The Semantan War and the Resistance Against British Rule

The Semantan War (1891–1895) was a pivotal anti-colonial resistance in Pahang, driven primarily by the dissatisfaction of Malay nobility with British interference. The conflict was sparked in December 1890 when British officer E.A. Wise attempted to build a police station at Lubuk Terua—within Dato’ Bahaman’s jurisdiction—without consultation. This breach of protocol angered Dato’ Bahaman, and his refusal to obey the Sultan's summons led to his dismissal as Orang Kaya Semantan.

On 15 December 1891, Dato’ Bahaman retaliated by ambushing British officer C.E.M. Desborough at the Semantan River, forcing his troops to retreat. This bold move triggered a British military response. On 21 December, forces led by Hugh Clifford and Tengku Mahmud advanced to Kampung Kelubi but were again repelled by the Malays.

As Dato’ Bahaman became a symbol of resistance, the British intensified their efforts. In January 1892, they launched a “Military Movement” involving 800 troops to suppress the uprising. Despite destroying several forts, they failed to capture Dato’ Bahaman. He resurfaced in March 1892, regaining control of Lubuk Terua with support from Tok Gajah and local villagers.

In May, British forces again attacked, pushing the rebels to seek refuge in Kelantan and Terengganu. There, religious leaders like Tok Ku Paluh inspired the resistance with the concept of jihad. On 14 June 1894, Dato’ Bahaman and 100 fighters captured Kuala Tembeling and Jeram Ampai.

However, on 29 June, a British assault led by General Walker ended in heavy losses on both sides, including the death of Acting Administrator Wise. The conflict dwindled after that. By November 1895, key leaders including Dato’ Bahaman sought asylum in Siam and were resettled in Chiengmai, effectively ending the resistance. Tok Gajah and Mat Kilau were reported dead but later revealed to have survived under new identities.
The Semantan War and the Resistance Against British Rule

Dato' Bahaman's Resistance

Born in 1838, Dato' Bahaman's full name was Abdul Rahman Bin Tuanku Imam Nuh, originating from Bangkinang, Kampar, Sumatra. His mother, Rokiah Abdul Rahman, was the daughter of Tok Setia Perkasa Semantan.

He showcased exceptional skills in self-defense, earning him the moniker "Seman Tahan" due to his adeptness in resolving challenges both physically and intellectually.

Historical accounts suggest that Tun Ali, who later became the Bendahara of Pahang, adopted Dato' Bahaman at one point. During their childhood, he also enjoyed a companionship with Tun Ahmad, who would later ascend to the throne as Sultan.

Dato' Bahaman was distinguished as one of the esteemed "Orang Besar Berlapan" and was honored with the title "Dato' Setia Perkasa Pahlawan Semantan" for his leadership during the civil strife involving Sultan Ahmad and his cousin Wan Mutahir. He also led Pahang's forces in aiding Tengku Kudin during the civil conflict in Klang, Selangor.

Following Orang Kaya Indera Segara's demise, Sultan Ahmad appointed Dato' Bahaman as the Orang Kaya Temerloh.

The discourteous demeanor of the British colonizers towards Sultan Ahmad and the Malay nobility in governance, particularly concerning taxes and Malay customs, fueled resentment that ultimately led to opposition.

Tensions escalated with JP Rodger's introduction of new regulations, which included the assignment of British officials referred to as "Pemungut" and "Majistret" to oversee certain territories. The roots of Dato' Bahaman's resistance can be traced back to the provocative actions of C.E.B Desborough, who, as acting Pemangku Pemungut Hasil Semantan, arrested Dato' Bahaman's associates on charges of unauthorized timber harvesting and tax evasion.

The tension ignited in December 1890 when E.A Wise attempted to erect a police station in Lubuk Terua within Dato' Bahaman's domain without consulting him.

This construction was perceived as an infringement on Malay land and disrupted their way of life, prompting Dato' Bahaman to defy the regulations causing hardships for the local populace.

