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Prehistoric period Paleolithic  Lenggong Valley c. 2,000,0000 BCE  Mansuli Valley 235,000 BCE Mesolithic  Niah cultures 65,000–40,000 BCE Neolithic  Bewah man/woman 16,000 BCE  Perak man/woman 11,000–200 BCE  Neolithic Klang 500 – 200 BCE
Early kingdoms Ancient Kedah <100 BCE Chi Tu 100 BCE–642 CE Langkasuka 100 BCE–1474 CE Gangga Negara c. 100 CE–1025 Pan Pan 424–775 Old Kedah 170–1135 Old Pahang 449–1454 Srivijaya 700s–1025 Majapahit 1300s
Rise of Muslim states Kedah Sultanate 1136–present Samudera Pasai Sultanate 1267–1521 Brunei Sultanate 1368–present Malacca Sultanate 1402–1511 Sulu Sultanate 1450–1899 Pahang Sultanate 1470–1623 Aceh Sultanate 1496–1903 Pattani Sultanate 1516– 1902 Johor Sultanate 1528–present Sarawak Sultanate 1599–1641 Selangor Sultanate 1766–present Besut Kingdom 1780–1899 Setul Kingdom 1808–1916 Reman Kingdom 1810–1902 Kubang Pasu Kingdom 1839–1864
Colonial period Portuguese Malacca 1511–1641 Dutch–Portuguese War 1601–1661 Dutch Malacca 1641–1824 Pahang Kingdom 1770–1881 Straits Settlements 1786–1946 Siamese invasion of Kedah 1821–1826 Anglo-Dutch Treaty 1824 Burney Treaty 1826 Naning War 1831–1832 Kingdom of Sarawak 1841–1946 Separation of Perlis from Kedah 1843 Crown Colony of Labuan 1848–1946 Pahang Civil War 1857–1863 Larut Wars 1861–1874 Klang War 1867–1874 Pangkor Treaty 1874 Perak War 1875–1876 British Malaya / Borneo 1874–1946 Jementah Civil War 1879 North Borneo 1882–1946 Pahang Uprising 1891–1895 Mat Salleh Rebellion 1894–1905 Federated Malay States 1895–1946 Anglo-Siamese Treaty 1909 Unfederated Malay States 1909–1946 Battle of Penang 1914 Kelantan rebellion 1915
World War II Japanese occupation of Malaya / Borneo 1941–1945 Malayan campaign 1941–1942 Bornean Campaign 1941–1942 Battle of Muar 1942 Parit Sulong Massacre 1942 Battle of Singapore 1942 Sook Ching 1942 Syburi 1942 Sandakan Death Marches 1942–1945 Si Rat Malai 1943–1945 Jesselton revolt 1943–1944
Formative period BMA of Malaya/Borneo 1945–1946 Crown Colony of N. Borneo/Sarawak 1946–1963 Anti-cession movement 1946–1963 Malayan Union 1946–1948 Federation of Malaya 1948–1963 Malayan Emergency 1948–1960 Baling Talks 1955
Independence period Malayan Independence 1957 Singapore self-governance 1959 ISA 1960 1960–2012 Sarawak Insurgency 1962–1990 North Borneo self-governance 1963 Konfrontasi 1963–1966 Sarawak self-governance 1963 Formation of Malaysia 1963 Singapore in Malaysia 1963–1965 ASEAN Declaration 1967 Second communist insurgency 1968–1989
Modern period 13 May incident 1969 National Operations Council 1969–1971 Declaration of Rukun Negara 1970 New Economic Policy 1971–1990 Federal Territory of KL 1974 1977 Kelantan Emergency 1977 Pedra Branca dispute 1979–2008 South China Sea dispute (Spratly) 1980–present Dawn Raid 1981 Federal Territory of Labuan 1984 Memali incident 1985 Operation Lalang 1987 Constitutional crisis 1987–1988 Peace Agreement of Hat Yai 1989 Royal Immunity Amendments 1993 Asian financial crisis 1997–1998 Reformasi Movement 1998–2022 2008 Malaysian Opposition Wave 2008 H1N1 flu pandemic 2009–2010 Sedition Dragnet 2014 1MDB scandal 2015–present Pakatan Harapan takeover 2018 COVID-19 pandemic 2020–2022 Political crisis 2020–2022 Bornean Amendment 2021–2023 Green Wave 2022–present
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The Pangkor Treaty of 1874 was a treaty signed between Great Britain and the Sultan of Perak on 20 January 1874, on the Colonial Steamer Pluto, off the coast of Perak. The treaty is significant in the history of the Malay states as it legitimised British control of the Malay rulers and paved the way for British imperialism in Malaya. It was the result of a multi-day conference organised by Andrew Clarke, the Governor of the Straits Settlements, to solve two problems: the Larut War, and Sultanship in Perak.

