History of Penang
Encyclopedia
The history of Penang is closely related to the history of Kedah. Penang
was previously part of the sultanate of Kedah
until it became a British possession in 1786. It later gained independence as part of the Federation of Malaya
in 1957.
16th century Portuguese traders from Goa
, India sailing to the Far East
in search of spices found a small island where they replenished their water supplies. They named it Pulo Pinaom. In the 17th century, Penang’s location at the northern entry to the Straits of Malacca provided a sheltered harbour for Chinese, Indian, Arabian and European ships during the monsoon months; this, in turn, inevitably made it fertile hunting ground for pirates.
One of the very first Englishmen to reach Penang was the merchant-navigator Sir James Lancaster
who in 1588 served under Sir Francis Drake
as commander of the Edward Bonadventure against the nemesis of the Spanish Armada
. On 10 April 1591, commanding the same ship, he set sail from Plymouth
for the East Indies
, reaching Penang in June 1592, remaining on the island until September of the same year and pillaging every vessel he encountered. He returned to England in May 1594.
Originally part of the Malay sultanate of Kedah
, Penang was ceded to the British East India Company
in 1786 by the Sultan of Kedah, in exchange for military protection from Siamese and Burmese armies who were threatening Kedah. On 11 August 1786, Captain Francis Light
, known as the founder of Penang, hoisted the Union Jack thereby taking formal possession of Penang and renamed it Prince of Wales Island (name used until after 1867) in honour of the heir to the British throne
. Penang was the first British possession in the Malay States and Southeast Asia
.
The location of the island at the opening of the Straits of Malacca attracted the British East India Company
to use the island as a natural harbour and anchor
age for their trading ships, and as a naval base to counter growing French ambitions in the region. The settlement on the north-eastern tip of the island was named George Town after King George III of the United Kingdom
.
Unbeknownst to the Sultan, Light had acted without the approval of the East India Company when he promised military protection. When the Company failed to aid Kedah when it was attacked by Thai
(and it was known as "Koh Mak" while under Siamese rule until 1785.), the Sultan tried to retake the island in 1790. The attempt was unsuccessful, and the Sultan was forced to cede the island to the Company for an honorarium
of 6,000 Spanish dollar
s per annum. This was later increased to 10,000 dollars, with Province Wellesley (Seberang Prai) being added to Penang in 1800. An annual honorarium of 18,800 ringgit
continues to be paid by the Penang State Government to the Sultan of Kedah .
The settlement was first built around the harbour with Fort Cornwallis
forming the island's defence. Light became the first Superintendent of the Prince of Wales Island. To expedite jungle clearing by labourers, Light fired silver coins from his ship cannons into the dense vegetation, and the land was cleared in no time. The original four streets of George Town were Beach Street, Light Street, Pitt Street (now Masjid Kapitan Keling Street) and Chulia Street, all of which still form the main thoroughfares of the modern city. Other early roads include Church Street, Bishop Street, China Street and Market Street, and by the early 19th century also Armenian Street and Acheen Street.
Light declared Prince of Wales Island a free port
to attract trade away from the Dutch
who were then the colonial ruler of the Dutch East Indies
. This strategy drew many immigrant traders to Penang. Settlers were allowed to claim whatever land they could clear. By 1789, Penang had 5,000 residents and this doubled by the end of the following decade. The first Chinese settlers in Penang came from an existing community in Kedah, with their leader, called a Kapitan Cina, being Koh Lay Huan
, a Baba
. http://worldfacts.us/Malaysia-Penang.htm
Light died of malaria
on 21 October 1794 and was buried at the Protestant cemetery at the end of Northam Road (now Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah). His son, William Light
went on to found the city of Adelaide
in Australia. Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Wellesley
(the future Duke of Wellington) arrived in Penang to coordinate the island's defences. In 1800, Lieutenant-Governor Sir George Leith secured a strip of land across the channel from the island and named it Province Wellesley, after Richard Colley Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, Governor-General of India
http://www.answers.com/topic/richard-wellesley-1st-marquess-wellesley.
Early in the 19th century, Penang was used as a staging post for the opium
trade between India and China. The East India Company
auctioned off licences to gambling dens, brothels and opium traders (this alone accounted for approximately 60% of colonial Penang's crimes)
In 1805, Penang's colonial status was elevated to that of a Residency. Stamford Raffles
arrived in Penang to work as the Deputy Secretary to the Governor of Penang, Philip Dundas
from 1805 to 1810 http://ptga.org.my/textpublisher/textpublisher.cgi?id=39 and subsequently founded Singapore
in 1819.
and Singapore
, became part of the Straits Settlements
under the British administration in India, later coming under direct British rule in 1867 as a Crown Colony
. George Town
became the capital of the Straits Settlements
but its status was soon supplanted by rapidly developing Singapore
whose importance eclipsed Penang's.
See also List of Governors of the Straits Settlements
Penang was rocked by the Penang Riots of 1867, which were nine days of heavy street fighting and bloodshed among the secret societies of Penang. The fighting spiraled out of control, until the British were able bring in reinforcements from Singapore
. The two principal Chinese secret societies - the Cantonese-speaking Ghee Hin
and the Hakka-speaking Hai San (see Chung Keng Quee
) - quarreled over commercial interests, especially in the lucrative tin-mining industry. Today's Cannon Street was so named because of the hole made on the ground by a cannon ball fired into the area from Khoo Kongsi
.
