Iskandar of Johor facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Iskandar
Al-Mutawakkil Alallah (The Leaner on God) Yang di-Pertuan Agong VIII
Yang di-Pertuan Agong
Reign	26 April 1984 - 25 April 1989
Installation	14 November 1984
Predecessor	Ahmad Shah of Pahang
Successor	Azlan Shah of Perak
Prime Minister	Mahathir Mohamad
Sultan of Johor
Reign	11 May 1981 - 22 January 2010
Predecessor	Ismail
Successor	Ibrahim Ismail
Chief Ministers	See List Othman Saat Ajib Ahmad Muhyiddin Yassin Abdul Ghani Othman
Born	(1932-04-08)8 April 1932 Istana Semayam, Johor Bahru, Johor, Unfederated Malay States, British Malaya
Died	22 January 2010(2010-01-22) (aged 77) Puteri Specialist Hospital, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Burial	23 January 2010 Mahmoodiah Royal Mausoleum, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia
Spouse	Josephine Ruby Trevorrow (Khalsom binti Abdullah) ​ ​ (m. 1956; div. 1962)​ Sultanah Zanariah ​ (m. 1961)​
Issue	Tunku Kamariah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah Tunku Zabedah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah Tunku Ibrahim Ismail Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah Tunku Mariam Zaharah Tunku Norani Fatimah Tunku Maimunah Ismailiah Tunku Abdul Majid Idris Ismail Ibrahim Tunku Muna Najiah Tunku Aminah Kalsum Masera Marian Zahira Iskandariah
Full name Tunku Mahmood Iskandar ibni Tunku Ismail Regnal name Baginda Almutawakil Alallah Sultan Iskandar ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail
House	House of Temenggong
Father	Sultan Ismail Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ibrahim Al-Masyhur
Mother	Sultanah Ungku Tun Aminah Binti Ungku Ahmad
Religion	Sunni Islam

Sultan Iskandar Ibni Almarhum Sultan Ismail (Jawi: المتوكل على ﷲ سلطان إسكندر الحاج ابن المرحوم سلطان إسماعيل الخالدي; 8 April 1932 – 22 January 2010) was the 24th Sultan of Johor and the 4th Sultan of Modern Johor. He succeeded his father Sultan Ismail upon the latter's death on 10 May 1981. He was the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong (Supreme King or High King) of Malaysia from 26 April 1984 to 25 April 1989. Sultan Iskandar's reign lasted for almost 29 years until his death in January 2010. His children are married into the different royal houses of Malaysia. His eldest daughter Tunku Kamariah, the Tengku Puan Laksamana, married the Tengku Laksamana of Selangor, Tengku Sulaiman Shah. His successor and eldest son Sultan Ibrahim married Raja Zarith Sofiah of the Perak Royal Family. His daughter Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah married the heir apparent of Pahang, now Sultan Abdullah. His younger son Tunku Abdul Majid married a member of the Kedah Royal Family, Tunku Teh Mazni.

As was the case with his grandfather, Sultan Ibrahim, Sultan Iskandar's independent mindset resulted in strained relations with the Malaysian federal government on numerous occasions. This was more so during his days as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, whereby a number of notable public incidents involved Sultan Iskandar. Nevertheless, Sultan Iskandar was reputed to show great concern to his subjects, and was held in high esteem by many of his subjects–particularly the Malays and Orang Aslis. His time as the Sultan of Johor was marred by accusations of violence and brutality. Sultan Iskandar was notorious for his bad temper which often resulted in violent episodes of rage and brutality to members of his staff and the general public. The 1992 Gomez incident surrounding the Sultan eventually culminated in the removal of "legal immunity" for members of the royal family.

Sultan Iskandar is reputed to have been a staunch disciplinarian, with willingness to occasionally voice personal opinions on governmental issues. On the personal side, subjects who have personally approached the Sultan in his later years described him as a person with a warm and generous personality. However, past critics had also argued that Sultan Iskandar was a person with a turbulent temper. These claims were made by citing records of past notorious incidents, which include an experience of being disinherited from being the Tunku Mahkota of Johor (or Crown Prince in English) by his father, in 1961, as well as a series of alleged criminal acts occurring between the 1970s and the 1990s which were published in the press and provoked widespread moral outrage within the Malaysian public.