Precedence

Perak was a major tin producer throughout the 19th century, leading Britain, which had already colonised Penang, Malacca and Singapore, to consider Perak of significant importance. However, local strife, collectively known as the Larut Wars (1861–1874), between the local Malay elites and frequent clashes between Chinese secret societies disrupted the supply of tin from the mines of Perak.

In 1871, Sultan Ali of Perak died. However, Raja Abdullah, the heir apparent, had not been present at his funeral. Raja Bendahara Sultan Ismail was proclaimed Sultan of Perak instead. At the same time, two Chinese secret societies, Ghee Hin (led by Chin Ah Yam) and Hai San (led by Chung Keng Quee), fought against each other over control of the tin mines.

Raja Muda Abdullah later appealed to the British regarding these two problems. He turned to Tan Kim Cheng, his friend in Singapore who was a well-known businessman. Tan, together with an English merchant in Singapore, drafted a letter to Governor Sir Andrew Clarke which Abdullah signed. The letter expressed Abdullah's desire to place Perak under British protection, and "to have a man of sufficient abilities to show (him) a good system of government." Chung Keng Quee had already presented a petition on 26 September 1872, signed by himself and 44 other Chinese leaders, seeking British interference following the attack of 12,000 men of Chung Shan by 2,000 men of Sen Ning. The British immediately saw this as an opportunity to expand its influence in Southeast Asia and to strengthen its monopoly on tin exports. As a result, the Pangkor Treaty of 1874 was signed.

The Malay translation of the treaty was prepared by Frank Swettenham and Mohamed Said, the munshi for the Straits Settlements.

Summary of the conference

The Chinese chiefs arrived on 13 January, the Hai San group was accompanied by Swettenham, while the Ghee Hins group was escorted by Pickering. Mantri Ngah Ibrahim arrived the next day, escorted by his lawyer R. C. Woods and his security chief T. C. Speedy. Raja Muda Abdullah and the Malay chiefs arrived on 15 January. The afternoon session (circa 3:30 p.m.) on 16 January was a one-to-one meeting between Mantri Ngah Ibrahim and Clarke, in which Clarke highlighted to the Mantri that the problem in Larut was a direct consequence of his vacillating policy. The second day of the conference (17 January) was the meeting between Clarke and the Malay chiefs, whose opinions were individually considered before the candidate for the sultanship was decided. 18 January was a Saturday and no business was conducted. On 19 January the draft treaty was discussed with the Malay chiefs. The Treaty of Pangkor was officially sealed in the afternoon session of the concluding day (actually in the morning session of 20 January, another agreement between Clarke and the Chinese chiefs was signed, i.e. Bond of $50,000 to Keep the Peace).

Agreement

Terms and conditions

The agreement dictated:

