171-631: Singapore in the Straits Settlements refers to a period in the history of Singapore between 1826 and 1942, during which Singapore was part of the Straits Settlements together with Penang and Malacca . Singapore was the capital and the seat of government of the Straits Settlement after it was moved from George Town in 1832. From 1830 to 1867, the Straits Settlements was a residency, or subdivision, of
342-622: A Royal Air Force airfield at Tengah Air Base . Winston Churchill touted it as the " Gibraltar of the East" and military discussions often referred to the base as simply " East of Suez " The base did not have a fleet. The British Home Fleet was stationed in Europe, and the British could not afford to build a second fleet to protect its interests in Asia. The so-called Singapore strategy called for
513-607: A French explorer of Egypt, became chief engineer of Egypt's Public Works . In addition to his normal duties, he surveyed the Isthmus of Suez and made plans for the Suez Canal. French Saint-Simonianists showed an interest in the canal and in 1833, Barthélemy Prosper Enfantin tried to draw Muhammad Ali's attention to the canal but was unsuccessful. Alois Negrelli , the Italian - Austrian railroad pioneer, became interested in
684-484: A cabinet would be picked under a parliamentary system . The British would retain control over areas such as internal security and foreign affairs, as well as veto power over legislation. The election for the Legislative Assembly held on 2 April 1955 was a closely fought affair, with several new political parties joining the fray. Unlike previous elections, voters were automatically registered, expanding
855-409: A canal might disrupt their commercial and maritime supremacy. Lord Palmerston , the project's most unwavering foe, confessed in the mid-1850s the real motive behind his opposition: that Britain's commercial and maritime relations would be overthrown by the opening of a new route, open to all nations, and thus deprive his country of its present exclusive advantages. As one of the diplomatic moves against
1026-671: A conversation with another monk, Fidelis, who had sailed on the canal from the Nile to the Red Sea during a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the first half of the 8th century. The Abbasid caliph al-Mansur is said to have ordered this canal closed in 767 to prevent supplies from reaching Arabian detractors. The remaining section of the canal near the Nile, known as the Khalij , continued to serve as part of Cairo's water infrastructure until
1197-449: A declining entrepôt trade and a growing population that required jobs. It was thought that the merger would benefit the economy by creating a common market, eliminating trade tariffs, and thus supporting new industries which would solve the ongoing unemployment woes. Although the PAP leadership campaigned vigorously for a merger, the sizable pro-communist wing of the PAP was strongly opposed to
1368-563: A deep concern in the European population of the island. In 1854 the Singapore Free Press complained that Singapore was a "small island" full of the "very dregs of the population of southeastern Asia". As Singapore continued to grow, the deficiencies in the Straits Settlements administration became serious and Singapore's merchant community began agitating against British Indian rule. The British government agreed to establish
1539-485: A delegation to London to negotiate for complete self-rule in the Merdeka Talks , but the talks failed when the British were reluctant to give up control over Singapore's internal security. The British were concerned about communist influence and labour strikes which were undermining Singapore's economic stability, and felt that the local government was ineffective in handling earlier riots. Marshall resigned following
1710-567: A detailed description of the canal complete with plans and profiles. The Suez Canal Company ( Compagnie universelle du canal maritime de Suez ) came into being on 15 December 1858. The British government had opposed the project from the outset to its completion. The British, who controlled both the Cape route and the Overland route to India and the Far East, favored the status quo , given that
1881-752: A dream. Despite entering negotiations with Egypt's ruling Mamelukes , the Venetian plan to build the canal was quickly put to rest by the Ottoman conquest of Egypt in 1517 , led by Sultan Selim I . During the 16th century, the Ottoman Grand Vizier Sokollu Mehmed Pasha attempted to construct a canal connecting the Red Sea and the Mediterranean . This was motivated by a desire to connect Constantinople to
SECTION 10
#17327909053362052-586: A free port provided a crucial advantage over other colonial port cities in Batavia (now Jakarta ) and Manila where tariffs were levied, and it drew many Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Arab traders operating in South-East Asia to Singapore. Steamships had to frequently bunker and therefore take the route along the South Asian coast line which also preferred Singapore over Batavia. The later opening of
2223-459: A head in 1961 when PAP minister Ong Eng Guan defected from the party and beat a PAP candidate in a subsequent by-election, a move that threatened to bring down Lee's government. Faced with the prospect of a takeover by the pro-communists, UMNO changed their minds about the merger. On 27 May, Malaya's Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman , mooted the idea of a Federation of Malaysia , comprising existing Federation of Malaya , Singapore, Brunei and
2394-627: A larger capacity than sailing ships , reduced transportation costs and led to a boom in trade. Singapore also benefited by acting as a coaling station for the Royal Navy and merchant ships. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 dramatically reduced the travel time from Europe to East Asia, again providing a boost for trade. By 1880, over 1.5 million tons of goods were passing through Singapore each year, with around 80% of it transported by steamships and trading ships. The main commercial activity
2565-902: A natural sheltered harbour, as well as its status as a free port. During World War II , Singapore was invaded and occupied by the Japanese Empire from 1942 to 1945. When the Japanese surrendered, Singapore reverted to British control, with increasing levels of self-government being granted, resulting in Singapore's merger with the Federation of Malaya to form Malaysia in 1963. However, social unrest, racial tensions, and political differences between Singapore's governing People's Action Party (PAP) and Malaysia's Alliance Party resulted in Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia . Singapore became an independent republic on 9 August 1965. By
2736-683: A number of granite stelae that he set up on the Nile bank, including one near Kabret, and a further one a few kilometres north of Suez. Darius the Great's Suez Inscriptions read: King Darius says: I am a Persian; setting out from Persia I conquered Egypt. I ordered to dig this canal from the river that is called Nile and flows in Egypt, to the sea that begins in Persia. Therefore, when this canal had been dug as I had ordered, ships went from Egypt through this canal to Persia, as I had intended The canal left
2907-636: A portion of the first, was constructed under the reign of Necho II (610–595 BCE), but the only fully functional canal was engineered and completed by Darius I (522–486 BCE). James Henry Breasted attributes the earliest-known attempt to construct a canal to the first cataract , near Aswan, to the Sixth Dynasty of Egypt and its completion to Senusret III (1878–1839 BCE) of the Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt . The legendary Sesostris (likely either Pharaoh Senusret II or Senusret III of
3078-490: A result of the administration's hands-off attitude and the predominantly male, transient, and uneducated nature of the population, the society of Singapore was rather lawless and chaotic. Prostitution , gambling, and drug abuse (particularly of opium) were widespread. Chinese criminal secret societies (analogous to modern-day triads ) were extremely powerful; some had tens of thousands of members, and turf wars between rival societies occasionally led to death tolls numbering in
3249-617: A result of the administration's ineffectiveness and the predominantly male, transient, and uneducated nature of the population, the society was lawless and chaotic. In 1850 there were only twelve police officers in the city of nearly 60,000 people. Prostitution, gambling, and drug abuse (particularly of opium) were widespread. Chinese criminal secret societies (analogous to modern-day triads ) were extremely powerful, and some had tens of thousands of members. Turf wars between rival societies occasionally led to hundreds of deaths and attempts to suppress them had limited success. The situation created
3420-477: A rubber manufacturer) , Cheung Wing-Fook (張永福, originally a rubber shoe manufacturer) and Chan Po-Yin (陳步賢, 1883–1965) started Chong Shing Yit Pao , a Chinese-language newspaper, in response to the growing influence of The Union Times , which was controlled by reformists. The inaugural edition of the newspaper was published on 20 August 1907. The paper folded in 1910 due to financial difficulties. Working with other Cantonese people, Chan, Cheung and Chan opened
3591-605: A skilled workforce and the English language was promoted over the Chinese language as the language of instruction. To eliminate labour unrest, existing labour unions were consolidated, sometimes forcibly, into a single umbrella organisation, called the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) with strong oversight from the government. On the social front, an aggressive and well-funded public housing program
