Constitution of Malaysia made applicable to Singapore by the Republic of Singapore Independence Act 1965, and the Republic of Singapore Independence Act itself. These provided the newly independent nation with a working constitution at short notice. Constitution of the State of Singapore 1963 and its predecessors Since Singapore was founded as a factory or trading post of the East India Company in 1819, a number of laws having constitutional status have applied to it. Singapore became part of the Straits Settlements in 1867, which were granted a colonial constitution by way of letters patent dated 4 February 1867 that established the Legislative Council of the Straits Settlements. Further letters patent dated 17 November 1877 set up an executive council and authorized the Governor to appoint judges. Thereafter, a number of other legal instruments were issued to streamline the constitutional structure of the colony, but did not make significant changes to the arrangements put in place by the 1867 and 1877 letters patent. The last constitution of the Straits Settlements was based on letters patent dated 17 December 1911 as amended by letters patent and royal instructions both dated 18 August 1924. After the Japanese Occupation, the Straits Settlements were dissolved in 1946 and Singapore became a Crown colony. Its new constitution, the Singapore Order in Council 1946, established an executive council and a legislative council which, for the first time, had a number of elected members. The constitution came into effect on 1 March 1948, and the first legislative elections in Singapore were held on 20 March that year. In 1953, a constitutional commission headed by Sir George Rendel was set up to recommend further changes in the constitutional system, with the aim of increasing widespread participation in the central and local government of Singapore. The British Government accepted most of the Rendel Commission's recommendations in its report of February 1954 and implemented them by way of the Singapore Colony Order in Council 1955, commonly known as the Rendel Constitution. While the new Legislative Assembly was a largely elected body, the colonial administration retained authority over administration, finance, internal security and law. The next stage in Singapore's constitutional development was its transformation from a colony to a self-governing state of the British Empire. This was effected by the Singapore (Constitution) Order in Council 1958, which created the position of the Yang di-Pertuan Negara as the head of state, a prime