Sultan Alauddin Ri'ayat Syah al-Kahar (died 29 September 1571) was the third
sultan of Aceh
The Sultanate of Aceh, officially the Kingdom of Aceh Darussalam ( ace, Keurajeuën Acèh Darussalam; Jawoë: كاورجاون اچيه دارالسلام), was a sultanate centered in the modern-day Indonesian province of Aceh. It was a major ...
, and was one of the strongest warrior rulers in the history of the sultanate. In his time the power structures that his father had begun were greatly strengthened. His age was marked by warfare with his
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
and
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
rivals, with varying degrees of success.
Taking power
Alauddin was the son of Sultan
Ali Mughayat Syah
Ali Mughayat Syah (died 7 August 1530) was the first sultan of Aceh in northern Sumatra, reigning from about 1514 until his death. Although he was not the first ruler of the Aceh heartland, he is considered the founder of the Aceh Sultanate. His ...
who founded the state in the early 16th century. After Sultan Ali's death in 1530, his eldest son
Salahuddin ruled for a while but was inept in governing the sultanate. The queen mother had great influence in the state and appointed a regent called ''Raja Bungsu'' who had a green ''payung'' (parasol), a symbol of authority, and a house opposite the royal abode. Meanwhile, Alauddin governed
Samudra Pasai
The Samudera Pasai Sultanate (), also known as Samudera or Pasai or Samudera Darussalam or Pacem, was a Muslim harbour kingdom on the north coast of Sumatra from the 13th to the 16th centuries CE. The kingdom was believed to have been founded ...
which had been conquered by Aceh in 1524. Being dissatisfied with conditions in the capital, he staged a royal coup in c. 1537 or 1539, killed ''Raja Bungsu'', and imprisoned Salahuddin and the Queen Mother Sitt Hur, whom would die years later in 1548 and 1554 respectively. Alauddin now took the throne with the regnal title Sultan Alauddin Ri'ayat Syah al-Kahar. Under Acehnese tradition he is remembered as a great organizer of the Acehnese state. Thus he was supposedly the ruler who divided Acehnese society into administrative lineage groups (''kaum'' or ''sukeë''), but it is unclear whether this attribution is correct.
Conquests on Sumatra
The campaigns of Alauddin began in 1539 when he waged war on the
Batak people
Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of closely related Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnic groups predominantly found in North Sumatra, Indonesia, who speak Batak languages. The term is used to include the Karo people ( ...
, who lived to the south of Aceh. The Portuguese traveler
Fernão Mendes Pinto
Fernão Mendes Pinto (; c.1509 – 8 July 1583) was a Portuguese explorer and writer. His voyages are recorded in ''Pilgrimage'' ( pt, Peregrinação) (1614), his autobiographical memoir. The historical accuracy of the work is debatable due to ...
mentions that the sultan asked the king of the Bataks to convert to
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, and attacked him when he refused. Pinto provides a long and picturesque account of the Bataks and their affairs with the Acehnese; it is doubtful from the point of view that no comprehensive Batak kingdom is known to other sources. The Acehnese army reportedly included contingents of
Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic o ...
and men from
Cambay
Cambay, Kambay or Khambhat was a princely state in India during the British Raj. The City of Khambat (Cambay) in present-day Gujarat was its capital. The state was bounded in the north by the Kaira district and in the south by the Gulf of Cam ...
and
Malabar
Malabar may refer to the following:
People
* Malabars, people originating from the Malabar region of India
* Malbars or Malabars, people of Tamil origin in Réunion
Places
* Malabar Coast, or Malabar, a region of the southwestern shoreline o ...
. After this campaign Alauddin attacked the
Aru Kingdom
The Aru (كراجأن ارو; or Haru) was a major Sumatran kingdom from the 13th to the 16th century. It was located on the eastern coast of North Sumatra, Indonesia. In its heyday the kingdom was a formidable maritime power, and was able to co ...
, (the later
Deli Sultanate
Sultanate of Deli ( Indonesian: ''Kesultanan Deli Darul Maimoon''; Jawi: ) was a 1,820 km² Malay state in east Sumatra founded in 1630. A tributary kingdom from 1630 it was controlled by various Sultanates until 1814, when it became an ...
). He killed the ruler of Aru in 1539, but was then forced by the
Johor Sultanate
The Johor Sultanate ( ms, Kesultanan Johor or ; also called the Sultanate of Johor, Johor-Pahang, or the Johor Empire) was founded by Malaccan Sultan Mahmud Shah's son, Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah II in 1528. Johor was part of the Malaccan ...
's army to withdraw in around 1540, Aru subsequently belonged to Johor up to 1564.