Consequently, he and his followers launched an assault on C.E.M Desborough at Sungai Semantan on December 15, 1891, assuming that Desborough aimed to apprehend him. In this abrupt strike, Desborough's group suffered defeat, leading to the death of three fully armed policemen and injuries to several others.

As a consequence, the British officials fled to Temerloh. Upon learning of the Semantan incident, British authorities in Pahang mustered a military force to counter the Malay opposition.

In a significant retaliatory strike against Dato' Bahaman at Jeram Ampai in 1894, Pahang's fighters, including Dato' Bahaman, were compelled to disperse and retreat into the jungle. This prominent figure from Pahang disappeared, reportedly retreating first to Terengganu and subsequently to Kelantan. By the close of 1895, he and his followers opted to settle in Siam.

Dato' Bahaman's prowess earned praise from Hugh Clifford, who regarded him as "The most expert woodsman in The Peninsular with a unique knowledge of jungle craft."
Dato' Bahaman's Resistance

Dato' Maharaja Lela

Dato' Maharaja Lela, also known as Pandak Lam, held a prominent position in the Perak region and was revered as a valiant warrior and a champion of the Malay people during that era. His primary responsibility was to honor and uphold his pledges and obligations.

According to belief, he was descended from Daeng Selili, the son of the Bugis Raja from the Luwuk District in Sulawesi.

During the reign of Sultan Mudzaffar Shah III, he came to Perak and was appointed as a mufti, bestowed with the title "Dato' Maharaja Lela Tan Lela," granting him the authority to carry out beheadings without questioning.

On the 24th of July 1875, the British coerced Sultan Abdullah into signing a declaration that allowed them to impose taxes. Sultan Abdullah faced the threat of dethronement if he refused to comply. As a consequence of continuing to collect tin taxes in Bidor, the British burned down Raja Ngah Orang Besar Perak's house.

Under immense pressure, Sultan Abdullah signed the declaration, ceding power to the British, and the administration of the state was handed over to the Resident.

Dato' Maharaja Lela, together with other leaders like Orang Kaya-kaya Seri Agar Diraja (commonly known as Dato Sagor) and Ngah Kandin, strategized and formed an alliance to resist British interference in Perak, culminating in the assassination of the British Resident, James Wheller Woodfird Birch (J.W.W. Birch).

This decision was approved during the Durian Sebatang meeting, chaired by Sultan Abdullah and attended by his nobles, on the 21st of July 1875.

Consequently, Birch was killed with the cooperation of Dato Maharaja Lela and his associates, including Datuk Sagor, Siputum, Pandak Endut, Laksamana Mohamad Amin, Ngah Ibrahim, Ngah Jabor, and others.

After the assassination of J.W.W. Birch in Pasir Salak on the 2nd of November 1875, Pandak Lam became one of the most sought-after individuals for capture.

Dato' Maharaja Lela faced a court trial from the 14th to the 22nd of December 1876 in Matang, Perak, and was found guilty of the murder of J.W.W. Birch. As a result, he was sentenced to death by hanging and executed on the 20th of January 1877 in Taiping, Perak.
Dato' Maharaja Lela

British landed in Penang Island

Prior to the English, Penang was originally part of the Malay Sultanate of Kedah. It's known as a harbor for pirates at that time.

In 1786 the sultan of Kedah granted the island of Penang to the British East India Company in exchange for military protection from the Siamese and Burmese armies; until 1867 it was known to the British as Prince of Wales Island.

Captain Francis Light, British naval officer, landed in Penang Island on 11 August 1786 to establish the rule of the East India Company. Deciding on building a fort at that very spot, Light declared that, when ready, the bastion would serve as the main defence post for the island.

By that time, it was inhabited by a few Malays. According to Joseph Kennedy in A History of Malaya, published by MacMillan, "By 1788 the population of Penang was about 1,000, and it increased to 12,000 in 1804, by which time Province Wellesley had been included.

