Sultan Hussein of Johor Sultanate. The Hand that Signed the Paper to Singapore's Prosperity

Since 1500s, the Europeans were vying for dominance in the Malay archipelago to control the spice trade. First came the Portuguese who conquered Malacca in 1511, with the Dutch and English hot on their heels. The Dutch ousted the Portuguese in Malacca in 1641, leaving the English with "not an inch of land to stand upon" in the Malacca Straits for nearly two centuries. Finally, in 1819, Stamford Raffles of the British East India Company saw an opportunity to set things right (for the British empire).

At that time, the Johor-Riau sultanate controlled Pahang, Johore, Singapore, central Sumatra and the Riau islands. The capital of the Johor Sultanate was in Diak, Lingga (in the Riaus). 

The Sultan of Johor Riau, Mahmud Shah III died in 1811 without naming a successor and a succession dispute ensued. His eldest son Hussein Shah was away in Pahang for his wedding and was thus not at Sultan Mahmud Shah III's bedside in Lingga when he died.

While Hussein Shah was stuck in Pahang waiting for the monsoon to take him back to Lingga, his half brother by a different mother, Abdul Rahman ascended the throne supported by part of the nobility and the Dutch.

Hussein Shah and his supporters acquiesced to the coup, and lived quietly in exile on tiny Penyengat island off Tanjung Pinang. All was calm in the Johor-Riau sultanate until Raffles came on the scene.

Raffles looking for a base for the British East India Company landed in Singapore and found that the Dutch had not established themselves there. After meeting Singapore's Temenggong Abdul Rahman at his residence at the mouth of Singapore River in 1819, Raffles set his plan in action in double quick time.

The plan was simple though audacious. Temenggong Abdul Rahman was to quickly spirit Hussein Shah from Penyengat island to Singapore. And in Singapore, Raffles and the British East India Company shall pronounce Hussein Shah the Sultan of the Johor sultanate.

Then, three parties - Sultan Hussein Shah of Johor, Temenggong Abdul Rahman and Raffles of the British East India Company shall sign an agreement on 6 Feb 1819 allowing the English to set up a "factory" or trading post at the Singapore River. They had a banquet to celebrate the Singapore Treaty.

In exchange, Sultan Hussein Shah was given 5,000 Spanish dollars a year and Temenggong Abdul Rahman was given 3,000 Spanish dollars every year.

Sultan Hussien Shah built his palace at today's Kampong Gelam while Temenggong Abdul Rahman moved his residence from Singapore River to Telok Blangah.

(In 1999, the Singapore Government announced that Istana Kampong Gelam would be conserved. The building was restored and reopened as the Malay Heritage Centre in 2005. Seventy nine descendants of Sultan Hussein Shah were awarded a total of $350,000 a year for 30 years.)

By 1824, Sultan Hussein Shah fell into debt supporting his own lifestyle and that of his supporters. Sultan Hussein Shah asked the second Resident (Governor) of Singapore John Crawfurd for more money. His request was granted under the "Treaty of Friendship and Alliance". The sultan received a one-time payment of 33,200 Spanish dollars and a monthly allowance of 1,300 Spanish dollars for life, while the Temenggong received a lump sum of 26,800 Spanish dollars and monthly stipend of 700 Spanish dollars.

In return, Sultan Hussein Shah ceded Singapore completely to the English.

In 1824, the English and Dutch signed the Treaty of London which divided the Malay world between them. Singapore and the Malay Peninsula shall come under the English. The Dutch shall control all of the rest of the Malay archipelago. The Dutch shall give up Malacca in exchange for Bencoolen (in southwest Sumatra).

The old Johor-Riau sultanate shall be split into the Johor sultanate under Sultan Hussein Shah "controlling" Singapore and Johore, and the Riau-Lingga sultanate under Sultan Abdul Rahman controlling the Riau and central Sumatra (Indragiri). 

As Sultan Hussein Shah's palace expenses continued to get out of hand, he appointed Abdul Kadir to rein in expenditure. This made Abdul Kadir extremely unpopular with most of the sultan's dependents and he was even threatened with death. Sultan Hussein moved with Abdul Kadir to Malacca in 1834 and died a year later.

Sultan Hussein Shah, the hand that signed the paper, was buried in Tranquerah mosque in Malacca.

     

       

                     

             

             

               

               

             

           

           

           

                         

           

             

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            A post shared by Tony Boey Johor Kaki (@johorkaki)          

       

     

           

Written by Tony Boey on 25 July 2021

References:

Image of Istana Kampong Glam courtesy of National Archives of Singapore. Image of signing of Singapore Treaty courtesy of National Archives of Singapore. Image of Dutch Portuguese sea battle courtesy of Wikipedia. Image of Tranquerah mosque courtesy of Wikipedia. Image of Penyengat island courtesy of Wikipedia.