The opening of Suez Canal
in 1869 greatly expanded British trade with the Far East
. Colonial Penang prospered through exports of tin
and rubber
, which fed the Industrial Revolution
in Britain
. Penang's prosperity attracted people from far and wide, making Penang truly a melting pot of diverse cultures. Among the ethnic groups found in Penang were Malays, Acehnese, Arabs, Armenians, British, Burmese, Germans, Jews, Chinese, Gujeratis, Bengalis, Japanese, Punjabis, Sindhis, Tamils, Thais, Malayalees, Rawas, Javanese, Mandailings, Portuguese, Eurasians and others. Though many of them no longer impose a felt presence today, their memory lives on in place names such as Burma Road, Rangoon Road, Siam Road, Armenian Street, Acheen Street, Gottlieb Road, and Katz Street, and the Jewish Cemetery.
Cosmopolitan Penang was already a thriving colony of the British Empire
in the first decades of the 20th century, counting among its eminent visitors Somerset Maugham, Joseph Conrad
, Rudyard Kipling
, Noel Coward
, Herman Hesse, Karl May
, Count Friedrich M. von Hochberg and Hans Sturzenegger
. Generally distinguished visitors stayed at the venerable luxury Eastern and Oriental Hotel.
saw a surprise naval attack
on 28 October 1914 when the German cruiser
attacked and sank Allied warships off the harbour of Penang, among them the . This incident aside, the war had relatively little affect on Penang. On the Esplanade there is war memorial commemorating the soldiers who fell in the war.
on 19 December 1941, one of the key stages of the Battle of Malaya
, days after having neutralised American sea power at Pearl Harbor
. Three and a half years of rule of terror ensued. Many of the local populace fled to the interior and plantations to escape from Japanese atrocities, of which many were reported and documented. During this occupation, Penang was governed by four successive Japanese governors, starting with Shotaro Katayama.
It is a little known fact that Penang served as a German U-boat
base in the Far East
. U-511, under the command of Kptlt. Fritz Schneewind, arrived in Penang, then under Japanese occupation in July 1943, followed by U-178
in August 1943 http://uboat.net/ops/monsun3.htm. This essentially started the U-boat campaign in the Indian Ocean and also provided the Germans with penetration into the Pacific for the first time, alongside their ally, Japan. Korvettenkapitän Wilhelm Dommes
became the first commander of the U-boat base, located in the former British seaplane base in Penang.http://www.uboataces.com/articles-fareast-boats2.shtml
's historic buildings remarkably survived virtually unscathed despite Allied bombings. Before civilian rule returned to Penang, the state was administered by two successive British military governors from 1945-1946.
The political landscape had changed irreversibly in the aftermath of the war. The end of British imperialism seemed impendent, even inevitable. In 1946, the Straits Settlements were dissolved, with Sir Shenton Thomas
being the last governor, and Penang became part of the Malayan Union
, before becoming in 1948 a state of the Federation of Malaya, which gained independence in 1957. In 1963 it became one of the 13 states of Malaysia.
George Town
was accorded city
status by Queen Elizabeth II
on 1 January 1957, thereby becoming the first town in the then Federation of Malaya after Singapore to become a city. The royal charter granting George Town its city status and the petition from the Penang residents to Queen Elizabeth II in this regard are still prominently displayed in the Penang State Museum. However, as a result of local government reorganisations in 1976, the City Council of George Town was merged with the neighbouring Penang Rural District Council to form the Municipal Council of Penang Island. http://www.mppp.gov.my/english/home.htm Although the city status was never officially revoked, the state and federal governments are of the view that it has ceased to exist.
On 31 August 1957, Penang formally became part of the newly-independent Federation of Malaya
(Persekutuan Tanah Melayu) and in 1963, also became a member state of Malaysia. From independence till 1969, Penang was administered by Chief Minister Tan Sri Wong Pow Nee from the Malaysian Chinese Association
(MCA), one of the three principal political parties which made up the Alliance Party
ruling coalition. In 1969, however, Penang was captured by the Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia
party which garnered 16 out of 24 seats in the State Assembly. Its founder, Tun Dato' Seri Dr Lim Chong Eu
became Penang's second Chief Minister. Following the 13 May 1969 riots which ensued from the General Elections, parliamentary rule was suspended and the government was taken over by the National Operations Council. Only in April 1971 was the democratic government restored. Gerakan
joined the ruling coalition on 13 February 1972 and continued to govern Penang until March 2008 when it was completely annihilated at both state and parliamentary levels.
The island's free port
status was revoked in 1969 which dealt a considerable blow to Penang's trading industry which was followed by massive unemployment as high as 14.5% http://www.gerakan.org.my/public/newsletter/page11.htm. Despite this, from the 1970s to the late 1990s the state built up one of the largest electronics manufacturing bases in Asia, in the Bayan Lepas
Free Industrial Zone (FIZ) around the airport in the south of the island. This move is now seen as monumental to the economic growth of Penang, today an economic powerhouse of Malaysia. The Penang Bridge was also built during Dr Lim's tenure, and Penang Second Bridge
is now under construction due to the expansion of population and cars.
Subsequent to Dr Lim's shock defeat in his Padang Kota constituency to DAP's
Lim Kit Siang in the 1990 General Elections, he retired from politics but his party managed to hold on to power. He was succeeded by the incumbent Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon
.
