| James Wheeler Woodford Birch | |
|---|---|
| 1st British Resident of Perak | |
| In office 4 November 1874 – 2 November 1875 |
|
| Preceded by | None |
| Succeeded by | Frank A. Swettenham |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 3 April 1826 South England, United Kingdom |
| Died | 2 November 1875 (aged 49) Pasir Salak, British Malaya |
| Religion | Christian |
James Wheeler Woodford Birch, commonly known as J. W. W. Birch (3 April 1826 - 2 November 1875) was the first British Resident in Perak, Malaysia. He was appointed to the post on 4 November 1874 as the government adviser to the Sultan of Perak following the signing of the famous Pangkor Treaty on 20 January 1874, which established Perak as a British protectorate state.
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Birch was killed on 2 November 1875 by a local Malay chief, Dato Maharajalela and his assistant Seputum, who speared him to death while he was taking bath, nearby a river, in Pasir Salak, near today's Teluk Intan (Teluk Anson).
There is inconsistency as to the reason why Birch was assassinated. One view is that Birch's assassination was because he outlawed slavery in Perak. Dato Maharajalela, whose income depended on capturing and selling the indigenes of Perak or Orang Asli as slaves, was then incensed and plotted with some of the slave-traders to kill Birch by spearing him when he was taking his bath in the river.
The more popular view among rightwing Malay historians indicate that Birch was assassinated because of his disrespect to the local custom and tradition, and conflict with local Malay chiefs. This is because modern Malay historians generally refuse to accept that the Orang Asli were being traded as slaves in the pre-Colonial era. Some accounts claimed that Birch was arrogant and disrespectful of local customs and the ruling Sultan of Perak, for example by refusing to remove his shoes when he entered the Palace.
To those historians, Dato' Maharajalela is generally celebrated as a folk hero, due to his substantial contribution and seen to be a symbol of the Malay resistance against Colonialism.
In the aftermath of the event, the administration shifted to Taiping. Sultan Abdullah was deposed and sent to exile in Seychelles. Dato Maharajalela and others involved in the incident were hanged.
Birch's grave is located near the site of British fort at Kampung Pasir Pulai, about 24 km from Pasir Salak. Roads in Kuala Lumpur and Taiping were thought to have been named after him (Birch Road), but this was for a different Birch; ironically, the same road was later renamed after Dato Maharajalela (Maharajalela Road; Malay: Jalan Maharajalela) after Malaysia's independence in 1957. Similarly Birch Road also appeared in several towns in Malaysia, they were Seremban, Penang and Ipoh, also found in Singapore.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Position created |
British Resident of Perak 1874 – 1875 |
Succeeded by Frank A. Swettenham |