Sultan Abdul Samad
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Sultan Abdul Samad ibni Almarhum Raja Abdullah ( Jawi: سلطان عبد الصمد ابن المرحوم راج عبد الله ; born Raja Abdul Samad bin Raja Abdullah, 1804 - 6 February 1898) was the fourth Sultan of Selangor. Raja Abdul Samad was born in 1804 at Bukit Melawati in
Selangor Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east ...
son to Raja Abdullah ibni Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim Shah, the younger brother of Sultan Muhammad Shah. His reign lasted 41 years from 1857 until his death in 1898. His time on the throne saw the only
civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
in
Selangor Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east ...
, the establishment of
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
, the introduction of the Selangor flag and coat of arms and the start of
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
involvement in Selangor state affairs.


Rise to the throne

Before becoming the Sultan of Selangor, Abdul Samad held the title of ''Tengku Panglima Raja'' and held authority over Langat. The third sultan of Selangor, Sultan Muhammad Shah, died on 6 January 1857 without appointing an heir. This started a dispute between the royal court and dignitaries of Selangor to choose the next sultan. To select the next sultan Malay customs dictate that the son of a royal wife takes precedence over the sons of other wives. This makes Raja Mahmud the next legitimate heir but he was too young and was unable to exert his right. Sultan Muhammad's older and more competent sons, Raja Laut and Raja Sulaiman were sons of
concubines Concubinage is an interpersonal and sexual relationship between a man and a woman in which the couple does not want, or cannot enter into a full marriage. Concubinage and marriage are often regarded as similar but mutually exclusive. Concubi ...
, the Sultan's sons-in-law, Raja Jumaat and Raja Abdullah, were from the Riau branch of the family, hence they were all ineligible. This left Raja Abdul Samad, the nephew and son-in-law of the late Sultan, as the candidate with the strongest contention. Raja Jumaat and Raja Abdullah became convinced that they could become the power behind the throne if they supported Raja Abdul Samad to take the throne. With their patronage and the support of four other state dignitaries, a consensus was made to select the nephew of Sultan Muhammad Shah, Tengku Abdul Samad ibni Tengku Abdullah. Other sources state that Selangor went on for two years without a sultan until he was favoured and that, unlike his predecessors, he was not formally installed by the
Sultan of Perak The Sultan of Perak (سلطان ڤيراق) is one of the oldest hereditary seats among the Malay states. When the Sultanate of Malacca empire fell to Portugal in 1511, Sultan Mahmud Syah I retreated to Kampar, Sumatra, and died there in ...
.


