Although Kuala Lumpur is known as Asia 's green capital, its history has been unknown. Kuala Lumpur is filled with different cultures, traditions, and people. The three dominant ethnicities are Malays, Chinese, and Indians. There are more to Kuala Lumpur than its festive nights and green nature. It started from a muddy junction of two rivers to a prosperous, lively city. Kuala Lumpur was founded by 87 Chinese prospectors searching for tin in 1857. Tin was highly demanded at the time by America and the British Empire. They needed the durable and lightweight metal for the industrial revolution. The prospectors settled at the meeting point of the Klang and Gombak rivers which they named Kuala Lumpur, meaning muddy confluence. Within
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Frank Swettenham was the Resident of Selangor; he chose Kuala Lumpur as his bureaucratic center which he oversaw the rebirth of the city. Swettham ordered the buildings to be built with bricks. His new radical town plan relocated the central government from Klang to Kuala Lumpur. By 1886 a railway was made from Klang to KL. In 1896, the Sultans of four states were convinced by Swettham to unite under the protection of the Federated Malay States (FMS). Kuala Lumpur was chosen as the capital of the newly formed FMS. The city became a typical center of British colonialism. From beneath the peculiar copper domes of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, sharply uniformed officers and bureaucrats supervised the FMS. When they were off the job hours, they would play cricket in the fields of Padang and sought comfort in the Selangor Club, only whites were …show more content…
Kuala Lumpur continued to thrive until race riots between Chinese and Malays claimed hundreds, perhaps even thousands of lives in 1969 which lasted for two years. In the aftermath, thousands of Chinese were stripped of their homes and the Muslim Malay community reinforced its control over the military, law enforcement, and political administration. Supported by a growing economy and a sincere desire for cooperation between Malaysia’s ethnic groups, the tension subsided. Kuala Lumpur was given the status of Federal Territory in 1974 when it was relinquished by the sultan of Selangor. Its mayor and councilors were appointed on the recommendation of the government which was mainly dominated by Malay politicians. There is little responsibility and a job on the council is mostly seen by the locals as a license to print money, not least because KL is Malaysia’s most thriving and densely inhabited
Frank Swettenham was the Resident of Selangor; he chose Kuala Lumpur as his bureaucratic center which he oversaw the rebirth of the city. Swettham ordered the buildings to be built with bricks. His new radical town plan relocated the central government from Klang to Kuala Lumpur. By 1886 a railway was made from Klang to KL. In 1896, the Sultans of four states were convinced by Swettham to unite under the protection of the Federated Malay States (FMS). Kuala Lumpur was chosen as the capital of the newly formed FMS. The city became a typical center of British colonialism. From beneath the peculiar copper domes of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, sharply uniformed officers and bureaucrats supervised the FMS. When they were off the job hours, they would play cricket in the fields of Padang and sought comfort in the Selangor Club, only whites were …show more content…
Kuala Lumpur continued to thrive until race riots between Chinese and Malays claimed hundreds, perhaps even thousands of lives in 1969 which lasted for two years. In the aftermath, thousands of Chinese were stripped of their homes and the Muslim Malay community reinforced its control over the military, law enforcement, and political administration. Supported by a growing economy and a sincere desire for cooperation between Malaysia’s ethnic groups, the tension subsided. Kuala Lumpur was given the status of Federal Territory in 1974 when it was relinquished by the sultan of Selangor. Its mayor and councilors were appointed on the recommendation of the government which was mainly dominated by Malay politicians. There is little responsibility and a job on the council is mostly seen by the locals as a license to print money, not least because KL is Malaysia’s most thriving and densely inhabited