author
Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles
1781–1826
Best known for founding modern Singapore in 1819, this energetic British administrator also helped shape early British policy in Southeast Asia. He combined imperial ambition with a real curiosity about the region’s languages, history, plants, and wildlife.
1 Audiobook
The History of Java, v. 1-2
by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles
About the author
Born in 1781 and employed by the East India Company from a young age, Stamford Raffles rose quickly through the colonial service. He worked in Penang, played a major role in the British takeover of Java during the Napoleonic Wars, and later served as lieutenant-governor of Bencoolen on Sumatra.
Raffles is most often remembered for establishing a British trading post at Singapore in 1819, a decision that had enormous long-term consequences for the region. Britannica describes him as a key figure in the growth of Britain’s Far Eastern empire, while other standard references also note his role in administration across Java and Sumatra.
He was more than an official and empire builder. Raffles also took a strong interest in the natural world and in Malay history and culture, supporting collecting, study, and documentation in the Malay Archipelago. He died in London in 1826, leaving behind a legacy that is still discussed both for its vision and for its place within the history of British colonial rule.