During his younger days as a prince, Iskandar was commonly known by his first name, "Mahmood" or his full name "Mahmood Iskandar". He largely discontinued the use of his first name after he became Sultan in 1981, although some people still referred to him by his full name on an occasional basis.

Early life

Sultan Iskandar (known as Tunku Mahmood Iskandar until 1981) was the third and eldest surviving son of Sultan Ismail ibni Sultan Ibrahim by Sultanah Aminah binti Ungku Ahmad, and was born on at 11:30 am. Friday 8 April 1932 in Istana Semayam, Johor Bahru. (He had two older brothers, both of whom died in infancy.) Mahmood received his primary and lower secondary education in Ngee Heng Primary School and the English College Johore Bahru (now Maktab Sultan Abu Bakar) in Johor Bahru. In 1952, he was sent to Australia for higher secondary education at the Trinity Grammar School. After completing high school in 1953, Mahmood travelled to the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom, where he enrolled into the Upper Chine School for three years.

Sultan of Johor

Upon completing his studies, Mahmood returned to Malaysia in 1956 and briefly served as a cadet officer in the Johor Civil Service, taking charge of affairs in District Affairs, Land and Treasury departments until his appointment as the Tunku Mahkota of Johor in May 1959. Mahmood was appointed the Tunku Mahkota of Johor from 1959 to 1961, and Raja Muda of Johor from 1966 to 1981, by Sultan Ismail. On 29 April 1981, he was re-appointed as the Tunku Mahkota shortly before his father's death.

On 10 May 1981, Mahmood was appointed as the Regent of Johor following the death of his father, and was sworn in as Sultan a day later, shortly before his father was buried. In turn, his younger brother, Tunku Abdul Rahman (not to be confused with Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Prime Minister), formerly the Tunku Mahkota of Johor for twenty years under Sultan Ismail, was demoted to a lower position, the Tunku Bendahara of Johor, a post which he held until his death in 1989. In the same year on 12 December, Sultan Iskandar was appointed as the Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Unlike the other preceding Sultan of Johors who had their own coronation ceremony, he did not have one.

Under the council of rulers, the elective monarchy system of Malaysia, Sultan Iskandar was elected on 9 February 1984 as the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong, shortly before his predecessor's term expired on 26 April 1984. He succeeded the Sultan of Pahang as the Yang-Di Pertuan Agong on 26 April. A royal investiture was held shortly after that, in which he donned the traditional suit of the Agong, whereby he was officially installed. Sultan Iskandar served in the capacity as the Yang-Di Pertuan Agong until 1989, whereby the Sultan of Perak succeeded him. As the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Sultan Iskandar was automatically designated under constitutional provisions as the Supreme Commander of the Malaysian Armed Forces, holding the rank of the Marshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force, Admiral of the Fleet of the Royal Malaysian Navy and Field Marshal of the Army.

On 8 April 2006, the Sultan appointed his grandson Tunku Ismail Idris—the son of the Tunku Mahkota then—as the Raja Muda during an investiture in conjunction on his birthday. The rank of Raja Muda denotes that Ismail is second in position in terms of the order of succession to the Johor royal throne.

State affairs

Sultan Iskandar held annual open house events either at Istana Bukit Serene, his official residence, or at Istana Besar. On these days, the Sultan and his eldest son, the Tunku Mahkota, held special sessions whereby Johoreans came up to pay their respects to him. The Sultan also bestowed honorary awards on distinguished Malaysians from his annual birthday honours list on his birthdays. As a matter of convention, the state government gazetted 8 April as a state public holiday to mark his birthday.

