Why a Booktrail?
1781 – 1826: The people behind Thomas Stamford Raffles, founder of Singapore and governor of Java
The Family of Sir Stamford Raffles
What you need to know before your trail
When Stamford Raffles married the handsome, elegant Sophia Hull in February 1817 and a year later welcomed the arrival of his first child, Charlotte, family life looked to be full of happiness. His earlier marriage, to Olivia Mariamne Devenish, a widow nearly ten years older than him, had ended with her untimely death in Java, leaving him bereft of all that I held dear on earth . Now, settled in Bencoolen as Governor-General, he watched with satisfaction over the growth of Singapore and the increase of his young family. For all these joys, however, he was also to find that in this most wretched place, death was never far away.
Travel Guide
Travel back in time to Java and Singapore as they were founded
Sir Stamford Raffles
Sir Stamford Raffles was a British statesman and Lieutenant-Governor of the Dutch East Indies best known for his founding of Singapore and the British Malaya. In 1795, when he was just 14, Raffles started working as a clerk in London for the British East India Company, the trading company that shaped many of Britain’s overseas conquests. In 1805, he was sent to Prince of Wales Island, Malaya, starting his long association with Southeast Asia.
He was heavily involved in the conquest of the Indonesian island of Java from Dutch and French military forces during the Napoleonic Wars.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: The Family of Stamford Raffles
Destination: Java, Malaysia (Malaya), Singapore, Sumatra Author/guide: John Bastin and Julie Weizenegger Departure Time: 1781-1826
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