The Sultanate of Banjar () was a

nation-state A nation state, or nation-state, is a political entity in which the state (a centralized political organization ruling over a population within a territory) and the nation (a community based on a common identity) are (broadly or ideally) con ...

of the Banjar in the form of a Islamic sultanate in

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which was founded in 1526 and existed until its dissolution in 1860 by the colonial government of the

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and its collapse in 1905. The Banjar Sultanate was restored in the 2010 restoration, but without political power. When the capital was in Kayu Tangi, the Sultanate was referred to as the "Kayu Tangi Kingdom". After a long civil war that destroyed the Negara Daha, Surianshah of Banjar () emerged victorious and crowned himself as the first Sultan of Banjar, and founded the Banjar sultanate with its capital in Kuin. Soon after the stabilization of the new state, he ordered a massive expansion to Sambas and the

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. The vast territory was maintained by his son, Rahmatullah of Banjar (). Despite the loss of a number of territories, the reign of Mustain Billah of Banjar () was the peak of Banjar's glory with the development of the pepper trade and Banjar's dominance over the surrounding seas, which became a strategic trading point from the Straits of Malacca and

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to Gowa and Maluku. At the end of his reign, Mustain Billah faced conflict with the

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

(VOC) which culminated in a failed attack on Banjarmasin in 1633. This failed VOC attack strengthened Mustain Billah's position and the conflict continued during the reign of his son, Inayatullah of Banjar (). In the end, the Dutch agreed to sign a peace treaty during the reign of Rakyatullah of Banjar (). From 1663 to 1679, there was a civil war between Sultan Agung of Banjar () based in Banjarmasin and Tahlilullah of Banjar (; 1679–1708) based in Batang Alai. Dutch support for Tahlilullah and Tahlilullah's victory in the invasion of Banjar in 1679 gave the VOC more economic authority and slowly dominated Banjar. After extensive expansion and negotiations, Tamjidillah I of Banjar () and his son-in-law, Muhammad of Banjar () managed to recover most of the Banjar territory, the latter taking a tough stance against the Dutch. Tahmidullah II of Banjar () succeeded in reducing the influence of the VOC in Banjar, although he again handed over many areas to the VOC, these areas were again controlled by Banjar during the time of Sulaiman of Banjar (). The Banjar Sultanate then became a Dutch protectorate during the reign of Adam of Banjar (), and the sultan's influence was suppressed. The succession crisis of Adam of Banjar, and the unilateral appointment of Tamjidillah II of Banjar () by the Dutch led to the outbreak of the Banjar War, in which opposition forces supporting Sultan Hidayatullah II of Banjar () managed to win the succession battle. The Dutch, who did not accept this, dissolved the Sultanate in 1960 and exiled Hidayatullah II to

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. Prince Antasari (1862) was installed as Sultan of Banjar and led a brief resistance before dying of smallpox. Muhammad Seman () led a government in exile in Puruk Cahu, known as ''Pagustian'', before being killed in 1905, marking the collapse of the Banjar Sultanate. In 2010, the Banjar Sultanate was restored with the coronation of al-Mu'tasim Billah as Sultan of Banjar.

History

The second king of Negara Daha, Maharaja Sukarama, had four commoner wives, and four sons and one daughter. As Maharaja Sukarama followed the traditional belief of Negara Dipa requiring the king to be of royal blood, he arranged the marriage of his sole daughter, Putri Galuh Baranakan, and the son of his brother, Raden Bagawan, with the name Raden Mantri. The goal of this union (of Mantri and Galuh) was to produce the ideal heir to rule Daha as they would have patrilineal and matrilineal royal blood. The union resulted in Raden Samudra, who was prepared by Sukarama to rule. However, after Sukarama's death, this succession was challenged by his sons, Pangeran Mangkubumi and Pangeran Tumanggung, who usurped the throne. Raden Samudra escaped from the Kingdom of Daha to the

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area, because his safety was in danger, and established a new kingdom at Banjarmasin. With help from Mangkubumi Aria Taranggana, Raden Samudra converted to

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on 24 September 1526, changing his name to Sultan Surianshah. Banjar at first paid tribute to the Sultanate of Demak. That state met its demise in the mid-16th century, however, and Banjar was not required to send tribute to the new power in

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

, the Sultanate of Pajang. Banjar rose in the first decades of the 17th century as a producer and trader of pepper. Soon, virtually all of the southwest, southeast, and eastern areas of Kalimantan island were paying tribute to the sultanate. Sultan Agung of Mataram (1613–1646), who ruled north Java coastal ports such as

Jepara Jepara is a town in the province of Central Java, Indonesia. Jepara is on the north coast of Java, northeast of Semarang, not far from Mount Muria, with a population of 85,970 in mid 2024.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabup ...

, Gresik, Tuban,

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and

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, planned to colonise the Banjar-dominated areas of Kalimantan in 1622, but the plan was cancelled because of inadequate resources. In the 18th century, Prince Tamjidullah I successfully transferred power to his dynasty and set Prince Nata Dilaga as its first sultan with Panembahan Kaharudin Khalilullah. Nata Dilaga became the first king of the dynasty as Tamjidullah I in 1772, on the day of his accession calling himself ''Susuhunan Nata Alam''. The son of Sultan Muhammad Aliuddin Aminullah named Prince Amir, a grandson of Sultan Hamidullah, fled to the Pasir, and requested the help of his uncle Arung Tarawe (and Ratu Dewi). Amir then returned and attacked the Sultanate of Banjar with a large force of

Bugis people The Bugis people, also known as Buginese, are an Austronesian peoples, Austronesian ethnic groupthe most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi (the others being Makassar people, Makassarese and Toraja peop ...

in 1757, and tried to retake the throne of Susuhunan Nata Alam. Fearing the loss of his throne and the fall of the kingdom to the Bugis, Susuhunan Nata Alam requested the assistance of the

(VOC), who dispatched a force under Captain Hoffman. The combined force defeated the Bugis, sending Amir to flee back to Pasir. After a long time, he tried to meet with Barito Banjar nobles, who disliked the VOC. Following this, Amir was arrested and exiled to

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in 1787, and Banjar became a Dutch protectorate. Goenong-Tongka

The Dutch increased their presence in the 19th century, taking territory from the sultanate and interfering in the appointment of its rulers. Resistance led to the Banjarmasin War (1859–1863) and the abolition of the sultanate in 1860. Afterwards, the area was governed by regents in Martapura (Pangeran Jaya Pemenang) and in Amuntai (Raden Adipati Danu Raja). The regency was finally abolished in 1884. The last claimant to the throne died in 1905.

List of sultans of Banjar

Revival

As of 2010, the sultanate was revived for cultural purposes in Martapura by Ir. Haji Gusti Khairul Saleh, an Indonesian politician and regent of Banjar Regency who claimed to be a descendant of the royal family. He also planned to rebuild the Banjar royal palace using his own private fund.

Family tree

Notes

References