Iskandar Muda (1583? – 27 December 1636
[Yusra 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 power and wealthiest state in the western
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n archipelago and the
Strait of Malacca
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 ...
. "Iskandar Muda" literally means "young Alexander," and his conquests were often compared to those of
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
.
In addition to his notable conquests, during his reign, Aceh became known as an international centre of
Islamic learning and trade. He was the last
Sultan of Aceh who was a direct lineal
male
Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization.
A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to ...
descendant of
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 ...
, the founder of the
Aceh Sultanate. Iskandar Muda's death meant that the founding dynasty of the Aceh Sultanate, the House of
Meukuta Alam died out and was replaced by another dynasty.
Early life
The future Iskandar Muda was born in about 1593. His father was Mansur Syah, son of Sultan Abdul Jalil, son of the third
Sulṭān of the
Acèh Darussalam,
Alauddin al-Kahar
Sultan Alauddin Ri'ayat Syah al-Kahar (died 29 September 1571) was the third sultan of Aceh, 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 stre ...
. His mother Puteri Raja Inderabangsa was the daughter of the tenth Sultan
Alauddin Ri'ayat Syah Sayyid al-Mukammal. Therefore, through his parentage he combined the two branches of the Acehnese sultan's dynasty. His childhood and youth are described at great length in the ''Hikayat Aceh'', which extols his personal qualities. He was known under a number of names and titles, especially Perkasa Alam, which was also the name he used after his accession ("Iskandar Muda" is however not a posthumous name as sometimes suggested since it occurs on his coins). In about 1605 he fell out with his uncle, Sultan
Ali Ri'ayat Syah III, and fled to
Pidië where another uncle, Husain, was the vassal ruler. Together they planned a rebellion against Sultan Ali. Perkasa Alam was put in command of the Pidië troops, but in the end they refused to fight and Perkasa Alam was imprisoned by the sultan. However, when the
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 ...
invaded Aceh in 1606 he was let out of prison and distinguished himself in the fight against the infidels. The invasion force was beaten back and withdrew, and Perkasa Alam rose in esteem at the court. When Sultan Ali suddenly died on 4 April 1607, Perkasa Alam was able to secure the throne on the same day. He imprisoned his other uncle Husain and later had him killed.
Conquest and reign
![Aceh Sultanate en](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Aceh_Sultanate_en.svg)
The successes of Iskandar Muda were based on his military strength. His armed forces consisted of a navy of heavy
galleys
A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be use ...
each with 600–800 men, a cavalry using Persian horses, an
elephant
Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae ...
corps,
conscript
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
ed infantry forces
[Ricklefs, 34] and more than 2000 cannons and guns (of both Sumatran and European origin).
[Barwise and White, 115] Upon gaining power, he began consolidating control over northern Sumatra. In 1612 he conquered
Deli, and in 1613
Aru and
Johor
Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime ...
. Upon the conquest of Johor, its sultan,
Alauddin Riayat Shah III
Sultan Alauddin Riayat Shah III was the Sultan of Johor who reigned from 1597 to 1615. He resided at the new capital of Johor at Batu Sawar, but later moved his administration to Pasir Raja around 1609. In 1612, at the instigation of his co-ruler ...
, and other members of the royal family were brought to Aceh, along with a group of traders from the
Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...
. However, Johor was able to expel the Acehnese garrison later that year, and Iskandar Muda was never able to assert permanent control over the area. Johor further built an alliance with
Pahang
Pahang (; Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a sultanate and ...
,
Palembang,
Jambi,
Inderagiri,
Kampar and
Siak against Aceh.
Iskandar Muda's campaigns continued, however, and he was able to defeat a
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 ...
fleet at
Bintan
Bintan Regency (formerly Riau Islands Regency; id, Kabupaten Kepulauan Riau) is an administrative area in the Riau Islands Province of Indonesia. Bintan Regency includes all of Bintan Island (except for the city of Tanjung Pinang which is sep ...
in 1614. In 1617 he conquered
Pahang
Pahang (; Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a sultanate and ...
and carried its sultan Ahmed Syah to
Aceh, and thus achieved a foothold on the Malayan peninsula.
This conquest was followed by
Kedah
Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman and historically as Queda, is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia. The state covers a total area of over 9,000 km2, and it consists of the mainland ...
in 1619, in which the capital was laid waste and the surviving inhabitants were brought to Aceh. A similar capture of Perak occurred in 1620, when 5,000 people were captured and left to die in Aceh.