Shortly before he became Agong in April 1984, Sultan Iskandar issued a proposal for the Orang Aslis to be referred to as the "Bumiputera Asli" (literally, Original Sons of the Soil). The proposal was made as Sultan Iskandar suggested that the Orang Aslis maintained a distinct identity from the Malays as the majority of them were not Muslims. The proposal was subsequently scrapped, and the government made subsequent attempts to assimilate the Orang Aslis with the mainstream Malay society. After his inauguration as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, he donated his Agong's salary to various scholarship boards that were open to Malaysians of all races.

Steps to the main hall of Istana Besar, Johor Bahru

Sultan Iskandar issued a decree in 2007 which only allowed residences and properties owned by the Sultan and the Tunku Mahkota to be called Istana, while properties belonging to other members of the royal family are to be known as "Kediaman". The terms "Istana" and "Kediaman" are translated as "Palace" and "Residences" in English, respectively. The following December, Sultan Iskandar gave his endorsement for the state government to gazette a proposed legislation which bans Muslims in the state from practising Yoga, citing that Hindu elements in the exercise went against Islamic teachings. Applications to seek the Sultan's consent came from the state religious council, who acted under the instructions of the National Fatwa Council.

Sultan Iskandar graced the official landmark opening of the Sultan Iskandar customs, immigration and quarantine complex on 1 December 2008, in the presence of the Tunku Mahkota and several key cabinet ministers. The complex was named in honour of the Sultan, who expressed optimism in its success during his opening speech.

Foreign relations

Since his ascension to the throne, Sultan Iskandar fostered particularly close neighbourly ties with Singapore, by developing a personal rapport with top Singaporean leaders. This practice has also been taken up by his sons, the Tunku Mahkota and Tunku Aris Bendahara. Media reports highlighted the particularly warm reception which leaders of both countries received whenever they visited each other's domains, particularly in July 1988, when Sultan Iskandar's visit to Singapore marked the first official visit by any Yang di-Pertuan Agong since 1957. Between these years, Sultan Iskandar has been awarded or been given the following awards by Singaporean political leaders:

• 1988: Then-Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong received the Dato' Paduka Mahkota Johor (Kehormat) from the Sultan himself
• 2007: Sultan Iskandar was presented with the Honorary Master Parachutist Wing by then-Singapore Defence Minister Teo Chee Hean
• 2007: Conferred the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws by the National University of Singapore.

Relations with Singapore took a dive after the International Court of Justice ruled in Singapore's favour following a long legal battle over the sovereignty of Pedra Branca. At the inaugural session of the 12th Johor State Assembly in 2008, the Sultan stated his stand on Malaysia's sovereignty over Pedra Branca, and vowed to find legal means to retrieve the island's sovereignty.

Sultan Iskandar also fostered a fairly close relationship with the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, particularly during his days as the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong. In 2006, they were again seen together in public, after Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah made a state visit to Johor to express his interest in Iskandar Development Region.

Personal life

In 1956, Mahmood married Josephine Ruby Trevorrow, from Cornwall, United Kingdom, with whom he had four children, including his successor, Ibrahim Ismail and the current queen of Malaysia, Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah. The marriage ended with divorce in 1962. He remarried in 1961 – shortly before his divorce to Trevorrow, to Tengku Zanariah, who came from the Kelantan royal family. Tengku Zanariah had six children with the Sultan. Analysts such as Kate Wharton have observed that any literal references to Trevorrow's association with Sultan Iskandar was carefully omitted in all official biographies.

As a youth, Mahmood qualified as a pilot, having trained in handling light and medium aircraft and helicopters. He was also apt in handling motorcycles, reportedly possessing the skills to strip a motorcycle down to its component parts and then reassembling it.

The Sultan is also well known for his passion in many types of open-air sports, especially polo and golf. In his later years, he spent much of his free time at the Royal Johor Country Club. In addition, he also played tennis and squash on a regular basis. Within private circles, Sultan Iskandar was fondly known as "Moody", a testimony to his first name "Mahmud." His son, Abdul Majid, inherited his interest in amateur golf and once served as the President of the Malaysian Golf Association.

He is involved in the 1988 Malaysian constitutional crisis which the then prime minister Mahathir Mohamad used his 1992 Gomez beating incident as a leverage to hijack the Malaysian judiciary system by sacking the then Lord of President of the Federal Court of Malaysia (Now known as Chief Justice of Malaysia), Tun Haji Mohamed Salleh bin Abas in an effort to claim his political success.