In 2004, widespread dissatisfaction with the decline of Penang has led to a media campaign to return Penang to its former glory. http://thestar.com.my/news/archives/story.asp?ppath=/2004/12/16/nation/9673098&sec=nation Challenges faced by the government include the urban renewal of Inner George Town which has seen population and commercial activities dwindling since the repeal of the Rent Control Act in 2000, as well as job creation.
Penang suffered some damage from the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, though nothing in the scale of neighbouring Acheh- incurring most of the 68 lives lost in Malaysia, mostly picnickers and fishermen. Some 1,600 people were evacuated. Economically, the fisheries and aquaculture were the worst-hit sectors, with losses in the order of tens of millions of ringgit http://www.streaminitiative.org/pdf/050114MalaysiaCR.pdf.
Owing to its long colonial history, many British colonial buildings can still be seen today. Such buildings include the City Hall, the Town Hall, the Eastern & Oriental Hotel
(popularly known as the E. & O., established 1884), The Mansion, the Old Court House, Suffolk House
built upon the pepper estate established by the first lieutenant for the island Francis Light and built by W.E.Phillips and subsequently used by governors until 1836 when it fell into private hands. Governors of the Straits Settlements, Uplands International School
building, Standard Chartered Bank
building, ABN Bank building and the HSBC
Bank building. Local conservationists are lobbying the state government to restore many other historical buildings but regrettably a number of them have dilapidated beyond repair.
Indeed many public institutions and customs in Penang and Malaysia in general today are inherited and modified from the British such as formal education, use of English language, English loanwords, transportation systems - harbour, roads, railroads; form of government (Westminster system
), English Common Law, and leisure - turf club, recreation clubs.
Interestingly, in comparison to Kuala Lumpur (see list of roads in Kuala Lumpur), Penang still retains many colonial street names. These include King Street, Queen Street, Beach Street, Union Street, Light Street, Downing Street, Anson Road, Macalister Road, Magazine Road, Love Lane, Rope Walk, Gurney Drive, Weld Quay, Buckingham Street, Corrington Avenue, Gottlieb Road, Vermont Road and Western Avenue. Although many streets have been given 'Malaysian' names such as Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Kling, it is often better known locally by its former name - Pitt Street. Other notable names of suburbs and places are Fettes Park, Hillside, Island Glades, Brown Garden and Jesselton Heights.
In all of these maintenance of colonial heritage, UNESCO awarded George Town
, as well as another Straits Historical City of Malacca Town
the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site(s).
and Fujian
involved themselves in sugar-cane and pepper cultivation, in which the native Malays had shown no interest. Others acted as middlemen merchants (functioning more or less in the nature of agency house) for foreign traders engaged in export-import activities. Their contributions lay in shipping merchandise for various foreign destinations. Still other Chinese worked in the importation of ethnic foods which they cooked and sold to other recent settlers.
of India) as shopkeepers and farm laborers in Penang. Light estimated that about two thousand men came to work in this manner each year; however, in contrast to the Chinese, these laborers did not settle permanently in Penang. They would, rather, work for long enough to save money and then return to their families in south India. This group of migrants comprised the ‘Adi Dravidas,’ a group of impoverished laborers originating in the hinterlands of the Tamil
country and Andhra Desa who, facing insufficient work in their homeland, went abroad for survival.
Another class of Indian migrants was a class of people hailing from the Kaveri delta areas (from the Ramnad district of Madras) known as ‘Nattukottai Chettiars’ who were by occupation money-lenders. Their presence in Penang and elsewhere where plantations sprang up aided merchants, miners, and planters, as these Chettiars were advancing required working capital in the absence of any effective banks. Light also encouraged migration by the Chettiar
community as part of his plan to create a cash economy on Penang.
Unlike the Tamil migrants, Telugu
migrants from the northern Coromandel Coast came to Penang as families. For this reason, many did not leave when their work terms expired, but rather continued working on plantations or as merchants. Over 1,500,000 south Indians who worked in Malayan plantations, more than three-fourths returned to India, nearly all of them Tamil.
Beginning with Light, Penang boasted a tradition of religious tolerance; all races could practice their respective religious faith and social stability in a multi-racial society was thus achieved.
In 1967, in response to an unpopular decision to devalue the currency, the opposition Labour Party called for a hartal, or strike. This strike turned violent, with five people killed in Penang on its first day. Furthermore, although originally multiethnic, the violence quickly assumed interracial overtones, with politicians airing grievances and even calling for more violence. The tension spread to the coast and even to the capital, where timely intervention by the Army was required to prevent a more general spread of violence. When the national situation had calmed, the national government of Tunku Abdul Rahman
imprisoned leaders charged with inciting violence, but declined to outlaw the Labour Party.
Penang
Penang is a state in Malaysia and the name of its constituent island, located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia by the Strait of Malacca. It is bordered by Kedah in the north and east, and Perak in the south. Penang is the second smallest Malaysian state in area after Perlis, and the...
was previously part of the sultanate of Kedah
Kedah Sultanate
The Sultanate of Kedah was the earliest sultanate on the Malay Peninsula and one of the oldest Sultanates in the world, founded in year 1136.-Kedah Kingdom:...
until it became a British possession in 1786. It later gained independence as part of the Federation of Malaya
Federation of Malaya
The Federation of Malaya is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. The Federation became independent on 31 August 1957...
in 1957.
Early days
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
, India sailing to the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
in search of spices found a small island where they replenished their water supplies. They named it Pulo Pinaom. In the 17th century, Penang’s location at the northern entry to the Straits of Malacca provided a sheltered harbour for Chinese, Indian, Arabian and European ships during the monsoon months; this, in turn, inevitably made it fertile hunting ground for pirates.
