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List of sultans of Sulu

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List of sultans of Sulu
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Sultans began ruling Sulu, a Sunni Muslim thalassocracy originating in today's Philippines, starting in the 15th century. Practically all of them were descended from the original sultan Sharif ul-Hāshim. The Ruma Bechara, the advisory council of Datus and Sharifs, had the responsibility of electing the next heir apparent (Raja Muda) from among the male-line heirs.[5]

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The sultanate began losing power during the 19th century, culminating in the abolition of the sultan's temporal powers in 1915. Since then, save for some instances of recognition by the Philippine government related to the North Borneo dispute, the title of sultan has carried with it no political powers or privileges and became mostly linked to non-sovereign cultural figures.[6][7]

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Pre-sultanate kings

The island of Jolo was divided into three kingdoms before the sultanate arose. Maimbung was the oldest settlement, followed by those of the Tagimaha (western Jolo) and Baklaya people (northern Jolo).[8]

Three kings from Sulu were recorded in Chinese annals due to their 1417 visit to the court of the Yongle Emperor.[9][2]

  • East King Paduka Pahala (Pāduka Bhaṭṭāra)
  • West King Maharaja Kamalud Din (or Mahalachii)
  • Cave (Dong) King Paduka Patulapok

Paduka Pahala, the East King and the most powerful of the three, fell ill and died during his journey. His eldest son Tumahan returned to Sulu to assume his father's throne, while two younger brothers stayed behind in China, where their descendants live to this day.[9][10]

Soon after, local tradition states that Sharif ul-Hāshim arrived in Sulu and married the princess Dayang-dayang Paramisuli, daughter of local chief Rajah Baguinda, founding the Sultanate of Sulu.[11]

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List of sultans

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Claimants after 1936

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Partially recognized sultans under the Philippines (1936–1986)

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A family tree released by the Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines at the height of the 2013 Lahad Datu standoff.

Any claimed political sovereignty of the sultanate was formally abolished in 1915, when Sultan Jamalul Kiram II renounced his remaining territories to the Insular Government.[42][43][44] Its successor state, the Philippines, became a republic which repeatedly attested in its constitutions that no titles of royalty or nobility are recognized. Any payments and recognition of the Sultanate of Sulu from the Philippine government ceased in 1936, after the death of the last sultan.[e]

Despite this, some administrations of the Philippines have held dealings with the House of Kiram. This has been inherently linked to the interests of the Philippines in the North Borneo dispute: in return for some forms of recognition desired by the royal family (described as a "symbolic reenactment of the sultanate"),[46] the Philippines emboldened their claim to the territory of what is now Sabah, which would form Malaysia in 1963.[6]

In 1962, during the negociations for Sabah's union with Malaysia, the Philippine government under Diosdado Macapagal dealt with the royal family in an official capacity by recognizing their claim to Sabah.[6] The Instrument of Cession of the Territory of North Borneo was signed by Sultan Mohammed Esmail Kiram and Vice-President Emmanuel Pelaez on 12 September.[45] This view was repeated by the administration of Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos on 24 May 1974, who endorsed Mohammed Mahakuttah Abdullah Kiram's coronation as sultan after his father's death under Memo Order 427, stating that "The Government has always recognised the Sultanate of Sulu as the legitimate claimant to the historical territories of the Republic of Philippines".[47] Marcos' act also acted as an attempt to reduce the Moro National Liberation Front's growing influence in the region.[46]

The descendants of the royal family have also laid their own claim to Sabah, as seen most dramatically in the 2013 Lahad Datu standoff and later in the Malaysia Sulu case.[45] They are still recognised and honoured as de facto royalty by the people in Sulu.[48][7] In some cases, the claimants established religious courts to arbitrate local disputes according to traditional Muslim customs; three of these existed in Sulu in 1963.[f]

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Unrecognized sultans (1986–present)

After Mahakuttah Kiram's death and the People Power Revolution, claimants from rival branches of the royal family appeared. Corazon Aquino was reluctant to renew the Sabah dispute, a position maintained by the succeeding Philippine governments.[46] The administration of Benigno Aquino III studied the succession dispute in 2013, making no declarations of support to any of the contenders.[48] By 2016, there were at least five main pretenders to the title of sultan of Sulu.[4]

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Pretenders from other houses
  • House of Abirin
    • Mohammad Venizar Julkarnain Jainal Abirin[4]
  • House of Bahjin
    • Ibrahim Q. Bahjin-Shakirullah II (2004–present)[4][62]
    • Muizuddin Jainal Abirin Bahjin[4][63]
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Genealogical chart

More information Genealogical chart of the sultans of Sulu ...
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See also

Notes

  1. Arabic: فادك مهاسري مولانا السلطان, romanized: Fāduka Mahāsrī Maūlānā al-Sulṭān, lit.'The Master, His Majesty, Protector, and Sultan'. The titles are of Arabic and Sanskrit origin.[1][2]
  2. During his exile, he would convert to Christianity and be baptized as Don Fernando de Alimud Din, with the regnal name of Ferdinand I. It's unclear whether this was his genuine desire or merely a political move. He returned to his original name and religion prior to being restored to the throne.[28]
  3. Claimed the throne from Badarud-Din II's death in 1884.
  4. Titular from 22 March 1915, when he reliquished all his sovereignty to the United States government.
  5. After the death of Sultan Jamalul Kiram II in 1936, L. H. Foulds, British Consul-General in Manila, inquired the government of the Philippines, successor in sovereignty to the United States of America, regarding the successor to the late sultan. The Philippines replied that they were no longer recognised the existence of the Sultanate of Sulu nor any person that might be appointed as a successor to the late sultan, as Foulds later reported in a letter to the governor of North Borneo dated 28 July 1936. Any Philippine government payments to the royal family were also terminated. Foulds's claim was rebutted by heirs to the late sultan, although the government later restated this position in a memorandum by President Manuel L. Quezon.[45]
  6. They were headed by Mohammed Esmail Kiram (judged cases from southeastern Jolo), Datu Hadji Amilbangsa (father of Ombra Amilbangsa; judged cases from the southern islands), and Jamalul Abirin (son of Jainal Abirin II; judged cases from northeastern Jolo).[49]
  7. Due to different regional spellings, his name appears as Esmail, Esmael, Ismail, or Ismael.
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References

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