Malayan Union

Malayan Union British colony ↓ 1946 – 1948 → Flag Coat of arms Capital Kuala Lumpur Language(s) Malay, English Political structure Colony King George VI Governor Edward Gent Historical era Decolonization  - Established April 1, 1946  - Disestablished January 31, 1948 Area  - 1948 132,364 km² (51,106 sq mi) Currency Malayan dollar Preceded by Succeeded by [[Federated Malay States (Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang)]] [[Straits Settlements (Penang and Malacca - Singapore retained by British till April 1963)]] Johor Kedah Perlis Kelantan Terengganu Federation of Malaya

This article is part of the History of Malaysia series.
Prehistory (60,000–2,000 BCE)
Gangga Negara (2nd–11th century CE)
Langkasuka (2nd–14th century)
Pan Pan (3rd–5th century)
Srivijaya (3rd–14th century)
Kedah Sultanate (1136–present)
Malacca Sultanate (1402–1511)
Portuguese Malacca (1511 - 1641)
Dutch Malacca (1641 - 1824)
Sulu Sultanate (1450–1899)
Johor Sultanate (1528–current)
Jementah Civil War (1879)
Kingdom of Sarawak (1841–1946)
British Malaya (1874–1946)
Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824
Burney Treaty (1826)
Straits Settlements (1826–1946)
Larut War (1861–1874)
Klang War (1867–1874)
Pangkor Treaty of 1874
Federated Malay States (1895–1946)
Unfederated Malay States (19th century–1946)
Anglo-Siamese Treaty of 1909
Battle of Penang (1914)
North Borneo (1882–1963)
Mat Salleh Rebellion (1896–1900)
World War II (1941–1945)
Battle of Malaya (1941–42)
Parit Sulong Massacre (1942)
Battle of Muar (1942)
Battle of Singapore (1942)
Syburi (1942–1945)
Battle of North Borneo (1945)
Sandakan Death Marches (1945)
Malayan Union (1946–1948)
Federation of Malaya (1948–1963)
Malayan Emergency (1948–1960)
Bukit Kepong Incident (1950)
Independence Day (1957)
Federation of Malaysia (1963–present)
Operation Coldstore (1963)
Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation (1962–1966)
Brunei Revolt (1962–1966)
Singapore in Malaysia (1963–1965)
1964 Race Riots (1964)
Communist Insurgency War (1967-1989)
May 13 Incident (1969)
New Economic Policy (1971–1990)
Operation Lalang (1987)
1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis (1987–88)
Asian financial crisis (1997–98)
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The Malayan Union was a confederation of the Malay states and the Straits Settlements excluding Singapore, which was placed as a crown colony under direct British rule. It was the successor to British Malaya and was conceived to simplify the administration of British colonies in the Malay Peninsula. It was formed on April 1 1946 by the British. Few of the key details of the Union were:

• Malayan citizenship that would give equal rights to all would be citizens regardless of race
• citizenship based on the jus soli principle
• the transformation of the title Sultan to President.

In a way, the Sultans, the traditional rulers of the Malay states, would concede all their powers to the British Crown except in the matters of culture and religion. The Union would be ultimately placed under the rule of a British Governor. The idea of the Union was first expressed by the British on October 1945 in the aftermath of the Second World War by the British Military Administration. Sir Harold MacMichael was assigned the task of gathering the Malay state rulers' approval for the Malayan Union in the same month. In a short period of time, he managed to obtain all the Rulers’ signatures through intimidation. On April 1, 1946, the Malayan Union officially came into existence with Sir Edward Gent as its first governor. The capital of the Union was Kuala Lumpur.

Dissolution and Malayan Federation

The Malays generally opposed the creation of the Union. The opposition was due mainly to the methods Sir Harold MacMichael used to acquire the Sultans’ signatures, the reduction of the Sultans’ powers, and the granting of citizenship to non-Malay immigrants and their descendants-- especially the ethnic Chinese, not only because of their racial and religious difference but also because their economic dominance was seen as a threat to the Malays. The United Malays National Organization, or UMNO, a Malay political association formed by Dato’ Onn Jaafar on March 1, 1946, led the opposition against the Malayan Union. Due to protest inside the Malayan Union, the British finally conceded to local opposition. The Malayan Union ceased to exist on January 31, 1948. It was replaced by the Federation of Malaya (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu in Malay) which recognised the position of the Malays as the definitive people of Malaya as well as outlining stricter conditions on the granting of citizenship. The Federation of Malaya would later become part of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963.

Flag

During the duration of the Union, the flag of the Federated Malay States were used as the de facto national flag. The flag however was not used as the official flag of the Union.

Member states

Eleven states made up the Union. The states were:

• Perlis (Unfederated Malay States; UMS)
• Kedah (UMS)
• Penang (Straits Settlements)
• Perak (Federated Malay States; FMS)
• Selangor (FMS)
• Negeri Sembilan (FMS)
• Malacca (Straits Settlements)
• Johor (UMS)
• Pahang (FMS)
• Terengganu (UMS)
• Kelantan (UMS)

References

• Zakaria Haji Ahmad. Government and Politics (1940-2006). p.p 30-21. ISBN 981-3018-55-0.

Gallery

Protest against the Malayan Union

See also

• Bumiputra