Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II

Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (13 September, 2016)


B. Melayu

Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (GPS: 1.72899, 103.90859) is a mausoleum to Sultan Mahmud Shah II, who reigned as the Sultan of Johor, Pahang and Lingga, from 1685 until his assissination on 3 September, 1699. The mausoleum is in Kampung Makam, in Kota Tinggi, Johor. Sultan Mahmud is the 9th and last sultan who was of direct descent from the Malacca Sultanate. Born in 1675, he ascended the throne when he was only 10 years old, because his father, Sultan Ibrahim, was poisoned to death by his own three wives. In a case of like father like son, Sultan Mahmud II grew up to be a tyrant, just like Sultan Ibrahim.

While he was still underaged, the sultanate was under the joint regency of his mother and the Bendahara. As with his father, Sultan Mahmud II was reviled for tyranny and decadence, so much so that in the end, his own chieftains murdered him while he was being carried in the royal litter. After his death, Sultan Mahmud II became known as Sultan Mahmud Mangkat Di Julang, meaning "Sultan Mahmud Who Died On The Royal Litter". His mausoleum, now well preserved, is along Jalan Kampung Makam, near the banks of Sungai Johor.

Sultan Mahmud II has been described by historical chronicles as a brutal tyrant as well as a homosexual. He is said to prey on the sons of his noblemen. If he should notice a young man that is good looking, he would demand that the person be brought to his palace so that he could sodomise him.¹

According to an account documented by Alexander Hamilton², an English seafarer, a Moorish trader had sought refuge for himself and his son on Hamilton's ship, because Sultan Mahmud Shah II had lusted after the trader's good looking son, and had demanded that he be brought to the palace.

Sultan Mahmud II came to an untimely end, at the age of just 24 years old, when he was stabbed to death by his own admiral, Laksamana Megat Sri Rama. This happened because, while Megat Sri Rama, who was from Bintan, was away in Lingga to fight a war at the sultan's order, his pregnant wife Dang Anum had eaten a jackfruit was was to be presented to the sultan. It was in fact the penghulu who had given the jackfruit to Dang Anum. When Sultan Mahmud II discovered that his jackfruit was missing one fruit, he demanded to find out who had eaten the fruit ahead of him, and eventually traced the action to Dang Anum. As punishment, the sultan had her belly cut open, and it was said that the piece of jackfruit was with the unborn child inside.

When Laksamana Megat Sri Rama found out that the sultan had murdered his wife and unborn child, he sought revenge. That Friday afternoon, when the sultan was seated in the royal litter, Megat Sri Rama ambushed and stabbed him to death. But before he died, Sultan Mahmud II is said to have uttered a curse on Megat Sri Rama's generation, saying that "no son of Bintan would ever tough the grounds of Kota Tinggi for all time to come, otherwise they will die vomitting blood". Laksamana Megat Sri Rama is said to have died thereafter, and was buried in Kampung Kelantan, which is also in Kota Tinggi. His grave is known today as Makam Laksamana Bentan.

The death of Sultan Mahmud II brought to an end the lineage of Johor sultans directly descended from the Malacca Sultanate. His chief minister, Bendahara Tun Habab, declared himself as the next ruler, taking on the title of Sultan Abdul Jalil IV. Upon ascending the throne, Sultan Abdul Jalil IV took steps to prevent Sultan Mahmud II's heirs from ever regaining the throne. What he did was to kill all the wives of Sultan Mahmud II. However, according to the Chronicles of the State of Johor and Pahang Manuscripts, one of the wives named Che Mi, managed to escape, and fled to Pagar Ruyung in Minangkabau, Sumatra, where she gave birth to a son, Raja Kechil.

Less than two decades later, Raja Kechil was to return from Minangkabau that for a moment, succeeded in ousting Sultan Abdul Jalil IV's successor, Sultan Sulaiman, from the throne of Johor. But not for long, for the Bugis warriors who had aided him, switched sides, forcing him to flee. Raja Kechil eventually established his own Sultanate in Siak.

Building at the Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (13 September, 2016)


Building at the Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (13 September, 2016)


Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (13 September, 2016)


Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II (13 September, 2016)

360° View of Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II on Google Maps Street View

Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II

Mausoleum of Sultan Mahmud II is on the Map of Kota Tinggi, Johor

References

1. Sultan Mahmud Shah II (Wikipedia)
2. R.O. Winstedt (1992). A History of Johore. The Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (MBRAS). ISBN 9839961462.

List of Mausoleums in Johor and Mausoleums in Malaysia

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