SECTION 20
#17327909053363762-577: A vigorous campaign in advocation of their proposal of merger, possibly aided by the fact that the government had a large influence over the media. Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( / ˈ s uː . ɛ z / ; Arabic : قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ , Qanāt as-Suwais ) is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt , connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension,
3933-556: Is believed to be Keppel Harbour at the southern part of the island. The Chinese traveller Wang Dayuan , visiting the island around 1330, described Long Ya Men as one of the two distinct settlements in Dan Ma Xi (from Malay Temasek ), the other being Ban Zu (from Malay pancur ). Ban Zu is thought to be present day Fort Canning Hill , and recent excavations in Fort Canning found evidence indicating that Singapore
4104-553: Is how Lee Kuan Yew , its Prime Minister for 32 years, described Singapore: In these early decades, the island was riddled with opium houses and prostitution , and came to be widely monikered as "Sin-galore" After the First World War , the British government devoted significant resources to building a naval base in Singapore, as a deterrent to the increasingly ambitious Japanese Empire . Originally announced in 1923,
4275-460: Is operated and maintained by the state-owned Suez Canal Authority (SCA) of Egypt. Under the Convention of Constantinople , it may be used "in time of war as in time of peace, by every vessel of commerce or of war, without distinction of flag." Nevertheless, the canal has played an important military strategic role as a naval short-cut and choke point . Navies with coastlines and bases on both
4446-488: The Bitter Lakes and Lake Timsah ). In his Meteorology , Aristotle (384–322 BCE) wrote: One of their kings tried to make a canal to it (for it would have been of no little advantage to them for the whole region to have become navigable; Sesostris is said to have been the first of the ancient kings to try), but he found that the sea was higher than the land. So he first, and Darius afterwards, stopped making
4617-688: The Chola Empire led forces across the Indian Ocean and invaded the Srivijayan empire , attacking several places in Malaysia and Indonesia . The Chola forces were said to have controlled Temasek (now Singapore ) for a couple of decades. The name Temasek however did not appear in Chola records, but a tale involving a Raja Chulan (assumed to be Rajendra Chola) and Temasek was mentioned in
4788-590: The East India Company were initially worried about the potential liability of this new outpost, but that was soon overshadowed by Singapore's rapid growth as an important trading post. By 1822, it was made clear to the Dutch that the British had no intention of giving up the island. The status of Singapore as a British possession was cemented by the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 , which carved up
4959-710: The First Opium War (1839–1842) and Second Opium War (1856–1860). Many arrived in Singapore as impoverished indentured laborers . The Malays were the second largest ethnic group until the 1860s and they worked as fishermen, craftsmen, or as wage earners while continued to live mostly in kampungs . By 1860, the Indians had become the second-largest ethnic group. They consisted of unskilled labourers, traders, and convicts who were sent to carry out public works projects such as clearing jungles and laying out roads. There were also Indian Sepoy troops garrisoned at Singapore by
5130-531: The Imperial Japanese Army invaded Singapore during World War II . In 1819, the British official, Stamford Raffles , landed in Singapore to establish a trading port . The island's status as a British outpost was initially in doubt, as the Dutch government soon issued bitter protests to the British government, arguing that their sphere of influence had been violated. The British government and
5301-678: The Institution of Civil Engineers in London, and again Negrelli, to examine the plans developed by Linant de Bellefonds , and to advise on the feasibility of and the best route for the canal. After surveys and analyses in Egypt and discussions in Paris on various aspects of the canal, where many of Negrelli's ideas prevailed, the commission produced a unanimous report in December 1856 containing
Singapore in the Straits Settlements - Misplaced Pages Continue
5472-645: The Johor Sultanate . In 1819, British statesman Stamford Raffles negotiated a treaty whereby Johor would allow the British to locate a trading port on the island, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Crown colony of Singapore in 1867. Important reasons for the rise of Singapore were its nodal position at the tip of the Malay Peninsula flanked by the Pacific and Indian Oceans, the presence of
5643-665: The Legislative Council were to be elected. Only British subjects had the right to vote, and only 23,000 or about 10% of those eligible registered to vote. Other members of the council were chosen either by the Governor or by the chambers of commerce. Three of the elected seats were won by a newly formed Singapore Progressive Party (SPP), a conservative party whose leaders were businessmen and professionals and were disinclined to press for immediate self-rule. The other three seats were won by independents. Three months after
5814-606: The Mediterranenan , Ismailia (1862) near the middle and north of Lake Timsah , and Port Twefik (1867) at the canal's southern entrance on the Red Sea. The canal opened under French control in November 1869. The opening ceremonies began at Port Said on the evening of 15 November, with illuminations, fireworks, and a banquet on the yacht of the Khedive Isma'il Pasha of Egypt and Sudan . The royal guests arrived
5985-684: The North Atlantic and northern Indian oceans via the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, avoiding the South Atlantic and southern Indian oceans and reducing the journey distance from the Arabian Sea to London by approximately 8,900 kilometres (5,500 mi), to 10 days at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) or 8 days at 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph). The canal extends from the northern terminus of Port Said to
6156-732: The Presidency of Bengal , in British India . In 1867, the Straits Settlements became a separate Crown colony , directly overseen by the Colonial Office in Whitehall in London. The period saw Singapore establish itself as an important trading port and developed into a major city with a rapid increase in population. The city remained as the capital and seat of government until British rule was suspended in February 1942 , when
6327-537: The Sinai Peninsula from the rest of Egypt). The 193.30-kilometre-long (120.11 mi) canal is a key trade route between Europe and Asia. In 1858, French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps formed the Compagnie de Suez for the express purpose of building the canal . Construction of the canal lasted from 1859 to 1869. The canal officially opened on 17 November 1869. It offers vessels a direct route between
6498-550: The Spice Islands , and forever changed the balance of Mediterranean trade. One of the most prominent losers in the new order, as former middlemen, was the former spice trading center of Venice . Venetian leaders, driven to desperation, contemplated digging a waterway between the Red Sea and the Nile—anticipating the Suez Canal by almost 400 years—to bring the luxury trade flooding to their doors again. But this remained
6669-540: The Straits Settlements was dissolved and Singapore became a separate Crown Colony with a civil administration headed by a Governor. In July 1947, separate Executive and Legislative Councils were established and the election of six members of the Legislative Council was scheduled for the following year. The first Singaporean elections , held in March 1948, were limited as only six of the twenty-five seats on
6840-527: The Suez Canal in 1869 would further boost trade in Singapore. By 1880, over 1.5 million tons of goods were passing through Singapore each year, with around 80% of the cargo transported by steamships. The main commercial activity was entrepôt trade which flourished under no taxation and little restriction. Many merchant houses were set up in Singapore mainly by European trading firms, but also by Jewish, Chinese, Arab, Armenian, American and Indian merchants. There were also many Chinese middlemen who handled most of
7011-883: The Xinhai Revolution and established the Republic of China . Overseas Chinese like the immigrant Chinese population in Singapore donated generously to groups like the Tongmenghui, which would eventually evolve into the Kuomintang . Today, this founding is commemorated in the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall - previously known as Sun Yat Sen Villa or Wang Qing Yuan (meaning "House of the Heavens above" in Chinese) - in Singapore where
Singapore in the Straits Settlements - Misplaced Pages Continue
7182-437: The pilgrimage and trade routes of the Indian Ocean , as well as by strategic concerns—as the European presence in the Indian Ocean was growing, Ottoman mercantile and strategic interests were increasingly challenged , and the Sublime Porte was increasingly pressed to assert its position . A navigable canal would allow the Ottoman Navy to connect its Red Sea , Black Sea , and Mediterranean fleets. However, this project
