I Sugiratu Karaeng Bontowa, also known as Karaeng Bontoparang, with the title Sultanah Siti Aisyah, was the first female monarch of the Sumbawa Sultanate. She was born on July 12, 1704, and reigned as King of Sumbawa from 1759 to 1761. She was dethroned less than two years after her coronation due to persistent conflicts with the kingdom's dignitaries.

What caused the conflict? I Sugiratu was a person who had lived in the throes of war since childhood. Born as the daughter of a Sumbawa king who died in the Selaparang War in 1725, she married a knight named Karaeng Bontolangkasa, who always caused trouble and created wars in various areas of Makassar and Selaparang. Her husband died after suffering severe injuries in battle. Karaeng Bontolangkasa always joined her husband on the battlefield.

After her husband's death, she married the King of Sumbawa, Sri Sultan Muhammad Kaharuddin. This second marriage was opposed by the Dutch, as it could incite instability and resistance. During her time as queen consort of the Sumbawa king, she continually provoked her husband to attack the Dutch, demanding his death. After her husband's death, due to her childlessness, she was crowned the first female king of Sumbawa.

Given the opportunity to assume power, his only concern was war and the destruction of the Dutch. According to Dutch records, there was no reason for Karaeng Bontowa to avenge the death of his father, Amas Madina, because the Dutch were not involved in the war for Selaparang against Bali.

The Dutch had, in fact, used various methods to advise Amas Madina not to be influenced by the Makasarese provocations to seize Selaparang. Similarly, the death of her husband, Karaeng Bontolangkasa, was viewed by the Dutch as a criminal who not only continued to create enmity with the Dutch but also with the Gowa kingdom's own government.

However, Karaeng Bontowa was raised from birth by a father who advocated war, and she and her husband continued to engage in warfare. This led to her new husband being sanctioned by the Dutch for attacking Dutch authorities at his wife's instigation. Therefore, upon ascending the throne, he immediately began a war cry, breaking all contracts with the Dutch established by his predecessors and ordering an invasion.

This order was rejected by Palace officials who wanted to establish peaceful relations with the Netherlands. The feud between the female king and the palace officials was irreconcilable. Until Sultanah Aisyah herself fell from power in less than two years of her reign. After stepping down from the throne he moved to Bima where he died and was buried in Bima.

Salute to the Female King in whose bosom the fire of anti-colonial resistance continues to burn.

For more information, please read: (Asian History_ 2) Hans Hägerdal – Held's History of Sumbawa_ An Annotated Translation-Amsterdam University Press (2017)

Photo Source: Facebook (Sumbawa Tempo Doeloe)

Writer: Yadi Surya Diputra. (Mr. Suryo).
Part-time translator, travel consultant, proofreader, editor, content writer. Book author: SUMBAWA IN 1876 (NOTES ON THE GOVERNMENT, ECONOMY AND ETHNOGRAPHY OF THE SULTANATE OF SUMBAWA)