Supreme Court and Municipal Offices, Singapore

The fifth and final installment in the Tales of Asia series takes us back to British Empire in the East Indies in the 1800s and 1900s. We visit Rangoon (Yangon), the capital of British Burma; as well as George Town (Penang) and Singapore, both capitals of the Straits Settlements at one point.

We explore how the TRADE, COMMERCE and POWER of the British Empire are expressed in the architecture of these three showpiece cities, specifically how the planning philosophies and principles of the British Raj (in India) were imported further east. We also get a glimpse of the life of British colonials at the turn of the century in these Far Eastern outposts.

In all three cities, we also travel back in time, re-discovering how these cities used to look like in the 1800s and 1900s, and uncovering what remains of the British heritage today. In particular, the THEN and NOW juxapositions for Singapore will make for a startling and dramatic view unto how Raffles’ great Emporium-City has changed over the centuries.