Enterprises against Melaka and Johor
The principal enemy was, however, Melaka, which was held by the Portuguese since 1511. There were both economic, political and religious reasons for the intense rivalry. At stake was the control of the trade through the
Melaka Straits
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...
. In 1547, Alauddin personally participated in a night attack on Melaka. However, the Acehnese fleet was defeated at the
Perlis River
The Perlis River ( ms, Sungai Perlis) is a river in Perlis, Malaysia.
Geography
The river spans over 11.8 km in length, making it the fourth-longest river in Perlis.
History
Under the 11th Malaysia Plan, 11 km of the river will be deve ...
. After the failure, Aceh returned to a comparatively peaceful state for 15 years. However, in 1564 he led a fleet of ships, ostensibly to go to
Patani
Patani Darussalam ( Bahasa Malayu Arabic : , also sometimes Patani Raya or Patani Besar, "Greater Patani"; th, ปาตานี) is a historical region in the Malay peninsula. It includes the southern Thai provinces of Pattani, Yala (Ja ...
. Suddenly, he ordered the course changed and instead assaulted Johor, the successor state of the old
Melaka Sultanate
The Malacca Sultanate ( ms, Kesultanan Melaka; Jawi script: ) was a Malays (ethnic group), Malay sultanate based in the modern-day state of Malacca, Malaysia. Conventional historical thesis marks as the founding year of the sultanate by King o ...
. The enterprise was successful; Johor was sacked and Alauddin brought its sultan,
Alauddin Riayat Shah II of Johor, to Aceh where he had him killed. A Johor princess was married to the sultan. Instead of the deposed ruler,
Muzaffar II was placed on the throne of Johor. With the defeat of Johor, Aru fell to Aceh and was entrusted to Alauddin's son Abdullah. In January 1568 the sultan undertook another attack on Malacca. He personally led 15,000 troops and 400 Ottoman elite soldiers, using 200 bronze cannons. The Portuguese, surprised by the assault, applied for help from the Malay neighbours of Johor and
Kedah
Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area ...
. They were nevertheless able to beat back the Acehnese before the Malay allies had even arrived. At this occasion, Alauddin's oldest son Abdullah of Aru was killed. The attitude of Johor enraged the sultan who burned many Johorese villages on his way back to Aceh. When Muzaffar of Johor was poisoned, Alauddin sent another fleet to Johor, but had to return due to the strength of Johor's defenses.
The Turkish connection
In order to strengthen his case, Alauddin dispatched envoys to the
Ottoman sultan
Suleiman the Magnificent
Suleiman I ( ota, سليمان اول, Süleyman-ı Evvel; tr, I. Süleyman; 6 November 14946 September 1566), commonly known as Suleiman the Magnificent in the West and Suleiman the Lawgiver ( ota, قانونى سلطان سليمان, Ḳ ...
in about 1561–1562, asking for assistance against the infidel Portuguese. At this time the predatory practices of Portuguese ships made the sea route over the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
dangerous for Muslim ships. An alternative route for pepper trade therefore developed from about 1530, where
Gujarati
Gujarati may refer to:
* something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India
* Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat
* Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them
* Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub ...
,
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
,
Turkish and Acehnese traders brought spices directly from Aceh to the Red Sea without coming near Portuguese strongholds in the
Melaka Straits
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...
. The Ottomans and Aceh thus had common interests to counter the Portuguese might on the oceans. Turkish gunners were sent to Aceh by 1564. The next Ottoman sultan,
Selim II
Selim II ( Ottoman Turkish: سليم ثانى ''Selīm-i sānī'', tr, II. Selim; 28 May 1524 – 15 December 1574), also known as Selim the Blond ( tr, Sarı Selim) or Selim the Drunk ( tr, Sarhoş Selim), was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire ...
, showed enthusiasm for supporting the Acehnese. He equipped a fleet of 15 galleys and two barques. However, before it could be dispatched,
al-Mutahhar
Al-Mutahhar bin Yahya Sharaf ad-Din (January 3, 1503 – November 9, 1572) was an imam of the Zaidi state of Yemen who ruled from 1547 to 1572. His era marked the temporary end of an autonomous Yemeni polity in the highlands.
The coming of th ...
's rebellion broke out in
Yemen
Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, north and ...
and the fleet had to be recalled there. Nevertheless, two vessels with munitions and military experts reached Aceh and the crew appeared to have stayed in Alauddin's service. They participated in the 1568 campaign, while in a new sea battle with the Portuguese in 1570, the Acehnese likewise made use of Turkish arms. This campaign was apparently coordinated with the attack on Portuguese
Goa
Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
by the
Deccan Sultanates
The Deccan sultanates were five Islamic late-medieval Indian kingdoms—on the Deccan Plateau between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range—that were ruled by Muslim dynasties: namely Ahmadnagar, Berar, Bidar, Bijapur, and Golconda. Th ...
of
Bijapur
Bijapur, officially known as Vijayapura, is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural ...
