Singapore has been

founded!!!!

• After Singapore’s After Singapore’s founding, news about the founding, news about the island spread to other island spread to other countries in Asia and countries in Asia and other parts of the worldother parts of the world– IndiaIndia– ChinaChina

• Thousands of people of Thousands of people of different races flocked to different races flocked to SingaporeSingapore– bright business prospectsbright business prospects– many job opportunitiesmany job opportunities

• Most immigrants who came Most immigrants who came were menwere men

– they did not intend stay on they did not intend stay on permanentlypermanently

– they hoped to make enough money they hoped to make enough money to send home regularlyto send home regularly

– they wanted to eventually return they wanted to eventually return home after acquiring some wealthhome after acquiring some wealth

• However, some of these However, some of these immigrants later changed immigrants later changed their mindstheir minds

– they decided to make they decided to make Singapore their homeSingapore their home

– they either brought their they either brought their wives and children to wives and children to SingaporeSingapore

– or they married local women or they married local women who were mostly Malays or who were mostly Malays or Chinese born in Penang and Chinese born in Penang and MelakaMelaka

Why Did The Immigrants Come to

Singapore?

‘‘Push’ FactorsPush’ Factors

Reasons that Reasons that drive people drive people away away from their homeland to from their homeland to settle in another place.settle in another place.

The The unfavourableunfavourable conditions conditions found in the immigrants’ found in the immigrants’ homeland.homeland.

o WarWar

o Natural disastersNatural disasterso Droughts, famine, Droughts, famine,

earthquakes, floodsearthquakes, floods

o Lack of jobsLack of jobs

o Overcrowding in their Overcrowding in their homelandshomelands

o Disorder and unrestDisorder and unrest

‘‘Pull’ factors:Pull’ factors:

Reasons that attract Reasons that attract people to settle in a people to settle in a particular country.particular country.

The The favourablefavourable conditions found in conditions found in Singapore.Singapore.

‘‘Pull’ FactorsPull’ Factors– No restriction on No restriction on

immigrationimmigration

– Singapore was a free port Singapore was a free port » Traders did not have to pay for Traders did not have to pay for

custom duties or taxes on goodscustom duties or taxes on goods

– Better jobs and business Better jobs and business opportunitiesopportunities

– Peace and stability Peace and stability

• The immigrants tend to settle in great numbers near the mouth of the Singapore River

• Why do you think people tend to settle

near the mouth of the Singapore River?

• Raffles returned to Singapore in October 1822

• He appointed Lieutenant Philip Jackson as Assistant

• A plan was drawn up to improve the haphazard way in which building were built in the settlement

• Under the plan, Under the plan, the different races were the different races were divideddivided and a and a kapitankapitan was appointed to was appointed to take charge of the internal affairs of each take charge of the internal affairs of each communitycommunity

– A kapitan is a Malay term for chief or A kapitan is a Malay term for chief or captaincaptain

• The Chinese were also separated according The Chinese were also separated according to their dialect group and each had a to their dialect group and each had a kapitan to lead them.kapitan to lead them.

• Raffles left Singapore in June 1923Raffles left Singapore in June 1923– The town plan took shape under the new Resident, The town plan took shape under the new Resident,

John CrawfurdJohn Crawfurd

• The development was restricted to the The development was restricted to the southern parts of Singapore southern parts of Singapore – Roads were laid out and commercial buildings such Roads were laid out and commercial buildings such

as offices and shophouses were put upas offices and shophouses were put up– Roads of the town were widenedRoads of the town were widened– Street lighting using coconut oil lamps was startedStreet lighting using coconut oil lamps was started– Land along the seafront was reclaimed Land along the seafront was reclaimed – Many churches, government offices and public Many churches, government offices and public

building were builtbuilding were built

Chinatown

Chinatown

• Set aside for the Chinese

• It was divided into separate areas for the different dialect groups– To minimise quarrels

• Each dialect group had their own kapitan

Commercial Square

Commercial Square

• known as Raffles Place today

• The centre of business in Singapore– where European and Asian

traders trade side by side

Chulia Kampong

Chulia Kampong

• The Indians lived in a street in Chulia Kampong

• They were moved to the area around Serangoon street later on

European Town

European Town

• The Europeans and rich Asians lived in European Town

• Big houses and tree-lined roads were built

• Raffles Hotel was built in the area by the Armenian Sarkies Brothers in 1889.