7353-431: The tropical rainforest , and their infantry proved powerless against the Japanese light tanks . As their resistance failed against the Japanese advance, the Allied forces were forced to retreat southwards towards Singapore. By 31 January 1942, a mere 55 days after the start of the invasion, the Japanese had conquered the entire Malay Peninsula and were poised to attack Singapore. The causeway linking Johor and Singapore
7524-465: The " Gibraltar of the East." Unfortunately, it was a base without a fleet. The British Home Fleet was stationed in Europe and the plan was for it to sail quickly to Singapore when needed. However, after World War II broke out in 1939, the Fleet was fully occupied with defending Britain . Lieutenant General Sir William George Shedden Dobbie was appointed governor of Singapore and General Officer Commanding Malaya Command on 8 November 1935, holding
7695-411: The 13th century BCE during the time of Ramesses II . Remnants of an ancient west–east canal through the ancient Egyptian cities of Bubastis , Pi-Ramesses , and Pithom were discovered by Napoleon Bonaparte and his engineers and cartographers in 1799. According to the Histories of the Greek historian Herodotus , about 600 BCE, Necho II undertook to dig a west–east canal through
7866-442: The 13th century. Sri Tri Buana landed on Temasek on a hunting trip, and saw a strange beast said to be a lion. The prince took this as an auspicious sign and founded a settlement called Singapura, which means "Lion City" in Sanskrit. The actual origin of the name Singapura however is unclear according to scholars. In 1320, the Mongol Empire sent a trade mission to a place called Long Ya Men (or Dragon's Teeth Gate ), which
8037-422: The 16th and 19th centuries, the Malay Archipelago was gradually taken over by the European colonial powers, beginning with the arrival of the Portuguese at Malacca in 1509. The early dominance of the Portuguese was challenged during the 17th century by the Dutch , who came to control most of the ports in the region. The Dutch established a monopoly over trade within the archipelago, particularly in spices, then
8208-409: The 1911 Xinhai Revolution that led to the establishment of the Republic of China . World War I (1914–1918) did not deeply affect Singapore: the conflict did not spread to Southeast Asia. The only significant local military event during the war was a 1915 mutiny by the British Muslim Indian sepoys garrisoned in Singapore. After hearing rumors of plans to send them to fight the Ottoman Empire ,
8379-410: The 1990s, the country had become one of the world's most prosperous nations, with a highly developed free market economy and strong international trading links. It now has the highest per capita gross domestic product in Asia, which is 7th in the world, and it is ranked 9th on the UN Human Development Index . The Greco-Roman astronomer Ptolemy (90–168) identified a place called Sabana at
8550-421: The 19th century. In later periods, the canal was closed with a dike for much of the year and reopened during the flood season. The Fatimid caliph al-Hakim is claimed to have repaired the Cairo to Red Sea passageway, but only briefly, circa 1000 CE, as it soon "became choked with sand". The successful 1488 navigation of southern Africa by Bartolomeu Dias opened a direct maritime trading route to India and
8721-490: The Allied forces in Singapore to General Tomoyuki Yamashita of the Imperial Japanese Army on Chinese New Year , 15 February 1942. About 130,000 Indian, Australian, and British troops became prisoners of war, many of whom would later be transported to Burma , Japan, Korea, or Manchuria for use as slave labour via prisoner transports known as " hell ships ." The fall of Singapore was the largest surrender of British-led forces in history. Japanese newspapers triumphantly declared
SECTION 50
#17327909053368892-409: The British Borneo territories of North Borneo and Sarawak . The UMNO leaders believed that the additional Malay population in the Borneo territories would offset Singapore's Chinese population. The British government, for its part, believed that the merger would prevent Singapore from becoming a haven for communism. Lee called for a referendum on the merger, to be held in September 1962, and initiated
9063-578: The British. Despite Singapore's growing importance, the administration governing the island was understaffed, ineffectual, and unconcerned with the welfare of the populace. Administrators were usually posted from India and were unfamiliar with local culture and languages. While the population had quadrupled from 1830 to 1867, the size of the civil service in Singapore had remained unchanged. Most people had no access to public health services and diseases such as cholera and smallpox caused severe health problems, especially in overcrowded working-class areas. As
9234-426: The Cattaui banking family, and their relationship with James de Rothschild of the French House of Rothschild bonds and shares were successfully promoted in France and other parts of Europe. All French shares were quickly sold in France. A contemporary British skeptic claimed "One thing is sure... our local merchant community doesn't pay practical attention at all to this grand work, and it is legitimate to doubt that
9405-403: The Chinese government imposed, up until the 1860s, on the migration of women. Malays in Singapore were the second largest ethnic group in Singapore until the 1860s. Although many of the Malays continued to live in kampungs , or the traditional Malay villages, most worked as wage earners and craftsmen. This was in contrast to most Malays in Malaya, who remained farmers. By 1860, Indians became
9576-505: The Chinese had become the largest ethnic group in Singapore. During the earliest years of the settlement, most of the Chinese in Singapore had been Peranakans, the descendants of Chinese who had settled in the archipelago centuries ago, who were usually well-to-do merchants. As the port developed, much larger numbers of Chinese coolies flocked to Singapore looking for work. These migrant workers were generally male, poor and uneducated, and had left China (mostly from southern China) to escape
9747-495: The Dutch government soon protested to Britain for violating the Netherlands' sphere of influence. But as Singapore rapidly emerged as an important trading post, Britain consolidated its claim on the island. The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 cemented the status of Singapore as a British possession, carving up the Malay archipelago between the two colonial powers with the area north of the Straits of Malacca, including Singapore, falling under Britain's sphere of influence. In 1826, Singapore
9918-533: The Dutch trade restrictions. During the starting year of operation in 1819, $ 400,000 ( Spanish dollars ) worth of trade passed through Singapore. By 1821, the island's population had gone up to around 5,000, and the trade volume was $ 8 million. The population reached the 10,000 mark in 1824, and with a trade volume of $ 22 million, Singapore surpassed the long-established port of Penang . Raffles returned to Singapore in October 1822 and became critical of many of Farquhar's decisions, despite Farquhar's success in leading
10089-471: The Heroopolite Gulf and the Red Sea in the vicinity of the Egyptian town of Shaluf (alt. Chalouf or Shaloof ), located just south of the Great Bitter Lake, had become so blocked with silt that Darius needed to clear it out so as to allow navigation once again. According to Herodotus, Darius's canal was wide enough that two triremes could pass each other with oars extended, and required four days to traverse. Darius commemorated his achievement with
10260-554: The Home Fleet to sail quickly to Singapore in the event of an emergency. However, after World War II broke out in 1939, the fleet was fully occupied with defending Britain, and only the small Force Z was sent to defend the colony. People in Singapore who held German identify papers, including Jews fleeing the Nazis such as Karl Duldig , Slawa Duldig , and Eva Duldig , were arrested and deported from Singapore. The British colonial government classified them as "citizens of an enemy country". History of Singapore The history of
10431-457: The Indian community, they secretly killed about 150,000 Tamil Indians and tens of thousands of Malayalam from Malaya, Burma, and Singapore in various places located near the Siam Railway . The rest of the population suffered severe hardship throughout the three and a half years of Japanese occupation. The Malay and Indians were forced to build the "Death Railway" , a railway between Thailand and Burma (Myanmar). Most of them died while building
SECTION 60
#173279090533610602-413: The Japanese forces in the region from General Itagaki Seishiro on behalf of General Hisaichi Terauchi on 12 September 1945, and a British Military Administration was formed to govern the island until March 1946. Much of the infrastructure had been destroyed during the war, including electricity and water supply systems, telephone services, as well as the harbor facilities at the Port of Singapore . There
10773-402: The Malay archipelago between the two colonial powers. The area north of the Straits of Malacca , including Penang , Malacca and Singapore, was designated as the British sphere of influence, while the area south of the Straits was assigned to the Dutch. This division had far-reaching consequences for the region: modern-day Malaysia and Singapore correspond to the British area established in
