Editing Stamford Raffles (section)

===Achin, and the early conflict with the Dutch===
Raffles also planned to start a British presence in [[Acheh|Achin]], on the northern tip of [[Sumatra]]. As soon as he had departed, the Raja of Rhio (Riau) sent letters to the Dutch, disclaiming the deal, protesting innocence, and blaming British encroachment. Meanwhile, in [[Malacca]], the Dutch acted at once, commanding that no Malays could go to Singapore. Raffles's bold claim of Singapore created a curious geographic situation: although [[Penang]] was clearly closer in distance to Singapore, Raffles, in his capacity as Lieutenant-Governor of Bencoolen, was nominally still in control. This undoubtedly irked the authorities in Penang, to the point where they refused to send any [[sepoy]]s to Singapore to complete the garrison.

Official Dutch complaints came before the end of the month, and Raffles attempted to appease the situation by instructing Farquhar to not interfere with the politics of surrounding islands. Despite numerous threats and serious considerations by the Dutch governor-general [[Godert van der Capellen|Van der Capellen]] in Java, they did not take any military action. The confused political situation in Johore and Rhio also created a certain uneasiness and instability for the two nations. [[Tengku Long]] was claimed to be a [[pretender]] to the throne, and, since the [[Order of succession|succession]] laws in the Malay sultanates were not clear cut, treaties signed between native rulers and the European powers always seemed to be on the verge of invalidation; especially if a sultan should be deposed by one of his siblings or other pretenders.

Nonetheless, amidst uncertainty and intrigue, Raffles landed in Achin on 14 March 1819, with begrudging help of Penang. Once again, it seems that multiple people were in power, but none wanted to formally deal with the British. The hostile atmosphere created allowed Raffles to cancel the only meeting he was able to arrange, with [[Panglima Polim]], a powerful divisional chief, fearing [[wikt:treachery|treachery]]. As the influential merchant [[John Palmer (merchant)|John Palmer]], Raffles, and fellow commissioner [[John Monckton Coombs]] of Penang sat offshore, awaiting a response, [[Calcutta]] debated whether to reinforce the port city. Evacuation plans were made, but the Dutch never acted, and ultimately Lord Hastings prompted Colonel Bannerman, the [[governor of Penang]], to send funds to bolster Singapore. Finally Raffles was capable of convincing his fellow commissioners to sign a treaty with [[Jauhar al-Alam Shah]], the ruler of Achin, which installed a [[Resident minister|British Resident]], as well as guaranteeing the exclusivity of bilateral trade.

By the time Raffles had returned to Singapore, on 31 May, much of the immediate crisis that the colony had caused in Penang and Calcutta had passed. By then, the initial five-hundred villagers had grown to become five-thousand merchants, soldiers, and administrators, packed onto the island. Raffles was determined to destroy the Dutch mercantile monopoly in the area, to replace it with a gateway for trade with China and Japan. The latter he had attempted but failed to reach an agreement with while governing Java.