The Sultanate of Jailolo (Jawi: ; Kesultanan Jailolo) was a premodern state in Maluku, modern Indonesia that emerged with the increasing trade in cloves in the Middle Ages. Also spelt Gilolo, it was one of the four kingdoms of Maluku together with Ternate, Tidore, and Bacan, having its center at a bay on the west side of Halmahera. Jailolo existed as an independent kingdom until 1551 and had separate rulers for periods after that date. A revivalist Raja Jailolo movement made for much social and political unrest in Maluku in the 19th century. In modern times the sultanate has been revived as a symbolic entity.Kirsten Jäger (2018) Das Sultanat Jailolo: Die Revitalisierung von "traditionellen" politischen Gemeinwesen in Indonesien. Berlin: Lit Verlag.
Origins
Jailolo was a component in the politico-ritual quadripartition of northern Maluku, Maloko Kië Raha or the Four Mountains of Maluku. Its king was known as Jika ma-kolano, Ruler of the Bay, highlighting the Jailolo Bay as the major port in Halmahera. It is locally believed that the kingdom encompassed the entire island or at least the major part. However, in historical times it only ruled over part of Halmahera while the rest was dominated by the spice sultanates Ternate and Tidore. It emerged long before the introduction of Islam (1460s or 1470s), but the concrete history of the kingdom can only be followed since the early 16th century, and the pre-Islamic era is only known via later traditions. The oldest available version was written down by the Dutch priest François Valentijn (1724), long after the demise of the sultanate. Valentijn relates that Jailolo was a strong kingdom in Halmahera by 1250, and that the oppressive governance of the king (Kolano) caused an exodus of people to Ternate, an island to the south-west of the Jailolo Bay, where a new trade-oriented kingdom emerged in 1257. In the following centuries Jailolo and Ternate had intermittent conflicts with shifting success. In the early 14th century, Tidore and the Bacan Islands also chose rulers of their own. The four kings eventually held a meeting on Moti Island in the 1320s where they agreed to create a bond where the Kolano of Jailolo would have the precedence position. In spite of this, warfare flared up from time to time and Jailolo's position was not always respected. According to Valentijn a Ternatan prince married the daughter of the King of Jailolo in c. 1375 and succeeded to the throne since the old ruler had no sons. Nevertheless, a later Ternatan ruler called Komalo Pulo (1377–1432) conquered some villages on Halmahera and forced the King of Jailolo to cede his precedence position.
Another set of legends tells that an Arab immigrant called Jafar Sadik came to Maluku and married a heavenly nymph called Nurus Safa, daughter of the Lord of Heaven. The couple sired four sons called Buka, Darajat, Sahajat and Mashur-ma-lamo, who became the ancestors of the kings of Bacan, Jailolo, Tidore, and Ternate. Darajat was first established on Moti Island and then moved to the Jailolo Bay and set up a royal seat there.C.F. van Fraassen (1987) Ternate, de Molukken en de Indonesische Archipel. Leiden: Rijksuniversiteit te Leiden, Vol. I, p. 16-8. He was followed by fifteen descendants, the last of whom was a certain Talabuddin. Only a few persons in the list can be positively identified with rulers from contemporary historical sources.
The oldest Malukan chronicle, Hikayat Tanah Hitu (mid-17th century), says that Islam was introduced in the late 15th century by Mahadum, who was the son of a Sultan of Samudra Pasai. Mahadum performed missionary work in several places in Indonesia and successively traveled in eastern direction. Via the Banda Islands he proceeded to Jailolo whose king he converted and gave the name Yusuf. From there he went to the nearby Tidore and Ternate islands where he was equally successful.Christiaan van Fraassen (1987), Vol. II, p. 5-6. The Hikayat Tanah Hitu also mentions a power struggle between two elite lineages around 1500. The losing side emigrated from Jailolo to Hitu in Ambon Island where their leader Jamilu became a renowned Muslim chief who fought the Portuguese invaders.C.F. van Fraassen (1987), Vol. I, p. 470.