10944-464: The Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea ( Egypt and Israel ) have a particular interest in the Suez Canal. After Egypt closed the Suez Canal at the beginning of the Six-Day War on 5 June 1967, the canal remained closed for eight years, reopening on 5 June 1975. The Egyptian government launched construction in 2014 to expand and widen the Ballah Bypass for 35 km (22 mi) to speed up the canal's transit time. The expansion intended to nearly double
11115-399: The Nile at Bubastis. An inscription on a pillar at Pithom records that in 270 or 269 BCE, it was again reopened, by Ptolemy II Philadelphus . In Arsinoe , Ptolemy constructed a navigable lock , with sluices , at the Heroopolite Gulf of the Red Sea, which allowed the passage of vessels but prevented salt water from the Red Sea from mingling with the fresh water in the canal. In
11286-404: The PAP government embarked on a vigorous program to address Singapore's various economic and social problems. Economic development was overseen by the new Minister of Finance Goh Keng Swee , whose strategy was to encourage foreign and local investment with measures ranging from tax incentives to the establishment of a large industrial estate in Jurong . The education system was revamped to train
11457-410: The Persian king Darius had the same idea, and yet again Ptolemy II , who made a trench 100 feet (30 m) wide, 30 feet (9 m) deep and about 35 miles (55 km) long, as far as the Bitter Lakes. In the 20th century, the northward extension of the later Darius I canal was discovered, extending from Lake Timsah to the Ballah Lakes. This was dated to the Middle Kingdom of Egypt by extrapolating
11628-443: The Prime Minister and cabinet would control all aspects of government except defense and foreign affairs. The governorship was replaced by a Yang di-Pertuan Negara or head of state . In August 1958, the State of Singapore Act was passed in the United Kingdom Parliament providing for the establishment of the State of Singapore. Elections for the new Legislative Assembly were held in May 1959. The People's Action Party (PAP) won
11799-426: The Red Sea when it once extended north to Lake Timsah. ) The Red Sea is believed by some historians to have gradually receded over the centuries, its coastline slowly moving southward away from Lake Timsah and the Great Bitter Lake. Coupled with persistent accumulations of Nile silt , maintenance and repair of Ptolemy's canal became increasingly cumbersome over each passing century. Two hundred years after
11970-442: The Singapore River which formed an outpost of the Johor Sultanate whose capital lay along the Johor River . The settlement was occupied up until the early 17th century, an account by Eredia mentions government officials still being stationed there around 1600. In 1613, the Portuguese destroyed the settlement in Singapore, and the island sank into obscurity for the next two centuries, likely only occupied by Sea Peoples . Between
12141-401: The Straits Settlements a Crown colony on 1 April 1867, receiving orders directly from the Colonial Office rather than from India. As a Crown Colony, the Straits Settlements was ruled by a governor, based in Singapore, with the assistance of executive and legislative councils . Although the councils were not elected, more representatives for the local population were gradually included over
12312-427: The Straits Settlements administration became increasingly apparent. Apart from the indifference of British India's administrators to local conditions, there was immense bureaucracy and red tape which made it difficult to pass new laws. Singapore's merchant community began agitating against British Indian rule, in favour of establishing Singapore as a separate colony of Britain. The British government finally agreed to make
12483-445: The Straits Settlements as a separate Crown Colony on 1 April 1867. This new colony was ruled by a governor under the supervision of the Colonial Office in London. An executive council and a legislative council assisted the governor. Although members of the councils were not elected, more representatives for the local population were gradually included over the years. The colonial government embarked on several measures to address
12654-651: The Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt ) may have constructed the ancient canal, the Canal of the Pharaohs , joining the Nile with the Red Sea (1897–1839 BCE), when an irrigation channel was constructed around 1848 BCE that was navigable during the flood season , leading into a dry river valley east of the Nile River Delta named Wadi Tumilat . (It is said that in ancient times the Red Sea reached northward to
12825-599: The Wadi Tumilat between Bubastis and Heroopolis , and perhaps continued it to the Heroopolite Gulf and the Red Sea. Regardless, Necho is reported as having never completed his project. Herodotus was told that 120,000 men perished in this undertaking, but this figure is doubtless exaggerated. According to Pliny the Elder , Necho's extension to the canal was about 92 kilometres (57 statute miles), equal to
12996-640: The administrative centre for Malaya until the 1880s, when the capital was shifted to Kuala Lumpur . In 1834, the British government ended the East India Company's monopoly on the China trade, allowing other British companies to enter the market and leading to a surge in shipping traffic. The trade with China was opened with the signing of the Unequal Treaties , beginning in 1842. The advent of ocean-going steamships , which were faster and had
13167-630: The archipelago. The Dutch had been stifling British trade in the region by prohibiting the British from operating in Dutch-controlled ports or by subjecting them to a high tariff. Raffles hoped to challenge the Dutch by establishing a new port along the Straits of Malacca , the main ship passageway for the India-China trade. He needed a third port since the British only had the ports of Penang and Bencoolen which were not suitable, as Penang
13338-468: The beach. In the evening there were more illuminations and fireworks. On the morning of 17 November, a procession of ships entered the canal, headed by the L'Aigle . Among the ships following was HMS Newport , captained by George Nares , which surveyed the canal on behalf of the Admiralty a few months later. The Newport was involved in an incident that demonstrated some of the problems with
13509-656: The branch operated from. According to George Yeo , the Foreign Minister of Singapore, in those days the Kuomintang party flag, which later became the flag of the Republic of China , was sewn in the Sun Yat Sen Villa by Teo Eng Hock and his wife. Singapore was not directly affected by the First World War (1914–18), as the conflict did not spread to Southeast Asia. The most significant event during
13680-629: The canal north of the Bitter Lakes flows north in winter and south in summer. South of the lakes, the current changes with the tide at Suez. The canal was the property of the Egyptian government, but European shareholders, mostly British and French, owned the concessionary company which operated it until July 1956, when President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalised it—an event which led to the Suez Crisis of October–November 1956. The canal
13851-615: The canal's receipts... could ever be sufficient to recover its maintenance fee. It will never become a large ship's accessible way in any case." Work started on the shore of the future Port Said on 25 April 1859. The excavation took some 10 years, with forced labour ( corvée ) being employed until 1864 to dig out the canal. Some sources estimate that over 30,000 people were working on the canal at any given period, that more than 1.5 million people from various countries were employed, and that tens of thousands of labourers died, many of them from cholera and similar epidemics. Estimates of
14022-575: The canal, lest the sea should mix with the river water and spoil it. Strabo wrote that Sesostris started to build a canal, and Pliny the Elder (23/24–79 CE) wrote: 165. Next comes the Tyro tribe and, the harbour of the Daneoi , from which Sesostris, king of Egypt, intended to carry a ship-canal to where the Nile flows into what is known as the Delta; this is a distance of over 60 miles (100 km). Later
14193-421: The canal. There were suggestions that the depth of parts of the canal at the time of the inauguration were not as great as promised, and that the deepest part of the channel was not always clear, leading to a risk of grounding. The first day of the passage ended at Lake Timsah , 76 kilometres (41 nmi) south of Port Said. The French ship Péluse anchored close to the entrance, then swung around and grounded,
14364-519: The capacity of the Suez Canal, from 49 to 97 ships per day. At a cost of LE 59.4 billion (US$ 9 billion), this project was funded with interest-bearing investment certificates issued exclusively to Egyptian entities and individuals. The Suez Canal Authority officially opened the new side channel in 2016. This side channel, at the northern side of the east extension of the Suez Canal, serves the East Terminal for berthing and unberthing vessels from
14535-486: The case and Lee Kuan Yew who was at that time a young lawyer-assisted him as the junior counsel. The club's final victory stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of decolonisation of this part of the world. David Marshall , leader of the Labour Front, became the first Chief Minister of Singapore. He presided over a shaky government, receiving little cooperation from both the colonial government and
