Sarkies Brothers

Clockwise from top: Arshak, Tigran and Aviet Sarkies

The Sarkies Brothers were a group of brothers of Armenian ethnicity, best known for founding a chain of luxury hotels throughout Southeast Asia. Born in Isfahan, Iran,^[1] the brothers were:

• Martin Sarkies (1852–1912)
• Tigran Sarkies (1861–1912)
• Aviet Sarkies (1862–1923)
• Arshak Sarkies (1868–1931)

In chronological order, the hotels founded or run by the brothers were:^[2]

• April 15, 1884: Eastern Hotel, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
• 1885: Oriental Hotel, George Town, Penang, Malaysia. Previously the Hotel de l’Europe.^[1]
• 1 December 1887: Raffles Hotel, Singapore
• August 1889: Eastern Hotel sold, Oriental Hotel renamed as Eastern & Oriental Hotel
• 1901: Strand Hotel, Rangoon (Yangon), Burma (Myanmar). Sold by the brothers in 1925.
• 1923: Sea View Hotel, Singapore,^[3] originally built in 1906 and operated by the Sarkies Brothers under lease until 1931.
• 1905:^[4] Crag Hotel, Penang Hill, Malaysia.^[5]

It was 23-year-old Tigran who took the first step into the hotel industry, seeing it as more profitable than his fledgling auctioneering business. Taking over the lease of a large compound house at 1A Light Street, he named it the Eastern Hotel, announcing on 15 April 1884 that the hotel was open to receive boarders.^[6]

In addition, the brothers' cousin Arathoon Sarkies (1882–1932) managed the Adelphi Hotel in Singapore from 1903 to 1908,^[7] and Hotel Majapahit (as Hotel Oranje) in Surabaya, Indonesia was founded in 1910 by Martin's cousin Lucas Martin Sarkies (1876–?) and his brother John.^[8][9] Kartika Wijaya in Batu, Java, Indonesia was originally built as a vacation villa for the Sarkies, and was only later turned into a hotel.^[10]

Arshak, the last of the brothers, died on January 9, 1931. On June 10 of the same year, a bankruptcy case was filed against the Raffles Hotel, eventually resulting in the Sarkies family losing control of their hotels in Singapore and Penang.^[2] The hotel in Surabaya, however, stayed in the hands of the Sarkies' descendants until 1969.^[11]

Another Sarkies hotel still operating is The Niagara Hotel, Lawang, East Java.

References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The History of Armenians in Singapore and Malaysia. Amassia.com.au. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Sarkies Brothers. Famous Hotels. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
3. ↑ Old Sea View Hotel. Infopedia.nl.sg. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
4. ↑ The Straits Times, 28 July 1905, Page 6 NL300
5. ↑ Chong, Debra. (2010-05-26) Main – Malaysia – Penang opens tender to restore Crag Hotel @ Wed May 26 2010. Themalaysianinsider.com. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
6. ↑ http://www.amassia.com.au/Raffles.htm
7. ↑ July « Preservation Of Monuments Board. Saecomm.com. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
8. ↑ http://www.hotel-majapahit.com/dining3.php
9. ↑ A. Mirzaian, Armenians in Australia and New Zealand.216
10. ↑ Kartika Wijaya Hotel. Kartikawijaya.com. Retrieved on 2011-10-23.
11. ↑ Hotel Majapahit. Hotel Majapahit (1945-11-10). Retrieved on 2011-10-23.

External links

• the History of Armenians in Singapore and Malaysia