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| Place where Temengong used to live |
The British reached Singapore on waters on 28 January 1819. When they arrived at Singapore, they went to look for Temenggong Abdul Rahman. The Temenggong was a senior minister of the Johor-Riau Sultanate, an area under a rule of a Sultan. Raffles told the Temenggong that the British wanted to establish a trading settlement there. Although the Temenggong was willing to give him permission, he told Raffles that the island was ruled by Sultan Abdul Rahman of the Johor-Riau Sultanate. The Sultan was the person who could allow the British to start a trading settlement, but the Sultan was under the control of the Dutch, who would not let the British to occupy Singapore.
After the British signed a treaty with Sultan Hussein and the Temenggong that allowed the British to build a settlement in the southern part of Singapore, the Dutch strongly opposed to the British trading settlement in Singapore, as they thought that Singapore indirectly belonged to them.
Neither the British nor the Dutch declared war despite the dispute over Singapore, as both sides had nothing to gain from a war. They signed the Anglo-Dutch treaty in 1824 allowing the British to keep Singapore.
Below, we will be showing two videos about Raffles arriving in Singapore and the treaties signed. These 2 videos also showed how important Raffles was to Singapore and founders of modern Singapore such as Lee Kuan Yew. Although these 2 videos are still continued by more videos, these 2 videos show more about the signing of treaty and the beginning of Singapore when the British took over it.
Video 1
Video 2
Other problems
Farquhar was left in charge of the British settlement in Singapore as Raffles left after signing the treaty with the Temenggong and Sultan Hussein. There were many difficulties in getting a new settlement started. You can refer to "How did the settlement came to life" in this blog to know about the problems and how they are solved.
