The Carcosa Seri Negara is a residence located on two adjacent hills inside the

Perdana Botanical Gardens Perdana Botanical Gardens, formerly Perdana Lake Gardens, Lake Gardens and Public Gardens, is Kuala Lumpur's first large-scale recreational park. Measuring , it is located in the heart of the city and established in 1888. The park served as plac ...

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

. Originally built as the official residence and guest house of the

British High Commissioner in Malaya In 1896, the post of High Commissioner for the Federated Malay States was created; the High Commissioner represented the British Government in the Federated Malay States, a federation of four British protected states in Malaya. The High Commis ...

, it is now owned by the

Government of Malaysia The Government of Malaysia, officially the Federal Government of Malaysia ( ms, Kerajaan Persekutuan Malaysia), is based in the Federal Territory of Putrajaya with the exception of the legislative branch, which is located in Kuala Lumpur. Malays ...

. The name is a composite of the two colonial mansions located on the compound: the residence, named ''Carcosa'' (completed in 1898), and the guest house, now named ''Seri Negara'' (1913). The buildings figured prominently in the Malaysian independence movement, with several meetings held there. Since Independence in 1957, it has been used as residences for visiting dignitaries (1957–1989), and as a luxury hotel (1989–2015). Since 2017, it has been used as a museum.

Design

Carcosa Seri Negara refers to two buildings, the larger Carcosa and the smaller (and newer) Seri Negara (or King's House).

Carcosa

The Carcosa mansion was built in 1896–1897 as the official residence of

Sir Frank Swettenham Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham (28 March 1850 – 11 June 1946) was a British colonial administrator who became the first Resident general of the Federated Malay States, which brought the Malay states of Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and ...

, the first British High Commissioner of the then Resident-General of the Federated Malay States. It was designed by

Arthur Benison Hubback Arthur Benison Hubback (13 April 1871 – 8 May 1948) was an English architect and soldier who designed several important buildings in British Malaya, in both Indo-Saracenic architecture and European " Wrenaissance" styles. Major works credite ...

under instruction from the State Engineer of

Selangor Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east, Negeri Sem ...

Public Work Department

Charles Edwin Spooner Charles Edwin Spooner was a British engineer who worked in Malaya. He oversaw the construction of many important buildings in Kuala Lumpur, and he reorganised and expanded the railway system in the Federated Malay States. Early life C. E. Spoon ...

, and sometimes also credited to

Arthur Charles Alfred Norman Arthur Charles Alfred Norman (1858-1944), often referred to as A. C. Norman, was a British architect who was active in Malaya at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of 20th century. Some of the most important colonial era buildings of ...

. According to a letter he wrote in 1936, Swettenham chose the name ''Carcosa'' from the name of a mythical city in the horror short story collection The King in Yellow. Swettenham assumed the word was a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of words

Seri Negara

Seri Negara ('Beautiful Country' in Malay), was originally known as the ''Governor's Residence'' when it was opened in 1913 as the official guest house of Governor of the Straits Settlement. It was later known as the ''King's House''.

History

Colonial Malaya

Swettenham moved into Carcosa during construction, and the official housewarming party was not held until August 28, 1898. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, the headquarters of the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emper ...

occupation government of Malaya were at Carcosa Seri Negara. The

Constitution of Malaysia The Federal Constitution of Malaysia ( ms, Perlembagaan Persekutuan Malaysia) which was promulgated on 16 September 1963, is the supreme law of Malaysia and contains a total of 183 articles. It is a written legal document which was preceded ...

was drafted in Seri Negara between 1955 and 1957. The Federation of Malaya Agreement was signed on August 8, 1957, at King's House, and the property was then vacated by the British High Commissioner on August 31, 1957, when it was returned to the Malayan Government. It was then opened as the ''Istana Tetamu'' (Guest's Palace), hosting many visiting dignitaries, including

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

in 1986.

Post-independence

With Malayan independence imminent in September 1956, the Chief Minister of Malaya,

Tunku Abdul Rahman Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah ( ms, ‏تونكو عبد الرحمن ڤوترا الحاج ابن سلطان عبد الحميد حليم شاه, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; 8 Febru ...

, presented the deeds of Carcosa and its of land to the British Government as a gift, a token of goodwill. He moved a resolution in the Federal Legislative Council which read, "That this Council approve of the proposal to make a free gift of the house and buildings known as "Carcosa", together with the gardens and land attached, as a token of the goodwill of the Malayan people to Her Majesty's Government, for use as the residence and office of the future representative of that government in an Independent Federation." Carcosa then became residence to a succession of post-independence diplomatic British High Commissioners. The Carcosa "issue" was taken up by young radical politicians, in particular

Anwar Ibrahim Anwar bin Ibrahim ( ms, انور بن ابراهيم, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset, IPA: ; born 10 August 1947) is a Malaysian politician who has served as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia since November 2022. He served as the 1 ...

and

Mahathir Mohamad Mahathir bin Mohamad ( ms, محاضير بن محمد, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; ; born 10 July 1925) is a Malaysian politician, author, and physician who served as the 4th and 7th Prime Minister of Malaysia. He held the office ...