• That the Raja Muda Abdullah be recognised as the Sultan of Perak.
• That the Raja Bandahara Ismail, now acting sultan, be allowed to retain the title of Sultan Muda with a pension and a certain small territory assigned to him.
• That all the other nominations of great Officers made at the time the Rajah Bandahara Ismail received the regalia be confirmed.
• That the power given to the Orang Kayah Mantri over Larut by the late Sultan be confirmed.
• That all revenues be collected and all appointments made in the name of the Sultan.
• That the Sultan receive and provide a suitable residence for a British Officer to be called Resident, who shall be accredited to his Court, and whose advice must be asked and acted upon on all questions other than those touching Malay religion and custom.
• That the Governor of Larut shall have attached to him as Assistant Resident, a British Officer acting under the Resident of Perak, with similar power and subordinate only to the said Resident.
• That the cost of these Residents with their establishments be determined by the Government of the Straits Settlements and be a first charge on the Revenues of Perak.
• That a Civil List regulating the income to be received by the Sultan, by the Bandahara, by the Mantri, and by the other Officers be the next charge on the said Revenue.
• That the collection and control of all revenue and the general administration of the country be regulated under the advice of these Residents.
• That the Treaty under which the Pulo Dinding and the islands of Pangkor were ceded to Great Britain having been misunderstood and it being desirable to readjust the same, so as to carry into effect the intention of the Framers thereof, it is hereby declared that the Boundaries of the said Territory so ceded shall be rectified as follows, that is to say: from Bukit Sigari, as laid down in the Chart Sheet No. 1 Straits of Malacca, a tracing of which is annexed, marked A, in a straight line to the sea, thence along the sea coast to the South, to Pulo Katta on the West, and from Pulo Katta a line running North East about five miles, and thence North to Bukit Sigari.
• That the Southern watershed of the Krean River, that is to say, the portion of land draining into that river from the south be declared British Territory, as a rectification of the Southern Boundary of Province Wellesley. Such Boundary to be marked out by commissioners; one named by the Government of the Straits Settlements, and the other by the Sultan of Perak.
• That on the cessation of the present disturbances in Perak and the re-establishment of peace and amity among the contending factions in that country, immediate measures under the control and supervision of one or more British Officers shall be taken for restoring as far as practicable the occupation of the mines, and the possession of machinery, &c., as held previous to the commencement of these disturbances, and for the payment of compensation for damages, the decision of such officers shall be final in such case.
• The Mantri of Larut engages to acknowledge as a debt due by him to the Government of the Straits Settlements, the charges and expenses incurred by this investigation, as well as charges and expenses to which the Colony of the Straits Settlements and Great Britain have been put or may be put by their efforts to secure the tranquility of Perak and the safety of trade.

Result

Raja Ismail did not attend the meeting arranged between Sir Andrew Clarke and Raja Abdullah. He did not recognise the agreement but had no choice as he was faced with the alliance between Raja Abdullah and the British. As a result, Raja Abdullah was made sultan, and Sir James W. W. Birch was appointed as Perak's first British Resident after the treaty came into force.

Following this, the British actively became involved in three other Malay states: Negeri Sembilan, Selangor and Pahang. These states, along with Perak, were later reorganised into the Federated Malay States.

Clarke arrived in November 1873 and he put Perak, Selangor and Sungei Ujong under British protection within a year, and Pahang in 1888. In 1875, a British Resident was sent to Selangor. In 1874, a British Resident was sent to Sungei Ujong.

See also

• British Malaya topics

References

1. Khoo Kay Kim, and Andrew Clarke, "The Pangkor Engagement of 1874." Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 47.1 (225) (1974): 1-12 online.
2. International Magazine Kreol (2015). "The Story of Sultan Abdullah's Exile in the Seychelles and Malaysia's National Anthem". International Magazine Kreol. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
3. "The Golden Chersonese And The Way Thither". digital.library.upenn.edu. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
4. Swettenham, Frank (1941). Footprints in Malaya. London, New York, Melbourne: Hutchinson & Co. p. 33.
5. "Documents Archive - Pangkor Engagement of 1874". National University of Singapore. Archived from the original on 25 November 2016. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
6. ^ Hasbollah Mat Saad (2018). A Brief History of Malaysia: Texts and Materials (2nd ed.). Pena Hijrah Resources. ISBN 978-967-5523-15-1. Wikidata Q123909819.

Further reading

• Kim, Khoo Kay, and Andrew Clarke, "The Pangkor Engagement of 1874". Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 47.1 (225) (1974): 1–12 online.

• 1874 treaties
• History of Perak
• British Malaya
• Treaties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922)
• 1874 in British Malaya
• 1874 in the British Empire
• 1874 in Southeast Asia