Before I tell you about why Singapore was chosen, we will first be investigating the relationship between the British and Dutch at that time. At that time the two companies, the British and Dutch East India, were monopolizing the trade routes of Asia. The British had India, China and a small fraction of the Malay Archipelago while the Dutch controlled most of the trade routes in the Malay Archipelago. The Dutch were a really a major problem for the British as in order for them to use their routes they had to accede to the the high demands of the Dutch such as carrying their permit, paying high fees and taxes. As Britain traded more and more with China, they needed to establish a new settlement to serve as a stop-over as their two existing ones, Penang and Bencoolen, were either wrongly located or very far away. Thus, they started to search for a new establishment south of Melaka, Singapore was this new establishment. There were many reasons why Singapore was chosen, making it a very attractive option. First and most importantly, Singapore at that time was not occupied by the Dutch and has yet to be discovered by them, avoiding any conflict with them. Secondly, it has an excellent location, situated right in the center of the Straits of Melaka, with a good commanding position. It also had a suitable port, protecting ships from stormy winds and even had a supply of fresh water. Thus, Raffles chose Singapore to start a new establishment.
