Victoria, Labuan

Victoria (Malaysian pronunciation: [vikˈtɔriˈa]) or Labuan Town (Malay: Bandar Labuan) is the capital of the Federal Territory of Labuan in Malaysia, an island group off the north coast of Borneo. It is located in the southeast corner of Labuan and its Malay name, "Bandar Labuan" is more commonly used by the locals than Victoria. The town is an urban district within the wider city limits of Victoria which includes Labuan Port, a sheltered deep-water harbour which is an important trans-shipment point for Brunei Darussalam, northern Sarawak and western Sabah.

History

Since the 15th century, the town area including other parts of Labuan were under the Bruneian Empire. Its history dates back to the time when the island was ceded by Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin II to the British.Rodney Mundy, a British naval officer, later visited the island under the name of Queen Victoria. The island was then occupied by Japan from December 1941 until June 1945 and governed as part of the Northern Borneo military unit by the Japanese 37th Army. During the Battle of Labuan it was liberated by the 9th Division of Australian Imperial Force on 10 June 1945 and placed under a British Military Administration until 15 July 1946, when it was incorporated into North Borneo Crown Colony. During this time, the Crown Colony government re-establish many of the infrastructure that were destroyed during the war. The island later became part of the state of Sabah and Malaysia in 1963 before the state government of Sabah ceded the island to the federal government in 1984. It was declared an international offshore financial centre and free trade zone in 1990 to assist the development of Victoria.

Labuan

Labuan (/ləˈbuːən/) is a federal territory of Malaysia off the coast of Borneo in East Malaysia. It is made up of the homonymous Labuan Island and six smaller islands, and is located off the coast of the state of Sabah. Labuan's capital is Victoria and is best known as an offshore financial centre offering international financial and business services via Labuan IBFC since 1990 as well as being an offshore support hub for deepwater oil and gas activities in the region. It is also a tourist destination for people travelling through Sabah, nearby Bruneians and scuba divers. The name Labuan derives from the Malay word labuhan which means harbour.

History

Since the 15th century, the north and west coast of Borneo including the island of Labuan was part of the Bruneian Empire. In the 18th century, Labuan attracted British interest. James Brooke acquired the island for Britain in 1846 through a treaty with the Sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddin II on 18 December 1846. A British naval officer, Rodney Mundy, visited Brunei with his ship HMS Iris to keep the Sultan in line until the British Government made a final decision to take the island and he took Pengiran Mumin to witness the island's accession to the British Crown on 24 December 1846. Some sources state that during the signing of the treaty, the Sultan had been threatened by a British navy warship ready to fire on the Sultan's palace if he refused to sign the treaty while another source says the island was ceded to Britain as a reward for assistance in combating pirates.

Crown Colony of Labuan

Labuan, made up of the main Labuan Island and six smaller islands (Burung Island, Daat Island, Kuraman Island, Papan Island, Rusukan Kecil Island, and Rusukan Besar Island), first became a Crown colony in 1848. Since 15th, Labuan was under the rule of Brunei became the shelter for the ships from storms and pirate attacks. Later on in 1846, Labuan was officially handed over to British by Raja Muda Hasim on 18 December 1846 and was declared as a free trade port.

In 1890, it came to be administered by the British North Borneo Company. It was reverted to British government rule in 1904. Then, on 1 January 1907, it joined the Straits Settlements and had been administered from Singapore, the capital of the Straits Settlements, until 1912. In 1912, Labuan was made a separate Crown colony again.

During World War II, Labuan was occupied by Japan from December 1941 to June 1945 and governed as part of the Northern Borneo military unit by the Japanese 37th Army. Labuan was renamed Maida Island (Pulau Maida, 前田島 Maeda-shima) after Marquis Toshinari Maeda, the first commander of Japanese forces in northern Borneo. The liberation of Borneo began on 10 June 1945 when the Allied Forces under the command of General McArthur landed at Labuan with a convoy of 100 ships. The 9th Australian Division launched an attack supported by massive air and sea bombardments that resulted in the surrender of the Japanese. On 9 September 1945, General Masao Baba, commander of Japanese military, surrendered at the Layang-layang beach before Major General George F. Wooten, commander of Australian 9th Division. Labuan assumed its former name and was under British military administration along with the rest of the Straits Settlements, then joined to the Crown Colony of North Borneo, on 15 July 1946, which in turn became a part of Malaysia as the state of Sabah on 16 September 1963.

Labuan (disambiguation)

Labuan, Labuhan, or Pelabuhan may refer to:

Malaysia

Indonesia

Other