Of Rajahs and Hornbills: A timeline of Brooke Sarawak

[lukedalton]

With all the ITTL butterflies fluttering around, it would be easy for another Italian Prime Minister to take the helm instead of Crispi and that the trade war could be resolved with a few background grumbles. As for the economics though, until the Italian banks start to consolidate themselves (also, corruption) a scandal and recession will eventually happen.

Oh i agree totally, it's just the degree of the recession, probably going from 'we need to emigrate en masse' to 'bearable with some good effort'.
Not having Crispi also mean worse relations with A-H as the men, to keep the Triple Alliance functioning, kept the irredentism towards Trento and Trieste at a short lash and block a lot of anti-austrian policies. If (and if) Italy is more allied with France there will be not such restrain...and frankly i think that Vienna will still fuming for the losing of Dalmatia.

Actually, ITTL Italy's eye will be looking a bit at Ethiopia (I expect a few clashes there) but it's main gaze will still be at the East Indies due to the unexpected events and the vast resources it will discover in the 90's. The Dark Continent will have a somewhat different history ITTL.

In general i agree with Jonathan above, while Italy main interest ITTL is in East India, Eritrea is in a strategic point as a coal station and in having some says if the British decide to do some sheningans with Suez. Said that, yes, with the principal effort in Asia, at max there will be some attempt to snatch Tigrai from Abyssina, but in this case more due to the need of strategic deep than a true colonial effort.
Plus ITTL the big problems with Ethiopia will be more due to the inherent chaos of the place, border clash, autonomous raiding party, etc. etc. than a plan to take over the place.
Finally Italians in Eritrea (expecially if they are allied or at least big friends with France) will have surely a clash of interest with the British.

 

[Al-numbers]

Hmmm. Eritrea will be very important for Italy ITTL as a coaling station on the way to the East Indies, so there may be more development in the Eritrean ports and a greater effort to establish settlers there. On the other hand, as you say, Italy's focus on the East Indies will leave fewer resources to project toward Ethiopia, so the Italo-Ethiopian conflict might be limited to border clashes (or maybe biting off a chunk of territory in Tigre) rather than any attempt at outright conquest. The effect on Ethiopia could be interesting: it would be able to modernize on its own terms, possibly in alliance with Russia, but would also face less pressure to modernize, which could blow up in its face during the 20th century.

In general i agree with Jonathan above, while Italy main interest ITTL is in East India, Eritrea is in a strategic point as a coal station and in having some says if the British decide to do some sheningans with Suez. Said that, yes, with the principal effort in Asia, at max there will be some attempt to snatch Tigrai from Abyssina, but in this case more due to the need of strategic deep than a true colonial effort.
Plus ITTL the big problems with Ethiopia will be more due to the inherent chaos of the place, border clash, autonomous raiding party, etc. etc. than a plan to take over the place.
Finally Italians in Eritrea (expecially if they are allied or at least big friends with France) will have surely a clash of interest with the British.

Hmmm. You two do have a point, and I wonder if the threat of invasion (real or perceived, especially if/after Italy takes Tigre) might force Ethiopia to modernize itself against outside threats.

Anyways, it's back to Brooke Sarawak for the next few updates!

 

[Herr Frage]

Anyways, it's back to Brooke Sarawak for the next few updates!

And Rajah Charles dealing with Brunei getting bailed out. I believe all of Borneo is no spoken for. Looks like Sarawakian expansion will end for some time after the border is settled with Italy. Time to focus more in internal improvements and standing abroad then?

 

[lukedalton]

Hmmm. You two do have a point, and I wonder if the threat of invasion (real or perceived, especially if/after Italy takes Tigre) might force Ethiopia to modernize itself against outside threats.

Anyways, it's back to Brooke Sarawak for the next few updates!

it's very complicated, Abyssinia was more a feudal state than a modern nation as we intend; the ras himself was, more of the time, just a first among peers.

