Alauddin al-Kahar

Alauddin Riayat Syah al-Kahar was the third sultan of Aceh, and was one of the sultanate's strongest warriors. He succeeded his brother Salahuddin in 1537 or 1539 in a royal coup. In Acehnese tradition he is also remembered as the ruler who divided Acehnese society into administrative lineage groups ("kaum" or "sukeë"), but it is unclear whether this attribution is correct.

His campaigns began with the Batak people, who lived to the south of Aceh, whom he attacked in 1539 when their ruler refused to embrace Islam. He also attacked Aru, but was repelled by the Johor army. In 1547, he personally participated in an unsuccessful attack on the sultanate of Malacca. After these unsuccessful attempts, Aceh returned to a peaceful state for the decade of the 1550s.

However, in the 1564 or 1565 he sacked Johor and brought its sultan, Alauddin Riayat Shah II of Johor, to Aceh and had him killed, and put Muzaffar II of Johor on the throne. He then gained control of Aru from the Johor sultanate. In 1568 he undertook another unsuccessful attack on Malacca. When Muzaffar in Johor was poisoned, Alauddin sent another fleet to Johor, but had to return due to the strength of Johor's defenses.

References

* M.C. Ricklefs, "A History of Modern Indonesia Since c. 1300", Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1994, pages 33.