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=== British colonisation === {{Main|Founding of modern Singapore|Singapore in the Straits Settlements}} [[File:Letter from William Farquhar to Sultan Muhammad Kanzul Alam, the Sultan of Brunei, dated 28 November 1819.jpg|thumb|301x301px|Letter from [[William Farquhar]] to Sultan Muhammad Kanzul Alam, the 21st [[List of sultans of Brunei|Sultan of Brunei]], dated 28 November 1819. In the first line, Farquhar mentions that Sultan Hussein Shah and Temenggong Abdul Rahman allowed the [[East India Company|British East India Company]] to establish a [[Factory (trading post)|factory]] in Singapore on 6 February 1819.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nicholl |first1=Robert |title=From Buckfast to Borneo: Essays Presented to Father Robert Nicholl on the 85th Anniversary of His Birth, 27 March 1995 |last2=King |first2=Victor T. |last3=Horton |first3=A. V. H. |publisher=University of Hull |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-85958-836-2 |location=Hull, England |pages=219 |chapter=Malay sources for the history of the Sultanate of Brunei in the early nineteenth century: some letters from the reign of Sultan Muhammad Kanzul Alam (Annabel Teh Gallop) |oclc=35366675 |access-date=24 April 2022 |chapter-url=https://www.academia.edu/11507827 |archive-date=11 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000715/https://www.academia.edu/11507827 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=add_ms_12398_f019r |title=Farquhar Letterbook (Add MS 12398) |year=1842 |pages=39β40 |language=ms |chapter=Ini kupia surat kepada Raja Barunai |trans-chapter=This is a copy of the letter to the Raja of Brunei |access-date=24 April 2022 |archive-date=24 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220424173837/http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/Viewer.aspx?ref=add_ms_12398_f019r |url-status=live}}</ref>]] The British governor [[Stamford Raffles]] arrived in Singapore on 28 January 1819 and soon recognised the island as a natural choice for the new port.<ref name="YongRao1995">{{cite book |author1=Mun Cheong Yong |author2=V. V. Bhanoji Rao |title=Singapore-India Relations: A Primer |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZdZo5Ui8oS4C&pg=PA3 |year=1995 |publisher=NUS Press |isbn=978-9971-69-195-0 |page=3|access-date=14 September 2019|archive-date=11 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000734/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZdZo5Ui8oS4C&pg=PA3#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> The island was then nominally ruled by [[Abdul Rahman Muazzam Shah of Johor|Tengku Abdul Rahman]], the [[Sultan of Johor]], who was controlled by the [[Dutch Empire|Dutch]] and the [[Bugis]].<ref name="Trocki2009">{{cite book |last=Trocki |first=Carl A. |title=Singapore: Wealth, Power and the Culture of Control |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vA-CAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA73 |year=2009 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-134-50243-1 |page=73|access-date=14 September 2019|archive-date=11 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000706/https://books.google.com/books?id=vA-CAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA73#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> However, the [[Sultanate]] was weakened by factional division: [[Temenggong Abdul Rahman|Abdul Rahman]], the [[Temenggong of Johor]] to Tengku Abdul Rahman, as well as his officials, were loyal to the Sultan's elder brother [[Hussein Shah of Johor|Tengku Long]], who was living in [[exile]] in [[Penyengat Island]], [[Riau Islands]]. With the Temenggong's help, Raffles managed to smuggle Tengku Long back into Singapore. Raffles offered to recognise Tengku Long as the rightful Sultan of Johor, under the title of [[Hussein Shah of Johor|Sultan Hussein]], as well as provide him with a yearly payment of $5000 and another $3000 to the Temenggong; in return, Sultan Hussein would grant the British the right to establish a trading post on Singapore.<ref name="uslcFounding">{{cite web |title=Singapore β Founding and Early Years |url=http://countrystudies.us/singapore/4.htm |publisher=[[U.S. Library of Congress]]|access-date=18 July 2006|archive-date=17 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221117143728/http://countrystudies.us/singapore/4.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[1819 Singapore Treaty|Treaty of Singapore]] was signed on 6 February 1819.<ref>{{cite web |title=1819 β The February Documents |publisher=[[Ministry of Defence (Singapore)|Ministry of Defence]] |date=7 February 1997|access-date=18 July 2006 |last=Ng |first=Jenny |url=http://www.mindef.gov.sg/imindef/about_us/history/overview/the_early_years/v01n02b_history.html|archive-date=17 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170717065310/https://www.mindef.gov.sg/imindef/about_us/history/overview/the_early_years/v01n02b_history.