Hailè Selassiè attempted to modernize the place, but it took him decades a more than a couple of time starting a short internal conflict to obtain OTL results...and he was a real magnificent bastard. Not saying it can't happen, but it will not be bloodless or very simple, and during this period, Abyssinia will be more vulnerable to external threat.

 

[Al-numbers]

Joseph Pairin Kitingan, The Land Below The Wind: A History of Sabah, (Charleston University Press; 1993)

...To say that the Kingdom of Italy was completely unprepared with handling Eastern Sabah is a gross falsehood; Rome had acquired colonies and trading ports as far back as 1869, and it was the actions of the Italian Navy during the 1866 Independence War that brought Austrian Dalmatia into the kingdom's fold. Above all, they had learned (or so they thought) how to administrate far-off territories based on their experience of New Guinea. However, Sabah would teach them, above all, that not all colonies can be created equal...

The first problem with the newly-acquired region was its unfamiliarity. Compared with Sarawak and several regions of Dutch Borneo, the interior of Sabah – and more particularly, Eastern Sabah – was mostly unexplored due to the presence of the pirate-slaving Sulu Sultanate nearby which scared off most travellers from ever exploring. Even during the height of the Sulu Affair, few vessels ever dared to venture up the region's rivers from the smuggling ports on the coast. Thus, when Italian officials began streaming into Sandakan, they were very much in the dark as to what actually lay within their own territory. In some cases, they didn't even realize just how far Brooke and Dutch influence had penetrated in Sabah, much less know which border territories the latter Powers had managed to influence.

And that was the second problem the Italian officials faced: grudging neighbours. Compared to New Guinea, the region was already home to two ginormous and influential colonial powers, both of which knew the land, the peoples and the ways to rule it better than the Italians. In fact, both Sarawak and the Dutch had already signed treaties among themselves over the status of Sabah decades ago, but the recent machinations of the Italian companies at Jolo threw them all up in the air. In Kuching, the White Rajah had been angling to gain more influence up in the north, and the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies shared the same sentiment. However, the cascade of dominoes that began with the Compagnia Vanella had considerably soured both Powers' views of Italy, and saw the state as budging in on ‘claimed ground’.

However, the biggest problem the new administrators faced was not geography or the neighbouring empires, but the people of Sabah themselves. Unlike Italian Papua, whose tribes had limited contact with the outside world prior to colonisation, the Malays and Dayaks of Sabah had been exposed to the outside influence in the most brutal fashion imaginable: slavery. During the heyday of the Sulu Sultanate, swarms of privateers streamed up the rivers of Sabah and raided entire villages to capture native slaves. In fact, the Sulu Sultanate was notoriously famous throughout the region for its piracy and slave raids, and the name assigned to the men who oversaw it all – the Illanun – was so fearfully ingrained to regional culture, even to those living in Malaya and Sumatra, that they gave rise for the modern word for 'Pirate' in maritime Southeast Asia, Lanun.

By the close of the 1870's, the damage done was incomparable; Eastern Sabah had endured over 300 years of pirate slave raids, and it has shaped the residents accordingly. When the first explorers sailed up the Kinabatangan River in 1878, they reported no settlements of any sort until around 40 kilometres upriver and described the native Dayaks as being "...wary, distrustful, to the point of bring hostile to anyone."

The ways the Italians confronted these problems, and the subsequent backlash and following responses to them, would haunt Italian Sabah until its dying day...

********************

Mary Schneider, The colonial affairs of South-East Asia (Ender Publishing; 2009)

…Aside from gaining influence, both Sarawak and the D.E.I feared that Italian mismanagement of Sabah would raise uprisings and rebellions that would stream across the border and threaten their own territories. And so from 1878 to 1884, Northern Borneo would be embroiled in what would be later known as the "Prang Sempadan"; the Border Wars, though in actuality the battles fought were more political and diplomatic rather than being fought on the ground.

Sarawak went first.