Reign

Following the successful establishment of the Ampang tin mines by Muhamad Shah, Sultan Abdul Samad used the tin ore to trade with the states of the Straits Settlements. The mines in turn attracted even more Chinese miners with the help of Raja Abdullah bin Raja Jaafar, one of his sons-in-law and
Yap Ah Loy Kapitan China Yap Ah Loy (; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Ya̍p Â-lòi'', Jawi: ; 14 March 1837 – 15 April 1885), also known as Yap Tet Loy and Yap Mao Lan, is an important figure of early Kuala Lumpur. He served as the third '' Kapitan China'' of Kual ...
, a Chinese
Kapitan Capitan and Kapitan are equivalents of the English Captain in other European languages. Capitan, Capitano, and Kapitan may also refer to: Places in the United States *Capitan, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Capitan, New Mexico, a villag ...
. In 1866, the Sultan gave Raja Abdullah the power and authority over Klang. This fueled the feud between Raja Abdullah and Raja Mahadi, who was the previous administrator of Klang. The dispute led to the
Klang War The Klang War or Selangor Civil War was a series of conflicts that lasted from 1867 to 1874 in the Malay state of Selangor in the Malay Peninsula (modern-day Malaysia). It was initially fought between Raja Abdullah bin Raja Jaafar, the admini ...
. The Sultan appointed his son-in-law, Tengku Dhiauddin Zainal Rashid (a.k.a. Tengku Kudin), as Vice Yamtuan and arbitrator twice during the war; first on 26 June 1868 and again on 22 July 1871. At the same time he handed over management of the entire state. He also provided Langat to Tengku Kudin to help him fund the handling of the war. Tengku Kudin in turn engaged the help of Pahang, mercenaries and Sir Andrew Clarke of the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
. This marked the first British involvement in local politics. The Sultan later handed over the ruling power of Klang to Tungku Kudin after the war was won in 1874. In 1878 Tengku Kudin stood down from this post. After a number of piracy attacks took place in Selangor, Andrew Clarke assigned
Frank Swettenham Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham (28 March 1850 – 11 June 1946) was a British colonial administrator who became the first Resident general of the Federated Malay States, which brought the Malay states of Selangor, Perak, Negeri Sembilan and ...
as a live-in advisor to Sultan Abdul Samad in August 1874. Sultan Abdul Samad accepted James Guthrie Davidson as the first
British Resident A resident minister, or resident for short, is a government official required to take up permanent residence in another country. A representative of his government, he officially has diplomatic functions which are often seen as a form of indi ...
of Selangor in 1875. In October the same year, Sultan Abdul Samad sent a letter to Andrew Clarke requesting for Selangor to be placed under the British
protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...
. During his reign, the areas of
Semenyih Semenyih is a town and a mukim in Hulu Langat District in southeastern Selangor, Malaysia along the Kajang–Seremban road. It is southeast of downtown Kuala Lumpur and southeast of Kajang. Etymology The meaning of the name of the town is un ...
,
Beranang Beranang (Chinese: 峇玲瓏) is a town and a mukim in Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia. Residential areas * Eco Majestic * Bandar Rinching * Bandar Tasik Kesuma * Bandar Bukit Mahkota Transportation Car Federal Route 1 (Kuala Lum ...
and
Broga Broga is a small town in Lenggeng, Seremban District, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. While the famous Broga Hill situated in the part of Selangor state. History and etymology Broga takes its name from the River Broga which runs through the area. Th ...
went under Selangor jurisdiction.
Lukut Lukut ( Jawi: لوكوت; zh, 芦骨) is a suburb located to the northeast of Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It was once part of Selangor, serving as a thriving tin mining town in the early 19th-century before being ceded to Sunga ...
however was handed to Dato' Kelana of Sungai Ujong on 30 July 1880. The Sultan was awarded the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) conferring the title ''Sir''.
Jugra Jugra (Jawi: جوڬرا, zh, 蚶山) is a mukim, historical town and former royal town in Kuala Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia. It is separated from Pulau Carey by the Langat River. The town is administered by the Zone 16 of the Kual ...
became the royal capital of Selangor when Sultan Abdul Samad built the Jugra Palace and moved there in 1875. The state capital was moved from Klang to
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
in 1880. In 1893, he helped found one of Malaysia's premier schools,
Victoria Institution The Victoria Institution is the oldest secondary school in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is a memorial school, so-called because it was partly funded by public subscription intended for the erection of a permanent memorial to commemorate the Golden ...
in
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
along with Kapitan Yap Kwan Seng,
K. Thamboosamy K. Thamboosamy Pillay (Tamil language, Tamil: தம்புசாமி பிள்ளை) was a prominent Malaysian of Tamil people, Tamil origin during the pre-independence years. He was considered the leader of the Tamil people, Tamil commun ...
and
Loke Yew Loke Yew (), born Wong Loke Yew, CMG, LL.D. (1845–1917) was a Chinese-born, of Cantonese descent, business magnate. During his lifetime, he played a significant role in the development of Kuala Lumpur and was also one of the founding fath ...
. Sultan Abdul Samad was made one of the first two patrons of the school. Sultan Abdul Samad was a member of the Council of Rulers for the Federated Malay States, under the British colonial regime. The sultans of the four Federated Malay States of Perak,
Selangor Selangor (; ), also known by its Arabic language, Arabic honorific Darul Ehsan, or "Abode of Sincerity", is one of the 13 Malaysian states. It is on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and is bordered by Perak to the north, Pahang to the east ...
, Negeri Sembilan, 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 ...
were represented at the first
Durbar Durbar can refer to: * Conference of Rulers, a council of Malay monarchs * Durbar festival, a yearly festival in several towns of Nigeria * Durbar floor plate, a hot-rolled structural steel that has been designed to give excellent slip resistance ...
, which convened in 1897 at
Kuala Kangsar The Kuala Kangsar (Perak Malay: ''Kole Kangso'') is the royal town of Perak, Malaysia. It is located at the downstream of Kangsar River where it joins the Perak River, approximately northwest of Ipoh, Perak's capital, and southeast of ...
, Perak. Sultan Abdul Samad interacted openly with his people as observers noted that he mingled by chatting in local markets, while taking his daily walks or while watching a
cockfight 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 ent ...
.


Death

Sultan Abdul Samad died on 6 February 1898 at the age of 93 after reigning for 41 years. He was laid to rest in his own
mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...
in Bukit Jugra. He had 12 children, 6 princes and 6 princesses from two wives. Raja Muda Raja Musa, the
heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
, died in 1884. Hence next in line was Raja Muda Raja Musa's eldest son, Raja Sulaiman Shah ibni Raja Musa.


Legacy

The
Sultan Abdul Samad Building The Sultan Abdul Samad Building ( Malay: Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad) is a late-nineteenth century building located along Jalan Raja in front of the Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) and the Royal Selangor Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The ...
in
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , sub ...
, Sultan Abdul Samad Secondary School in
Petaling Jaya ) , website = , image_skyline = , image_caption = ''From top, left to right:Skyline of Petaling Jaya, the 1 Utama Mall integrated with Bandar Utama Station, the Kota Darul Ehsan arch, the Petaling J ...
,
Sultan Abdul Samad Mosque The Sultan Abdul Samad Mosque or KLIA Mosque is a mosque near Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) at Sepang District, Selangor, Malaysia. The mosque was originally named as KLIA Mosque and was officially named after Almarhum Sultan Sir A ...
in
Kuala Lumpur International Airport Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is Malaysia's main international airport. It is located in the Sepang District of Selangor, approximately south of Kuala Lumpur and serves the city's greater conurbation. KLIA is the largest and b ...
(KLIA) and the Sultan Abdul Samad Library in
Universiti Putra Malaysia University of Putra Malaysia ( Malay: ''Universiti Putra Malaysia''), abbreviated as UPM, is a Malaysian public research university located in Serdang, Selangor. Formerly it was named Universiti Pertanian Malaysia (Agricultural University o ...
are named after him.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul Samad Of Selangor 1804 births Malaysian people of Malay descent 1898 deaths Malaysian people of Bugis descent Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Sultans of Selangor 19th-century monarchs in Asia