14706-453: The colonial system, progress on self-government was stalled for several years. A second Legislative Council election was held in 1951 with the number of elected seats increased to nine. This election was again dominated by the SPP which won six seats. While this contributed to the formation of a distinct local government of Singapore , the colonial administration was still dominant. In 1953, with
14877-511: The communists in Malaya suppressed and the worst of the Emergency over, a British Commission, headed by Sir George Rendel , proposed a limited form of self-government for Singapore. A new Legislative Assembly with twenty-five out of thirty-two seats chosen by popular election would replace the Legislative Council, from which a Chief Minister as head of government and Council of Ministers as
15048-523: The construction challenges that could have been the result of the alleged difference in sea levels, the idea of finding a shorter route to the east remained alive. In 1830, General Francis Chesney submitted a report to the British government that stated that there was no difference in elevation and that the Suez Canal was feasible, but his report received no further attention. Lieutenant Waghorn established his "Overland Route", which transported post and passengers to India via Egypt. Linant de Bellefonds ,
15219-548: The construction of Ptolemy's canal, Cleopatra seems to have had no west–east waterway passage, because the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, which fed Ptolemy's west–east canal, had by that time dwindled, being choked with silt. In support of this contention one can note that in 31 BCE, during a reversal of fortune in Mark Antony 's and Cleopatra's war against Octavian , she attempted to escape Egypt with her fleet by raising
15390-513: The construction of the base proceeded slowly until the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931. When completed in 1939, at the very large cost of $ 500 million, the base boasted what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock , and having enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. It was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns stationed at Fort Siloso , Fort Canning and Labrador, as well as
15561-559: The dates of ancient sites along its course. The reliefs of the Punt expedition under Hatshepsut , 1470 BCE, depict seagoing vessels carrying the expeditionary force returning from Punt. This suggests that a navigable link existed between the Red Sea and the Nile. Recent excavations in Wadi Gawasis may indicate that Egypt's maritime trade started from the Red Sea and did not require a canal. Evidence seems to indicate its existence by
15732-578: The discovery of an ancient canal extending northward from the Red Sea and then westward toward the Nile. Later, Napoleon, who became the French Emperor in 1804, contemplated the construction of a north–south canal to connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea. But the plan was abandoned because it incorrectly concluded that the waterway would require locks to operate, the construction of which would be costly and time-consuming. The belief in
15903-419: The early to mid twentieth century, and their descendants would form the bulk of Singapore's population. Raffles returned to Bencoolen soon after the signing of the treaty and left Major William Farquhar in charge of the new settlement, with some artillery and a small regiment of Indian soldiers. Establishing a trading port from scratch was a daunting endeavor. Farquhar's administration was fairly funded and
16074-647: The east coast of Malaya, causing the Pacific War to begin in earnest. Both attacks occurred at the same time, but due to the international dateline, the Honolulu attack is dated 7 December while the Kota Bharu attack is dated 8 December. One of Japan's objectives was to capture Southeast Asia and secure the rich supply of natural resources to feed its military and industry needs. Singapore, the main Allied base in
16245-563: The economy returned to pre-war levels. The failure of Britain to defend Singapore had destroyed its credibility as an infallible ruler in the eyes of Singaporeans. The decades after the war saw a political awakening amongst the local populace and the rise of anti-colonial and nationalist sentiments, epitomised by the slogan Merdeka , or "independence" in the Malay language. The British, on their part, were prepared to gradually increase self-governance for Singapore and Malaya. On 1 April 1946,
16416-482: The elections, an armed insurgency by communist groups in Malaya – the Malayan Emergency – broke out. The British imposed tough measures to control left-wing groups in both Singapore and Malaya and introduced the controversial Internal Security Act , which allowed indefinite detention without trial for persons suspected of being "threats to security". Since the left-wing groups were the strongest critics of
16587-548: The electorate to around 300,000. The SPP was soundly defeated in the election, winning only four seats. The newly formed, left-leaning Labour Front was the biggest winner with ten seats and it formed a coalition government with the UMNO - MCA Alliance, which won three seats. Another new party, the People's Action Party (PAP), won three seats. The Fajar trial was the first sedition trial in post-war Malaysia and Singapore. The Fajar
16758-537: The end of the war, most Eurasians were arrested and interned at the Sime Road Camp. After the Japanese surrender to the Allies on 15 August 1945, Singapore fell into a brief state of violence and disorder; looting and revenge-killing were widespread. British troops led by Lord Louis Mountbatten , Supreme Allied Commander for Southeast Asia Command , returned to Singapore to receive the formal surrender of
16929-686: The failure of the talk. The new Chief Minister, Lim Yew Hock , launched a crackdown on communist and leftist groups, imprisoning many trade union leaders and several pro-communist members of the PAP under the Internal Security Act . The British government approved of Lim's tough stance against communist agitators, and when a new round of talks was held beginning in March 1957, they agreed to grant complete internal self-government. The State of Singapore would be created, with its own citizenship. The Legislative Assembly would be expanded to fifty-one members, entirely chosen by popular election, and
17100-510: The first century AD, who named it Amnis Traianus after himself. He reportedly moved its mouth on the Nile further south, at the site of what is now Old Cairo . By the time of the Arab conquest in 641 AD, this canal had fallen out of use. The commander of the Muslim force, Amr ibn al-As , ordered that it be restored so as to improve connections between Egypt and Medina , the Muslim capital at
17271-738: The following morning: the Emperor Franz Joseph I , the French Empress Eugenie in the Imperial yacht L'Aigle , the Crown Prince of Prussia , and Prince Louis of Hesse . Other international guests included the American natural historian H. W. Harkness . In the afternoon there were blessings of the canal with both Muslim and Christian ceremonies, a temporary mosque and church having been built side by side on
17442-461: The hundreds. Attempts to suppress these secret societies had limited success, and they continued to be a problem well into the 20th century. The colonial division of the architecture of Singapore developed in this period, recognisable elements which remain today in the form of shophouses , such as those found in Little India or Chinatown. As Singapore continued to grow, the deficiencies in
17613-409: The idea in 1836. In 1846, Prosper Enfantin's Société d'Études du Canal de Suez invited a number of experts, among them Robert Stephenson , Negrelli and Paul-Adrien Bourdaloue to study the feasibility of the Suez Canal (with the assistance of Linant de Bellefonds). Bourdaloue's survey of the isthmus was the first generally accepted evidence that there was no practical difference in elevation between
17784-427: The increasingly ambitious Japanese Empire . Completed in 1939 at a staggering cost of $ 500 million, the naval base boasted what was then the largest dry dock in the world, the third-largest floating dock , and enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months. It was defended by heavy 15-inch naval guns and by Royal Air Force squadrons stationed at Tengah Air Base . Winston Churchill touted it as
17955-540: The island and Singapore became a part of the Malacca Sultanate. However, by the time the Portuguese arrived in the early 16th century, Singapura had already become "great ruins" according to Alfonso de Albuquerque . In 1511, the Portuguese seized Malacca; the sultan of Malacca escaped south and established the Johor Sultanate , and Singapore then became part of the sultanate. A settlement once existed on
18126-520: The island under the British Law , with the provision that it would take into account Malay customs, traditions and religion. In October 1823, Raffles departed for Britain and would never return to Singapore as he died in 1826, at the age of 44. In 1824, Singapore was ceded in perpetuity to the East India Company by the Sultan. The status of a British outpost in Singapore seemed initially in doubt as
18297-414: The island was generally understaffed, poorly funded, weak, and ineffectual. Administrators were usually posted from India with little or no knowledge of the region, and were unfamiliar with local languages and customs of the people. As long as British trade was not affected, the administration was unconcerned with the welfare of the populace. While Singapore's population had quadrupled between 1830 and 1867,