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Milestones in Singapore's Legal History |publisher=[[Supreme Court, Singapore]]|access-date=18 July 2006 |url=http://app.supremecourt.gov.sg/default.aspx?pgID=39|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927183512/http://app.supremecourt.gov.sg/default.aspx?pgID=39|archive-date=27 September 2007}}</ref> [[File:Part of Singapore Island (British Library India Office Records, 1825, detail).jpg|thumb|left|1825 survey map. Singapore's [[free port]] trade was at [[Singapore River]] for 150 years. [[Fort Canning]] hill (centre) was home to its ancient and early colonial rulers.]] In 1824, a further treaty with the Sultan led to the entire island becoming a part of the [[British Empire]].<ref name="Founding of Modern Singapore">{{cite web |title=Founding of Modern Singapore |url=http://app.www.sg/who/32/Founding-of-Modern-Singapore.aspx |publisher=[[Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts]]|access-date=13 April 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090508135636/http://app.www.sg/who/32/Founding-of-Modern-Singapore.aspx|archive-date=8 May 2009}}</ref> In 1826, Singapore became part of the [[Straits Settlements]], then under the jurisdiction of [[British India]]. Singapore became the regional capital in 1836.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archiveeditions.co.uk/titledetails.asp?tid=17 |title=East & South-East Asia Titles: Straits Settlements Annual Reports (Singapore, Penang, Malacca, Labuan) 1855β1941 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|access-date=31 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120609014003/http://www.archiveeditions.co.uk/titledetails.asp?tid=17|archive-date=9 June 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref> Prior to Raffles' arrival, there were only about a thousand people living on the island, mostly indigenous [[Malays (ethnic group)|Malays]] along with a handful of [[Overseas Chinese|Chinese]].<ref name="The Malays">{{cite web |title=The Malays |url=http://yesterday.sg/discover-more/communities-festivals/communities/the-malays/ |publisher=National Heritage Board 2011|access-date=28 July 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110223000344/http://yesterday.sg/discover-more/communities-festivals/communities/the-malays/|archive-date=23 February 2011}}</ref> By 1860 the population had swelled to over 80,000, more than half being [[Chinese Singaporeans|Chinese]].<ref name="Founding of Modern Singapore" /> Many of these early immigrants came to work on the pepper and [[Uncaria gambir|gambier]] plantations.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924023134368#page/n227/mode/2up|editor1-last=Wright|editor1-first=Arnold|editor2-last=Cartwright|editor2-first=H.A. |last=Sanderson |first=Reginald |date=1907 |title=Twentieth century impressions of British Malaya: its history, people, commerce, industries, and resources |pages=220β221}}</ref> In 1867, the Straits Settlements were separated from [[British India]], coming under the direct control of [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Britain]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/372a4e72-9f1b-4eb4-9ec6-58cad02000f0 |title=Singapore attains crown colony status β Singapore History |website=eresources.nlb.gov.sg|access-date=3 April 2021|archive-date=14 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414171544/https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/372a4e72-9f1b-4eb4-9ec6-58cad02000f0|url-status=live}}</ref> Later, in the 1890s, when the rubber industry became established in [[Singapore in Malaysia|Malaya]] and Singapore,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a8ceea4c-1c8b-4c9a-885c-b85038b39e4c |title=First Rubber Trees are Planted in Singapore β 1877 |website=History SG |publisher=National Library Board Singapore|access-date=8 February 2017|archive-date=14 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614122517/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history/events/a8ceea4c-1c8b-4c9a-885c-b85038b39e4c|url-status=live}}</ref> the island became a global centre for rubber sorting and export.<ref name="Founding of Modern Singapore" /> [[File:Singapore 1865 SLNSW FL15083916.jpg|thumb|Panorama of Singapore at sunrise, 1865, lithograph by Vincent Brooks.]] Singapore was not greatly affected by the [[First World War]] (1914β18), as the conflict did not spread to [[Southeast Asia]]. The only significant event during the war was the [[1915 Singapore Mutiny]] by [[Muslim]] [[sepoys]] from British India, who were garrisoned in Singapore.