Mahmud Shah (Sultan of Malacca)
Sultan Mahmud Shah (d.
1528) ruled
Malacca from
1488 to 1528. He was the son of Sultan
Alauddin Riayat Shah.
Upon his father's premature death, he was installed at a very young age. The regent at that time was the
prime minister (
Bendahara in
Malay)
Tun Perak. During his initial years as a young adult, the sultan was known to be a ruthless monarch. Fortunately, the administration of the sultanate was in the hands of an able and wise Tun Perak. After the death of Tun Perak in
1498, he was succeeded by a new Prime Minister
Tun Mutahir. The death of Tun Perak changed Sultan Mahmud into a more responsible ruler.
He had several wives. Among the most famous was
Tun Teja. The sultan was also fortunate to be surrounded by able men and warriors such as Hang Tuah, Khoja Hassan and Hang Nadim. When Malacca was attacked by the
Portuguese in
1511, the Sultan retreated to
Kampar,
Sumatra and held a government there until his death in 1528. He had two sons; one went north to establish the
Sultanate of Perak while the other went on to found
Sultanate of Johor.
*
Legend of Gunung Ledang