In the same month as the handover of the coastal smuggling bases to the new colonial state, Charles Brooke sent off several gunboats to the Balambangan and Banguey islands to enforce his kingdom’s claim to them. He then followed up by employing British and Dayak trackers to ascend the slopes of Mount Kinabalu while ramping up river expeditions around Kudat Bay and the Tambunan Valley. The Sarawak government also began a process of leverage with the local chieftains and headmen of the area, promising them freedom of religion in exchange for accepting Brooke overlordship. With this and the construction of modern facilities in the towns of Tempasok and Fort Charles, it was no surprise that Brooke influence in Sabah actually increased following the first few years of the Border Wars.

The Dutch were nearly as successful. As the largest force in the East Indies, they had greater capability of outsmarting Italy at Sabah than the Brooke family. However, this was complicated with the fact that the closest Dutch-held region to Italian Sabah was the Bulungan Sultanate, a state that had substantial Dutch influence but was somewhat independent when it came to conducting local policy. To counter this, Batavia forced the Bulungan court to sign a protectorate treaty in 1878 and quickly instructed expeditionary forces to traverse the rivers of eastern Borneo, building trading post after trading post at every confluence discovered. It was one such endeavour that brought the Pensiangan region – an area technically claimed by Italian Sabah – under their influence through the exploration of the Sembakung River in 1879, gobbling up a portion of northern Borneo in the process.

Initially, the Italian officials were unaware of their neighbours’ acts. Aside from head-turning expeditions, both Sarawak and the D.E.I mainly used secrecy, leverage and careful diplomacy to advance themselves, acts often slipped by the inexperienced officials at Sandakan. Besides that, none of the new authorities understood the lay of the land while first contacts with the inland Dayaks were no less than stormy. It wasn’t until 1881 that the Kinabatangan River would be accurately mapped and it wouldn't be until 1885 that the first accurate map of Italian Sabah would be made, and by then both Kuching and Batavia had long since snatched whatever border territories they had eyed. When the officials finally recognized the scope of the problem in late 1880, they sent repeated cables to Batavia and Singapore, asking the cities to restrain their regional power brokers. Considering both governments had been long in collusion since the Bornean Treaty of 1871, the efforts proved just as fruitless as both cities either ignored Sandakan's demands or followed through with a wink and a nod.

In fact, it wasn’t until the inclusion of Brunei in 1883 that some progress would be made. When the sultanate asked to be included into Rome's colonial empire, its capital added a clause stipulating the Regia Marina to be present during the handover ceremony and the first few months afterword as an insurance against Sarawakian aggression. True enough, Charles Brooke reacted negatively to the protectorate deal and demanded the ships leave. Sandakan cabled Singapore in response, requesting officials there to restrain the White Rajah. Considering the island's long history towards Sarawak, such an act would at most be half-hearted if it were not for the oversight of the Colonial Office in London. After the dance of the Sulu Affair and its subsequent fallout, the British Parliament began to take closer attention to their colonial holdings in East Indies and saw how Sarawak's antics could very well hamper the region's peace. A direct order from the Colonial Office was issued, chastising Kuching for its behaviour and confirming Italian overlordship over the Sultanate of Brunei.

It would be start of a new era. Though Sarawak and the D.E.I were able to keep all the border regions they had snatched, neither could overtly threaten the new colony as brazenly as they once could. The White Rajah in particular would feel the most of the new oversight; The Brooke family had always conducted their affairs rather independently from their colonial neighbours and grumbled whenever they were barred from meddling with administrative gaffes in Italian Brunei and Sabah, which happened often. Batavia also faced greater oversight from the Netherlands, though their comparatively reduced interest in Sabah made for a duller blow.

In March 1884, opening discussions on the border territories were held in Kuching, Singapore, and Batavia. Although Italy desired all the taken regions back, a number of problems had cropped up at their Bornean state and the officials were keen to resolve the border issues as quickly as possible. Sarawak and the Dutch East Indies were allowed to keep every territory they had snatched with a promise that either Power would stop leveraging influence across the border. Both Powers agreed with a caveat that any border-crossing Dayak force from Italian Sabah will be dealt with, regardless of intent. As a gesture of reconciliation, Batavia granted Sebatik Island to the new administration while Sarawak withdrew its claim from the island of Jambongan.