<ref name=Brill1>{{cite book |title=The Indian Army in the Two World Wars |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cON5DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA17 |date=14 October 2011 |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |isbn=978-90-04-21145-2 |pages=17β18|access-date=14 September 2019|archive-date=11 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000843/https://books.google.com/books?id=cON5DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA17#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> After hearing rumours that they were to be sent to fight the [[Ottoman Empire]], a Muslim state, the soldiers rebelled, killing their officers and several British civilians before the mutiny was suppressed by non-Muslim troops arriving from [[Johore]] and [[Burma]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_570_2005-01-24.html |title=1915 Singapore Mutiny |website=National Library Board |publisher=National Library Board Singapore|access-date=26 August 2019|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225200105/https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_570_2005-01-24.html|url-status=live}}</ref> After [[World War I]], the British built the large [[Singapore Naval Base]] as part of the defensive [[Singapore strategy]].<ref name="Stille2016">{{cite book |last=Stille |first=Mark |title=Malaya and Singapore 1941β42: The fall of Britain's empire in the East |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gHe9DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA5 |year=2016 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4728-1124-0 |pages=5β6|access-date=14 September 2019|archive-date=11 February 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000710/https://books.google.com/books?id=gHe9DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA5#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> Originally announced in 1921, the construction of the base proceeded at a slow pace until the [[Japanese invasion of Manchuria]] in 1931. Costing $60 million and not fully completed in 1938, it was nonetheless the largest [[dry dock]] in the world, the third-largest [[floating dock (jetty)|floating dock]], and had enough fuel tanks to support the entire British navy for six months.<ref name="Stille2016" /><ref name="Tan2008">{{cite book |last=Tan |first=Kevin |title=Marshall of Singapore: A Biography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BH88kpvyrdYC&pg=PA90 |year=2008 |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |isbn=978-981-230-878-8 |pages=90β}}</ref><ref name="Hobbs2017">{{cite book |last=Hobbs |first=David |title=The British Pacific Fleet: The Royal Navy's Most Powerful Strike Force |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FVEgDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA5 |year=2017 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=978-1-61251-917-3 |page=5 |access-date=14 September 2019 |archive-date=11 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211001300/https://books.google.com/books?id=FVEgDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA5#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live}}</ref> The base was defended by heavy {{convert|15|in|mm|adj=on}} naval guns stationed at [[Fort Siloso]], [[Fort Canning]] and Labrador, as well as 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]]". However, the [[British Home Fleet]] was stationed in Europe, and the British could not afford to build a second fleet to protect their interests in Asia. The plan was for the Home Fleet to sail quickly to Singapore in the event of an emergency. As a consequence, after [[World War II]] broke out in 1939, the fleet was fully occupied with defending Britain, leaving Singapore vulnerable to [[Japanese occupation of Singapore|Japanese invasion]].<ref name="LambTarling2001">{{cite book |last1=Lamb |first1=Margaret |last2=Tarling |first2=Nicholas |title=From Versailles to Pearl Harbor: The Origins of the Second World War in Europe and Asia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4izcCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA39 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818180438/https://books.google.com/books?id=4izcCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA39 |url-status=dead |archive-date=18 August 2020 |date=2001 |publisher=Macmillan International Higher Education |isbn=978-1-4039-3772-8 |page=39}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BH88kpvyrdYC&pg=PA90 |title=Marshall of Singapore: A Biography |last=Tan |first=Kevin |isbn=978-981-230-878-8 |year=2008 |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies}}</ref>
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