Royal Malaysian Navy (GPS: 5.42155, 100.34397) has a base at the Esplanade in George Town, Penang. The base, located on Jalan Tun Syed Sheh Barakbah, dates back to 1939 during the British colonial period, when the British established their naval base there as a means of defence for George Town. After Independence, the British naval base handed over to the Malaysian government with a resident naval officer of the Royal Malaysian Navy.