KL
History:
 Situated in the heart of Southeast Asia at one of the world's major crossroads, Malaysia has always been pivotal to trade routes from Europe, the Orient, India and China. Its warm tropical climate and abundant natural blessings made it a congenial destination for immigrants as early as 5,000 years ago when the ancestors of the Orang Asli, the indigenous peoples of Peninsular Malaysia, settle here, probably the pioneers of a general movement from China and Tibet. They were followed by the Malays, who brought with them skills in farming and the use of metals. Around the first century BC, strong trading links were established with China and India, and these had a major impact on the culture, language and social customs of the country. Evidence of a Hindu-Buddhist period in the history of Malaysia can today be found in the temple sites of the Bujang Valley and Merbok Estuary in Kedah in the north west of Peninsular Malaysia, near the Thai border. The spread of Islam, introduced by Arab and Indian traders, brought the Hindu-Buddhist era to an end by the 13th century. With the conversion of the Malay-Hindu rulers of the Melaka Sultanate (the Malay kingdom which ruled both side of the Straits of Malaka for over a hundred years), Islam was established as the religion of the Malays, and had profound effect on Malay society.
 Kuala Lumpur's rise from nothing to a bustling town began with 87 Chinese men in search of tin. By fate, these men made their way up the murky Klang River and landed at the meeting point of the Klang and Gombak rivers. However, they only found fortune a few miles east, in a place which is now known as Ampang.
When mining thrived in Ampang, merchants who brought supplies up the Klang River could only get as far as the muddy confluence. So, naturally a town developed at the spot, which was called Kuala Lumpur.
The turning point of KL's modern history was when the British were asked to intervene when a rift developed within Selangor's royal family over tin-mining profits. As a result of the British rule, KL expanded and became the capital of Selangor in 1880 and in 1896 was made into the capital of the British-protected Federated Malay States.
Sir Frank Swettenham, the British Resident of Selangor, chose KL as his administrative centre. Swettenham is known as an architect of British Malaya because he drew up the first town plan for KL. Meanwhile, successful miners and merchants began building bungalows along Jalan Ampang and when construction on the KL-Port Klang Railway began, the city never looked back.
Malaysia gained Independence (or Merdeka) from the British on Aug 31, 1957 and KL was made the country?s capital. In 1972, KL was accorded city status and on Feb 1, 1974 the city ceded from Selangor and was declared a Federal Territory.
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