The early kings
The first Muslim ruler Yusuf is in fact a well-documented person who was in power when the Portuguese and Spanish seafarers arrived to Maluku in search of spices and made contact with the Portuguese in 1514.Artur Basilio de Sá (1954) Documentação para a história das missões Padroado portugues do Oriente, Vol. I. Lisboa: Agencia Geral do Ultramar, p. 113. Tomé Pires, in his geographical work Suma Oriental (c. 1515) confirms that Jailolo and Ternate were often at war, and writes that much wild clove grew in the kingdom, which was still largely heathen in spite of the king being a Muslim. Jailolo was in fact the only real port in Halmahera, though the clove production was centered on the smaller islands Ternate, Tidore, Moti and Makian along Halmahera's west coast.Tomé Pires (1944) The Suma Oriental. London: The Hakluyt society, p. 221. Antonio Pigafetta of the Magellan expedition, who visited Maluku in 1521–1522, says that there were two Muslim kings in Jailolo Island (that is, Halmahera), each with several hundred wives. There was also a Raja Papua who was lord over the heathen people in Halmahera and had much access to gold. One of the Muslim rulers was Raja Yusuf who was a close ally with Tidore and was feared and respected in the Maluku Islands. As a consequence of this alliance, Jailolo also allied with the Spanish who were periodically posted in Tidore, and opposed the might of Portugal which had built a stronghold in Ternate in 1522-23 and tried to appropriate the clove trade. With the help of Spanish munitions and weapon technology, Jailolo expanded its influence in Halmahera at the cost of Ternate.Leonard Andaya (1993) The world of Maluku. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, p. 122.
The old and ailing Yusuf died in 1530, leaving a son of 5–6 years called Sultan Firuz Alauddin Syah as the titular ruler.Artur Basilio de Sá (1954), p. 253. However, he appointed two nephews called Kaicili Tidore and Kaicili Katarabumi to act as regents. Katarabumi had previously lived in exile since he claimed the right to the kingdom and had even tried to murder the old king, but was nevertheless pardoned and placed in a position of power. The new Portuguese captain in Ternate, Tristão de Atayde eventually had enough of the Jailolo-Spanish alliance and attacked and destroyed the royal center in 1533. The small Spanish detachment in Jailolo gave up without a fight. The young Firuz was brought to Ternate where he was later poisoned by his captors with the understanding of Katarabumi, who seized the throne in about 1536.Leonard Y. Andaya (1993), p. 122; P.A. Tiele (1877-1887) "De Europëers in den Maleischen Archipel", Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde, 25-35, Part 2:2, p. 20. Being a strong Muslim, he nevertheless turned out to become a major opponent of European influence in the region. He allied with the Tobaru people in northern Halmahera and violently attacked areas hitherto under Ternate.Georg Schurhammer (1980) Francis Xavier: His Life, his times - vol. 3: Indonesia and India, 1545-1549. Rome: The Jesuits Historical Institute, p. 63-88. When he invaded Gamkonora and the recently Christianized villages in Morotai and Morotia (in north Halmahera), he invoked the enmity of the Portuguese, who made strong proselytizing efforts to spread Catholicism. By this time the immediate sphere of the kingdom had about 4,000 able-bodied men. It produced much foodstuff but little or no cloves, and therefore never gained the economic importance of Ternate or Tidore.Artur Basilio de Sá (1954), p. 321.
Katarabumi earned a widespread reputation in Maluku for being a ruler with outstanding capabilities, and was seen as a “second Muhammad”. Among his achievements was the invention of a script to write down the local language; unfortunately, no such texts have been preserved.P.A. Tiele (1877-1887) "De Europëers in den Maleischen Archipel", Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 25-36, Part 3:5, p. 319. He resided in a stone fort close to the Jailolo Bay that was considered impenetrable and was garrisoned by 1,200 soldiers of whom 100 were musketeers. The defiant stance of Katarabumi eventually led to an invasion in Halmahera by the Portuguese Captain Bernaldim de Sousa and Sultan Hairun of Ternate. Jailolo fell after a long siege in March 1551, after provisions had run out. The conditions of surrender were hard; Katarabumi lost the title of Kolano or king and had to be content with the lesser title Sangaji ("honoured prince", regional lord). He must also honour Sultan Hairun as his suzerain. The fortress was thoroughly destroyed. With these events the independent Jailolo sultanate came to an end.Leonard Y. Andaya (1993), p. 130. In order to avoid actual subjugation to Ternate, Katarabumi and his family left the main residence and moved to a simple dwelling in the forest, while the Portuguese tried in vain to persuade him to hail Hairun. However, most of his retainers acknowledged Ternate's power, and the old and destitute ruler died in 1552 after taking poison.Hubert Jacobs (1974) Documenta Malucensia, Vol. I. Rome: Jesuit Historical Institute, p. 4*, 90-2, 187-8.
Vassal under Ternate
Katarabumi left three sons and three daughters, of whom Kaicili Gujarati succeeded him as Sangaji. He must agree to deliver large tributes of sago and other items. For Ternate, Jailolo with its large hinterland became important as deliverer of foodstuff. The Portuguese had a low opinion about his personal qualities. However, in 1558 Captain Duarte d’Eça found reason to give him back the title of Sultan in order to enlist his help against the rebellious Ternatans. The rebellion receded in 1559–1560 as Sultan Hairun made an agreement with the Portuguese. However, Hairun took a severe revenge on Kaicili Gujarati in about 1560 as he was attacked on a sea trip by a Ternatan fleet and killed with arrows together with part of the nobility of the kingdom.