18468-478: The limited reported data of the time, the number would be fewer than 1,000. From its inauguration, till 1925, the Suez Canal Company built a series of company towns along the canal to serve its operation. They included ports and their facilities as well as housing for employees segregated by race or nationality. These were Port Said (1869) and Port Fuad (1925) at the canal's northern entrance by
18639-463: The merger, fearing a loss of influence as the ruling party of Malaya, United Malays National Organisation , was staunchly anti-communist and would support the non-communist faction of PAP against them. The UMNO leaders were also skeptical of the idea of a merger due to their distrust of the PAP government and concerns that the large Chinese population in Singapore would alter the racial balance on which their political power base depended. The issue came to
18810-632: The modern state of Singapore dates back to its founding in the early 19th century; however, evidence suggests that a significant trading settlement existed on the island in the 14th century. The last ruler of the Kingdom of Singapura , Parameswara , was expelled by the Majapahit or the Siamese before he founded Malacca . Singapore then came under the Malacca Sultanate and subsequently
18981-409: The most important ports in the world. Several events during this period contributed to its success. British intervention in the Malay peninsula from the 1820s onwards culminated, during the 1870s, in the formation of British Malaya . During this period, Malaya became an increasingly important producer of natural rubber and tin , much of which was shipped out through Singapore. Singapore also served as
19152-532: The mouth of the Singapore River , with an estimated population of about 150 that consisted of around 120 Malays and 30 Chinese. headed by the Temenggong and Tengku Abdul Rahman. Around 100 of these Malays had originally moved to Singapore from Johor in 1811 led by the Temenggong . The entire island may have a population of 1,000 including the various tribes and Orang Laut (sea gypsies). The island
19323-413: The need for locks was based on the erroneous belief that the Red Sea was 8.5 m (28 ft) higher than the Mediterranean. This was the result of using fragmentary survey measurements taken in wartime during Napoleon's Egyptian Expedition . As late as 1861, the unnavigable ancient route discovered by Napoleon from Bubastis to the Red Sea still channelled water as far east as Kassassin . Despite
19494-469: The new governor. Farquhar later died in Perth , Scotland . On 7 June 1823, John Crawfurd signed a second treaty with the Sultan and Temenggong, which extends British possession to most of the island. The Sultan and Temenggong traded most of their administrative rights of the island, including the collection of port taxes for lifelong monthly payments of $ 1500 and $ 800 respectively. This agreement brought
19665-424: The number of deaths vary widely with Gamal Abdel Nasser citing 120,000 deaths upon nationalisation of the canal in a 26 July 1956 speech and the company's chief medical officer reporting no higher than 2.49 deaths per thousand in 1866. Doubling these estimates with a generous assumption of 50,000 working staff per year over 11 years would put a conservative estimate at fewer than 3,000 deaths. More closely relying on
19836-562: The opening of the Chinese market, the advent of ocean-going steamships , the dramatic reduction in the time and cost of shipping goods to Europe after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, and the production of rubber and tin in Malaya. The Malay Peninsula had not featured significantly in Singapore's trade until the 1840s, when the Chinese developed tin-mining in the West coast Malay States and gambier-pepper cultivation in Johor. Its status as
20007-707: The other local parties. Social unrest was on the rise, and in May 1955, the Hock Lee bus riots broke out, killing four people and seriously discrediting Marshall's government. In 1956, the Chinese middle school riots broke out among students in The Chinese High School and other schools, further increasing the tension between the local government and the Chinese students and unionists who were regarded of having communist sympathies. In April 1956, Marshall led
20178-482: The political and economic disasters in their country. They aspired to make their fortune in Southeast Asia and return home to China, but most were doomed to a life of low-paying unskilled labour. Until the 20th century, few Chinese ended up settling permanently, primarily because wives were in short supply. The sex ratio in Singapore's Chinese community was around hundred to one, mainly due to restrictions that
20349-641: The polls in a landslide victory, winning forty-three of the fifty-one seats. They accomplished this by courting the Chinese-speaking majority, particularly those in the labour unions and radical student organizations. Its leader Lee Kuan Yew , a young Cambridge-educated lawyer, became the first Prime Minister of Singapore. The PAP's victory was at first viewed with dismay by foreign and local business leaders because some party members were pro-communists. Many businesses promptly shifted their headquarters from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur. Despite these ill omens,
20520-775: The post based in The Istana until shortly before the outbreak of World War II in 1939. He was responsible for forming The Dobbie Hypothesis on the fall of Singapore which, had it been heeded, may have prevented the fall of Singapore during the Second World War . People in Singapore who held German identify papers, including Jews fleeing the Nazis such as Karl Duldig , Slawa Duldig , and Eva Duldig , were arrested and deported from Singapore. The British colonial government classified them as "citizens of an enemy country". In December 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and
20691-607: The post-war era, including an acute housing shortage and generally poor health and living standards. In 1906, the Tongmenghui , a revolutionary Chinese organisation dedicated to the overthrow of the Qing dynasty led by Sun Yat-Sen , founded its Nanyang branch in Singapore, which was to serve as the organisation's headquarters in Southeast Asia. The Tongmenghui would eventually be part of several groups that took part in
20862-533: The post-war era, including an acute housing shortage and poor health and living standards. In 1906, the Tongmenghui , a revolutionary Chinese organisation dedicated to the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty and led by Sun Yat-sen , founded its Nanyang branch in Singapore, which served as the organisation's headquarters in Southeast Asia. The members of the branch included Wong Hong-Kui (黃康衢), Tan Chor Lam and Teo Eng Hock . Chan Cho-Nam (陳楚楠, 1884–1971, originally
21033-533: The prohibition of carrying of weapons, and heavy taxation to discourage what he considered to be social vices such as drunkenness and opium-smoking. He also organised Singapore into functional and ethnic subdivisions under the Raffles Plan of Singapore . Today, remnants of this organization can still be found in the ethnic neighbourhoods . William Farquhar was also stripped off his post to be replaced by John Crawfurd , an efficient and frugal administrator, as
21204-434: The project when it nevertheless went ahead, it disapproved of the use of "forced labour" for construction of the canal. Involuntary labour on the project ceased, and the viceroy condemned the corvée, halting the project. International opinion was initially skeptical, and shares of the Suez Canal Company did not sell well overseas. Britain, Austria , and Russia did not buy a significant number of shares. With assistance from
21375-544: The railway. First generation Eurasians in Singapore were interned at the Sime Road Camp while second generation Eurasians were allowed free in Singapore. Due to their abilities to speak in local dialects and English, the Japanese were interested in getting Eurasians to become informers, spies and be part of their intelligence services. Mamoru Shinozaki , a Japanese official in Singapore, offered some Eurasians to relocate to Bahau , Negeri Sembilan , Malaysia. Towards
21546-649: The region's most important product. Other colonial powers, including the British , were limited to a relatively minor presence. In 1818, Sir Stamford Raffles was appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of the British colony at Bencoolen . He was determined that Great Britain should replace the Netherlands as the dominant power in the archipelago, since the trade route between China and British India , which had become vitally important, passed through
21717-430: The region, was an obvious military target because of its flourishing trade and wealth. The British military commanders in Singapore had believed that the Japanese attack would come by sea from the south since the dense Malayan jungle in the north would serve as a natural barrier against invasion. Although they had drawn up a plan for dealing with an attack on northern Malaya, preparations were never completed. The military
21888-423: The region. Raffles arrived in Singapore on 28 January 1819, and soon recognised the island as a natural choice for the new port. It lay at the southern tip of the Malay peninsula, near the Straits of Malacca , and possessed a natural deep harbour, freshwater supplies, and timber for repairing ships. It was also located along the main trade route between India and China. Raffles found a small Malay settlement at
