Book Review: Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India

Timothy Tye with Marcus Langdon, with the two volumes of Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India (8 October 2015)


Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India ranks as one of the most ambitious project to document Penang's past to date. This is the work of Australian author Marcus Langdon, and effort that has taken over fifteen years of research, sieving through reams of microfilms in order to get to the bottom of things.

Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India documents the period in Penang's history, between 1805 to 1830, when the settlement was made one of the administrative divisions of British India. As the title suggests, it is the fourth Presidency division to be created after the Madras, Bombas and Bengal Presidencies. The Penang Presidency lasted until 1826, when it became the united settlements of Penang, Singapore and Malacca, expanding its territory to include the individual settlements of Malacca, Dinding (now known as Daerah Manjung in Perak) and Singapore. This united settlements fell under the charge of the Penang Presidency until the demise of that presidency in 1830. This arrangement lasted until 1830, when the individual settlements became residencies under the administration of the Bengal Presidency. The Residency of Dindings is unique in that, though ceded to the British in 1826, nothing was done in the way of administering it until the Pangkor Treaty of 1874.

With so much to tell about this period in history, Marcus has assembled his research into topics, each a book in its own right. These "books" are then bound together into four monumental volumes. The first volume was published in 2013 while the second in 2015. As I write this, Volumes Three and Four are still work in progress.

Penang, Fourth Presidency of India, Volume One (8 October 2015)

Volume One: Ships, Men and Mansions

Volume One of Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India encapsulates four books in 493 pages. Book One, entitled Ships For A Presidency, looks at the role Penang played as a shipbuilding facility. This is a role that is today largely forgotten, and yet it was one of the primary reasons for British interest in the site.

Sir Robert Townsend Farquhar (8 October 2015)


Tomb of Philip Dundas (8 October 2015)


Book Two introduces us to the men who ran the Presidency of Penang. In this respect, it provides in chronological order a rundown of the administrators from pre-Presidency era, beginning with Captain Francis Light, who administered the settlement as Superintendent, through Robert Fullerton, the final Governor of the Presidency, then continues into the post-Presidency period.

Books Three and Four zoom in on specific extant properties that were erected during the Presidency period, namely Government House and Suffolk House. Considering the subject covered, I would have preferred the inclusion of more photographs of Government House and Suffolk House to give readers a present-day prespective of the subject.

Government House, George Town, Penang (30 November 2008)


Suffolk House, Penang (30 June 2007)


A recurring theme running through the volume is the issues and troubles plaguing the fledging Presidency.

Buying it

Volume One of Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India, is now available for order from Amazon.



Penang, Fourth Presidency of India, Volume Two (8 October 2015)

Volume Two: Fire, Spice and Edifice

The second volume of Penang, Fourth Presidency of India, compiles seven books that offer us in-depth analysis of the British East India Company's administrator of Penang, and the public infrastructure that was established during this period. This includes the Penang Free School, the Penang Library and St George's Church.

Nibong Palm illustration, from the William Farquhar Collection (8 October 2015)


The nave of St George's Church (8 October 2015)


Book One makes a thorough examination of Fort Cornwallis, the largest intact British ortification still standing in the country today. We learn how the fort was designed, at where it was sited (on Point Penagger, or Tanjung Penaga, as it is known today).

Most of the major cities of the world that is over a hundred years old have undergone a baptism of fire, and George Town isn't one spared. And not once. Book Two documents the fires that consumed the town, and how the settlement rebuilt itself with each inferno.

Penang Free School field (29 January 2005)


Book Three covers with the Penang Free School, Book Four the St George's Church, Book Five the Penang Botanic Gardens and the role of spices, and Book Six the Penang Library. Concluding Volume Two is Book Seven, which looks at the effort to counter coastal erosion on the one hand, and the prevention of silting on the other.

As of this present update, with two out of the four volumes published, we still have half the journey to go, so I will continue the description with the subsequent volumes are released.

Purchasing these books

Penang, the Fourth Presidency of India volumes one and two are available from Entrepot Publishing. You can contact them here.

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