In addition, he kept a large collection of pets, particularly peacocks, at his Istana Bukit Serene compound, where he lived with the Sultanah. In his youth, Iskandar resided at Istana Bukit Coombe, located at the top of Coombe Hill. It was built upon Dutch architectural designs, and was later renamed Istana Bukit Iskandar. The palace was later demolished in 1987, six years after Sultan Iskandar succeeded his late father as Sultan.

He made a personal friendship with Philippine opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. His son picked Aquino up at Changi airport and drove to Johor where he and Aquino had a meeting with the latter days before the former Philippine senator was assassinated.

Issue

Health

After undergoing a coronary bypass operation in the United States in 2000, close aides reported that Sultan Iskandar slowed down somewhat in his pace of life and took to playing golf only on an occasional basis. A bout of bronchitis in January 2008 saw the Sultan being briefly admitted and treated in a local hospital.

Death

Sultan Iskandar died on 22 January 2010 at 7:15 pm at the Puteri Specialist Hospital, Johor Bahru. after being admitted earlier in the day following an illness at age 77. His death was only officially announced at 11:20 pm by Menteri Besar of Johor Datuk Abdul Ghani Othman announced that flags be lowered to half mast Johor starting from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm. He was brought to the Istana Besar, Johor Bahru for laying in state and is buried in the Mahmoodiah Royal Mausoleum the next day at 2:00 pm. Before that, the public was allowed to pay their last respects to Sultan Iskandar from early morning.

Among the royal family were present and other dignitaries were present to give their last respects is the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Nur Zahirah, the Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, the Raja of Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin, the Sultan of Pahang Sultan Ahmad Shah, the Sultan of Kedah Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, the Sultan of Perak Sultan Azlan Shah, the Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, the Yang Dipertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan Tuanku Muhriz, the Regent of Perlis Tuanku Syed Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail, the Tengku Mahkota of Pahang Tengku Abdullah, and the Tengku Mahkota of Kelantan Tengku Muhammad Faris Petra. Prime Minister Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak, cut short his visit to India to attend his funeral. Also present were Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.

His son the Tunku Mahkota of Johor Tunku Ibrahim Ismail was proclaimed as the next Sultan of Johor also on 23 January.

Legacy

Several projects and institutions were named after the Sultan, including:

Educational institutions

• Institute Sultan Iskandar of Urban Habitat and Highrise, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
• SMK Tunku Mahmood Iskandar, Sungai Mati, Muar
• SMK Mahmood Iskandar, Parit Saidi, Batu Pahat
• SK Tengku Mahmood Iskandar 1 and 2, Pontian

Buildings

Bangunan Sultan Iskandar–Customs, Immigration and Quarantine centre was opened in December 2008.

• Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, or the Sultan Iskandar Complex in English, a customs, immigration and quarantine complex opened in December 2008
• Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, Kota Tinggi district office of the Malaysian Public Works Department
• Bangunan Sultan Iskandar, Federal government headquarters for Youth and Sports in Sarawak, located in Kuching, Sarawak.
• Dewan Sultan Iskandar, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
• Planetarium Sultan Iskandar the first planetarium in Malaysia. The planetarium is located in Kuching Civic Centre, Kuching, Sarawak. It was named in honour of the Sultan, then the eighth Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
• Sultan Iskandar Broadcasting Complex, headquarters of Johor FM at Jalan Datin Halimah
• Pusat Islam Iskandar Johor, the Johor Islamic Centre in Johor Bahru
• Masjid Iskandar, a mosque at Kem Iskandar, a Commando military camp in Mersing.
• Sultan Iskandar Mosque, a mosque at Mersing and Bandar Dato' Onn
• Kota Iskandar Mosque, a state mosque in Kota Iskandar, Iskandar Puteri.
• Sultan Iskandar Power Station, Pasir Gudang
• Sultan Iskandar Reservoir, a water reservoir east of Johor Bahru.
• Iskandar Coastal Bridge

Roads

• Lebuhraya Sultan Iskandar, a stretch of the Iskandar Coastal Highway from Danga Bay to Iskandar Puteri.
• Lebuhraya Sultan Iskandar (formerly Lebuhraya Mahameru), part of the Kuala Lumpur Middle Ring Road 1 in Kuala Lumpur.
• Jalan Sultan Iskandar, a major road in Bintulu, Sarawak.