22059-441: The revolution-related Kai Ming Bookstore (開明書報社, 開明 meaning open-mindedness and wisdom) in Singapore. For the revolution, Chan Po-Yin raised over 30,000 yuan for the purchase and shipment (from Singapore to China) of military equipment and for the support of the expenses of people travelling from Singapore to China for revolutionary work. The immigrant Chinese population in Singapore donated generously to Tongmenghui, which organised
22230-479: The rightful Sultan of Johor, given the title of Sultan Hussein and provide him with a yearly payment of $ 5,000 and $ 3,000 to the Temenggong; in return, Sultan Hussein would grant the British the right to establish a trading post on Singapore. The Treaty of Singapore was signed on 6 February 1819 and modern Singapore was born. When Raffles arrived, it was estimated that there were around 1,000 people living in
22401-467: The second half of the 19th century, French cartographers discovered the remnants of an ancient north–south canal past the east side of Lake Timsah and ending near the north end of the Great Bitter Lake. This proved to be the canal made by Darius I, as his stele commemorating its construction was found at the site. (This ancient, second canal may have followed a course along the shoreline of
22572-576: The second largest ethnic group. They consisted of unskilled labourers like the Chinese coolies, traders, soldiers garrisoned at Singapore by the government in Calcutta , as well as a number of Indian convicts who were sent to Singapore to carry out public works projects, such as clearing jungles and swampy marshes and laying out roads. They also helped construct many buildings, including St. Andrew's Cathedral , and many Hindu temples. After serving their sentences, many convicts chose to stay in Singapore. As
22743-468: The semi-historical Malay Annals . The Nagarakretagama , a Javanese eulogy written in 1365, referred to a settlement on the island called Tumasik (possibly meaning " Sea Town " or " Sea Port "). The name Temasek is also given in Sejarah Melayu ( Malay Annals ), which contains a tale of the founding of Temasek by a prince of Palembang, Sri Tri Buana (also known as Sang Nila Utama ) in
22914-430: The serious social problems facing Singapore. A Chinese Protectorate under Pickering was established in 1877 to address the needs of the Chinese community, especially in controlling the worst abuses of the coolie trade and protecting Chinese women from forced prostitution. In 1889 Governor Sir Cecil Clementi Smith banned secret societies, driving them underground. Nevertheless, many social problems persisted up through
23085-432: The settlement through its difficult early years. For instance, in order to generate much-needed revenue, Farquhar had resorted to selling licenses for gambling and the sale of opium, which Raffles saw as social evils. Shocked at the disarray of the colony as well as the tolerance of slave trade by Farquhar, Raffles set about drafting a set of new policies for the settlement, such as banning of slavery, closing of gambling dens,
23256-582: The ship and its hawser blocking the way into the lake. The following ships had to anchor in the canal itself until the Péluse was hauled clear the next morning, making it difficult for them to join that night's celebration in Ismailia . Except for the Newport : Nares sent out a boat to carry out soundings, and was able to manoeuver around the Péluse to enter the lake and anchor there for the night. Ismailia
23427-460: The ships out of the Mediterranean and dragging them across the isthmus of Suez to the Red Sea. Then, according to Plutarch , the Arabs of Petra attacked and burned the first wave of these ships and Cleopatra abandoned the effort. (Modern historians, however, maintain that her ships were burned by the enemy forces of Malichus I .) The ancient canal was re-excavated by Roman emperor Trajan in
23598-426: The size of the civil service in Singapore had remained unchanged. In 1850 there were only twelve police officers to keep order in a city of nearly 60,000. Most people had no access to public health services, and diseases such as cholera and smallpox caused severe health problems, especially in overcrowded working-class areas. Malnutrition and opium-smoking were major social woes during this period. As early as 1827,
23769-473: The soldiers revolted, killing their officers and several British civilians before troops arriving from Johor and Burma suppressed the unrest. After the war, British trade and influence gradually diminished and the importance of the United States and Japan grew, both located on the Pacific. The British government devoted significant resources into building a naval base in Singapore, as a deterrent to
23940-532: The southern terminus of Port Tewfik at the city of Suez . In 2021, more than 20,600 vessels traversed the canal (an average of 56 per day). The original canal featured a single-lane waterway with passing locations in the Ballah Bypass and the Great Bitter Lake . It contained, according to Alois Negrelli 's plans, no locks , with seawater flowing freely through it. In general, the water in
24111-488: The squadron without air cover. On 8 December 1941, Japanese forces landed at Kota Bharu in northern Malaya. Just two days after the start of the invasion of Malaya , Prince of Wales and Repulse were sunk 50 miles off the coast of Kuantan in Pahang , by a force of Japanese bombers and torpedo bomber aircraft, in the worst British naval defeat of World War II. Allied air support did not arrive in time to protect
24282-644: The terminal. As the East Container Terminal is located on the Canal itself, before the construction of the new side channel it was not possible to berth or unberth vessels at the terminal while a convoy was running. Ancient west–east canals were built to facilitate travel from the Nile to the Red Sea . One smaller canal is believed to have been constructed under the auspices of Senusret II or Ramesses II . Another canal, probably incorporating
24453-422: The time. The Muslim canal was excavated further north from Trajan's canal, joining the Nile close to what is now the Sayyida Zaynab neighbourhood of Cairo. This canal reportedly ended near modern Suez . The site of the former Roman channel near the Nile was absorbed into the new city of Fustat . A geography treatise De Mensura Orbis Terrae written by the Irish monk Dicuil (born late 8th century) reports
24624-423: The tip of Golden Chersonese (believed to be the Malay Peninsula ) in the second and third century. The earliest written record of Singapore may be in a Chinese book 《吳時外國傳》 from the third century, describing the island of Pu Luo Chung ( 蒲 羅 中 ). This has been proposed to be related to the Malay name " Pulau Ujong " , or "island at the end" (of the Malay Peninsula ). In 1025 CE, Rajendra Chola I of
24795-402: The total distance between Bubastis and the Great Bitter Lake, allowing for winding through valleys . The length that Herodotus tells, of over 1,000 stadia (i.e., over 183 kilometres or 114 miles), must be understood to include the entire distance between the Nile and the Red Sea at that time. With Necho's death, work was discontinued. Herodotus tells that the reason the project was abandoned
24966-418: The trade between the European and Asian merchants. By 1827, the Chinese had become the largest ethnic group in Singapore and by 1845 formed more than half of its population. They consisted of Peranakans , who were descendants of early Chinese settlers, and Chinese coolies who flocked to Singapore to escape economic hardship in southern China. Their numbers were swelled by those fleeing the turmoil caused by
25137-454: The treaty, and modern-day Indonesia to the Dutch. In 1826, Singapore was grouped together with Penang and Malacca into a single administrative unit, the Straits Settlements , under the administration of the East India Company . In 1830, the Straits Settlements became a residency, or subdivision, of the Presidency of Bengal , in British India . This status continued until 1867. During the subsequent decades, Singapore grew to become one of
25308-427: The two capital ships. After this incident, Singapore and Malaya suffered daily air raids, including those targeting civilian structures such as hospitals or shop houses with casualties ranging from the tens to the hundreds each time. The Japanese army advanced swiftly southward through the Malay Peninsula, crushing or bypassing Allied resistance. The Allied forces did not have tanks, which they considered unsuitable in
25479-431: The two seas. Britain, however, feared that a canal open to everyone might interfere with its India trade and therefore preferred a connection by train from Alexandria via Cairo to Suez, which Stephenson eventually built. In 1854 and 1856, Ferdinand de Lesseps obtained a concession from Sa'id Pasha , the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan , to create a company to construct a canal open to ships of all nations. The company
25650-438: The victory as deciding the general situation of the war. Singapore, renamed Syonan-to (昭南島 Shōnan-tō , "Bright Southern Island" in Japanese), was occupied by the Japanese from 1942 to 1945. The Japanese army imposed harsh measures against the local population, with troops, especially the Kempeitai or Japanese military police , who were particularly ruthless in dealing with the Chinese population. The most notable atrocity
25821-474: The war was a mutiny in 1915 by sepoys of the 5th Light Infantry from British India who were garrisoned in Singapore. On the day before the regiment was due to depart for Hong Kong, and hearing rumours that they were to be sent to fight the Ottoman Empire , about half of the Indian soldiers mutinied. They killed several of their officers and some civilians before the mutiny was suppressed by British Empire and allied forces plus local troops from Johore . This