,
Golconda
Fort (Telugu: గోల్కొండ, romanized: ''Gōlkōnḍa'') is a historic fortress and ruined city located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It was originally called Mankal. The fort was originally built by Kakatiya ruler Pratāparu ...
,
Bidar
Bidar (/ biːd̪ər/) is a city in the north-eastern part of Karnataka state in India. It is the headquarters of Bidar district, which borders Maharashtra and Telangana. It is a rapidly urbanising city in the wider ''Bidar Metropolitan area ...
and
Ahmadnagar
Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1 ...
. The battle, which took place close to the main port of Aceh, was nevertheless a failure, and the Acehnese fleet suffered great losses. The superior artillery and more robust ships of the Portuguese explain part of the repeated Acehnese failures, which Turkish help could not make up for.
Family and death
According to the relatively trustworthy chronicle ''Bustanus Salatin'', Alauddin had five sons:
[Djajadiningrat (1911), p. 155.]
* Sultan Abdullah, ruler of Aru (d. 1568)
* Sultan Husain, later Sultan
Ali Ri'ayat Syah I
Sultan Ali Ri'ayat Syah I, also known as Sultan Husein (d. 8 June 1579), was the fourth sultan of Aceh in northern Sumatra. He reigned from 1571 to 1579 and continued his father's policy of fighting the Portuguese in Melaka.
Succession and dyna ...
(d. 1579)
* Sultan Mughal, ruler of Priaman, later Sultan
Sri Alam (d. 1579)
* Abdul Jalil, killed by his father due to excessive ambition; grandfather of Sultan
Iskandar Muda
Iskandar Muda (1583? – 27 December 1636Yusra Habib Abdul Gani, accessed on 4 January 2007) was the twelfth Sulṭān of Acèh Darussalam, under whom the sultanate achieved its greatest territorial extent, holding sway as the strongest po ...
Sultan Alauddin Ri'ayat Syah al-Kahar died on 28 September 1571, as is apparent from the inscription on his grave. He was succeeded by his son Sultan Ali Ri'ayat Syah I. Although Sultan Alauddin was not actually militarily successful against
Portuguese Melaka
Portuguese Empire, Portuguese control of Malacca, a city on the Malay Peninsula, refers to the 130 year period (1511–1641) when it was a possession of the Portuguese East Indies. It was Capture of Malacca (1511), conquered from the Malacca ...
, his reign witnessed the beginning of the high tide of Aceh's power.
See also
*
Ottoman expedition to Aceh
The Ottoman expedition to Aceh started from around 1565 when the Ottoman Empire endeavoured to support the Aceh Sultanate in its fight against the Portuguese Empire in Malacca. The expedition followed an envoy sent by the Acehnese Sultan Alauddin ...
*
Spread of Islam in Indonesia
The history of the arrival of Islam in Indonesia is somewhat unclear. One theory states that Islam arrived directly from Arabia as early as the 9th century, during the time of the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates. Another theory credits Sufi trav ...
References
Sources
* Djajadiningrat, Raden Hoesein (1911) 'Critisch overzicht van de in Maleische werken vervatte gegevens over de geschiedenis van het soeltanaat van Atjeh', ''Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde'', 65, pp. 135–265.
* ''Encyclopedia of Islam'' (1960), Vol. 1. Leiden & London: Brill & Luzac.
* Hadi, Amirul (2004) ''Islam and State in Sumatra: A Study of Seventeenth-Century Aceh''. Leiden: Brill.
* Iskandar, Teuku (1958) ''De Hikajat Atjeh''. 's Gravenhage: M. Nijhoff.
* Kalus, Ludvik & Claude Guillot (2013) 'La principauté de Daya, mi-XVe-mi-XVIe siècle', ''Archipel'' 85, pp. 201–36.
* Lombard, Denys (1967) ''Le sultanat d'Atjéh au temps d'Iskandar Muda, 1607-1636''. Paris: École française d'Extrême-Orient.
* Reid, Anthony (2010) 'Aceh and the Turkish Connection', in Arndt Graaf et al. (eds), ''Aceh: History, Politics and Culture''. Singapore: ISEAS, pp. 26–38.
* Ricklefs, Merle C. (1994) ''A History of Modern Indonesia Since c. 1300'', Stanford: Stanford University Press.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alauddin Al-Kahar
Sultans of Aceh
16th-century monarchs in Asia
1571 deaths
16th-century Indonesian people