 On 7 June 1823 , John Crawfurd signed a second treaty with the Sultan and Temenggong , which extended British possession to most of the island . The Sultan and Temenggong traded most of their administrative rights of the island , including the collection of port taxes for lifelong monthly payments of $ 1500 and $ 800 respectively . This agreement brought the island under the British Law , with the provision that it would take into account Malay customs , traditions and religion . Raffles replaced Farquhar with John Crawfurd , an efficient and frugal administrator , as the new governor . In October 1823 , Raffles departed for Britain and would never return to Singapore as he died in 1826 , at the age of 44 . In 1824 , Singapore was ceded in perpetuity to the East India Company by the Sultan . 
