Draft:Battle of Bukit Putus
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| Battle of Bukit Putus | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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Sungai Ujong Supported by:  United Kingdom | Seri Menanti | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Tengku Ahmad Tunggal Dato' Klana Syed Abdul Rahman P.J. Murray G.N. Channer |
Tuanku Antah Dato' Siamang Gagap | ||||||
| History of Malaysia |
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 Malaysia portal |
The Battle of Bukit Putus (Malay: Perang Bukit Putus, Negeri Sembilan Malay: Poghang Bukik Putuih) was a civil war that occurred in 1875, fought between Tengku Ahmad Tunggal and Dato' Klana Syed Abdul Rahman, who were the heir apparent of the Seri Menanti throne and the Undang of Sungai Ujong; and Yamtuan Antah, the ruler of Seri Menanti at Bukit Putus in present day Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.
Background
[edit]After gaining independence from the Johor Sultanate in 1773, Negeri Sembilan had been practicing elective monarchy whereby a council of chieftains, namely the Undang Yang Empat will have to elect one of the princes of the Pagaruyung dynasty to assume the role of Yamtuan Besar, with Raja Melewar being the first person to hold the title after the Sultan of Johor conferred the powers upon him to rule over the confederacy. After Melewar's death, the chieftains again sailed to Pagaruyung to choose a new royalty to be instated as Yamtuan Besar, of which the kingdom obliged by sending Raja Hitam. The last Sumatran-born Yamtuan Besar tu rule over Negeri Sembilan was Raja Lenggang whose begotten son Tunku Radin would take over his father's role as the first Yamtuan Besar to be born and bred in Negeri Sembilan. Tunku Imam, who was Yamtuan Radin's near relative, was later installed as the fifth Yamtuan Besar.
Constitutional crisis
[edit]After the death of Yamtuan Imam in 1869, a dispute regarding the succession of the Seri Menanti throne arose, contested by cousins Tunku Ahmad Tunggal, the son of the late ruler, and Tunku Lintau and Tunku Antah, who were issues of Yamtuan Radin. The siblings's mother, Tunku Ampuan Intan, was instated as regent by Dato' Siamang Gagap, a nobleman of the palace, on the pretext that the successor heir to Yamtuan Imam could be finalized. She served a four-year tenure, from 1869 to 1872.
The crisis over the appointment of the heir to the throne occured as Tunku Ahmad Tunggal was deemed undesirable by the palace nobles to succeed his father for his alleged bad and tyrannical behaviour. Siamang Gagap's role was to prevent him from ascending the throne, and in the same time offered Tunku Lintau to succeed his uncle, which he later declined. The proposal of investing Tunku Antah as Yamtuan Besar was later greenlit by the penghulus of Tanah Mengandung, which consisted of five luaks – Terachi, Ulu Muar, Jempol, Ineh and Gunung Pasir – as well as the Undang of Johol, much to the displeasure of the other three Undangs, namely of Sungai Ujong, Jelebu and Rembau.
The installation of Tunku Antah by the penghulus of Tanah Mengandung was seen as violating the rights of the Undang to choose and elect a new Yamtuan Besar, and in the same time has encroached the sovereignty of Sungai Ujong, Jelebu and Rembau. As a sign of protest, the three luaks unanimously left Negeri Sembilan as they don't acknowledge Tunku Antah as Yamtuan Besar. Tunku Ahmad Tunggal, who was devastated by Tunku Antah's appointment, complained to Dato' Klana Syed Abdul Rahman, the Undang of Sungai Ujong, which he took pity on the broken prince. In retaliation of violating Sungai Ujong's powers to elect a Yamtuan Besar, Terachi, which previously under the suzerainty of Sungai Ujong, was taken back from Seri Menanti in 1875.
The battle
[edit]Sungai Ujong became a protectorate of the British Empire under a treaty signed on 21 April 1874, with Capt. Patrick J. Murray as Resident. Being no longer part of Negeri Sembilan, Dato' Klana Syed Abdul Rahman requested that the border between Sungai Ujong and Tanah Mengandung to be measured and demarcated. Rembau and Jelebu, who were also out, followed thenceforth.
Tuanku Antah mobilised 4,000 soldiers in preparation for the oncoming British invasion, and was helped by several others: Dato' Siamang Gagap, the Tunku Besar of Tampin, and the people of Rembau, Jelebu, and Johol. By then, they fortified Bukit Putus, a mountain pass that separates Tanah Mengandung from Sungai Ujong. On 25 November 1875, his army marched into Bukit Puts and Paroi, where he warned Murray not to interfere with his sovereignty by trespassing into Terachi. The British Resident then requested help from the Straits Settlements, who sent 20 soldiers led by Lt. Peyton from Malacca, while Lt. Hinxman and his troops immediately dug trenches and fortified their compound, due to uprisings. Hinxman also brought another army with him, consisting of 30 troops, 30 policemen, and six Arabs, to attack Tuanku Antah at Paroi, but they were outnumbered by the locals, who surrounded and defeated them, while Tuanku Antah's forces occupied a house along the banks of the Linggi River as their base of operations.[1][2]
On 5 December 1875, the British used Dato' Kelana's cannons to fight against Tuanku Antah. After an hour-long shootout, Hinxman and Peyton advanced through a swamp to destroy Tuanku Antah's fort, but they were not able to find him, and Tunku Laksamana took his place to govern Seri Menanti.[1][2]
Reinforced by 350 soldiers led by Governor Anson from Penang, the British bombarded Tuanku Antah's fortress. Tuanku Antah was forced to retreat, and the British retook Paroi. With the arrival of the battleship HMS Thistle to Sungai Ujong, still more reinforcements arrived under Lieutenant Colonel Clay, who led his group of 280 soldiers to retake Bukit Sungai Ujong. He later led his troops through Langkap into Bukit Putus, where his forces defeated more of Tuanku Antah's soldiers, and advanced on to Seri Menanti, where they ultimately prevailed and burned Istana Pulih, Tuanku Antah's residence.
Aftermath
[edit]Notified of the British approaching to his capital, Tuanku Antah fled with his family to Johor, where they came under the protection of Sultan Abu Bakar.[1][2][3]
Sultan Abu Bakar then advised him to make peace with the British. In May 1876, Tuanku Antah arranged a meeting with the four Undangs of Negeri Sembilan between them and William Jervois, the Governor of Singapore. Under a peace treaty between all the belligerents, the British agreed to allow Tuanku Antah to rule Seri Menanti, Johol, Ulu Muar, Jempol, Terachi, Gunung Pasir, and Ineh, and renamed his title Yang di-Pertuan Seri Menanti while the other regions of Negeri Sembilan would continue to be ruled by their respective leaders, and Sungai Ujong remained under British rule.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c Gullick, J. M. (1954). "The War with Yam Tuan Antah". Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society. 27 (1 (165)): 1–23. ISSN 2304-7550.
- ^ a b c Zain, Sabri. "The Battle of Bukit Putus". sabrizain.org. Retrieved 2024-10-30.
- ^ Abdullah, A. Rahman Tang (2023-04-10). "Abu Bakar and the Conspiracy to Revive the Ancient Empire: Searching for Legitimacy in Johor-Pahang Relations". Paramita: Historical Studies Journal. 33 (1). doi:10.15294/paramita.v33i1.43220. ISSN 2407-5825.
External links
[edit]- Punca Sebenar Perang Bukit Putus - the complete documentation of the war in Malay