British Colonial Strategy in Malaya in the 19th Century: Deliberate Global Strategy or Geopolitical Necessity?

Abstract

The Industrial Revolution drove Britain’s globally strategy in the 19th centu-ry, which saw the Malay Peninsula’s geographic location and resources as key. The process of British colonization in Malaysia was as much the result of deliberate strategic planning as it was of geopolitical in rivalry and flexibil-ity. Britain progressively increased its authority over the Malacca Straits by managing tin and rubber assets. And it would strengthen her hold over the area. Britain first focused mostly on the security of shipping in the Indian Ocean. It did not see the strategic value of the Malay Peninsula until rivalry with other powers increased. Adopting “informal imperialism” and “sub-im-perialism,” Britain indirectly controlled the Malay area by means of trade control and co-operation with local the rich and famous. And its lower the cost of conflict but also causing social divisions and laying the seeds of later ethnic conflicts and independence movements. British colonial advances on the Malay Peninsula mixed global strategies and geopolitical reality is un-spoken threats due to the variety and complexity of imperialism.