malacca to IslamPortuguese took Malacca, an important trading centreDutch defeated Portuguese and took over MalaccaBugis (Indonesia) already had a strong influence on the Riau Sultanate (with Johore as the capital city)Riau became a great religious and cultural centre in the 1770sBugis were expelled by the DutchAcquisition of Penang : Penang was leased to British in 1786 by Sultan of KedahLiberal government led by William Gladstone was replaced by Benjamin Disraeli's conservative government in Feb 1874SUBSEQUENT REASONS FOR COLONIAL EXPANSION AFTER 1870!!!British first intervened in tin-rich Perak → to ensure constant supply of tinAdministered the 4 principal tin-mining states as the Federated Malay StatesThe opening of the Suez Canal in the late 1869
→ cut down travelling time
→ led to increased mobility
→ increased trade (larger steamships can carry
bulkier + more goods. More goods = more
profits, which in turn attracted more
merchants to SEA.Down to 1871, London's negative attitude towards
accepting the responsibilities of maintaining order
within the peninsula states were attributed to their
view that Britain's interest east of India were confined
primarily to the control of the trading channels to China.The Conservative government under PM Benjamin
Disraeli took over the government from the Liberal
PartyAppointment of Sir Andrew Clarke (MOTS ; BR governor)
in sept 1873, who aimed to restore order, without bothering
to consult the Colonial Office or to report development as
they occurred, led to the beginnings of the British intervention.By the end of the 1850s, the French were spreading their control
in Indo-China while the Dutch were in the East-Indies (Indonesia)Reunification of GermanyJa'afar Long discovered rich tin deposits in Larut and invited miners from Penang to work in LarutThe tin mining was so successful that the Sultan of Perak
made Ja'afar Long the chief of Larut and this was passed
to his son, Ngah Ibrahimin, in 1857 when he diedTHE FIRST LARUT WAR - over control of water course
→ started when a Hai San member, being jealous of
his rival, had cut off the water course to the rich mine
the Ghee Hin had discovered → Lee Coyen asked the
Governor for help.THE SECOND LARUT WAR - the Hai Sans were unhappy
as they felt a loss of face and awaited an opportunity
for revengeA gambling incident on 16th June 1865
saw the Hai San members attacking the
Ghee Hins and looted many shops.
They even killed 13 Ghee Hin members
and in return, the Ghee Hins attacked and
burnt their village in Taiping, killing 40 men.In 1867, the Hai Sans carried their war to Penang,
and 3 more Secret Societies - the Toh Peh Kong
and the Red and White Flags society got involved
→ escalated chaosTHE THIRD LARUT WAR - scandal between
Lee Coyen and the wife of a relative of the
Hai San leader, Ching Keng Kwee → both
were put into pig basket, tortured and thrown
into a mining poolGhee Hin had imported 4000 professional
fighting men, and in Feb 1872, they attacked
the Hai Sans at Taiping.
Ngah Ibrahim did not help them → made peace
with the Ghee Hins and gave them control over
the mines.THE FOURTH LARUT WAR - 7 weeks after the Hai sans
were driven out by the Ghee Hins → captured Simpang
and proceeded to blockade the coast of Larut by using
boats to patrol the area → to prevent food supplies
and ammunition from entering LarutIn 1857, when Sultan Abdullah died, the new Sultan,
Sultan Jaafar, removed the eldest son (of the previous
Sultan), Raja Yusof (Raja Di-hilir) from the succession
order and replaced him with his own eldest son, Raja
Abdullah.When Sultan Jaafar died in 1865, Sultan Ali
promoted Raja Abdullah to be Raja Muda
(supported by powerful Malay Chiefs) and
Raja Yusof was by-passed a second time.When Sultan Ali died in 1871, a dispute broke out
between Raja Abdullah and Raja Ismail → the former
was by-passed because he was not present at the
death of the Sultan as the Malay custom required that
the successor had to be present at the funeral ceremony
to receive the Royal Regalia as well as recognition from
the Malay Chiefs.Abdullah wrote a letter to Clarke on 30th Dec 1873
requesting for British support of Abdullah as the
Sultan of Perak and a British Resident to help in
the administration of the State.Periods
Zheng He's mission to Malaccareluctant abandonment of British's hands-off policy
→ so that trade would not be disrupted if they took control
→ so that others would not insert themselves into Malaya during this chaotic periodAMERICAN CIVIL WAR ; which resulted in Britain and N.America
becoming the biggest buyers and were worried that others would
take over if they did not intervene
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