25992-974: The whole of the island of Singapore, mostly local groups that would become assimilated into Malays and a few dozen Chinese. The population increased rapidly soon after Raffles' arrival; the first census of 1824 shows that 6,505 out of the 10,683 total were Malays and Bugis. Large number of Chinese migrants also started to enter Singapore just months after it became a British settlement, by the census of 1826, there were already more Chinese than Malays excluding Bugis and Javanese. Due to continual migration from Malaya , China, India and other parts of Asia, Singapore's population had reached nearly 100,000 by 1871, with over half of them Chinese. Many early Chinese and Indian immigrants came to Singapore to work in various plantations and tin mines and they were predominantly male, and large number of them would return to their home countries after they had earned enough money. However, an increasingly significant number chose to stay permanently by
26163-538: The years. The colonial government embarked on several measures to address the serious social problems facing Singapore. For example, a Chinese Protectorate under Pickering was established in 1877 to address the needs of the Chinese community, including controlling the worst abuses of the coolie trade and protecting Chinese women from forced prostitution. In 1889 Governor Sir Cecil Clementi Smith banned secret societies in colonial Singapore , driving them underground. Nevertheless, many social problems persisted up through
26334-424: Was entrepôt trade which flourished under no taxation and little restriction. Many merchant houses were set up in Singapore mainly by European trading firms, but also by Jewish, Chinese, Arab, Armenian, American and Indian merchants. There were also many Chinese middlemen who handled most of the trade between the European and Asian merchants. Despite Singapore's growing importance, the administration set up to govern
26505-506: Was a Siamese vassal whose ruler was killed by Parameswara (thought to be the same person as Sultan Iskandar Shah) from Palembang, and Parameswara was then driven to Malacca, either by the Siamese or the Majapahit, where he founded the Malacca Sultanate . Modern archaeological evidence suggests that the settlement on Fort Canning was abandoned around this time, although a small trading settlement continued in Singapore for some time afterward. The Malacca Sultanate extended its authority over
26676-414: Was also a shortage of food, leading to malnutrition, disease, and rampant crime and violence. High food prices, unemployment and workers' discontent culminated in a series of strikes in 1947 causing massive stoppages in public transport and other services. By late 1947, the economy began to recover, facilitated by a growing demand for tin and rubber around the world, but it would take several more years before
26847-445: Was an important settlement in the 14th century. Wang mentioned that the natives of Long Ya Men (thought to be the Orang Laut ) and Chinese residents lived together in Long Ya Men . Singapore is one of the oldest locations where a Chinese community is known to exist outside China, and the oldest confirmed by archaeological and historical research. By the 14th century, the empire of Srivijaya had already declined, and Singapore
27018-435: Was because of a warning received from an oracle that others would benefit from its successful completion. Necho's war with Nebuchadnezzar II most probably prevented the canal's continuation. Necho's project was completed by Darius I of Persia , who ruled over Ancient Egypt after it had been conquered by his predecessor Cambyses II . It may be that by Darius's time a natural waterway passage which had existed between
27189-465: Was blown up by the Allied forces in an effort to stop the Japanese army. However, the Japanese managed to cross the Straits of Johor in inflatable boats days after. Several fights by the Allied forces and volunteers of Singapore's population against the advancing Japanese, such as the Battle of Pasir Panjang , took place during this period. However, with most of the defenses shattered and supplies exhausted, Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival surrendered
27360-415: Was caught in the struggle between Siam (now Thailand ) and the Java-based Majapahit Empire for control over the Malay Peninsula. According to the Malay Annals , Singapore was defeated in one Majapahit attack. The last king, Sultan Iskandar Shah ruled the island for several years, before being forced to Melaka where he founded the Sultanate of Malacca . Portuguese sources, however, indicated that Temasek
27531-456: Was confident that "Fortress Singapore" would withstand any Japanese attack and this confidence was further reinforced by the arrival of Force Z, a squadron of British warships dispatched to the defense of Singapore, including the battleship HMS Prince of Wales , and cruiser HMS Repulse . The squadron was to have been accompanied by a third capital ship, the aircraft carrier HMS Indomitable , but it ran aground en route, leaving
27702-414: Was deemed too expensive, and was never completed. During the French campaign in Egypt and Syria in late 1798, Napoleon expressed interest in finding the remnants of an ancient waterway passage. This culminated in a cadre of archaeologists , scientists, cartographers and engineers scouring northern Egypt. Their findings, recorded in the Description de l'Égypte , include detailed maps that depict
27873-423: Was grouped by the British East India Company together with Penang and Malacca to form the Straits Settlements , administered by the British East India Company . In 1830, the Straits Settlements became a residency , or subdivision, of the Bengal Presidency in British India . During the subsequent decades, Singapore grew to become an important port in the region. Its success was due to several reasons including
28044-502: Was launched to solve the long-standing housing problem. More than 25,000 high-rises, low-cost apartments were constructed during the first two years of the program. Despite their successes in governing Singapore, the PAP leaders, including Lee and Goh, believed that Singapore's future lay with Malaya. They felt that the historic and economic ties between Singapore and Malaya were too strong for them to continue as separate nations. Furthermore, Singapore lacked natural resources and faced both
28215-418: Was nominally ruled by the Sultan of Johor , who was controlled by the Dutch and the Bugis . However, the Sultanate was weakened by factional division and Tengku Abdul Rahman and his officials were loyal to Tengku Rahman's elder brother Tengku Long who was living in exile in Riau . With the Temenggong's help, Raffles managed to smuggle Tengku Long back into Singapore. He offered to recognise Tengku Long as
28386-412: Was prohibited from collecting port duties to raise revenue as Raffles had decided that Singapore would be a free port . Farquhar invited settlers to Singapore and stationed a British official on St. John's Island to invite passing ships to stop in Singapore. As news of the free port spread across the archipelago, Bugis , Peranakan Chinese , and Arab traders flocked to the island, seeking to circumvent
28557-448: Was the Sook Ching massacre of Chinese and Peranakan civilians, undertaken in retaliation against the support of the war effort in China . The Japanese screened citizens (including children) to check if they were " anti-Japanese ". If so, the "guilty" citizens would be sent away in a truck to be executed. These mass executions claimed between 25,000 and 50,000 lives in Malaya and Singapore. The Japanese also launched massive purges against
28728-418: Was the publication of the University Socialist Club which mainly at that time circulated in the university campus. In May 1954, the members of the Fajar editorial board were arrested for publishing an allegedly seditious article named "Aggression in Asia". However, after three days of the trial, Fajar members were immediately released. The famous English Queen's Counsel D. N. Pritt acted as the lead counsel in
28899-407: Was the scene of more celebrations the following day, including a military "march past", illuminations and fireworks, and a ball at the Governor's Palace. The convoy set off again on the morning of 19 November, for the remainder of the trip to Suez. After Suez, many of the participants headed for Cairo, and then to the Pyramids, where a new road had been built for the occasion. An Anchor Line ship,
29070-476: Was to operate the canal for 99 years from its opening. De Lesseps had used his friendly relationship with Sa'id, which he had developed while he was a French diplomat in the 1830s. As stipulated in the concessions, de Lesseps convened the International Commission for the piercing of the isthmus of Suez ( Commission Internationale pour le percement de l'isthme de Suez ) consisting of 13 experts from seven countries, among them John Robinson McClean , later President of
29241-410: Was too far off to protect British traders from pirates and Bencoolen was not along the main trading road. The port had to be strategically located along the main trade route between India and China and in the middle of the Malay Archipelago. He convinced Lord Hastings , the Governor-General of India and his superior at the British East India Company , to fund an expedition to seek a new British base in
#335664