Brief History of Singapore
Before modern Singapore, the tiny dot on the map was known as “Pu-luo-chung”(island at the end of peninsula) as early as 3rd century. Then in 11th century, she changed her name to Singapura which means Lion city. Legend recorded that it was a prince from Temasek who actually saw an animal which look like a lion and this is how Singapura got her name. Soon she became part of Sri Vijayan Empire, Temasek, as she was strategically located along the main sea route. In the 18th century, the British took charge in the writing of Singapore history. In this period of time, the British were seeking for a port to break the monopoly of Dutch in Asia where they are suffering due to high tariff imposed by the Dutch. Sir Stamford Raffles leaded his team and travel to Singapore. Then, they realized that Singapore could actually help them achieve that. Not long, a formal treaty was signed with Tengku Hussein to establish Singapore as one of British trading port. It was in 1819 modern Singapore was born! After only 5 years, Singapore’s importance within the region was greatly significant. It was the centre of government for the Straits Settlements of Penang, Malacca and Singapore. The opening of Suez Canal opened the free flow trade between the East and West with Singapore as the main port for ships to stop-over. The growth of Singapore came to a halt during World War II where Singapore was taken over by Japan in 1942. Japanese occupation was a dreadful 3 years where many sufferings took place in Singapore. After the occupation, it led to the next another chapter in Singapore history. Rocky road to nationalism. It brought about self-government in 9th August 1965, now known as National Day in Singapore.
In present Singapore, tourism will be playing a heavy role as the nation is always on their toes to promote Singapore. Construction works of the Singapore Flyer, integrated resorts at Marina Bay, and shopping centers at Scotts Road are being carried out to attract more tourists from overseas. With Singapore’s strategic geographical location, excellent facilities, outstanding communication networks and contrasting cultural, Singapore is definitely not a stop to be missed when traveling in Asia.
Hi Jm
The photos were great, and i really find the event meaningful.
Its very rare to see a great get-together, with ...
I visited Little India too after so many years and was actually very surprise to find lots of budget hotels ...
hi cath,
You can refer to http://www.singaporegp.sg/ for more information regarding Formula 1 in Singapore? Interested in visiting Singapore?
cheers,
Jian Ming
Comment by Asia Holiday Rentals on 23 January 2008:
Excellent information on the history of Singapore, a nation that sets an example to the rest of the world. Great work.