One of the very first Englishmen to reach Penang was the merchant-navigator Sir James Lancaster
James Lancaster
Sir James Lancaster was a prominent Elizabethan trader and privateer.Lancaster came from Basingstoke in Hampshire. In his early life, he was a soldier and a trader in Portugal...
who in 1588 served under Sir Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
as commander of the Edward Bonadventure against the nemesis of the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
. On 10 April 1591, commanding the same ship, he set sail from Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
for the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
, reaching Penang in June 1592, remaining on the island until September of the same year and pillaging every vessel he encountered. He returned to England in May 1594.
Originally part of the Malay sultanate of Kedah
Kedah
Kedah is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of over 9,000 km², and it consists of the mainland and Langkawi. The mainland has a relatively flat terrain, which is used to grow rice...
, Penang was ceded to the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
in 1786 by the Sultan of Kedah, in exchange for military protection from Siamese and Burmese armies who were threatening Kedah. On 11 August 1786, Captain Francis Light
Francis Light
Captain Francis Light was the founder of the British colony of Penang and its capital George Town in 1786.-Early years:...
, known as the founder of Penang, hoisted the Union Jack thereby taking formal possession of Penang and renamed it Prince of Wales Island (name used until after 1867) in honour of the heir to the British throne
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
. Penang was the first British possession in the Malay States and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
.
The location of the island at the opening of the Straits of Malacca attracted the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
to use the island as a natural harbour and anchor
Anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the vessel from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ancora, which itself comes from the Greek ἄγκυρα .Anchors can either be temporary or permanent...
age for their trading ships, and as a naval base to counter growing French ambitions in the region. The settlement on the north-eastern tip of the island was named George Town after King George III of the United Kingdom
George III of the United Kingdom
George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...
.
Unbeknownst to the Sultan, Light had acted without the approval of the East India Company when he promised military protection. When the Company failed to aid Kedah when it was attacked by Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
(and it was known as "Koh Mak" while under Siamese rule until 1785.), the Sultan tried to retake the island in 1790. The attempt was unsuccessful, and the Sultan was forced to cede the island to the Company for an honorarium
Honorarium
An honorarium is an ex gratia payment made to a person for their services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are not traditionally required. This is used by groups such as schools or sporting clubs to pay coaches for their costs...
of 6,000 Spanish dollar
Spanish dollar
The Spanish dollar is a silver coin, of approximately 38 mm diameter, worth eight reales, that was minted in the Spanish Empire after a Spanish currency reform in 1497. Its purpose was to correspond to the German thaler...
s per annum. This was later increased to 10,000 dollars, with Province Wellesley (Seberang Prai) being added to Penang in 1800. An annual honorarium of 18,800 ringgit
Ringgit
Ringgit mostly refers to the Malaysian ringgit, which is the local currency in Malaysia, but it can also refer to the Brunei dollar or Singapore dollar in the Malay language. The word ringgit was originally used to refer to the serrated edges of Spanish silver dollars widely circulated in the area...
continues to be paid by the Penang State Government to the Sultan of Kedah .
The settlement was first built around the harbour with Fort Cornwallis
Fort Cornwallis
Fort Cornwallis is an old star-shaped fort located on the northeastern coast of Penang, Malaysia. It is named after the late 18th century Governor-General of Bengal, India, Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis...
forming the island's defence. Light became the first Superintendent of the Prince of Wales Island. To expedite jungle clearing by labourers, Light fired silver coins from his ship cannons into the dense vegetation, and the land was cleared in no time. The original four streets of George Town were Beach Street, Light Street, Pitt Street (now Masjid Kapitan Keling Street) and Chulia Street, all of which still form the main thoroughfares of the modern city. Other early roads include Church Street, Bishop Street, China Street and Market Street, and by the early 19th century also Armenian Street and Acheen Street.
Light declared Prince of Wales Island a free port
Free port
A free port or free zone , sometimes also called a bonded area is a port, port area or other area with relaxed jurisdiction with respect to the country of location...
to attract trade away from the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
who were then the colonial ruler of the Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
. This strategy drew many immigrant traders to Penang. Settlers were allowed to claim whatever land they could clear. By 1789, Penang had 5,000 residents and this doubled by the end of the following decade. The first Chinese settlers in Penang came from an existing community in Kedah, with their leader, called a Kapitan Cina, being Koh Lay Huan
Koh Lay Huan
Koh Lay Huan was a wealthy and educated man, who had earlier rebelled against the Manchu Qing Dynasty and fled to Siam and the Malay States, to eventually settle in Penang as its first Kapitan China...
, a Baba
Baba
- Geography :* Baba, Masovian Voivodeship * Baba, Mogilno County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship * Baba, Rypin County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship...
. http://worldfacts.us/Malaysia-Penang.htm
Light died of malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
on 21 October 1794 and was buried at the Protestant cemetery at the end of Northam Road (now Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah). His son, William Light
William Light
Colonel William Light was a British military officer and the first Surveyor-General of the Colony of South Australia...
went on to found the city of Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
in Australia. Lieutenant-Colonel Arthur Wellesley
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
(the future Duke of Wellington) arrived in Penang to coordinate the island's defences. In 1800, Lieutenant-Governor Sir George Leith secured a strip of land across the channel from the island and named it Province Wellesley, after Richard Colley Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley, Governor-General of India
Governor-General of India
The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...
http://www.answers.com/topic/richard-wellesley-1st-marquess-wellesley.
