Jalan Brook, George Town

Jalan Brook, George Town, Penang (11 August 2022)

Brooke Road Click to hear

is a road in the upscale residential neighbourhood of Jesselton Heights. There are in fact two different personalities after whom this road could be named. The first is James Brooke (1803-1868), the first White Rajah of Sarawak, who started a dynasty of white rulers in the state, succeeded by his nephew Charles Anthony Johnson Brooke aka Charles Brooke (1868-1917), the Second White Rajah, and Charles Vyner deWindt Brooke aka Vyner Brooke (1874-1963), the third and final White Rajah of the state. It is a matter of conjecture why this road should be named after him.

A more likely person after whom Brooke Road was named is Captain Brooke¹, who is the head of a battalion of sepoys in the early 19th century. Brooke had successfully repelled an encroachment by the Siamese who was trying to capture Sultan Ahmad Tajudin Halimshah. This makes more sense considering the sepoys had their barracks nearby, and in fact had the Sepoy Lines Road to remember their being there.

The road is spelled Jalan Brook (without the final "e") in Malay.

Brooke Road was originall a no-through road. It starts at the intersection with Jalan Utama across from Jalan Macalister. It forms a junction with Jalan Jesselton, which leads to the Jesselton Heights neighbourhood. It also branches to Solok Brook. In around 2020, the road was extended to provide one-way exit to Jalan Scotland.