Informative Travel Guide and Discount Hotels in Singapore by Royal Exclusive Travel

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In 1330, Wang Ta Yuan, a Chinese chronicler had noted down about a small number of Chinese residing at Malay Trading Settlement. In order to run away from invaders on time, those Chinese had to live in their own vessels as the island was coveted by various foreign powerful countries such as Siamese from Ayuthaya, Cholas from southern India, Majapahit from East Java, and Srivijayans from Sumatra. That's why Wang Ta Yuan had described the place as a "dreaded pirate haunt" haunted by Asian seafarers voyaged from all parts of Asia.

In 1365, the island was named as "Temasek," or "Sea Town," recorded in Javanese Nagarakkretagama due to its being a focal point of numerous settlers who lived their lives by trading between the Malay and the Chinese. But then the Palembang prince named Parameswara arrived after looking for shelter under the furious storm. The prince suddenly saw a strange creature looked alike a tiger or lion, yet the prince determined to rename the island "Singapura," or in Sanskrit "Lion City." Unluckily, at that time there was a struggle between Siam (modern Thailand) and the Java-based Majapahit Empire for the power upon the Malay Peninsula. Refer to the "Malay Annals"; Singapore was conquered by one of the Majapahit attacks. Shortly after, Paramesawara successfully killed Majapahit's troops and had them at his feet. After that he ousted Majapahit and declared himself a new ruler instead. Then at around 1500, the Sanskrit name, Singapura (Lion City) was commonly used.

After a few years of power upon Singapore, Parameswara lost the island to the Siamese of Ayuthaya, who wrathfully sent the expedition to take revenge the prince's killing of Siamese governor. Parameswara subsequently moved to Malacca with a group of followers and renamed himself "Iskandar Shah" in the Islamic term. Though the Siamese won the island, but it has been said in some records that they were troubled by Javanese forces for so many years until the arrival of Raffles in 1819.

Singapore's modern history commenced from 1819 at the arrival of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, a British East India Company officer, who found Singapore as a "British Trading Post". On 6 February 1819, Raffles signed a formal treaty to guarantee Singapore as a British trading post with Sultan Hussein of Johor and the Temenggong, two governors of the island at that time. There were hundreds of human skulls lying around the jungles. Those skulls might belong to Siamese and Javanese forces. Anyway, there were groups of Malay, and Chinese already living there. All seemed well only shortly when the Dutch forces exposed their anger toward Raffles' defiant action as he moved to settle in Singapore as a threat to obstruct Dutch sovereignty in the Dutch East Indies. Between 1819 and 1824, Raffles had pushed Singapore up so high beyond the prospects of Raffles himself, Hastings, and anyone else in the British East Indies Company with its trade surpassed that of Penang.

Before 1824, the Dutch administrators signed the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of March 1824 with the British authority which conceded the power upon Singapore in exchange for Dutch acquirement of the British outpost at Bencoolen. And so in 1824, Singapore's status under the British possession was divided into 2 new treaties. The first one was the Dutch treaty agreed to British occupation of Singapore in March 1824, while the second treaty was made with Temenggong and Sultan Hussein in August, which Singapore sold out right to the British for better financial status and pensions.

The Straits Settlements

In 1826, Singapore, Malacca, and Penang became the Straits Settlements under the control of British India, which was the start of rising Singapore. By 1832, Singapore was formed as a center of government for Straits Settlements. Singapore continued to prosper with the growth of population to 80,792 in 1860 (61.9% Chinese, 13.5% Malays, 16.05% Indians, 8.5% Europeans and others.) In 1867, Singapore was declared a British Colony, and in 1869, the opening of Suez Canal altered Singapore to the major port for ships plying between Europe and East Asia. With this grand vantage, Singapore grew stronger with the population reaching almost 100,000.

By 1870s, Singapore became the major rubber sorting and export center as after the arrival of Mad Ridley, a British botanist who first persuaded the Malay coffee growers to give a try on rubber cultivating and it turned out successfully. Between 1873 and 1913, Singapore faced the unprecedented economic ascendance with its trade boomed eight fold.