Early in the 19th century, Penang was used as a staging post for the opium
Opium
Opium is the dried latex obtained from the opium poppy . Opium contains up to 12% morphine, an alkaloid, which is frequently processed chemically to produce heroin for the illegal drug trade. The latex also includes codeine and non-narcotic alkaloids such as papaverine, thebaine and noscapine...
trade between India and China. The East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
auctioned off licences to gambling dens, brothels and opium traders (this alone accounted for approximately 60% of colonial Penang's crimes)
In 1805, Penang's colonial status was elevated to that of a Residency. Stamford Raffles
Stamford Raffles
Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles, FRS was a British statesman, best known for his founding of the city of Singapore . He is often described as the "Father of Singapore"...
arrived in Penang to work as the Deputy Secretary to the Governor of Penang, Philip Dundas
Philip Dundas
Philip Dundas, newly appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Penang, arrived at the newly created Presidency of the British East India Company, between the 18th and the 24th of September, 1805, together with his Council and the subordinate officials, including his Deputy Secretary, Stamford Raffles, who...
from 1805 to 1810 http://ptga.org.my/textpublisher/textpublisher.cgi?id=39 and subsequently founded Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
in 1819.
Straits Settlements
In 1826, Penang, along with MalaccaMalacca
Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, became part of the Straits Settlements
Straits Settlements
The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia.Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under direct British control as a crown colony on 1 April 1867...
under the British administration in India, later coming under direct British rule in 1867 as a Crown Colony
Crown colony
A Crown colony, also known in the 17th century as royal colony, was a type of colonial administration of the English and later British Empire....
. George Town
George Town, Penang
George Town was voted as one of the best cities in Asia by Asiaweek, ranked 6th in 1998 and 9th in 2000. More recently, George Town has improved a notch to rank as the 9th most liveable city in Asia in a survey of 254 cities worldwide according to an international location ratings survey by , an...
became the capital of the Straits Settlements
Straits Settlements
The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia.Originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Company, the Straits Settlements came under direct British control as a crown colony on 1 April 1867...
but its status was soon supplanted by rapidly developing Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
whose importance eclipsed Penang's.
See also List of Governors of the Straits Settlements
Penang was rocked by the Penang Riots of 1867, which were nine days of heavy street fighting and bloodshed among the secret societies of Penang. The fighting spiraled out of control, until the British were able bring in reinforcements from Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. The two principal Chinese secret societies - the Cantonese-speaking Ghee Hin
Ghee Hin Kongsi
The Ghee Hin Kongsi is a secret society in Singapore and Malaya, formed in 1820. Ghee Hin literally means "the rise of righteousness" in Chinese. The Ghee Hin often fought against the Hakka-dominated Hai San secret society....
and the Hakka-speaking Hai San (see Chung Keng Quee
Chung Keng Quee
Kapitan China Chung Keng Quee was the founder and administrator of modern Taiping. He was a millionaire philanthropist and known as an innovator in the mining of tin. He was involved in many other industries including farming, pawnbroking and logging. He was respected by both Chinese and European...
) - quarreled over commercial interests, especially in the lucrative tin-mining industry. Today's Cannon Street was so named because of the hole made on the ground by a cannon ball fired into the area from Khoo Kongsi
Khoo Kongsi
The Khoo Kongsi is a large Chinese clanhouse with elaborate and highly ornamented architecture, a mark of the dominant presence of the Chinese in Penang, Malaysia. The famous Khoo Kongsi is the grandest clan temple in the country. It is also one of the city's major historic attraction...
.
The opening of Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
in 1869 greatly expanded British trade with the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
. Colonial Penang prospered through exports of tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
and rubber
Rubber
Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
, which fed the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
in Britain
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
. Penang's prosperity attracted people from far and wide, making Penang truly a melting pot of diverse cultures. Among the ethnic groups found in Penang were Malays, Acehnese, Arabs, Armenians, British, Burmese, Germans, Jews, Chinese, Gujeratis, Bengalis, Japanese, Punjabis, Sindhis, Tamils, Thais, Malayalees, Rawas, Javanese, Mandailings, Portuguese, Eurasians and others. Though many of them no longer impose a felt presence today, their memory lives on in place names such as Burma Road, Rangoon Road, Siam Road, Armenian Street, Acheen Street, Gottlieb Road, and Katz Street, and the Jewish Cemetery.
Cosmopolitan Penang was already a thriving colony of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
in the first decades of the 20th century, counting among its eminent visitors Somerset Maugham, Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad was a Polish-born English novelist.Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, although he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties...
, Rudyard Kipling
Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
, Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
, Herman Hesse, Karl May
Karl May
Karl Friedrich May was a popular German writer, noted mainly for adventure novels set in the American Old West, and similar books set in the Orient and Middle East . In addition, he wrote stories set in his native Germany, in China and in South America...
, Count Friedrich M. von Hochberg and Hans Sturzenegger
Hans Sturzenegger
Hans Sturzenegger was a Swiss painter.-References:*This article was initially translated from the German Wikipedia....
. Generally distinguished visitors stayed at the venerable luxury Eastern and Oriental Hotel.
World War I
World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
saw a surprise naval attack
Battle of Penang
The Battle of Penang occurred on 28 October 1914, during World War I. It was a naval action in the Strait of Malacca, in which the German cruiser sank two Allied warships.-Background:...
on 28 October 1914 when the German cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
attacked and sank Allied warships off the harbour of Penang, among them the . This incident aside, the war had relatively little affect on Penang. On the Esplanade there is war memorial commemorating the soldiers who fell in the war.
