The era of Sultan Muhammad Hassan

WHEN Sultan Saiful Rijal,

the sixth, died in 1581, he was succeeded by his son Sultan Shah Brunei. But Sultan Shah Brunei ruled for only two years and he was quite old by the time he ascended the throne. Sultan Saiful Rijal had reigned for a long time by the time he passed away.

!Sultan Shah Brunei however knew that he did not have much time left. He also did not have any male heir to pass the throne to. He surrendered the throne to his younger brother, after reigning for about a year. Sultan Shah Brunei became Brunei's third Begawan Sultan after he abdicated the throne.

!Sultan Muhammad Hassan became the ninth Sultan of Brunei Darussalam in 1582. Not much was known of Sultan Muhammad Hassan but it was said that he was a brave Sultan. He was very conscious of the need to protect the sovereignty of the country, look after the well being of the people and also conscious of the need to prevent enemy intrusion into Brunei Darussalam.

!Sultan Muhammad Hassan lived through the period when Brunei was attacked and invaded by the Spanish dubbed as the Castillan War (Perang Kastila) during the reign of his father Sultan Saiful Rijal. It took the might of Bendahara Sakam and his soldiers to drive the Spanish back to Manila.

!As a result of the attack, one of the many things which Sultan Muhammad Hassan did was to build a fort across the river as well as a fortification around the Sultan's palace. Sultan Muhammad Hassan built his palace at Tanjung Kindana. From Tanjung Kindana, he built a bridge linking Tanjung Kindana at Kubu Lapau to Kuala Pulau Chermin.

!The fort surrounding the palace had cannons with proper names. Among the well known cannons were Seri Negeri, Raja Hindi, Raja Derwis, Si-Kula, Si-Tambang, Si-Dewa, Si-Mangkasar, Si-Pitutan, Si-Gandong, Si-Puchong, and Si-Gantar Alam.

Sultan Muhammad Hasan had four wives and several concubines. Among his well known children were Pengiran Muda Abdul Jalilul Akbar who succeeded him when he died, Pengiran Muda Tengah who became Sarawak's first Sultan and Pengiran Muda Muhammad Ali who became the 12th Sultan of Brunei.

!The splendour of Brunei during the reign of Sultan Muhammad Hassan was as well known as the Acheh government under the reign of Sultan Iskandar Muda Mahkota Alam Shah. The fame of Brunei was not only known among the regional government but also among international travellers. One of the earliest Dutchmen to come to Brunei was Liver Van Noorf who came to Brunei in 1600.

Even the Spanish who had burnt Brunei Town a few years earlier were willing to come back to Brunei as traders. A letter from Don Francisco Tello, the Governor General of Manila dated 1599 imploring for a return of normal relationship survived till today. He addressed the letter to Sultan Adil. Sultan Adil (adil means just or fair in Malay) was another name for Sultan Muhammad Hassan.

!Sultan Muhammad Hassan also regained control over several islands and regions which broke away from Brunei. Renewed contacts were made with former dependencies of Brunei. One was Sulu. One of his princes, Pengiran Shahbandar Maharaja Laila was appointed as the Raja of Sulu. In 1617, Brunei's army conquered Santao and destroyed the city causing damages as much as $1 million dollars. In those days, even Manila paid tributes to Brunei Darussalam.

!Sultan Muhammad Hassan was also said to be instrumental in appointing four wazirs or viziers instead of two. The original wazirs were Duli Pengiran Bendahara and Duli Pengiran Temenggong. He added the titles and positions of Duli Pengiran Digadong and Duli Pengiran Pemancha. He appointed a reasonable number of Cheterias, Manteris and other nobilities as he required. According to legends, he had 40 personal warriors who is said to be so strong that even metal cannot pierce their skin.

!Among the most important contribution made by Sultan Muhammad Hassan was a set of laws or known as the canons or laws of Brunei. They were also known as Sultan Muhammad Hassan's canons. It is not known who actually wrote the canons. But it was found together with other papers during the reign of Sultan Muhammad Hassan, so the laws were attributed to him.

!The laws were probably originally drafted much earlier than that. However the laws were updated according to Islamic laws and conventions at that time.

!The canons were divided into three parts. Each of the set of laws was carried out by a different person. The first part was known as Hukum Bendahara, the second Hukum Temenggong and the third was known as Hukum Shahbandar.

Each of the set of laws deal with different aspects of the laws. Hukum Bendahara was dealt with by the Duli Pengiran Bendahara for the more serious capital crimes and matters regarding nobilities, Hukum Temenggong was dealt with by Duli Pengiran Temenggong for lighter crimes and punishments, whereas Hukum Shahbandar was dealt with by Pengiran Shahbandar for matters concerning the rules of customs and trades.

The laws were very indeed modern and covered virtually all aspects. For instance Chapter 33 covered matters with regard to debts and Chapter 34 covered matters with regard to bankruptcy. The laws also covered matters with regard to marriages and divorces, interest payments, slanders, theft, burglary, murder, trade and many other aspects of life and matters related to the well being of the population.

!Graham Saunders in his book 'A History of Brunei' described Sultan Muhammad Hassan "... was in many respects an enlightened ruler, with a broader interest in the world and an interest in theological debate. He impressed the Jesuit, Father Antonio Preira, who was resident in Brunei for some months when caught by the monsoons, with both his tolerance and his knowledge ..."

!Sultan Muhammad Hassan died in 1598 in his palace at Tanjung Kindana and as a result he was known as Marhum Di-Tanjung.The Brunei Times