The Complete History of Aceh's Kingdom

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The kingdom of Aceh developed as an Islamic kingdom and experienced the glory during the reign of the young iskandar sultan. Rapid development achieved by the Kingdom of Aceh can not be separated from the location of its strategic kingdom, which is on the island of northern Sumatra and near the international trade routes at that time. The bustle of trading shipping activities through the trade trades of the Kingdom of Aceh, affect the development of the life of the kingdom of Aceh in all areas, such as aspects of political life, economic, social, and cultural.


The kingdom of Aceh was pioneered by Mudzaffar Shah in the fifteenth century AD The center of the kingdom was built on the ruins of the Lamuri kingdom, west of Pasai oceans. The status of the kingdom was achieved during the reign of Ali Mughayat Shah as a result of the unification of two kingdoms, namely Lamuri and Dar al-Kalam.

                                                                              The kingdom of Aceh developed as an Islamic kingdom and experienced the glory during the reign of Sultan Iskandar Muda. The rapid development of the Kingdom of Aceh can not be separated from the location of the strategic kingdom of Aceh, which is on the island of northern Sumatra and near the voyage route and international trade at the time. The richness of shipping and trading activities through the Acehnese royal trading ports affects the development of Aceh's royal life in all fields. As in politics, social, economic, and culture. The kingdom of Aceh, located on the western tip of the island of Sumatra, was once ruled by the following kings:

1. Sultan Ali Mughayat Shah

Ali Mughayat Shah was the first king of the Aceh kingdom. He ruled from 1514-1528 AD under his rule the Kingdom of Aceh to expand to several areas in the region of North Sumatra, such as in the area of Daya and Pasai. He even attacked the Portuguese position in Malacca and attacked the kingdom of Aru.

2. Sultan Salahudin

After Sultan Ali Mughayat Shah died, the government continued by his son named Sultan Salahudin. He ruled from 1528-1537 AD during his reign, Sultan Salahudin paid little attention to his kingdom. As a result, kerajaanaan began to waver and decline therefore in 1537 AD sultan Salahudin replaced his brother named Sultan Alaudin Riayat Shah.

3. Sultan Alaudin Riayat Shah

Sultan Alaudin Riayat Syah ruled Aceh from 1537 to 1568 AD under his rule Aceh developed into a major port in Asia for foreign Muslim traders. Ever since Malacca was captured by the Portuguese, they avoided the Malacca Strait and shifted along the western coast of Sumatra, to the Sunda Strait, then continued east of Indonesia or directly to China. The strategic position of Aceh has made the transit pepper of Sumatra and the spices of Maluku. The position is not without obstacles. Aceh must face the Portuguese ruprongan. In order to win the competition, Aceh builds a strong navy. The kingdom and also establish diplomatic relations with ottoman turbans considered to hold the highest Islamic sovereignty at that time.

4. Sultan Iskandar Muda

The reign of Sultan Iskandar Muda marks the heyday of the Acehnese kingdom. He ascended the throne at the beginning of the 17th century to replace Sultan Alaudin Riayat Shah. To strengthen Aceh's position as a center of trade He pioneered a number of measures as follows.

1.Sultan Iskandar Muda seized a number of important ports on the western and eastern coast of Sumatra, and the west coast of the Malay peninsula. For example Aceh had conquered Johor and Paahang

2.Sultan Iskandar Muda attacked the Portuguese position in Malacca and his ships through the Strait of Malacca. Aceh had won the war against the Portuguese fleet around the island of Bintan in 1614.

3.Sultan Iskandar Muda worked with England and the Netherlands to weaken Portuguese influence. Iskandar Muda allowed the second trade union in the country to open his office in Aceh.

5. Sultan Iskandar Thani

Unlike his predecessor, Sultan Iskandar Thani paid more attention to domestic development than expansion politics. Therefore, despite only reigning for 4 years, Aceh experiences a peaceful atmosphere. Laws based on Islamic law are enforced, not arbitrary powers. Relations with the territory conquered the streets with a liberal atmosphere, not political or military pressure.

The reign of Sultan Iskandar Thani was also marked by attention to the study of Islam. The development of Islamic studies was also supported by Nuruddin Arraniri, a great scholar from Gujarat who wrote Aceh history book entitled Bustanu's Salatin. After Iskandar Thani, Aceh suffered a setback. Aceh was unable to do much when a number of conquered territories escaped. The kingdom was no longer able to serve as a trading center. Nevertheless, the kingdom of Aceh continued until entering the 20th century.

Due to its location in the Malacca Strait traffic and trade routes, Aceh's work emphasizes its economy on trade. Under the reign of the sultan alaudin riayat Shah, Aceh grew to become the main city in Asia for foreign traders, only British and Dutch traded in the port of Aceh, but also foreign nations such as Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Indian, syam, chinese, and Japan.

Goods traded from Aceh, including pepper, rice, tin, gold, silver, and spices (from Maluku). People from foreign countries (imports), among others from the Coromandel (India), Porcelain and silk (Japan and China), and perfumes from (Europe and the Middle East). In addition, Acehnese merchant vessels are active in trading up to the red sea.

The social structure of the Acehnese society consists of four classes, namely the tribe (the nobility who holds the power of the civil administration), the tengku (clerics who play an important role in religion), hulubalang or ulebalang (soldiers), and ordinary people. Between groups of Tengku and Teuku there is often a competition which then weakens Aceh.

Since the kingdom of Perlak came to power (12th century CE until the 13th century CE) there has been hostility between the Shi'a and Ahlusunnah wal jamaaah. However, during the reign of Sultan Iskandar Muda, the Shi'a schools were protected and flourished into the territory of Aceh. The flow was taught Hamzah Fansuri and continued by his disciple named Syamsuddin Pasai. After Sultan Iskandar Muda died, the Ahlusunnah wal jamaah flourished rapidly in Aceh.

Cultural life in the kingdom of Aceh is not widely known because the Acehnese kingdom has not died so many cultural results. The development of culture in Aceh is not centralized economic development. Cultural development that looks real is the building of Baiturrahman mosque and Bustanu's book Salatin written by Nurrudin Ar-raniri which contains the history of the kings of Aceh.

The cause of the decline of the kingdom of Aceh:

1.After the young Iskandar died in 1636, no great kings were able to control such a vast region of Aceh. Under the sultan iskandar thani, as a substitute for the young iskandar sultan, the decline began to be felt and more so after the death of the sultan iskandar thani.

2. The onset of continuous fighting in Aceh between the noble (Teuku) and the ulema (Tengku) groups which resulted in the weakening of the Aceh kingdom. Among the clerical groups themselves are disputes because of the different schools of religion.

3.Degrees of his power a lot of break away like Johor, Pahang, Perak, Minang Kabau, and Siak. The nations established their territory as an independent state, sometimes aided by foreigners who wanted greater trade gains.

The kingdom of Aceh reigned for more than 4 centuries, eventually collapsing because it was controlled by the Dutch in the early 20th century