Second World War
World War II, on the other hand, unleashed unparalleled social upheaval on Penang. With news of the imminent attack of the Japanese, the European population was evacuated beforehand, leaving the rest of Penang's population to suffer under a brutal Japanese occupation, causing much disillusionment and injury to the British prestige and image of invincibility. The British withdrawal left the defenceless island in the hands of a State Committee which had to subdue a three-day civil unrest. Penang was captured by Japanese forces invading from the north through ThailandThailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
on 19 December 1941, one of the key stages of the Battle of Malaya
Battle of Malaya
The Malayan Campaign was a campaign fought by Allied and Japanese forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 31 January 1942 during the Second World War. The campaign was dominated by land battles between British Commonwealth army units, and the Imperial Japanese Army...
, days after having neutralised American sea power at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. Three and a half years of rule of terror ensued. Many of the local populace fled to the interior and plantations to escape from Japanese atrocities, of which many were reported and documented. During this occupation, Penang was governed by four successive Japanese governors, starting with Shotaro Katayama.
It is a little known fact that Penang served as a German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
base in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
. U-511, under the command of Kptlt. Fritz Schneewind, arrived in Penang, then under Japanese occupation in July 1943, followed by U-178
German submarine U-178
German submarine U-178 was a Type IXD2 U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II.Ordered on 28 May 1940, the U-boat was laid down on 24 December 1940 at the AG Weser yard at Bremen, was launched on 25 October 1941, and commissioned on 14 February 1942, under the...
in August 1943 http://uboat.net/ops/monsun3.htm. This essentially started the U-boat campaign in the Indian Ocean and also provided the Germans with penetration into the Pacific for the first time, alongside their ally, Japan. Korvettenkapitän Wilhelm Dommes
Wilhelm Dommes
Wilhelm Dommes was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership...
became the first commander of the U-boat base, located in the former British seaplane base in Penang.http://www.uboataces.com/articles-fareast-boats2.shtml
Postwar
Japanese forces in Penang finally surrendered to British forces on 6 September 1945. George TownGeorge Town, Penang
George Town was voted as one of the best cities in Asia by Asiaweek, ranked 6th in 1998 and 9th in 2000. More recently, George Town has improved a notch to rank as the 9th most liveable city in Asia in a survey of 254 cities worldwide according to an international location ratings survey by , an...
's historic buildings remarkably survived virtually unscathed despite Allied bombings. Before civilian rule returned to Penang, the state was administered by two successive British military governors from 1945-1946.
The political landscape had changed irreversibly in the aftermath of the war. The end of British imperialism seemed impendent, even inevitable. In 1946, the Straits Settlements were dissolved, with Sir Shenton Thomas
Shenton Thomas
Sir Thomas Shenton Whitelegge Thomas, GCMG, GCStJ was the last Governor of the Straits Settlements, 1934–1942 during which time World War II began. He died at age 82...
being the last governor, and Penang became part of the Malayan Union
Malayan Union
The Malayan Union was a federation of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to unify the Malay Peninsula under a single government so as to simplify administration. The Malayan Union later became the independent...
, before becoming in 1948 a state of the Federation of Malaya, which gained independence in 1957. In 1963 it became one of the 13 states of Malaysia.
George Town
George Town, Penang
George Town was voted as one of the best cities in Asia by Asiaweek, ranked 6th in 1998 and 9th in 2000. More recently, George Town has improved a notch to rank as the 9th most liveable city in Asia in a survey of 254 cities worldwide according to an international location ratings survey by , an...
was accorded city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
status by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
on 1 January 1957, thereby becoming the first town in the then Federation of Malaya after Singapore to become a city. The royal charter granting George Town its city status and the petition from the Penang residents to Queen Elizabeth II in this regard are still prominently displayed in the Penang State Museum. However, as a result of local government reorganisations in 1976, the City Council of George Town was merged with the neighbouring Penang Rural District Council to form the Municipal Council of Penang Island. http://www.mppp.gov.my/english/home.htm Although the city status was never officially revoked, the state and federal governments are of the view that it has ceased to exist.
Post-Independence
Federation of Malaya
The Federation of Malaya is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. The Federation became independent on 31 August 1957...
(Persekutuan Tanah Melayu) and in 1963, also became a member state of Malaysia. From independence till 1969, Penang was administered by Chief Minister Tan Sri Wong Pow Nee from the Malaysian Chinese Association
Malaysian Chinese Association
Malaysian Chinese Association is a uni-racial political party in Malaysia that represents the Malaysian Chinese ethnicity; it is one of the three major component parties of the ruling coalition in Malaysia called the Barisan Nasional in Malay, or National Front in English.Along with the largest...
