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Papers of The Brookes of Sarawak - MSS.pac.s.83
Papers of the Brookes of Sarawak – MSS.Pac.s.83 were obtained from the Bodleian Library of Commonwealth and African Studies at Rhodes House in the form of digital image copies. This collection comprises correspondence gathered for the collection contributed by nine (9) members, friends, and family of the Brooke family. The letters cover the entire reign of the Brooke government in Sarawak. The collection contains legal documents; files related to the history of Sarawak; official correspondence including files from the Government of Sarawak; copies of letters to Colonial Office; newspaper clippings regarding the cession of Sarawak to the British Government. The MSS.Pac.s.83 collection contains volumes 1 to 42, Box3, Box7, Box9A, Box14 to 36 and can be accessed in the Archival Management System (AMS).
MSS.Pac.s.83(14)
Letter from Charles William Brooke dated 17 August 1803.
This is the earliest document found in the Brooke Collection. Dated 17 August 1803, it is a personal letter from Charles Brooke to his father, Thomas Brooke. Charles wrote this letter while serving as an officer in the 14th British Native Infantry in India. He describes to his father the environment and conditions of his service location, as well as military matters.
MSS.Pac.s.83(Box23)
Letter of the Cession of Sarawak to James Brooke
The letter of the cession of Sarawak to James Brooke was signed in London on 12 November 1860. It explains that Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin, son of Sultan Jamalulu'alam, Sultan and ruler of the Malay Sultanate of Brunei, agreed to transfer the governance of the State of Sarawak to James Brooke. In return for the transfer, James Brooke agreed to pay a compensation of 4,000 Spanish dollars to the Sultan. The signing of this agreement marked the end of the rule of the Brunei Sultanate in Sarawak.
MSS.Pac.s.83(Box23)
Memorandum of Cession of Sarawak to James Brooke, 1841
The memorandum of agreement by Raja Muda Hashim, representative of the Sultanate of Brunei, to cede Sarawak and its territories to James Brooke, who assisted him in suppressing a rebellion within Sarawak. In 1841, the era of White Rajah administration in Sarawak began, marking the end of the Sultanate of Brunei's rule in Sarawak.
MSS.Pac.s.83(38)
Instructions for the Handover of Sarawak to the British Government
An excerpt from the Sarawak Government Gazette dated 1st July 1946 regarding the Order for the Handing Over of Sarawak to the British Government, decided in the Palace Court of Buckingham on 26th June 1946. Through this order, Sir Charles Vyner Brooke, the Rajah of Sarawak, agreed to hand over the territory and sovereignty of Sarawak to the British Crown, placing it under colonial administration. This order marks the end of the White Rajah's rule in the land of Sarawak.
MSS.Pac.s.83(Box27)
The Book "The Truth About Sarawak"
The book published in 1948 compiles articles written by W. A. Harpur and previously published in the Malaya Tribune about the history of Sarawak. "Anti-Cession Feelings: Population Wants Brookes" is one of the topics discussed in the book, explaining the Anti-Cession Movement in Sarawak against the British attempt to administer Sarawak. The Anti-Cession Movement in Sarawak was a movement against the British attempt to administer Sarawak. Generally, the Malay population of Sarawak opposed the cession, while government officials, Dayaks, and Chinese welcomed the idea of Sarawak being handed over to British colonial administration for the sake of economic progress and faster development compared to under the White Rajah's rule. Among the Malays, they opposed the cession because they did not want to lose their positions and important roles in the White Rajah's administration.
