Eastern Archipelago Company
Encyclopedia
The Eastern Archipelago Company was an incorporated company with a royal charter active in the island of Labuan
from its creation in 1847 to its dissolution in 1858.
An ex-officer of the East India Company
's maritime service turned London merchant by the name of Henry Wise acquired the rights to the coal of Labuan
from James Brooke
who had in turn obtained the rights from the Sultan of Brunei
.
Wise brought about the grant of a royal charter to incorporate this company in 1847 "...for the purpose of purchasing and acquiring, holding, settling, improving, cultivating and planting, letting, farming, selling, granting, alienating, mortgaging, charging or otherwise dealing with and making a profit of land, tenements and heridatements, and of the produce thereof, in the Islands of Labuan and the lands adjacent,and of working therein all mines, pits and quarries, and getting and raising all coal, stones, earths, ores, minerals and metals, and of trading and trafficking therein and therewith, and also of trading and trafficking with any of the authorities or inhabitants of the said Island and the lands adjacent, and of exporting from the said island or lands adjacent the produce to arise from the premises, or any of them, and of importing therinto such articles as may by the said Company be deemed necessary or expedient for the furtherance of all or any of the purposes aforesaid, and of purchasing or hiring British or other ships for all or any of the purposes aforesaid...", and sold the rights to the company. However, his two initial partners had left when its initial paid up capital had to be confirmed a year later.
Operations began when James Motley
was sent to Labuan in 1849. He was to take over the rudimentary coal workings and commence supply of Royal Navy and Honourable Company steamers, for which a contract with the Admiralty was already in place. The company did not provide him with sufficient resources to develop underground works at the same time as supplying the navy and he had to apply for funds from the government. The governor, James Brooke, ruled that the price of coal should be raised temporarily, but omitted to tell the navy who refused to pay and even made deductions for transport to their ships although the contact did not require it. The company hoped to supply the P&O China mail ships, but there were complaints about quality as well as quantity which were not helped by friction with the authorities. James Brooke commenced legal action in 1850 to have the charter revoked: the confirmation of the grant of the charter in 1848 was ruled fraudulent in 1852 but the company considered this a technicality.
Several people were sent to enquire into Motley's work before Edmund Scott Barber was sent out as Resident Director to manage him in 1853. As he appeared to be both less competent and much more highly remunerated, Motley soon left, penniless, but Barber soon died of fever . He was followed by John Radford, who died in 1856, and the company was wound up in 1858.
Labuan
Labuan is a federal territory in East Malaysia. It is an island 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...
from its creation in 1847 to its dissolution in 1858.
An ex-officer of the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
's maritime service turned London merchant by the name of Henry Wise acquired the rights to the coal of Labuan
Labuan
Labuan is a federal territory in East Malaysia. It is an island 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...
from James Brooke
James Brooke
James, Rajah of Sarawak, KCB was the first White Rajah of Sarawak. His father, Thomas Brooke, was an English Judge Court of Appeal at Bareilly, British India; his mother, Anna Maria, born in Hertfordshire, was the illegitimate daughter of Scottish peer Colonel William Stuart, 9th Lord Blantyre,...
who had in turn obtained the rights from the Sultan of Brunei
Brunei
Brunei , officially the State of Brunei Darussalam or the Nation of Brunei, the Abode of Peace , is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia...
.
Wise brought about the grant of a royal charter to incorporate this company in 1847 "...for the purpose of purchasing and acquiring, holding, settling, improving, cultivating and planting, letting, farming, selling, granting, alienating, mortgaging, charging or otherwise dealing with and making a profit of land, tenements and heridatements, and of the produce thereof, in the Islands of Labuan and the lands adjacent,and of working therein all mines, pits and quarries, and getting and raising all coal, stones, earths, ores, minerals and metals, and of trading and trafficking therein and therewith, and also of trading and trafficking with any of the authorities or inhabitants of the said Island and the lands adjacent, and of exporting from the said island or lands adjacent the produce to arise from the premises, or any of them, and of importing therinto such articles as may by the said Company be deemed necessary or expedient for the furtherance of all or any of the purposes aforesaid, and of purchasing or hiring British or other ships for all or any of the purposes aforesaid...", and sold the rights to the company. However, his two initial partners had left when its initial paid up capital had to be confirmed a year later.
Operations began when James Motley
James Motley
James Motley was a Yorkshireman closely associated with South Wales and Borneo.Born in Leeds and educated in York and St John's College, Cambridge he spent at least some of his youth in South Wales where his father, a woolstapler, had investments in iron, coal, and tin works, being an early...
was sent to Labuan in 1849. He was to take over the rudimentary coal workings and commence supply of Royal Navy and Honourable Company steamers, for which a contract with the Admiralty was already in place. The company did not provide him with sufficient resources to develop underground works at the same time as supplying the navy and he had to apply for funds from the government. The governor, James Brooke, ruled that the price of coal should be raised temporarily, but omitted to tell the navy who refused to pay and even made deductions for transport to their ships although the contact did not require it. The company hoped to supply the P&O China mail ships, but there were complaints about quality as well as quantity which were not helped by friction with the authorities. James Brooke commenced legal action in 1850 to have the charter revoked: the confirmation of the grant of the charter in 1848 was ruled fraudulent in 1852 but the company considered this a technicality.
Several people were sent to enquire into Motley's work before Edmund Scott Barber was sent out as Resident Director to manage him in 1853. As he appeared to be both less competent and much more highly remunerated, Motley soon left, penniless, but Barber soon died of fever . He was followed by John Radford, who died in 1856, and the company was wound up in 1858.