(MCA), one of the three principal political parties which made up the Alliance Party
Barisan Nasional
Barisan Nasional is a major political coalition in Malaysia, formed in 1973 as the successor to the Alliance . Along with its predecessor, it has been Malaysia's federal ruling political force since independence...
ruling coalition. In 1969, however, Penang was captured by the Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia
Gerakan
Gerakan, meaning movement in Malay, can refer to:*the Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia, a Malaysian political party*the Gerakan Pramuka Indonesian Scout movement...
party which garnered 16 out of 24 seats in the State Assembly. Its founder, Tun Dato' Seri Dr Lim Chong Eu
Lim Chong Eu
Tun Dato' Seri Dr. Lim Chong Eu was a Malaysian politician who served as the second Chief Minister of Penang for a record 21 years. He was also the founding president of Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia, a member of the ruling coalition Barisan Nasional. He was termed the "Architect of Modern...
became Penang's second Chief Minister. Following the 13 May 1969 riots which ensued from the General Elections, parliamentary rule was suspended and the government was taken over by the National Operations Council. Only in April 1971 was the democratic government restored. Gerakan
Gerakan
Gerakan, meaning movement in Malay, can refer to:*the Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia, a Malaysian political party*the Gerakan Pramuka Indonesian Scout movement...
joined the ruling coalition on 13 February 1972 and continued to govern Penang until March 2008 when it was completely annihilated at both state and parliamentary levels.
The island's free port
Free port
A free port or free zone , sometimes also called a bonded area is a port, port area or other area with relaxed jurisdiction with respect to the country of location...
status was revoked in 1969 which dealt a considerable blow to Penang's trading industry which was followed by massive unemployment as high as 14.5% http://www.gerakan.org.my/public/newsletter/page11.htm. Despite this, from the 1970s to the late 1990s the state built up one of the largest electronics manufacturing bases in Asia, in the Bayan Lepas
Bayan Lepas
Bayan Lepas is a town in Penang, Malaysia being home to the Penang International Airport. It has a population of about 141,000 people. Bayan Lepas is the main industrial hub of Penang, being home to the Free Industrial Zone, where factories of many multinational companies are located...
Free Industrial Zone (FIZ) around the airport in the south of the island. This move is now seen as monumental to the economic growth of Penang, today an economic powerhouse of Malaysia. The Penang Bridge was also built during Dr Lim's tenure, and Penang Second Bridge
Penang Second Bridge
The Penang Second Bridge is a new bridge under construction in Penang, Malaysia. It will connect Batu Kawan on the mainland Seberang Perai and Batu Maung on Penang Island. It will be the second bridge to link the island to the mainland after Penang Bridge...
is now under construction due to the expansion of population and cars.
Subsequent to Dr Lim's shock defeat in his Padang Kota constituency to DAP's
Democratic Action Party
The Democratic Action Party, or DAP is a secular, multi-racial, social democratic Malaysian political party.The DAP is one of the three major opposition parties in Malaysia, along with the PKR and PAS, that are seen as electable alternatives to the Barisan Nasional coalition of parties...
Lim Kit Siang in the 1990 General Elections, he retired from politics but his party managed to hold on to power. He was succeeded by the incumbent Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon
Koh Tsu Koon
Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon is a Malaysian politician. He was the Chief Minister of Penang from 1990 to 2008 and is currently a member of the Dewan Negara, the upper house of the Malaysian Parliament...
.
In 2004, widespread dissatisfaction with the decline of Penang has led to a media campaign to return Penang to its former glory. http://thestar.com.my/news/archives/story.asp?ppath=/2004/12/16/nation/9673098&sec=nation Challenges faced by the government include the urban renewal of Inner George Town which has seen population and commercial activities dwindling since the repeal of the Rent Control Act in 2000, as well as job creation.
Penang suffered some damage from the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, though nothing in the scale of neighbouring Acheh- incurring most of the 68 lives lost in Malaysia, mostly picnickers and fishermen. Some 1,600 people were evacuated. Economically, the fisheries and aquaculture were the worst-hit sectors, with losses in the order of tens of millions of ringgit http://www.streaminitiative.org/pdf/050114MalaysiaCR.pdf.
Colonial Legacy
Eastern & Oriental Hotel
The Eastern & Oriental Hotel is a colonial-style hotel in Penang that was established in 1885 by the Armenian Sarkies Brothers. The sea-fronting hotel is known for its luxurious accommodation and restaurants. The address is at 10 Lebuh Farquhar.The Eastern Hotel was founded by the brothers in 1884...
(popularly known as the E. & O., established 1884), The Mansion, the Old Court House, Suffolk House
Suffolk House, Penang
In Penang, Malaysia, the Suffolk House refers to two early residences built on the same site located some four miles west of George Town, Penang, on the banks of the Air Itam River...
built upon the pepper estate established by the first lieutenant for the island Francis Light and built by W.E.Phillips and subsequently used by governors until 1836 when it fell into private hands. Governors of the Straits Settlements, Uplands International School
Uplands International School of Penang
The International School Of Penang , commonly known as Uplands School or simply Uplands by its members , is an international school in Penang, Malaysia...
building, Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered Bank
Standard Chartered PLC is a multinational financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom with operations in more than seventy countries...
building, ABN Bank building and the HSBC
HSBC
HSBC Holdings plc is a global banking and financial services company headquartered in Canary Wharf, London, United Kingdom. it is the world's second-largest banking and financial services group and second-largest public company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine...
Bank building. Local conservationists are lobbying the state government to restore many other historical buildings but regrettably a number of them have dilapidated beyond repair.
Indeed many public institutions and customs in Penang and Malaysia in general today are inherited and modified from the British such as formal education, use of English language, English loanwords, transportation systems - harbour, roads, railroads; form of government (Westminster system
Westminster System
The Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
), English Common Law, and leisure - turf club, recreation clubs.