Others

• Iskandar Johor Open, an Asian Tour golf tournament funded by the Johor state government
• Iskandar Malaysia, formerly Wilayah Pembangunan Iskandar or Iskandar Development Region (IDR) in English
• Kota Iskandar (formerly Johor State New Administrative Centre (JSNAC)) is an administrative centre for the state government of Johor located at Iskandar Puteri
• Kem Iskandar, a Commando military camp in Mersing
• Iskandar Puteri, a planned city which was formerly known as Nusajaya
• Taman Iskandar, a housing estate near Pasir Pelangi, Johor Bahru
• Sultan Iskandar Deep Sea Park, a deep sea park in Pulau Mensirip, Mersing.
• Pertandingan Menembak Piala Sultan Iskandar

One of his grandsons (the son of his second son, Abdul Majid), Mahmood Iskandar, was named after him. Some of his children and grandchildren are also similarly named after his forebears, notably his older son, Ibrahim, who was named after the Sultan's grandfather, Sultan Ibrahim. Sultan Iskandar also followed his grandfather's and father's footsteps of using the royal monogram "S.I.". The monogram's letters represent the initials of their title and names respectively.

Honours

He was awarded:

Johor honours

• Second Class (DK II, 8.5.1959), First Class (DK I, 28.10.1959) and Grand Master of the Royal Family Order of Johor
• First Class (SPMJ, 28.10.1967) and Grand Master of the Order of the Crown of Johor
• Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Loyalty of Sultan Ismail (28.10.1975, SSIJ)
• Sultan Ibrahim Coronation Medal (PSI 1st class)
• Star of Sultan Ismail (BSI 1st class)
• Sultan Ismail Coronation Medal (1960)

National and Sultanal honours

•  Malaysia (as Yang di-Pertuan Agong):
  • Recipient of Order of the Royal Family of Malaysia (DKM) (1984)
  • Recipient (1987) and Grand Master (1984-1989) of the Order of the Crown of the Realm
  • Grand Master (1984-1989) of the Order of the Defender of the Realm
  • Grand Master (1984-1989) of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia
  • Grand Master (1984-1989) of the Order of Merit of Malaysia
  • Grand Master (1984-1989) of the Order of Loyalty to the Royal Family of Malaysia
•  Kelantan:
  • Recipient of the Royal Family Order of Kelantan (DK) (1984)
•  Kedah:
  • Recipient of the Royal Family Order of Kedah (DK) (1985)
•  Negeri Sembilan:
  • Member of the Royal Family Order of Negeri Sembilan (DKNS) (1985)
•  Pahang:
  • First Class Member of the Family Order of the Crown of Indra of Pahang (DK I) (1990)
•  Perlis:
  • Recipient of the Perlis Family Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Putra Jamalullail (DK)
•  Terengganu:
  • Member of the first class of the Family Order of Terengganu (DK) (1982)
•  Selangor:
  • First Class of the Royal Family Order of Selangor (DK I) (1985)
•  Sabah:
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Kinabalu (SPDK) – Datuk Seri Panglima
•  Melaka:
  • Grand Commander of the Premier and Exalted Order of Malacca (DUNM) – Datuk Seri Utama (1988)

Foreign honours

•  Brunei:
  • First Class of the Family Order of Laila Utama (DK) – Dato Laila Utama (1972)
  • Recipient of the Royal Family Order of the Crown of Brunei (DKMB) (1988)
•  Indonesia:
  • Star of the Republic of Indonesia (1st Class) (1987)
•  Thailand:
  • Knight of the Order of the Rajamitrabhorn (KRM) (1985)

See also

In Spanish: Iskandar de Johor para niños