He again sacked Johor in 1623 and took
Nias
Nias ( id, Pulau Nias, Nias language: ''Tanö Niha'') (sometimes called Little Sumatra in English) is an island located off the western coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Nias is also the name of the archipelago () of which the island is the centre, ...
in 1624/5. At this point Aceh's strength seriously threatened the Portuguese holding of
Melaka
Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...
. In 1629, he sent several hundred ships to attack Melaka, but the mission was a devastating failure. According to Portuguese sources, all of his ships were destroyed along with 19,000 men. He however only managed to capture two major port cities in
Melaka
Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...
. After this loss, Iskandar Muda launched only two more sea expeditions, in 1630/1 and 1634, both to suppress revolts in
Pahang
Pahang (; Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a sultanate and ...
and to firmly establish
Islam in the region. His sultanate maintained control over northern
Sumatra, but was never able to gain supremacy in the strait or expand the empire to the rich
pepper
Pepper or peppers may refer to:
Food and spice
* Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant
** Black pepper
* ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae
** Bell pepper
** Chili ...
-producing region of
Lampung
Lampung ( Lampung: ), officially the Province of Lampung ( id, Provinsi Lampung) is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Sumatra. It has a short border with the province of Bengkulu to the northwest, and ...
on the southern part of the island, which was under the control of the
sultanate of Banten
The Banten Sultanate (كسلطانن بنتن) was a Bantenese Islamic trading kingdom founded in the 16th century and centred in Banten, a port city on the northwest coast of Java; the contemporary English name of both was Bantam. It is said ...
.
Iskandar Muda was also known to be cruel as he devised torture techniques and caused humiliation to those who failed to please him. In one
cockfighting
A cockfight is a blood sport, held in a ring called a cockpit. The history of raising fowl for fighting goes back 6,000 years. The first documented use of the ''word'' gamecock, denoting use of the cock as to a "game", a sport, pastime or ente ...
match, a noble who won the match eventually suffered a humiliating death, while generals who failed in their exploits had been on occasion forced to "eat a plate of
turds".
Economy and administration
![Kuta Éseukanda Muda](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2a/Kuta_%C3%89seukanda_Muda.JPG)
The economic foundations of the sultanate was the
spice trade, especially in pepper. The conflicts between Aceh and Johor and Portuguese Malacca, as well as the numerous pepper-producing ports in the sultanate's domain, were the main causes of the military conflict.
["Iskandar Muda", in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica'', 15th ed., 2002, vol. VI: p. 408-409.] Other major exports included
cloves and
nutmeg
Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, an ...
s, as well as
betel nut
The betel (''Piper betle'') is a vine of the family Piperaceae, which includes pepper and kava. The betel plant is native to Southeast Asia. It is an evergreen, dioecious perennial, with glossy heart-shaped leaves and white catkins. Betel p ...
s, whose narcotic properties bypassed the Muslim prohibition of alcohol. Exports, encouraged by the
Ottoman Sultans as an alternative to the "infidel" (i.e. Portuguese)-controlled route around Africa, added to the wealth of the sultanate. Iskandar Muda also made shrewd economic decisions that supported growth, such as low interest rates and the widespread use of small gold coins (''mas''). However, like other sultanates in the area it had trouble compelling the farms in the hinterland to produce sufficient excess food for the military and commercial activities of the capital. Indeed, one of the aims of Iskandar Muda's campaigns was to bring
prisoners-of-war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...
who could act as
slaves for agricultural production.
[Ricklefs, 35]
He was known as a centralizing leader who was intolerant of private trade and adopted a policy of monopolizing the court as the primary contact person with foreigners that were able to establish important terms of trade. He adopted a more predictable legal process and was able to amass a large fortune and a powerful army.
One reason for Iskandar Muda's success, in contrast to the weaker sultans who preceded and succeeded him, was his ability to suppress the Acehnese elite, known as the ''
orang kaya'' ("powerful men"). Through the royal monopoly on trade, he was able to keep them dependent on his favour.
The ''orang kaya'' were forced to attend court where they could be supervised, and were prohibited from building independent houses, which could be used for military purposes or hold cannons.
[Barwise and White, 116] He sought to create a new nobility of “war leaders” (
Malay language
Malay (; ms, Bahasa Melayu, links=no, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , Rejang script, Rencong: ) is an Austronesian languages, Austronesian language that is an official language of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, and that is also spo ...
: ''
hulubalang Hulubalang ( Jawi: هولوبالڠ) were the military nobility of the classical Malay kingdoms in Southeast Asia. In western sources, "''Hulubalang''" is roughly translated as "warlord", "commander", "general" or simply "warrior". An early literar ...