, his mentor. Tun

Daim Zainuddin Tun Dr. Abdul Daim bin Zainuddin ( Jawi: عبدالدائم بن زين الدين; born 29 April 1938 in Alor Setar, Kedah) is a Malaysian politician, businessman and former Finance Minister of Malaysia from 1984 to 1991. Early life Daim ...

successfully led the campaign for the Malaysian government to own it, yet again. In 1987, possession of the Carcosa estate was returned to the

Hotel

Soon after the acquisition of the estate, the Malaysian government proceeded to repurpose the estate into a hotel, which opened in 1989, by leasing the estate to hospitality companies: first to Malaysia-based Landmark Hotels and Realty from 1989 to 2010 and then to Saujana Hotels & Resorts (the hospitality subsidiary of Malaysia-based Peremba Group) from 2010 to 2016. From 2004 to 2010, Singapore-based

General Hotel Management A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED On ...

managed day-to-day operations. The lease was set for a renewable 10-year term. Carcosa and the Guest's Palace both served as hotels, with the latter rebranded as Seri Negara. Marketed as a luxurious heritage boutique hotel, much of the mansions' colonial architecture and interior designs were preserved, carefully adapted, and complemented with colonial-themed hotel service. In its inaugural year as a hotel, Carcosa Seri Negara served as the temporary official residence for

and

Prince Philip Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

when the 1989 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting was held in Kuala Lumpur. By 2000, Carcosa was subdivided into seven suites, and Seri Negara held six more, each with a personal butler. After the lease for the estate was officially transferred from Landmark to Saujana in December 2010, only Seri Negara resumed operation as a hotel, carrying the Carcosa Seri Negara brand on its own. Carcosa was largely vacated, confined to limited uses, and had been reported to receive only basic maintenance. After the expiry of Saujana's lease on December 31, 2015, the hotel was entirely closed for business and the estate was placed under the safekeeping of the property and land management division of the

Prime Minister's Department A cabinet department or prime minister's department is a department or other government agency that directly supports the work of the government's central executive office, usually the cabinet and/or prime minister, rather than specific minister ...

. Plans have been made to assign management of the buildings to the

Kuala Lumpur City Hall The Kuala Lumpur City Hall ( ms, Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur, abbreviated DBKL) is the city council which administers the city of Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. This council was established after the city was officially granted city status on 1 ...

, with a currently undetermined hospitality company conducting day-to-day operations.

The Logo

The Carcosa Seri Negara Logo was designed b
Johan Design Associates
(JDA) in 1989. The Logo was derived from metaphors (involving natural elements, environment, humanity, charm and beauty etc.), in this case a swan, are quite common, especially in the hospitality-related outlets, exotic resorts, nature's goodness, romance and gender-enhanced branding, where specific nuances are drawn into play. It exude perceptions of warm hospitality, sense of wellbeing, nature's exuberance, high society living and dining.

Afternoon Tea

One of Carcosa Seri Negara's trademarks was the English afternoon tea, served in the drawing room, or on the wrap-around verandah, overlooking the gardens. It was served daily.

Museum

In April 2017, the Asian Heritage Museum (AMH) signed a 3-year lease to rent Carcosa Seri Negara until 2020 where all its repairs will be solely taken responsible by the museum body itself. However, within 1 year before the slated handover in March 2019, the AHM was kicked out from the premises by the Federal Land Commissioner without any explanation with a note of seizure sent to them 1 month later.

In popular culture

* Scenes for ''

The 7th Dawn ''The 7th Dawn'' is a 1964 Technicolor drama film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring William Holden, Capucine and Tetsurō Tamba. The film, set during the Malayan Emergency, is based on the 1960 novel ''The Durian Tree'' by Michael Keon and ...

'' were filmed at Carcosa Seri Negara. * The residence appeared in an episode of '' The Amazing Race: All-Stars'', in which competing teams checked into a "Pit Stop" on the property. * The 2018 film ''Crazy Rich Asians'' filmed scenes set at the ancestral Young mansion, named Tyersall Park, based on the former estate in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

of the same name, at the then-abandoned Carcosa Seri Negara. * Carcosa Seri Negara serves as the residences of the Blacketts and Mr Webb in the television production of '' The Singapore Grip''.

References

Bibliography

:
Journal of Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, June 1997, Dr. A. Ghafar Ahmad
:2.

External links

{{commons category
Official Carcosa Seri Negara website

An early photo of Carcosa
Houses in Malaysia Buildings and structures completed in 1898 Buildings and structures completed in 1913