Light's interest in Penang began in 1771, when he proposed the idea of turning the island into a British settlement. The suggestion, which fell on deaf ears at that time, only came under serious consideration twelve years later when Britain struggled with France for naval superiority.

Light landed in Penang Island was the first British beach-head in Malaya, and it presaged the end of Dutch influence on the peninsula.

In 1790, when Sultan Abdullah of Kedah heard that the British would not give protection, he formed an army to get rid of the Dutch and the English. He assembled his men at Prai to retake the island of Penang but was defeated.
British landed in Penang Island

Ceylon Malay

Historically, the Malay community of Sri Lanka is composed of the descendents of the settlers from what is present day Indonesia and those from the landmass of present day Malaysia.

In 1764 it was reported that 2408 Malays serving in Dutch army in Sri Lanka. In 1796 British gain control of coastal Sri Lanka from the Dutch, and begin waves of migration from Malays and establish military schools beginning around 1802 in which Malay language is taught.

The Alamat Lankapuri or News of the Island of Lanka was the first newspaper printed in the Malay vernacular, a language written in Arabic characters with the addition of six letters from other alphabets and existed nine years from 1869 to 1878.

In 1875 the Wajah Selong or Light of Ceylon was published its fortnightly issues circulating largely amongst the Malay-speaking races in Ceylon, the Straits Settlements, Java, Batavia, Holland etc.

In 1901, as much as one-third of the entire population of the Malays in Ceylon lived in the precincts of the Colombo Municipal Council. There were in that area some 4351 Malays. It was the seat of the Ceylon Malay Rifles till is demobilization in 1872. Afterwards, the ex-soldiers were settled in civilian jobs in the locality.

Although Malays have taken pains to affirm their loyalty to their host nation, they have also strengthened relations with Malays in other countries and attempted to foster their own cultural and literary traditions.
Ceylon Malay

Pahang War (1891-1895)

A more significant movement against British control occurred in Pahang. A few chieftains in the interior refused to give up their independence and power, and their resistance led to a four year war (1891-1895). 

The most vocal and well known chief was Dato Bahaman of Semantan. Things came to a head in 1891 when the Resident persuaded Sultan Ahmad to sign a decree depriving a district chief, Dato’ Bahaman, of his title. 

The latter came out in open defiance, initiating a series of armed confrontations known as the Pahang War. 

Orang Kaya Semantan, Abdul Rahman popularly known as Dato Bahaman. He was described as ‘the most expert woodsman in the peninsula’, bearing ‘a unique knowledge of jungle craft’.

In December 1891, C.E.M Desborough, Collector of the Semantan district, accompanied by a Sikh and Malay Police Force, arrested three of Brahman’s followers for unlicensed collection of jungle prodcue and refusing bail, took them to court.

Dato’ Bahaman came to their rescue, killing three policemen, capturing the Lubok Trua police station and pursuing the fleeing policemen to Temerloh.

The incident sparked a rebellion that spread rapidly over Hulu Pahang, drawing the chiefs of the Semantan, Jelai and Tembeling Rivers into the protracted Pahang War (1891-95).

Tok Gajah or Imam Perang Rasu and his son Mat Kilau, and Panglima Muda or Jempul – each with his respective grievances with the British residential system, rose in opposition.

Bahaman and his large following of Malays and Orang Asli fought the invaders with hit and run attacks on the police posts. British reinforcements were brought in form other states, and the rebels were forced into the jungle.

The Malays prepared to fight against the British in the end of 1891, and it was not until 1895 that the conflict ceased, when forces led by Hugh Clifford finally forced Bahaman across the border into Kelantan.

On one hand, the Malay chiefs would not accept the regulations put forth by the British and on the other hand, the Malays were dissatisfied with British intervention in Pahang’s politics.

There are many Malay accounts of great bravery in the face of foreign invasion, and a popular warrior Mat Kilau, became a legend during this war.
Pahang War (1891-1895)

History of Perlis

Perlis was originally part of Kedah, though it variously fell under Thai and Acehnese sovereignty. In 1821, Siam had annexed Kedah.