'';
Acehnese: ''uleëbalang''), whom he gave districts (''mukim'') in feudal tenure. After his reign, however, the elite often supported weaker sultans, to maintain their own autonomy.
He also sought to replace the Acehnese princes with royal officials called ''panglima'', who had to report annually and were subject to periodic appraisal. An elite palace guard was created, consisting of 3,000 women. He passed legal reforms which created a network of courts using
Islamic jurisprudence.
His system of law and administration became a model for other Islamic states in Indonesia.
Iskandar Muda's reign was also marked by considerable brutality, directed at disobedient subjects. He also did not hesitate to execute wealthy subjects and confiscate their wealth. Punishments for offences were gruesome; a French visitor in the 1620s reported "every day the King would have people’s noses cut off, eyes dug out, castrations, feet cut off, or hands, ears, and other parts mutilated, very often for some very small matter."
He had his own son
Crown Prince
A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wi ...
Meurah Pupok executed
Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
and named his son-in-law, the son of the captured
Sultan of Pahang as his successor
Iskandar Thani.
Culture
During Iskandar Muda's reign, eminent Islamic scholars were attracted to Aceh and made it a centre of Islamic scholarship. Iskandar Muda favoured the tradition of the
Sufi mystics
Hamzah Pansuri and
Syamsuddin of Pasai, both of whom resided at the court of Aceh. These writers' works were translated into other Indonesian languages, and had considerable influence across the peninsula. Both were later denounced for their heretical ideas by
Nuruddin ar-Raniri, who arrived in the Aceh court during the reign of Iskandar Thani, and their books were ordered to be burnt.
The chronicle ''Hikayat Aceh'' ("The Story of Aceh") was probably written during the reign of Iskandar Muda,
[Ricklefs, 52.] although some date it later.
It describes the history of the sultanate and praises Iskandar Muda in his youth. It was apparently inspired by the Persian ''
Akbarnama
The ''Akbarnama'', which translates to ''Book of Akbar'', the official chronicle of the reign of Akbar, the third Mughal Emperor (), commissioned by Akbar himself and written by his court historian and biographer, Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak. It was w ...
'' for the Mogul Emperor
Akbar.
The ''Hikayat Aceh'' described Iskandar Muda as a scion of the lineage (''nasab'') and race (''bangsa'') of Iskandar Zulkarnain,
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
. Through this statement, the ''hikayat'' presented Aceh as a part of the
Malay world, since Iskandar Zulkarnain was the purported ancestor of the
Melaka
Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...
,
Johor
Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest. Johor shares maritime ...
,
Perak and
Pahang
Pahang (; Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a sultanate and ...
rulers.
Legacy
Among the Acehnese, Iskandar Muda is revered as a hero and symbol of Aceh's past greatness.
[Barwise and White, 117.] Posthumously he was given the title ''Po Teuh Meureuhom'', which means "Our Beloved Late Lord",
or "Marhum Mahkota Alam".
He has several buildings and structures in and near
Banda Aceh named after him, including the
Sultan Iskandarmuda Airport
Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport ( Indonesian: ''Bandar Udara Internasional Sultan Iskandar Muda'', Acehnese: ''Bandar Udara Antar Nanggroë Sultan Iskandar Muda''), also called Banda Aceh International Airport ( Indonesian: ''Bandar U ...
and Sultan Iskandar Muda Air Force Base.
Kodam Iskandar Muda is the name of the
military area commands overseeing
Aceh Province.
Notes
References
*Leonard Y. Andaya. ''Leaves of the Same Tree: Trade and Ethnicity in the Straits of Melaka''. Singapore: NUS Press, 2010.
*J.M. Barwise and N.J. White. ''A Traveller’s History of Southeast Asia''. New York: Interlink Books, 2002.
*Raden Hoesein Djajadiningrat. '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.
*Denys Lombard. ''Le sultanat d'Atjéh au temps d'Iskandar Muda, 1607-1636''. Paris: École francaise d'Extrême-Orient.
*Hans Penth. ''Hikajat Atjeh: Die Erzählung von der Abkunft und den Jugendjaren des Sultan Iskandar Muda von Atjeh (Sumatra)''. Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1969.
*M.C. Ricklefs. ''A History of Modern Indonesia Since c. 1300'', 2nd ed. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1994.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iskandar Muda
Sultans of Aceh
1580s births
1636 deaths
Indonesian Muslims
National Heroes of Indonesia
17th-century Indonesian people
16th-century Indonesian people