There were no grand treaties signed in the vein of the Sulu Affair, but the agreements of 1884 did set in stone the borders that would shape Borneo for the next 20 years. For whatever complaints Sarawak and the D.E.I had on the matter, both sides were at least experienced enough to administer their acquired lands. Sandakan, on the other hand, faced a new problem as their attention focused from the forces conspiring outside Sabah, to those fermenting inside it…

____________________

Footnotes:

1.) The account of settlements being that far upstream by the Kinabatangan is based on OTL accounts.

2.) The headwaters of the Sembakung River are actually located inside OTL Sabah. ITTL, the Dutch managed to claim the watershed and enforce it before anyone else did.

 

[Germania09]

So the Italians are going to fudge up their administration of Sabah? Well this should end nicely then

 

[Al-numbers]

So the Italians are going to fudge up their administration of Sabah? Well this should end nicely then

I suppose it won't be spoiling that Italian Sabah is going to be more than what they expected, especially since most of the new officers think it's going to be like New Guinea.

It's not.

 

[The Forty-Eighth Rōnin]

Some weird shit's gonna happen to Sabah.

 

[Herr Frage]

The British are reining in Sarawak, a solid move. But I think while the Brookes know they needs must comply it also reminds them that Britain will not always have their back. They are already independent, but foreign policy may start to reflect that more now. Nothing too drastic but does Kuching have ambassadors abroad particularly in Europe and America?

I like it being pointed out the Italians have reason to believe in their Sabah adventure. On paper it makes a good argument, but the reality is sure to be quite different.

The Italians are trying to rule a region with a tradition of both p[iracy and ingrained hostility to outsiders. What's more they have little experience with the cultures and most local experts are employed by parties that resent their presence.

Brunei should be easier to manage, not easy but easier. But that act saved Brunei from Sarawak, the White Rajah will not soon forget that act from Italy.

And it seems Sabah under Italy will last twenty years. And wait then I wonder? Italy transfers the mess to Brunei? Sells it partition to the DEI and Sarawak. Perhaps they lose it as part of a major war?

Time will tell. So the 1889 map covers all the new borders?

With borders settled for a goodly term I am guessing Bornean matters will turn to the internal development & conflicts. While it sounds like Sabah will be the most violent I am guessing changes are afoot in Sarawak from the court in Kuching to the new territories. Not to mention Brunei and Italy exploring their relationship. And the butterflies are at work in the DEI.

 

[Archangel]

I suppose it won't be spoiling that Italian Sabah is going to be more than what they expected, especially since most of the new officers think it's going to be like New Guinea.

It's not.

Does it mean some sort of culture clash or officers assuming the local population will be compliant with everything they say?

 

[Herr Frage]

Does it mean some sort of culture clash or officers assuming the local population will be compliant with everything they say?

I would guess it will be a far more passionate, and organized, resistance to exerting authority than they expect.

 

[theg*ddam*hoi2fan]

This TL never ceases to enthrall

 

[B_Munro]

So "ginormous" is a common adjective in this TL's historical terminology?

 

[Jonathan Edelstein]

So "ginormous" is a common adjective in this TL's historical terminology?

Butterflies. Ginormous ones.

Can't wait to see how Italy is managing (or not managing) its new acquisition.

 

[Germania09]

I suppose it won't be spoiling that Italian Sabah is going to be more than what they expected, especially since most of the new officers think it's going to be like New Guinea.

It's not.

The Italian reaction being "damn these Dayak savages for being suspicious of our obvious good intentions to uplift them by economic exploitation!!!"

 

[lukedalton]

The Italian reaction being "damn these Dayak savages for being suspicious of our obvious good intentions to uplift them by economic exploitation!!!"

I fear that will be more...oh well see libyan reconquest in the 20's and 30's

 

[Al-numbers]

And just when I thought I could step up his TL, my 5-year old laptop finally decided to malfunction on me earlier today. I'm actually surprised it held out for this long, especially with me tinkering around with Photoshop and what not with it. So this TL is going to be a lot slow for the next few weeks while I get everything sorted through. Stay curious everyone!

