Tengku Alam Shah, Tengku Ali Iskandar Shah was a prince of the Johor branch of the House of Bendahara.Lai, Beyond Rituals and Riots: Ethnic Pluralism and Social Cohesion in Singapore, pg 51 Born in Istana Kampong Glam, he was the oldest son of Sultan Ali, the 19th Sultan of Johor by his second wife, Daing Siti. Following his father's death in 1877, Tengku Alam and his supporters actively pursued his claims to the Kesang territory and eventually the entire sultanate, when he was publicly proclaimed as the Sultan of Johor and Pahang with the regnal name of Alauddin Alam Shah during his marriage ceremony in 1879.

The proclamation alarmed Maharaja Abu Bakar, who feared his political position might be threatened. Within the same year, after repeated attempts to gain recognition for his claims failed, a brief civil war erupted in Jementah in 1879. He was eventually defeated by Abu Bakar, who was aided by the British.Winstedt, A History of Johore (1365–1941), pg 131

Succession dispute Sultan Ali's third son by Cik Sembuk, Tengku Mahmud was groomed for succession. When the Sultan died in 1877, he nominated Tengku Mahmud to inherit the Kesang territory.Studer, American and British Claims Arbitration: William Webster: Appendix to the Memorial of the United States, Vol. III, pg 313, 320 The Kesang territory was a small district in northwestern Johor, situated between the Muar and Kesang rivers, that served as the final personal domain of the displaced House of Bendahara branch. Under the 1855 treaty that forced Sultan Ali to surrender sovereign rights over the rest of mainland Johor to the House of Temenggong, Kesang was specifically carved out and left under Sultan Ali's direct rule.

The Sultan's decision took Tengku Alam and his supporters in Singapore to anger,Studer, American and British Claims Arbitration: William Webster: Appendix to the Memorial of the United States, Vol. III, pg 351 who felt that Tengku Alam should inherit his father's properties given that he was the eldest son. Furthermore, Cik Serimbuk's commoner backgroundWinstedt, A History of Johore (1365–1941), pg 129 stood out against Daing Siti's, who was the daughter of a Bugis nobleman.Ghazali, Istana dan politik Johor, 1835–1885, pg 104

The British on their part, refused to recognise Sultan Ali's will on his son's (Tengku Mahmud) hereditary claims to the Kesang territory. Meanwhile, the chieftains and village headmen in the Kesang territory held their own elections for a new leader, and voted for the Maharaja of Johor, Abu Bakar to take charge of Muar, which the British accepted the outcome of the poll. The Acting Governor of the Straits Settlements, Edward Anson, allowed Abu Bakar to take interim control over the Kesang territory.Lee, The British as Rulers: Governing Multiracial Singapore, 1867–1914, pg 12Jayakumar, Public international law cases from Malaysia and Singapore, pg 283

Tengku Alam and his supporters were extremely unhappy with Maharaja Abu Bakar's intervention over the Kesang territory. A long time of Tengku Alam, W.H. Read helped to lobby in Tengku Alam's cause.Parkinson, British intervention in Malaya, 1867–1877, pg 320 Supporters of Tengku Alam had criticised the irregularities in the electoral process, by claiming that the Maharaja had coerced the Muar chiefs into voting for him prior to the election, and called for an election with Tengku Alam's family members as the electors. Tengku Alam's supporters argued that the 1855 secession treaty which Sultan Ali had signed with Temenggong of Johor guaranteed the hereditary rights of Sultan Ali's family members to the Kesang territory. Tengku Alam's claims were fell on deaf ears, and the British government, with the assistance of Engku Mandak, proceeded with the electoral process into 1878.Thio, British Policy in the Malay Peninsula, 1880–1910: The Southern and Central States, pg xxx Meanwhile, the British authorities allowed Tengku Alam to inherit the $500 monthly allowance which Sultan Ali had received from the Temenggong's family, and gave him an additional $68 monthly allowance from the British East India Company. An angry Tengku Alam was declined these allowances from the British, and was said to have used abusive language when they were offered to him.Winstedt, A History of Johore (1365–1941), pg 130

The following January, on 11 January 1879, a few hundred Bugis and Malay supporters proclaimed Tengku Alam "Sultan Alauddin 'Alam Shah, Sultan of Johor and Pahang" during his marriage ceremony. This proclamation generated serious concern from Maharaja Abu Bakar and the British government, who feared it signalled a potential threat to Abu Bakar's political position and that Tengku Alam might try to reclaim the entirety of Johor, especially after Tengku Alam publicly declared his challenge to Abu Bakar over the Kesang territory.Abdul Wahid, Glimpses of Malaysian history, pg 70 In October, a frustrated Tengku Alam and his supporters launched a civil war in Jementah which was quickly subdued by the British authorities.Ghazali, Istana dan politik Johor, 1835–1885, pg 127

Last years and death Tengku Alam returned to Singapore and lived out his remaining years quietly at Istana Kampong Glam, where he died in 1891. He was recognised as the head of the royal household by his family members, and occasionally handled administrative affairs pertaining to the royal household.Winstedt, A History of Johore (1365–1941), pg 132 Five years after his death, members of the royal family disputed over inheritance rights of Istana Kampong Glam in Court. The Istana was recognised as state property, but the British government (and later the Singapore government) quietly allowed members of the royal household to live in it until the 1990s.

Notes

References

Abdul Wahid, Zainal Abidin bin, Glimpses of Malaysian history, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 1970 Adil, Buyong bin, Sejarah Johor, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 1980 Ali, Abdullah, Malaysian protocol and correct forms of address, Times Books International, 1986, Ghazali, Abdullah Zakaria, Istana dan politik Johor, 1835–1885, Yayasan Penataran Ilmu, 1997, Jayakumar, S., Public international law cases from Malaysia and Singapore, NUS Press, 1974, Lai, Ah Eng, Beyond Rituals and Riots: Ethnic Pluralism and Social Cohesion in Singapore, Eastern Universities Press, 2004, Lee, Edwin, The British as Rulers: Governing Multiracial Singapore, 1867–1914, Singapore University Press, National University of Singapore, 1991, Parkinson, Cyril Northcote, British intervention in Malaya, 1867–1877, University of Malaya Press, 1960 Studer, Adolph G., American and British Claims Arbitration: William Webster: Appendix to the Memorial of the United States, Vol. III, 1913 Thio, Eunice, British Policy in the Malay Peninsula, 1880–1910: The Southern and Central States, University of Malaya Press, 1969 Winstedt, R. O., A History of Johore (1365–1941), (M.B.R.A.S. Reprints, 6.) Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1992,