James Brooke

James Brooke
Portrait by Herbert Watkins, 1858
Rajah of Sarawak
Reign18 August 1842 – 11 June 1868
Installation18 August 1842
PredecessorSultan Tengah (as Sultan of Sarawak)
Pengiran Indera Mahkota Mohammad Salleh (as Governor of Sarawak)
SuccessorCharles Brooke
Born(1803-04-29)29 April 1803
Bandel, Hooghly, British India
Died11 June 1868(1868-06-11) (aged 65)
Burrator, United Kingdom
Burial
St Leonard's Church, Sheepstor, Dartmoor
IssueReuben George Walker (Brooke)
HouseBrooke dynasty
FatherThomas Brooke
MotherAnna Maria Brooke
ReligionChristianity (Church of England)
OccupationSoldier, trader, independent gentleman, Governor
1st Governor of Labuan
In office
1848–1853
MonarchQueen Victoria
LieutenantWilliam Napier (1848–1850)
John Scott (1850–1856)
Preceded byNewly Created
Succeeded byGeorge Warren Edwardes
1st Consul General to the Sultan and Independent Chiefs of Borneo
In office
1847–1853
Succeeded bySpenser St. John
Military service
Allegiance British Empire
Branch/serviceBengal Army, British East India Company
Years of service1819–1830
RankLieutenant[1]
Unit6th Regiment Native Infantry[2]
Battles/wars (1824–1825)

Sir James Brooke, Rajah[note] of Sarawak KCB (29 April 1803[3] – 11 June 1868), was a British soldier and adventurer who founded the Raj of Sarawak in Borneo. He ruled as the first White Rajah of Sarawak from 1841 until his death in 1868.

Brooke was born and raised in India during the rule of the British East India Company. After a few years of education in England, he served in the Bengal Army, was wounded, and resigned his commission. He then bought a ship and sailed to the Malay Archipelago where, in gratitude for helping to crush a rebellion, he was rewarded with the position of governor of Sarawak. He then vigorously suppressed piracy in the region and, in the ensuing turmoil, restored the Sultan of Brunei to his throne, for which the Sultan made Brooke the Rajah of Sarawak. He ruled until his death.

Brooke was not without detractors and was criticised in the British Parliament and officially investigated in Singapore for his anti-piracy measures. He was, however, honoured and feted in London for his activities in Southeast Asia. The naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace was one of many visitors whose published work spoke of his hospitality and achievements.

  1. ^ Brown, G.H.; Clark, F. (1829). East-India Register and Directory for 1829. Secretary's Office, East-India House.
  2. ^ Brown, G.H.; Clark, F. (1829). East-India Register and Directory for 1829. Secretary's Office, East-India House.
  3. ^ Calcutta Monthly Journal Archived 8 August 2014 at the Wayback Machine, May 1803, p. 158, "Bengal Births. … At Bandel, on the 29th ultimo, the Lady of T. Brooke, Esq. of a Son"

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