Some weird shit's gonna happen to Sabah.

What, the previous decade hasn't been weird enough already?

Does it mean some sort of culture clash or officers assuming the local population will be compliant with everything they say?

I would guess it will be a far more passionate, and organized, resistance to exerting authority than they expect.

Can't wait to see how Italy is managing (or not managing) its new acquisition.

Herr Frage is right, and it's a resistance that will test everything the officers know about colonialsim in the East Indies, as well as giving them a crash course in administering North Borneo.

Creating a new system of "order" in foreign soil is already grounds for agression, but add that to a near-shattered region with bad memories of foreign "rule" and you will get a perfect storm. The reason why the Brooke side of Sabah got off lightly was due to Rajah James and Charles being staunch anti-piracy since the 1840s - with some help from the Royal Navy - and the leeway + leverage the Rajahs have forged with the inhabiting chieftains over the decades.

But don't worry, Sabah won't be Southeast Asia's version of the Congo. Nothing in this world is going to be like the Congo. Well, except the Congo.

So "ginormous" is a common adjective in this TL's historical terminology?

Butterflies. Ginormous ones.

I might have a predisposition for using awesome words.

The British are reining in Sarawak, a solid move. But I think while the Brookes know they needs must comply it also reminds them that Britain will not always have their back. They are already independent, but foreign policy may start to reflect that more now. Nothing too drastic but does Kuching have ambassadors abroad particularly in Europe and America?

For now, Sarawak has diplomatic presence only in Batavia and Singapore due to the virture of them both being next-door neighbours. However, they do have recognition treaties with a few faraway countries such as France, Spain, and even the United States, but this is more towards the latter Powers trying to uphold the new status quo and finding new places to conduct trade with rather than becoming diplomatically involved in Bornean affairs.

However, this is going to change as the fallout from european industry and wars (Franco-Prussian, Russo-Turkish, etc.) begins to affect the East. With the rising industries of Russia, the Ottomans and Austria-Hungary ramping up demand (and the price) for raw materials, Sarawak and most of the tropical countries shall begin to catch some prospective eyes. The race to get new colonies will also bring some to view the kingdom differently than before.

As for the Brookes, you are right in that London's chatisement will bring them pause on how they are presenting themselves to the world. Relations with Britain are too deep to ever be broken or even be strained - they still team up with the Royal Navy and the Brookes still have family members in England - but there will be a slight change in Sarawak's foreign outlook as the next decade rolls on.

Also, I should point out that since the kingdom's independance, there has always been a small but reasonably wealthy/influential cadre of British socialites supporting the kingdom through thick and thin. As the 1880s opens, that small group will grow to include some... unexpected figures. *hint*hint*yddeT*hint*hint*

I like it being pointed out the Italians have reason to believe in their Sabah adventure. On paper it makes a good argument, but the reality is sure to be quite different.

The Italians are trying to rule a region with a tradition of both piracy and ingrained hostility to outsiders. What's more they have little experience with the cultures and most local experts are employed by parties that resent their presence.

Well, it's a tropical colony, and since they've already had a tropical colony, shouldn't it also be the same? Unfortunately, the officers didn't realize history and perception also play important roles as well. God help them of they were to employ the castoffs and runaways from the Sulu Sultanate, though choosing the Bruneians would also not be a good option either; there is a reason why the Bornean Sultanate only has influence near the coast, even during it's height.

Brunei should be easier to manage, not easy but easier. But that act saved Brunei from Sarawak, the White Rajah will not soon forget that act from Italy.

Ooh, Charles Brooke is never going to forget this mess. He views the sultanate to be a relic that should be absorbed, as well as a territory that could be rich in raw materials. Once you've seen that thing you wanted for years getting snatched up at the last possible moment, you would not be in a good mood.

