This article lists the British representatives in the Raj of Sarawak from 1888 to 1946. They were responsible for representing British interests in the Raj of Sarawak during the period of a British protectorate (from 14 June 1888 to 1 July 1946), until the country was ceded to the United Kingdom and became the Crown Colony of Sarawak.
(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office)
| No. | Portrait | Name | Term | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agents for Sarawak and North Borneo | ||||
| 1 |  | The governors of the Straits Settlements | 14 June 1888 – 25 December 1941 | Based in Singapore |
| Liaison Officer to Sarawak and North Borneo | ||||
| 2 | Walter Evelyn Pepys | 1940 – 25 December 1941 | Japanese prisoner December 1941 – 1945 during the Japanese occupation of British Borneo | |
| Vacant | 25 December 1941 – 1946 | |||
| Resident | ||||
| 3 | John Coleraine Hanbury Barcroft | 1946 | ||
| Representative | ||||
| 4 | Christopher William Dawson | 1946 – 1 July 1946 | ||
East Malaysia, or the Borneo States, also known as Malaysian Borneo, is the part of Malaysia on and near the island of Borneo, the world's third-largest island. East Malaysia comprises the states of Sabah, