Francis Light
Francis Light | |
---|---|
Born | 1740 |
Died | 21 October 1794[1] | (aged 53–54)
Occupation | Colonial official |
Known for | Modernising Penang |
Relatives | Son William Light, founder of Adelaide |
Captain Francis Light (c. 1740 – 21 October 1794) was a British explorer and the founder of the British colony of Penang (in modern-day Malaysia) and its capital city of George Town in 1786. Light and his lifelong partner, Martina Rozells, were the parents of William Light, who founded the city of Adelaide in South Australia.
Early years
Light was baptised in
Career
Light began his service in the
It was in the navy that he met James Scott, who would later play an important part in his life and business dealings.[6][7]
In the colonies
His movements between 1763 and 1765 are not recorded, but it seems that he managed to amass enough of a fortune to bequeath a considerable amount of property in a will to William Negus and three other men.[8]
Thalang, Siam
In 1765 Light embarked the
For about ten years he had his headquarters in Thalang, where he revived a defunct French trading post. While in Thalang he learned to speak and write several languages, including
Penang
Light's interest in
Whereas his previous suggestion had brought no result, following the
The Sultan, however, was bound under the
The multicultural colony of Penang became extraordinarily successful from its inception and Light served as Superintendent of the settlement until his death in October 1794, apart from between 21 November 1789 and 9 February 1790, when John Glass acted in his place.[17][18] By 1789 there were about 10,000 inhabitants, and by 1795, 20,000.[19]
Accounts of his actions seem to indicate that he was a fair-minded and honourable man. In 1790, he asked for a higher salary, in order to allow him to live without having to engage in trade (by which he may have enriched himself, but possibly compromise his role). This led to his business partnership with James Scott being dissolved.[20][7] In 1794, he recommended that a proper system of justice should be instituted in Penang, as it should not be within the powers of the Superintendent to dispense "arbitrary judgement".[21]
Death and legacy
Light died from malaria on 21 October 1794[1][Note 3] and was buried at the Old Protestant Cemetery at Northam Road (now Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah Road) in George Town.[23] He remembered his friends James Scott, William Fairlie and Thomas Pegou in his will.[24]
A
Family
Martina Rozells
Light had three daughters and two sons with Martina (sometimes spelt Martinha) Rozells (possibly born Thong Di),[26] whose origins and status are the subject of debate. She has been variously recorded as being of Portuguese or French extraction on one side, and of Siamese or Malay on the other. She was also rumoured to have been a princess,[27] possibly given to Light as a reward, or the island as her dowry, although other sources state that the princess was sent to enlist Light's aid on behalf of the Sultan.[28][29]
Two contemporaries of Light, historian
There were a number of Rozells registered at George Town in 1788. There was also a Martinha (no surname shown) registered as being from Siam, with a son William, of Kedah. Steuart posits that Martina was the same person as the "Nonya" who took part in the earliest negotiations with the Sultan in 1770-1. This would support the idea that she was not a princess, but nevertheless had strong connections with both Siam and Kedah and therefore a useful person to employ in negotiations between the Sultan and the British administration at Aceh.[32] If they were legally married, Light did not declare it. However, it was against East India Company rules to marry a Catholic and, as Martina belonged to the Catholic faith, Light may have tried to avoid dismissal refraining from officially declaring his marriage. Light did leave Rozells his considerable property in his will. Either way, they cohabited for at least 22 years before his death.[27]
Light's business partners, James Scott
Family life and offspring
Light and his family lived in the first home constructed on the Suffolk Estate, four 4 miles (6.4 km) west of George Town. Their home was described as a "simple
The other son, Francis Lanoon Light II, was born in Penang in 1791, married a Javanese woman, Charlotte Aboni, with whom he had a daughter and two sons. He died in 1823.[34] His descendants are the Capel family in Malaysia.[35] Their daughters were named Sarah, Mary and Ann (aka "Lukey"). They all married in Calcutta. Sarah married General James Welsh, an EIC officer in the Madras Army. Mary married a wealthy indigo plantation owner, George Boyd,[36] and Ann married a physician, Charles Hunter.[37] By 1818, Welsh observed that his wife and her siblings had seen all of their mother's property disappear.[27]
In popular culture
In October 2019, co-commissioned by
In October 2021, Dragon, the first volume of Penang Chronicles published by Monsoon Books was released worldwide. Written by Rose Gan, a British writer and historian who has lived in Malaysia for many years, the series follows the life and times of Francis Light and Martinha Rozells. It takes a fresh look at the historical sources, presenting a vivid depiction of the people of the Straits and their own fascinating history set aside the known events of the life of Captain Light. Dragon looks at the early years of Light, his years in the British navy at war in the Americas, and then his life as a country ship captain for the East India Company in the Straits of Malacca. The second volume Pearl was released in 2022 and charts Light's journey from merchant captain to governor of Penang island and the part Martinha Rozells and her family played in the events. The third novel, Emporium, about the early years of the settlement, is to be released in 2023.
