Alauddin Johan Syah
sultan of Sumatra
Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah (died 1760) was the twenty-fourth sultan of Aceh in northern Sumatra.
Rivalry for the throne
Originally named Pocut Auk (or Pocut Uk), the future sultan was the eldest son of the preceding Sultan Alauddin Ahmad Syah. When the latter died in May or June 1735 the succession became contested. At this time, dynastic succession was not automatically from father to eldest son but was dependent on the approval of the three sagis (regions) of the kingdom. A previous sultan, Jamal ul-Alam Badr ul-Munir who had been deposed and exiled in 1726, now came forward and claimed the throne. Since Jamal ul-Alam was a sayyid, descendant of the Prophet, he carried a certain prestige. However, Purbawangsa, panglima (headman) of the XXV Mukims, one of the three Acehnese sagis, proclaimed Pocut Auk under the throne name Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah. Jamal ul-Alam was ensconced in the Baiturrahman Grand Mosque in the capital but was shot at from the fortress and withdrew to Kampong Jawa. While the XXII Mukims and XXV Mukims supported Sultan Alauddin Johan Syah, the XXVI Mukims supported Jamal ul-Alam.
Exploits of Pocut Muhammad
The following civil war has been described in circumstantial detail in the Acehnese epic Hikayat Pocut Muhammad.
“Alauddin Johan Syah” enters the record as sultan of Sumatra. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Alauddin, Johan and Syah can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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