The prosperity, peace, and fraternity in Singapore met the tragic end on 8 December 1941 when Japanese aircraft bombed the city in order to respond their greed in possessing the prosper island. On 15 February 1942, Singapore was defeated by the Japanese forces after Lieutenant General Arthur Percival held the torch down and Singapore was subsequently renamed "Syonan," which means "Light of the South." Painfully, shifty General Yamashita later revealed in letters "My attack on Singapore was a bluff-a bluff that worked. I had 30,000 men and was outnumbered more than three to one. I knew if I had to fight long for Singapore, I would be beaten. That is why the surrender had to be at once. I was very frightened that the British would discover our numerical weakness and lack of supplies and force me into disastrous street fighting."

Singapore's vision on being a Self-Government

Japanese occupation over Singapore had to end within three and a half years when the British forces returned to take revenge in September 1945, led by Lord Mountbatten. Singapore reverted to the British Military Administration until March 1946. In the same year, on 1 April, Singapore became a Crown Colony; also Penang and Malacca were included as a part of the Malayan Union. During that time, many Southeast Asians' attitude towards the Western colonial power had changed since the Japanese forces won the battle in 1942. They, mostly the merchant class, yearned for freedom and liberty from the British government.

In 1948, the British government showed sensitivity towards the independence movement here when they ceased the military power of the Straits Settlements. The Singapore's first legislative council election was held on 20 March 1948. Shortly after that another problem began when they wondered as if Singapore and Malaysia should be united as one. There were many doubts and questions about the racial and economic problems in fears of Chinese becoming too powerful. Anyway, Singapore contentedly remained as a Crown Colony administered by the British while Malaysia got Malaya.

The first joyful political election was held on 6 April 1955 with voters over 300,000. David Marshall, an attorney of Iraqi-Jewish descent was voted to be a Chief Minister. He then went to London for the constitutional talks over handling Singapore as an independent nation and getting absolute control upon internal government. Unfortunately, his greed of power led him to the downfall on 6 June 1956 as he gave up by resigning. His place was then replaced by Lim Yew Hock, his own deputy and minister for Labor.

In 1959, Singapore's status became as self-government. In May that year, Singapore's first general election was held to choose 51 representatives. PAP (The People's Party Action), an opposition party gained 43 of 51 seats in this first fully elected Legislative Assembly which made Lee Kuan Yew, the party's leader to become well-known as he attained the complete mandate in elections to be Singapore's first Prime Minister.

In 1961, Lee Kuan Yew fortified his power by dissolving the mergence with the communists and walked ahead to the political entity that has decreed Singapore since 1961. Due to the fear of the lack of natural resources, Singapore was looking to merge with Malaya for the purpose of becoming a larger federation. This merger was proved viable after the elections held in 1963, yet it was only a short-lived union ended on 9 August 1965 as Singapore was separated from the Malaya. It is caused by the Indonesian President Sukarno's accusation on this merger as being a neocolonialist.

After Singapore was impolitely booted out, it became a democratic, sovereign, and independent nation. Shortly after that, independent Singapore was admitted to the United Nations on 21 September 1965 and then became a member of the Common Wealth of Nations on 15 October 1965. On 22 December 1965, Singapore contentedly became the republic, having Yusof Bin Ishak as the republic's first President. Most of Singaporean was relieved by the previous tension they'd encountered for 2 years. They felt independent though yet worry about the future when it is normally apprehensive that the island lacked natural resources and they had been so far depended on Malaya in these needy issues.

Clearly, Singapore later followed the tenets of Confucianism. Singapore's leaders set up various strict regulations for Singaporeans and visitors to follow and behave such as banning chewing gum and smoking in the public, installing cameras in distinctive areas to catch up dirty acts, and also offering financial support for well-educated Singaporean Chinese women to have more children as Singapore needed more populations. Under Lee Kuan Yew's and PAP's creative leadership, Singapore rapidly rose higher in the aspects of economy, society, politic and religion. The most vivid success could be seen on economic growth as during 1980s and 1990s, the economy grew unstoppably as the government provided low inflation, full employment, political equilibrium, and skillful administration.

In 1990, Lee Kuan Yew handed his seat over to Goh Chok Tong after he had been the sole Prime Minister since 1959. Goh Chok Tong has then governed Singapore gentler and kinder by changing some administrations, while Lee Kuan Yew works as senior minister.

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