ANTI-BRUNEI MOVEMENT 1836 (BAU NATIVE REBELLION 1836)

Antimony was discovered in, the district in 1823 when Sarawak was still under the Brunei rule. Pengiran Mahkota was the Governor of Sarawak who made Knelling as his Capital. The arrival of Pengiran Mahkota together with a retinue of Brunei Malays made [lie position of the local Malav leaders uncomfortable. In 1826, Pengiran. Mahkota forced the Land Dayaks and the Malays in the district to work in the antimony mines. He paid the native miners hardly any wages.  He even took away the Land Dayak¡&hibar;s women and children and sold them as slaves.  After 10 years of forced labour and inhuman treatment to the native miners, the Land Dayaks and the Malays, under the leadership of Datuk Patinggi Ali from Lidah Tanah rebelled against Pengiran Mahkota in 1836. Datuk Patinggi Ali never like the cruel ruler from Brunei and he proclaimed Sarawak independent from Brunei.

The Bidayuh having barter trade in 1823 (Sarawak Musium Collections)

He organised the native miners from Siniawan and Bau into a fighting force. He built his headquarters at Siniawan and fought very hard against the Brunei Ruler. For quite sometime, Datuk Patinggi Ali could neither get rid of Pengiran Mahkota nor the latter could defeat him and the native miners. Later on, the Sultan of Brunei, Sir Omar Ali Saifuddin sent his uncle, Pengiran Muda Hashim, to start the disturbance in Sarawak, but of no effect because Pengiran Mahkota did not obey the orders from Pengiran Muda Hashim.

The Anti-Brunei Movement dragged on. In 1839, at the height of the Civil War, James Brooke, an English adventurer, made his visit to Sarawak bringing letters and presents from the British Governor at Singapore to Pengiran Muda Hashim in acknowledgement of his humanity and kind treatment to some shipwrecked English sailors. James Brooke became enchanted with the place and he revisited Kuching in August, 1840. The Civil War was still going on. Muda Hashim promised James Brooke that if lie could assist him lo settle the Civil War, the country of Siniawan and Sarawak Proper would be given to him and that he would be granted the Life of Rajah.

James Brooke found that the Land Dayaks had been defeated due to starvation. However, the Malays from Siniawan still resisted the rule from Brunei. In early October 1840, James Brooke visited the headquarters of Pengiran Mahkota's force at Lidah Tanah and later on at Fort Belidah. He urged Pengiran Mahkota to spare the lives of Datuk Patinggi Ali and his men should they surrender but there was no agreement over the deal. The war dragged on for about four years in spite of the fact that Datuk Patinggi Ali suffered a big loss. Sometime at the end of 1840 and upon full intervention by James Brooke the war came to an end. Both Pengiran Mahkota and Datuk Patinggi Ali agreed to a cease-fire on condition that the Brunei Ruler and his men should return to Brunei and Datuk Patinggi Ali and his men would not be prosecuted. Peace was finally restored in Sarawak- James Brooke was then given the authority to control the administration of Sarawak. On 24.9.1841, he was installed as the first White Rajah of Sarawak. Datuk Patinggi Ali was reinstated and became an influential administrator and adviser to him, "Sarawak" at that time included only Lundu, Upper Sarawak (Bau), Sarawak Proper (Kuching) and part of Samarahan district.

In 1836 attacks were launched from Fort Belidah against the native miners led by Datuk Patinggi Ali, and in 1857 Chinese Miners led by Liu Shanbang were intercepted there. Now it is overgrown with big trees, creepers and bushes. However, there are still some remains of posts and some holes around the site.