The Rajah of Sarawak.

C.19th engraved portrait of Sir James Brooke  by Sir Francis Grant  the first of the White Rajahs who were a dynastic monarchy of the British Brooke family, who founded and ruled the Raj of Sarawak, located on the north west coast of the island of Borneo, from 1841 to 1946.

The first ruler was James Brooke. As a reward for helping the Sultanate of Brunei fight piracy and insurgency among the indigenous peoples, he was granted the province of Kuching, which was known as Sarawak Asal (Original Sarawak) in 1841 and received independent kingdom status. Based on descent through the male line in accordance with the will of Sir James Brooke, the White Rajahs’ dynasty continued through Brooke’s nephew and grandnephew, the latter of whom ceded his rights to the United Kingdom in 1946. His nephew had been the legal heir to the throne and objected to the cession, as did most of the Sarawak members of the Council Negri. The portrait was painted shortly after Brooke’s return to England on 1 October 1847 and engraved by W. Holl, published J. Murray, 1848 for Captain R. Mundy’s Narrative of Events in Borneo and Celebes from the Journals of James Brooke.