Suleiman Court was the first
high-rise apartment building in
Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia. The building was constructed at the direction of Malaysia's first
Prime Minister,
Tunku Abdul Rahman, who intended the Courts to provide
affordable housing. The Courts was named after Suleiman bin Abdul Rahman, then incumbent Minister of Interior & Justice, who had watched over the progress of the Housing Trust for 8 years since its inception.
The Courts were built in 1957, as the
Federation of Malaya
The Federation of Malaya ( ms, Persekutuan Tanah Melayu; Jawi script, Jawi: ) was a federation of what previously had been British Malaya comprising eleven states (nine Malay states and two of the British Empire, British Straits Settlements, P ...
neared official independence from the
United Kingdom. Tunku Abdul Rahman had hoped for the building to be not just complete, but already occupied, in time for
Hari Merdeka
Independence Day ( ms, Hari Merdeka, also known as ''Hari Kebangsaan'' or "National Day"), is the official independence day of Malaya. It commemorates the Malayan Declaration of Independence of 31 August 1957, and is defined in Article 160 ...
(the official proclamation of independence) on 31 August; however, the first apartments were not occupied until February 1958.
The three blocks of the Courts (Block A, Block B, and Block C) were located on Batu Road (now
Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman), and had 295 apartments between them. They were demolished in 1986, to make room for the
Sogo shopping complex.
References
200 former residents of Suleiman Court reminisce at gathering- ''
The Star
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' 21 August 2007
External links
Suleiman Courts Residents website
{{coord missing, Malaysia
Buildings and structures in Kuala Lumpur
Residential skyscrapers in Malaysia
Skyscrapers in Kuala Lumpur
Demolished buildings and structures in Malaysia
Buildings and structures demolished in 1986
Buildings and structures completed in 1958
20th-century architecture in Malaysia