Palace of Ghosts: Singapore's Untold History

In the mid 19th-century the Qing government’s first-hand knowledge of the outside world was notoriously thin. The last post told the story of their tardy awakening to the reality of the burgeoning wealth among Asia’s overseas Chinese communities and described how an imperial consulate came to be first established in Singapore. Some contend that the Qing consulate was there to show “care and concern for the overseas Chinese, cracking down on illegal sale of cheap labours, protecting women, and tacking (sic) the pirates problem in the region”. The Qing History Society (Singapore) goes on to suggest that the first Qing Consul to Singapore, Zuo Bin Long, “served selflessly for the overseas Chinese, work (sic) hard to protect and ensure their welfare, as well as promoting education and setting up schools for them”. It is easy to be skeptical, even cycnical, when it comes to the mandate of individual consulate officials. But more generally, it is hard to believe that the Manchu Qing were pr...

The Singapore Years A 1910 postcard showing the main entrance to The House of Tan Yeok Nee The unexplained departure of Tan Yeok Nee from his official roles in Johor has been interpreted by some as the result of a conspiracy hatched by rivals intent of ousting him from his position of influence in Johor. The previous post explained why this is hard to believe and that an obvious alternative explanation exists: that for years Tan may have been developing a grand plan for a path to semi-retirement. The years following his departure from Johor saw him complete the construction of his palace in Chao’an, China. He would go on to build another beautiful mansion in Singapore, continue his close association with Maharaja Abu Bakar (soon to become Sultan), while continuing to manage his own personal business interests through his Singapore Boat Quay trading company Kwan Hong. Tan may have had a close eye on a quieter life. His new residence in Chao’an, southern China, must have been part of his...

The Flight From Johor    The last post saw Tan Yeok Nee scaling heights of affluence and power that few newly arrived immigrants in the region could have ever dreamt of. Within only a couple of decades Tan had risen from being a door-to-door peddler of fabrics to perhaps the most wealthy and influential figure within the Singapore and Johor business and political elites of the time. All the more perplexing then that in 1875, only four years after his elevation to the highest echelons of power, including leadership of the Great Opium Syndicate, Tan apparently vanished from the Johor scene. It was a supposed disappearing act made all the more mysterious by the lack of any kind of explanation as to why. At least that is how some accounts of the events that transpired would have us believe. The Singapore National Library Board’s Infopedia site says: “In 1875, Tan fled from Johor to Singapore and gave up all his connections in Johor.” Considering Tan’s staggering accumulation of po...

The Rise of Tan Yeok Nee The last two posts described the world that Tan Yeok Nee encountered on his arrival in Singapore: everchanging, perhaps even intimidating, but offering boundless opportunities for anyone quick witted enough and with energy and ambition. Some things about Singapore have not changed despite today's modernity, but back then the market forces at work revolved around opium and secret scoeities. Regardless, Singapore and its rapidly growing, Malay governed hinterland of Johor, was open and welcoming to anyone with a hunger to succeed. Tens of thousands came. Malays, Chinese and British alike were brimming expectantly with optimism. The scene was set for Tan’s spectacular rise. A 19th century Singapore Chinatown shop front occupied by young men of about Tan's age when he arrived there. This overcrowded area of town was the immediate destination for most new arrivals from China. For many it was a staging post before being sent to work on the plantations. (Natio...

Fresh off the Boat: New Friends in Singapore When the youthful Tan Yeok Nee first befriended Abu Bakar at his father’s residential compound at Telok Blangah in Singapore, neither of them could have known how transformational the friendship and, later on, the partnership would become. Those days were, however, still a long way off when Tan first stepped off the boat and onto the shores of Malaya and Singapore. Among immigration societies like Hong Kong and Singapore, there so often appears to be an inverse relationship embedded in the origin stories of how staggering wealth sprouted from humble beginnings: the more successful a tycoon eventually became, the more desperately eccentric his debut in the world of business seemed to be. Hong Kong’s Li Ka-shing starting out as a street vendor of plastic flowers comes to mind. However, it’s not just unique to immigrants nor to Asia: the 1960s entertainment sketch “The Four Yorkshiremen,” immortalized by England’s Monty Python off-beat comedy t...