The Astana which used to be the official residence of the Brooke family is now the official home of the governor of Sarawak.
Sir James Brooke LOOKING FOR
history of course and especially Sir James Brooke who was styled the fi rst Rajah. T eir story is stuff straight out of a Victorian adventure novel or a Hollywood swashbuckling movie, and when you read about their exploits, it sounds like a movie script straight out of Mutiny of the Bounty-meets- Pirates of the Caribbean, except their story is very real. T e Brooke Dynasty ruled Sarawak for over a hundred years from 1841 through to1946. The Brookes from Britain left behind indelible legacies in the many
I 40 FENGSHUIWORLD | JUNE 2014
studied the White Rajahs when I was a schoolgirl in a convent school in Malaysia’s Borneo state of Sarawak. T ey are very much part of Sarawak’s modern
SARAWAK’S WHITE RAJAHS
by Helen Oon
wonderful heritage buildings that still stand in Kuching, notably the castellated Astana, once the offi cial residence of Rajah Charles Brooke and his son and successor Vyner Brooke, and now the official home of the governor of Sarawak. By the Astana is Fort Margherita, built on a hill as defence against river invasions from rebels at the time. It is designated to be a museum dedicated to the White Rajahs, which will be curated by the Brooke Heritage Trust and scheduled to open in September 2014.
THE WHITE RAJAHS The Brooke family hailed from Somerset, next to Devon, but James
Brooke’s forebears spent most of their lives in the service of the East India Company (1612 – 1874) in India. T is British company was formed to engage in trade with the East Indies, which covered countries in South and Southeast Asia, with shares owned by wealthy merchants and aristocrats. James Brooke was born in India and educated in England. Like most young men of his social class then,
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