21 Facts About Iskandar Muda

Iskandar Muda was the twelfth Sultan of Aceh Darussalam, under whom the sultanate achieved its greatest territorial extent, holding sway as the strongest power and wealthiest state in the western Indonesian archipelago and the Strait of Malacca.

Iskandar Muda was the last Sultan of Aceh who was a direct lineal male descendant of Ali Mughayat Syah, the founder of the Aceh Sultanate.

Iskandar Muda's death meant that the founding dynasty of the Aceh Sultanate, the House of Meukuta Alam died out and was replaced by another dynasty.

Iskandar Muda's father was Mansur Syah, son of Sultan Abdul Jalil, son of the third Sultan of the Aceh Darussalam, Alauddin al-Kahar.

Iskandar Muda was known under a number of names and titles, especially Perkasa Alam, which was the name he used after his accession.

Iskandar Muda imprisoned his other uncle Husain and later had him killed.

The successes of Iskandar Muda were based on his military strength.

However, Johor was able to expel the Acehnese garrison later that year, and Iskandar Muda was never able to assert permanent control over the area.

Iskandar Muda's campaigns continued and he was able to defeat a Portuguese fleet at Bintan in 1614.

Iskandar Muda's sultanate maintained control over northern Sumatra, but was never able to gain supremacy in the strait or expand the empire to the rich pepper-producing Inderapura Kingdom and the region of Lampung on the southern part of the island, which was under the control of the sultanate of Banten.

Iskandar Muda made shrewd economic decisions that supported growth, such as low interest rates and the widespread use of small gold coins.

Indeed, one of the aims of Iskandar Muda's campaigns was to bring prisoners-of-war who could act as slaves for agricultural production.

Iskandar Muda was known as a centralizing leader who was intolerant of private trade and adopted a policy of monopolizing the court as the primary contact person with foreigners that were able to establish important terms of trade.

Iskandar Muda adopted a more predictable legal process and was able to amass a large fortune and a powerful army.

Iskandar Muda sought to replace the Acehnese princes with royal officials called panglima, who had to report annually and were subject to periodic appraisal.

Iskandar Muda passed legal reforms which created a network of courts using Islamic jurisprudence.

Iskandar Muda's reign was marked by considerable brutality, directed at disobedient subjects.

Iskandar Muda did not hesitate to execute wealthy subjects and confiscate their wealth.

Iskandar Muda favoured the tradition of the Sufi mystics Hamzah Pansuri and Syamsuddin of Pasai, both of whom resided at the court of Aceh.

Iskandar Muda has several buildings and structures in and near Banda Aceh named after him, including the Sultan Iskandarmuda Airport and Sultan Iskandar Muda Air Force Base.

Kodam Iskandar Muda is the name of the military area commands overseeing Aceh Province.