See also
- Governor of Penang
- History of Penang
- Koh Lay Huan
- Suffolk House, Penang
- William Light, son
Footnotes
References
- ^ .
- ^ a b Steuart 1901, p. 4.
- ^ a b c d e f "Light, Francis (The Light Letters)". AIM25. Part of The Malay Documents now held by School of Oriental and African Studies. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ "Contributors". Transnational Literature. 2 (1): 4. November 2009. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- ISBN 978-0-375-42750-3
- ^ ISBN 978-9839886009. Full text at archive.org.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-902633-95-7.
By 1779 [Scott] was on Junk Ceylon Island and became a firm friend of Francis Light. They agreed that once Scott was established on Pulo Pinang that Light would administer the island and accept the inevitable loss that the Company salary involved, and Scott would trade and make enough for both. Tregonnning records that he did this and continued to prosper even after the death of Francis Light... He died on 19 September 1808 and was buried in Northam Road Cemetery.
- ^ Steuart 1901, pp. 5–6.
- ^ "British Merchant east indiaman 'Clive' (1762)". Three Decks. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
- ^ Simmonds 1965, pp. 217–222.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 9.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 7.
- ISBN 978-1135043537. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
- ^ a b Steuart 1901, pp. 13–25.
- ISBN 978-1741044850.
- ISBN 978-1576077702. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- ^ a b "Malay States (Penang)". World Statesmen. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 24.
- ^ Steuart 1901, pp. 28–29.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 32.
- Tregonning's The Founding of Penang (1786–1826) perhaps?
- ^ Mok, Opalyn (6 November 2014). "Historical cemetery where Francis Light is buried to be given a facelift". Malay Mail. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 34.
- ^ Steuart 1901, pp. 37–38.
- ^ Martina she is referred in one source as Martinha Thong Di but took her mother’s name of Rozells.
- ^ a b c d e "The light of his life Francis Light's contributions are fondly remembered but not those of his wife". Star Online. Article quotes Clodd (1948) and historians Ooi Kee Beng and Marcus Langdon. 6 April 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Leslie James, (2005) On The Trail of Francis Light, Founder of Modern Penang
- OCLC 03452414. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
The history of this little establishment is very shortly told... There is no foundation whatever for the idle story which has gained currency, of Mr Light's having received Penang as a dowry with a daughter of the King of Queda. It was made over to the East India Company, in consideration of a yearly payment of 6000 Spanish dollars.
- ^ Firaci, Biagio (10 June 2014). "Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles and the British Colonization of Singapore among Penang, Melaka and Bencoonen". Retrieved 28 October 2019.
- ^ Steuart 1901, pp. 26–27.
- ^ a b Simmonds 1965, p. 216.
- ^ De Souza, Poppy (4 April 2016). "I was a Siamese Princess: Reconstructing colonial (her)stories". Poppy de Souza. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 31.
- ^ Kim, Choong Kwee (25 December 2004). "Special Xmas for Capel clan". Star Online. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- ^ It must have been her wedding that her brother William attended.
- ^ Steuart 1901, p. 35.
- ^ Jefferson, Dee (19 October 2019). "Malaysian-Australian play about Adelaide's founding father William Light premieres at OzAsia Festival". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
- ^ a b Harris, Samela. "Interview: Shedding Light on Light at OzAsia". The Barefoot Review. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
Cited sources
- Simmonds, E.H.S. (December 1965). "Francis Light and The Ladies of Thalang". Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 38 (2 (208)). Cambridge University Press for SOAS, University of London: 592–619. JSTOR 611568.
- Steuart, Archibald Francis (1901), A short sketch of the lives of Francis and William Light: the founders of Penang and Adelaide, with extracts from their journals, Sampson Low, Marston & Co. (Trove catalogue entry here)
Further reading
- The SOAS Archives hold the official papers and correspondence of Captain Francis Light as per this entry. "MS 40320Letters (in Malay), to Captain Francis Light R.N, first Superintendentof Prince of Wales Island [Penang] 1786–1791, with various Malay rulers and dignitaries. Also documents of the same period relating to Bencoolen [Benkulen] and the West SumatraPresidency, approximately 1,200 letters, bound in 11 volumes. Detailed catalogue in preparation."
- Sandhu, Kernial Singh (1969), Indians in Malaya : some aspects of their immigration and settlement (1786–1957), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-07274-8
- Simmonds, E.H.S. (1963). "The Thalang Letters, 1773–94: Political Aspects and the Trade in Arms". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 26 (3). Cambridge University Press for SOAS, University of London: 592–619. S2CID 153506132.
- OCLC 6328370.
Online
- "Biography of Francis Light". AIM25.
- Mackay, Colin (20 October 2019). "Phuket History: Why Penang was colonised but Phuket was not". The Phuket News. Interesting account of Scott's involvement (Note apparently incorrect statement that Light was knighted)
- Letters from the archive collection held at SOAS Special Collections have been digitised and are available online here
- Review of Dragon by Rose Gan: Vol. I Penang Chronicles: New Book Unpacks Early Years of 18th century Trailblazer Francis Light (Star News 26/11/21)