CEphoto, Uwe Aranas · CC BY-SA 3.0
18th century · 1740–1794
Francis Light
Francis Light · Malaysia
Founder of Penang and George Town
Once a captain in the Royal Navy, he later developed trade on the Malay Peninsula for the East India Company. In 1786 he acquired Penang Island and founded George Town, Britain's first settlement in Southeast Asia. Before the Burmese attack on Phuket (then called Thalang) in 1785, he had warned the island in advance.
Where the story happened
Los lugares que dejó
Historia · George Town, Penang
Light lands on the island
In 1771 the former Royal Navy captain Francis Light was sent by the East India Company to develop trade on the Malay Peninsula. The Sultan of Kedah offered Penang Island in exchange for British military protection; Light believed the island could become 'a convenient magazine for trade' and a check on the Dutch and French, but failed to persuade his superiors. Only in 1786 was he authorised to negotiate; he landed on 17 July that year and founded George Town — Britain's first settlement in Southeast Asia.
Historia · Phuket
The two heroines of Thalang
In 1785 a Burmese army attacked Phuket (then called Thalang). The island's military governor had just died, and the Burmese thought it would be easy to take; Captain Francis Light, based around Penang, had sent the island a warning in advance. The governor's widow and her sister organised the islanders to defend the town and tricked the Burmese into overestimating its defences; after a month-long siege the Burmese withdrew on 13 March 1785. Rama I granted the two sisters the titles 'Thao Thep Kasattri' and 'Thao Si Sunthon'. Today Phuket's provincial seal shows their monument.