As for Brunei, all Italy has to do to placate the royal court is to give them a regular stipend and make sure the nobles wouldn't spend it all in the first month. Also, continuous protection from Sarawak and treading as little as possible in religous and cultural matters. However, the state might also be useful to the colonial empire in other ways.

And it seems Sabah under Italy will last twenty years. And wait then I wonder? Italy transfers the mess to Brunei? Sells it partition to the DEI and Sarawak. Perhaps they lose it as part of a major war?

Time will tell. So the 1889 map covers all the new borders?

Actually, that was supposed to be 21 years; But yes, Italy will only hold Sabah for only around two decades or so. What comes after shall, literally, change the world forever.

The 1889 map covers the gist of it, but it also leaves out one last crucial Italian-held port: Massawa, in the Horn of Africa. Italy gained the land via the Rubbatino Shipping Company and it forms an important atop on the route to the East Indies. So important, in fact, that it's defence might cause conflict with the nearby empire of Abbysina/Ethiopia.

With borders settled for a goodly term I am guessing Bornean matters will turn to the internal development & conflicts. While it sounds like Sabah will be the most violent I am guessing changes are afoot in Sarawak from the court in Kuching to the new territories. Not to mention Brunei and Italy exploring their relationship. And the butterflies are at work in the DEI.

The 1880's will be a time of great change for all the Powers that have roots in Borneo, and the people living within them will also face new paths to choose from. Outside contact, foreign influence, state-building, demographics, and many more factors will take their hold from this decade forward.

The Italian reaction being "damn these Dayak savages for being suspicious of our obvious good intentions to uplift them by economic exploitation!!!"

I fear that will be more...oh well see libyan reconquest in the 20's and 30's

As I've said, this Sabah is not going to be an alternate Congo, though the coming events will cause a great number of discomfort for the Italians and anyone else involved. Also, considering Sarawak and the Dutch grabbing all the border territories they can (which are also secretly full with most of Sabah's land resources), Sandakan will have to resort to more unconventional methods to balance their budget... that is, until oil is discovered.

This TL never ceases to enthrall

Thank you for finding this enthralling.

 

[Some Bloke]

With the Italians busy in the East Indies, does this mean they never try to conquer Ethiopia?

 

[Al-numbers]

With the Italians busy in the East Indies, does this mean they never try to conquer Ethiopia?

With most of their colonial empire situated in the East, no they won't. However, this doesn't mean they won't come into conflict with Ethiopia sooner or later as the lands surrounding Massawa are still held by Gondar and the Italians might want to secure their East African port's security by controlling it, leading to a conflict of some sort.

 

[lukedalton]

With most of their colonial empire situated in the East, no they won't. However, this doesn't mean they won't come into conflict with Ethiopia sooner or later as the lands surrounding Massawa are still held by Gondar and the Italians might want to secure their East African port's security by controlling it, leading to a conflict of some sort.

Probably the death of Emperor Yohannes in 1889 will start the italian expansion as OTL due to the confusion that will create in the Abyssian society/culture.
The big difference with OTL will be how the British will answer to the italian moves, as originally they see their presence as a counterweight to the French presence and as a help against the Mahdi revolt...so one must take in consideration also how Italy and France relationship is and how the situation in Egypt is evolving.

Rome will try to get more land possible, so to have enough strategic deep and developement possibility...plus some 'healthy' greed as colonies also mean prestige and the possibility to 'export' population. But i agree that with Italy attention on South east Asia, Abyssinia will be left more or less alone...totally is difficult to the nature of the place.
We will have a colony of the same size of OTL, maybe some piece of Tigray added but nothing more on the south. The big question is the Sudan border, if expanded till that, as it's Egyptian; OTL Kassala an important city that's on the middle of the only valuable land of the zone, was captured by the italian army and held for 3 years as it was a stagepoint for the Madhi troops incursion, if something of similar happen ITTL can create a point of tension with the British or the Ottoman.

One thing to take in consideration is here Italy will be more cocky, more aggressive and selfassured, from both his success and the need to 'avenge' some perceived offense like the agreement over Tunisia and the border landgrab by Batavia and Sarawak