The sultan of Kedah made unsuccessful attempts to regain his territory until, in 1842, he agreed to Siamese terms.  The Siamese withdrew their military forces from Kedah and Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Halim Syah was reinstated to the Kedah ruling house.

The price Kedah paid was that the part of the state bordering Siam was sliced off to create the state of Perlis. Perlis then became a separate vassal principality state under a governor, Syed Hussain Jamalulail.

On 20 May 1843, the Siamese made Syed Hussain Jamalulail, maternal grandson of the Sultan of Kedah, became the first Raja of Perlis and he was obligated to send the triennial Bunga Emas to Bangkok as acknowledgement of Siam’s suzerainty.

The Siamese reinstalled the sultan but made Perlis into separate vassal principality with its own raja.

The British exerted pressure on Siam and in 1909, by the Treaty of Bangkok, the Siamese ceded their Malay dependencies (Perlis, Kedah and Terengganu). A British Resident later was installed at Arau.
History of Perlis

Briggs' Plan in Malaya

The Malayan Emergency in British-rules Malaya was declared in June 1948 in response to attempts by the mainly Chinese-dominated Malayan Communist Party to overthrow British colonial rule.

However British did not at first respond seriously to the threat posed by the communists until October 1951, upon the assassination of Sir Henry Gurney High Commissioner to Malaya.

With the implementation of the Briggs Plan, or to give it is full name the ‘Federation Plan for the Elimination of the Communist Organization and Armed Forces in Malaya’, the scene was set to enter a new phase that marked the beginning of the end of the Emergency and the defeat of the communist uprising.

Within this plan, Briggs stated his belief that the British government needed to demonstrate ‘effective administration and control of all populated areas.’

Lieutenant General Sir Harold Briggs a retired regular Indian Army officer arrived in Kuala Lumpur in 3 April 1950, to take up a new post as Director of Operations.

He had served throughout with the Indian Army, and with his thirty-four years’ experience of warfare in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, he was extremely well qualified for the position.

One of the major features of Briggs Plan, which had already been implemented before Briggs arrived, was the resettlement of thousands of Chinese squatters who lived near the jungle fringes and were thought to provide the communist insurgents with their primary source of food, assistance, and information.

Briggs Plan recognized that because of food could only be cultivated in jungle clearing, the insurgent’s primary source of both food and intelligence was ethnic Chinese squatters ringing the impenetrable jungles. 

Briggs restructured the plan, more thoroughly by coordinating the civil, army and police authority.

The Briggs Plan took over three years to implement and encountered several obstacles along the way. At one point in late 1950, Briggs believed the situation has so deteriorated he flew to London to plead his case directly with the prime minister.

After Briggs retired owing to poor health and after the death of Sir Henry, it fell to General Sir Gerald Templer to implement the Briggs Plan.
Briggs' Plan in Malaya

History of Terengganu

The word of Terengganu derived from word ‘taring anu’ where ‘anu’ means tiger. It was also said that Terenggani is Tamil word meaning ‘hilly country’, the name given many centuries ago by Tamil traders. 

Terengganu is the place where Islam first touched Malay shores. It happened even before Malacca had established itself as the peninsula’s first Malay kingdom.

In the 14th century the Thaïs occupied northeastern Malaya (Terengganu). Terengganu was formally established as a state in 1724.

The first Sultan was Tun Zainal Abidin Paduka Maharaja, a younger brother one of the former sultans of Johor. He used the title Sultan Zainal Abidin I. In 1850 Siam forced Terengganu into vassalage.

In 1909 an Anglo-Siamese treaty saw power pass to the British. It was an unpopular move locally. The campaign of resistance began in 1922 with a series of anti-tax protest organized by the village imams and spearheaded by two charismatic ulamas Sayyid Sagaf and Haji Drahman.

It was quickly put down and the British went about consolidating their power in the state until the Japanese invaded in World War II.
History of Terengganu