Interestingly, in comparison to Kuala Lumpur (see list of roads in Kuala Lumpur), Penang still retains many colonial street names. These include King Street, Queen Street, Beach Street, Union Street, Light Street, Downing Street, Anson Road, Macalister Road, Magazine Road, Love Lane, Rope Walk, Gurney Drive, Weld Quay, Buckingham Street, Corrington Avenue, Gottlieb Road, Vermont Road and Western Avenue. Although many streets have been given 'Malaysian' names such as Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Kling, it is often better known locally by its former name - Pitt Street. Other notable names of suburbs and places are Fettes Park, Hillside, Island Glades, Brown Garden and Jesselton Heights.
In all of these maintenance of colonial heritage, UNESCO awarded George Town
George Town, Penang
George Town was voted as one of the best cities in Asia by Asiaweek, ranked 6th in 1998 and 9th in 2000. More recently, George Town has improved a notch to rank as the 9th most liveable city in Asia in a survey of 254 cities worldwide according to an international location ratings survey by , an...
, as well as another Straits Historical City of Malacca Town
Malacca Town
Most tourist attractions are concentrated in its small city centre which encompasses Jonker Walk which houses Malacca's traditional Chinatown that exhibits Peranakan architecture. A Famosa Fort, St. Paul Hill are among the tourist attractions located in the Bandar Hilir, old city area. There are...
the title of UNESCO World Heritage Site(s).
Ethnic composition
British control over Penang led directly to great growth both in the size and the diversity of Penang's population. In addition to small numbers of European settlers and immigrants from Siam and Burma, two new groups immigrated to Penang from India and China.Chinese immigration
In a dispatch of 1794, Francis Light said that the Chinese constituted the most valuable and largest group acting as traders, carpenters, masons, smiths, shopkeepers and planters on the island. From an early date, the Chinese specialized in the production and trade of tin. Some emigrants from the provinces of GuangdongGuangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and Fujian
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
involved themselves in sugar-cane and pepper cultivation, in which the native Malays had shown no interest. Others acted as middlemen merchants (functioning more or less in the nature of agency house) for foreign traders engaged in export-import activities. Their contributions lay in shipping merchandise for various foreign destinations. Still other Chinese worked in the importation of ethnic foods which they cooked and sold to other recent settlers.
Indian immigration
Already in the 1790s, Light mentions Chulias (that is, people from the Coromandel CoastCoromandel Coast
The Coromandel Coast is the name given to the southeastern coast of the Indian Subcontinent between Cape Comorin and False Divi Point...
of India) as shopkeepers and farm laborers in Penang. Light estimated that about two thousand men came to work in this manner each year; however, in contrast to the Chinese, these laborers did not settle permanently in Penang. They would, rather, work for long enough to save money and then return to their families in south India. This group of migrants comprised the ‘Adi Dravidas,’ a group of impoverished laborers originating in the hinterlands of the Tamil
Ancient Tamil country
The Sangam period is the classical period in the history of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and other parts of South India, spanning about the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE...
country and Andhra Desa who, facing insufficient work in their homeland, went abroad for survival.
Another class of Indian migrants was a class of people hailing from the Kaveri delta areas (from the Ramnad district of Madras) known as ‘Nattukottai Chettiars’ who were by occupation money-lenders. Their presence in Penang and elsewhere where plantations sprang up aided merchants, miners, and planters, as these Chettiars were advancing required working capital in the absence of any effective banks. Light also encouraged migration by the Chettiar
Chettiar
Chettiar , also spelled Chetty, is a title used by various castes in South India especially in Tamil Nadu. In Kannada, it appears as Setty, Shettar and Shettigar, who are Padmashalis in Andhra Pradesh....
community as part of his plan to create a cash economy on Penang.
Unlike the Tamil migrants, Telugu
Telugu people
The Telugu people or Telugu Prajalu are an ethnic group of India. They are the native speakers of the Telugu language, the most commonly spoken language in India after Hindi and Bengali...
migrants from the northern Coromandel Coast came to Penang as families. For this reason, many did not leave when their work terms expired, but rather continued working on plantations or as merchants. Over 1,500,000 south Indians who worked in Malayan plantations, more than three-fourths returned to India, nearly all of them Tamil.
Beginning with Light, Penang boasted a tradition of religious tolerance; all races could practice their respective religious faith and social stability in a multi-racial society was thus achieved.
Racial climate since independence
Penang entered independence with a tradition of multiethnic peace and cooperation. However, the British habit of separating ethnic communities led to incipient tensions that have since grown. In particular, the tendency to support Malays in government, and Chinese and India in trade and manufacturing, has led to significant divisions in the island's sociopolitics.In 1967, in response to an unpopular decision to devalue the currency, the opposition Labour Party called for a hartal, or strike. This strike turned violent, with five people killed in Penang on its first day. Furthermore, although originally multiethnic, the violence quickly assumed interracial overtones, with politicians airing grievances and even calling for more violence. The tension spread to the coast and even to the capital, where timely intervention by the Army was required to prevent a more general spread of violence. When the national situation had calmed, the national government of Tunku Abdul Rahman
Tunku Abdul Rahman
Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, AC, CH was Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955, and the country's first Prime Minister from independence in 1957. He remained as the Prime Minister after Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore joined the...
imprisoned leaders charged with inciting violence, but declined to outlaw the Labour Party.
Sources
- Kernial Singh Sandhu. Indians in Malaya-immigration and settlement,'. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 1969, 29pg.
- Sinnappah, Anasanatnam. Indians in Malaysia and Singapore. Oxford University Press, Kulala Lumpur, 1979, 19pg.
- Nancy Snider. "What Happened in Penang." Asian Survey 12 (1968), 960-975.