Sultanate of Maguindanao

Two brothers named Mamalu and Tabunaway lived peacefully in the Cotabato Valley on Mindanao and then Sharif Kabungsuwan of Johor in what is now modern day Malaysia, preached Islam in the area in the 16th century, Tabunaway converted, while Mamalu decided to hold fast to their ancestral animist beliefs. The brothers parted ways, with Tabunaway heading to the lowlands and Mamalu to the mountains, but they vowed to honor their kinship, and thus an unwritten pact of peace between Maguindanaons and the indigenous peoples was forged through the two brothers.[8]

As Shariff Kabungsuwan preached Islam in the area, which was earlier Hindu-influenced from Srivijaya times, at the end of the 16th century and established himself as Sultan seated in Malabang. He exiled some of his people who apostatised to Cotabato. He subsequently married into the families of local chieftains and established the Sultanate of Maguindanao, with its seat in Slangan (the western part of present-day Cotabato), making him virtually Sultan of the whole island.[9] The sultanate was largely centered around the Cotabato Valley.

Asraf Mohamad Samalan Dipatuan Qudratullah Fahar'uddin Nasiruddin, popularly known as Kudarat and whose name as a youth was Ullah Untong, was one of the greatest sultans who controlled Mindanao. In his island sanctuary in Sulu, he was known as Sultan Nasiruddin and after his reign was buried there. His grandson Abd al-Rahman continued increasing the Sultanate's power and influence.

The Maguindanao Sultanate also had a close alliance with the Ternate Sultanate, a sultanate in the Moluccas region of Indonesia. Ternate regularly sent military reinforcements to Maguindanao during the Spanish-Moro Wars.[10]

Nevertheless, its power was reduced when the Confederate Sultanates of Lanao, declared independence from the Maguindanao Sultanate.

During the Spanish colonial period, the Sultanate of Maguindanao was able to defend its territory, preventing the Spaniards from colonizing the entire coastal Mindanao and ceding the island of Palawan to the Spanish government in 1705. The island priory ceded to him by Sulu Sultan Sahabuddin. This was to have help dissuaded Spanish encroachments into the island of Maguindanao and Sulu itself.

Chinese gongs, yellow as a color of royalty, and idioms of Chinese origin entered Mindanao culture.[11] Royalty was connected to yellow.[12] The color yellow was used by the Sultan in Mindanao.[13] Chinese tableware and gongs were exported to the Moros.[14]

Merchant Chinese were tranquilly residing alongside the Moros in Maguindanao.[15]

Maguindanao maintained close relations with Ternate, Sulu, and Brunei, but developed a rivalry with Buayan. However, Buayan would become a de facto subject state under Sultan Kudarat of Maguindanao. (TBE)

The most important exports were rice, wax, tobacco, and clove and cinnamon barks, alongside coconut oil, sago, beans, tortoiseshells, bird's nests, and ebony hardwood.[17]

• Several policies of attraction
  • Slave raids across islands and mountains
  • Escaped slaves accommodated at Simoay
    • Included Malays, Bugis, Ternatans, Ambonese, Burmese, Makassarese, even from as far as coastal India
    • Only Sultan permits slave sales, otherwise risk beheading
  • Pagali method

The people of Maguindanao are certainly known under one name, but consist of many different nations.

— Sultan Barahaman in a letter written in 1693 to a Dutch governor in Ternate

At its peak, Maguindanao maintained a diverse mosaic of indigenous ethnicities and communities; besides the Maguindanaon themselves, under various forms of vassalage were Iranun (including Maranao), Sama-Bajau, Subanon, Sarangani, and Kalagan peoples, while in more mutual yet interdependent trade-based relationships were highlander Tirurays and Manobos.[20]

The Iranun peoples settled along the coasts of the entire Illana Bay, including the Pulangi and Simuay deltas and Polloc harbor, and further inland along the shore of Lake Lanao as Maranaos. Although they were autonomously led by their datus, they were vassals of the Sultan from paying tributes and formal acknowledgements. During Barahaman's reign, their population was estimated to be around 90,000-100,000.

Alongside the Bajaus, they were the most important allies of the Maguindanao; the sultanate heavily depended on their vast manpower to maintain the status quo throughout the region. Paradoxically, however, they were also perceived by Maguindanao royalty as the least trustworthy of all groups; they were apparently notorious for rogue activities, and several punitive expeditions were made to quell minor Iranun uprisings. European traders were sometimes advised to sail south of the predominantly Iranun Polloc area into the Simuay River if heading towards the capital for safety, and were denied permanent trading posts for the same reason.[21]

The Sama-Bajau, or simply Badjaos, of Maguindanao were primarily based around the Simuay delta, though they were nomads who lived on the shorelines and did not live in permanent settlements like the Iranun; additionally, they were particularly barred from living within the capital itself, though nearby.

Small in numbers, they were typically fishermen who supplied sea produce for trading vessels and Maguindaon land dwellers, sometimes sailing as far as the Tomini Gulf for catches. However, they were also called upon for a variety of other jobs ranging from supplying boats, joining slave raiding expeditions, and as boat rowing entourage for royalty and other esteemed officials alongside more dangerous jobs as the Sultan's envoys, interpreters, tribute collection from the coastal settlements, and as river guardians.[22]

The Subanon peoples of the Zamboanga peninsula were also vassals of the sultanate. Aside from offering manpower, they were entrusted with two main roles: production and trade of local cinnamon (Cinnamomum mindanaense) and maintaining storage networks for the Maguindanao's hardware, especially cannons.[23]

The Tirurays of the southern Tiruray Highlands and its coast held a mutual but interdependent position with the sultanate largely defined by trade. Trade pacts were established between Magindanaon datus and Tiruray neighborhoods through seketas teel ("cutting rattan together"). They largely traded forest and some agricultural produce like wax, tobacco, as well as manpower.[24]

Manobos comprise a variety of different highland peoples in the northern and western mountains surrounding the Cotabato Basin, and like the Tirurays, held largely mutual trade relationships with the sultanate. Manobo territories were outside the margins of any Maguindanao control and considered too dangerous. Consequently, trade activity was restricted to only between them and the royal family and principal datus. They mostly traded gold for clothing.[25]

Since its capture in 1625, the people of the Sarangani islands were subjugated by Maguindanao through various enforced trade policies in that area, and may be considered slaves of the sultanate than merely subjects.

Aside from serving as the Sultan's primary warehouse, Kudarat restricted their trading activities with foreigners through his personal permission for a license, except for several Chinese in wax trading. The islands' crossroads position served various professions for the sultanate, from ship repair, agricultural produce, wood, water, and manpower.[25]

Otherwise known in historical accounts as simply peoples of the Davao Gulf area, Kalagans were also subject to similar protectionist trade restrictions by Maguindanao since Kudarat's reign. Maguindanao since shared control of the area with Kandahar (Sangir) until usurpation by the former during Sultan Barahaman's rule.

Probably only the town of present-day Davao and nearby settlements were subjugated and paid tribute. Like Sarangani, they offered manpower and agricultural and forest goods.

Kalangan, another settlement elsewhere in the region, had its own tributaries inland and did not pay tribute to Maguindanao, but provided food and traded wax and lower prices for visiting Maguindanaon traders.[26]

(TBE)

As of May 2018, there are three major royal families in Maguindanao. Each having an enthroned sultan under the Sultanate of Maguindanao, Kingdom of Buayan, and Domain of Allah Valley.[8][30][31]