Dutch Fort, Pangkor

Dutch Fort, Pangkor (22 September 2020)

Dutch Fort (GPS: 4.20046, 100.5761) is a fort built on Pangkor Island, Perak. It is about 3km from the Pangkor village.

The Dutch built this fort in 1670 in their attempt to monopolise the tin trade. It was to be used for storage and to protect their tin interest. But despite having the fort in place, tin smuggling out of Perak continued. Also, the Dutch had to face with constant attacks on the fort from the unhappy local leaders.

An attack by the Malays in 1690 destroyed the fort, but the Dutch rebuilt it in 1743 and placed 60 soldiers to guard it. This lasted for only 5 years before the Dutch decided to abandon the fort all together.

Today, the Museum Department has reconstructed the fort on its original foundations. Having said that, I am not sure how true to the original is this reconstruction. What you can see is like a partially completed house standing at the end of a terraced garden. There is also a walkway and pavilion which I am sure is not part of the original design, and in my opinion, not a necessary addition.