John Leyden and the publication of the Malay Annals (1821
J.S. Bastin’s 2002 article in the Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (Vol. 75) reconstructs the circumstances surrounding the 1821 publication of John Leyden’s translation of the Malay Annals, arguing that the widely repeated account by Virginia and M.B. Hooker—that Raffles strategically timed the publication to support his founding of Singapore—is historically inaccurate. Drawing extensively on Leyden’s surviving correspondence, Bastin demonstrates that the publication was the product of a protracted estate settlement and publisher negotiation spanning nearly a decade after Leyden’s death in Java in 1811.
Summary
The article addresses three interlocking problems: assessing Leyden’s genuine linguistic capabilities (complicated by his well-documented habit of self-aggrandizement), tracing the physical journey of his manuscripts after his death, and establishing the actual sequence of events leading to the 1821 publication. Bastin draws heavily on Leyden’s letters held in the National Library of Scotland—particularly correspondence with William Erskine, Richard Heber, and Sir Walter Scott—to build a detailed picture of Leyden’s Malay studies and his relationship with Raffles in Pinang in 1805–06. He demonstrates that Leyden was already ahead of Raffles in Malay when they first met in October 1805, and that his translation work was substantially completed before the Java expedition of 1811. The article also corrects a misidentification in the Hookers’ essay: the “Captain Scott” mentioned in Ahmad Rijaluddin’s account was Captain Robert Scott Sr., not Captain William Scott as previously supposed (pp. 107–108).
The second major thread concerns the posthumous dispersal of Leyden’s papers. After his death at Jakarta on 28 August 1811, his manuscripts were examined by Archibald Seton, Dr William Hunter, and Colonel Colin Mackenzie, who described their contents in a letter to Erskine dated 16 October 1811. The papers were sent to Calcutta in 1813, but Mackenzie retained some manuscripts (including the translation of Abu al-Wardi), and Raffles kept the Malay Annals translation itself. Bastin shows that Raffles took the manuscript with him when he left Java in March 1816, and that it reached London in his possession, where he handed it to the Revd James Morton, Leyden’s cousin, who was preparing his memoir of Leyden (pp. 109–112).
The publication delays—Morton’s Poetical Remains appeared in 1819 and the Malay Annals not until 1821—are attributed to protracted negotiations between the Leyden family, Richard Heber, and the publishers Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown. Heber had initially offered the manuscripts to Longman’s, who agreed to publish the Malay Annals on terms of indemnity of expense and division of profits, but the family (particularly the difficult Robert Leyden) may have sought better terms from John Murray, causing further delay. The Memoirs of Baber suffered an even longer nine-year delay, only advancing materially when Sir John Malcolm took an active role in settling Leyden’s affairs in 1824–25 (pp. 112–114).
Key Findings
- Leyden’s estate in India amounted to 30,610 Sicca Rupees (approximately £3,825) but was reduced to 2,300 Sicca Rupees (approximately £285) before debts were settled (p. 114).
- The East India Company ultimately paid £500 for Leyden’s collection of books and manuscripts in 1824, after they had been stored at India House since their arrival in London in July 1814 (p. 115).
- Longman’s offered £300 for Leyden’s Poems (including Scenes of Infancy and the memoir) plus £200 in expectation of 3,000 copies being sold (p. 113).
- Leyden’s Will of 6 March 1811 directed that his Oriental manuscripts be first offered to Richard Heber, then Sir John Malcolm, then William Erskine, before being sold for the best price procurable (p. 110).
- Raffles acknowledged in September 1815 that he had retained the Malay Annals translation, considering it “not worth publishing” except perhaps partially in the Transactions of a literary society (p. 111).
- Leyden’s estate included a debt of 600 Sicca Rupees owed to Raffles for wages and translations paid to Leyden’s moonshee at Java (p. 114).
Conclusion
Bastin’s definitive historical takeaway is that the Hookers’ narrative of Raffles’s strategic publication of the Malay Annals to justify Singapore’s founding is “wild speculation” that “bears no relationship to the truth” (p. 109). The actual publication was the product of a complex, protracted process of estate settlement, family negotiation, and publisher deliberation, with Raffles playing a far more passive custodial role than previously supposed. The article also offers a more nuanced assessment of Leyden’s linguistic legacy, distinguishing between his genuine comparative philological abilities—acknowledged even by his critics—and his well-documented tendency to exaggerate his command of individual languages.
Context
- Primary archival collections: National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh (NLS MSS), particularly the Leyden correspondence in MS 971, MS 939, MS 331, MS 3380, MS 3383, MS 11320, MS 12120, and MS †2120.
- Historiographical contribution: Corrects the Hookers’ 2001 Introductory Essay to the MBRAS reprint of the Malay Annals (MBRAS Reprint No. 20), and provides a more evidence-based assessment of Leyden’s linguistic claims by distinguishing between his genuine comparative philological gifts and his habit of self-aggrandizement.