Bugis Campong

Bugis Campong

• Malays and other Muslims were assigned to Kampong Glam

• An Area was set aside for the Sultan, his relatives and followers

• After the British took over the island I 1824, jungles outside the town area were cleared for plantations

• By the 1840s, there were plantations all over the island

– Crops like gambier and rubber were grown

• Some of these plantation owners were Chinese immigrants who provided employment for other Chinese immigrants who came to Singapore.

• Singapore attracted a lot of traders from all over the world because it was a free port.

– This meant that traders and ships from all nations could trade freely with one another

– Did not have to pay custom duties or taxes on the goods they carried to and from the port

Europeans who came to Singapore set up big trading

companies and agency houses that had links with Europe

When the ships arrived in Singapore, the goods on When the ships arrived in Singapore, the goods on the ships were unloaded and brought into the ships were unloaded and brought into

warehouses.warehouses.

• Agency houses brought in Agency houses brought in goods in bulkgoods in bulk

–manufactured products from manufactured products from Europe, Europe,

– cotton cloth and opium from cotton cloth and opium from India, India,

– tea and silk from China and tea and silk from China and coffee, coffee,

– and pepper and bird’s nest and pepper and bird’s nest from the Malay Archipelagofrom the Malay Archipelago

The goods are repackaged in smaller The goods are repackaged in smaller quantitiesquantities

The goods are then exported to places like The goods are then exported to places like Europe, India, the Malay Archipelago and Europe, India, the Malay Archipelago and

ChinaChina

The ChineseThe Chinese

The Chinese Middlemen• Traders from Europe and the

Malay Archipelago bought and sold their goods mainly through Chinese middlemen in Singapore

• The Chinese middlemen could speak sufficient English, Malay and local dialects to communicate with their clients.

• This allowed trade to take place easily– people could understand each

other

Coolie-Agents

• Helped traders and merchants look for workers from India and China

• These Indian and Chinese workers provided the much-needed labour

• As trade prospered, more workers were brought into Singapore– Increase in population

Merchants

• With increasing population support services were needed for the immigrants

– Transportation– Provision of daily necessities• Medicine• Cloth• Snacks

• Merchants opened shops that catered to these needs– Created employment for the immigrants who

came

Coolies

• Large number of Chinese came as unskilled labour– Worked at docks and

construction sites

• They were called coolies

• Some of the Indians also worked as coolies– Carried cargoes at the docks

The IndiansThe Indians

• The Indians were successful in the areas of banking and transportation

• They held the monopoly of transportation in Singapore until the 1860s

The MalaysThe Malays

• The Malays mostly provided basic necessities like firewood and foodstuff

• They became gardeners and huntsmen

• Some were skilled shipbuilders– Made ships and boats for the

Malay traders to ferry their goods to neighbouring islands

• Many of these immigrants worked very hard

• Some succeeded in fulfilling their dreams

• Some did not and lived in poverty and hardship till death

What Social Impact Did The Immigrants have on

Singapore?

• The immigrants who came were very poor.

• They suffered from diseases like malaria, cholera, typhoid, smallpox and tuberculosis.

– Many of them were lying on the road with sores on their bodies, too weak to move.

– When they died, their bodies were left on the roads.

• This became a disgrace for Singapore

• The Europeans who came felt it was a disgrace for so many beggars to be around in a place controlled by Europeans.

• WHY?

• Motivated by the need to help their less fortunate countrymen, people from the various races came forward to provide social services like hospitals and schools

– Especially the more successful businessmen

• Tan Tock Seng and Syed Mohamed bin Alsagoff are examples of such philanthropists.

– Spent large sums of money on providing medical services and amenities like water wells for their community

– Spent money to ensure the poor had proper burials

• The establishment of the Paupers’ Hospital on Pearl’s Hill in 1844 and the Thong chai Medical institution in 1867– Examples of care shown by the rich businessmen

for the less fortunate

• Their acts of philanthropy made life less miserable for the immigrants.

• Christian missionaries from Europe and America came and set up schools

• One of the earliest schools started by an English lady missionary as a home for young Chinese girls rescued by the police before they could be sold off as slaves– Later became St. Margaret’s School

• Another growing concern was the widespread of crime in the settlement– Abuse of coolies, slave trade, secret societies,

prostitution and opium smoking became rife from the 1850s

• Despite the social problems, the immigrants played an important ole in making Singapore prosper.

How so?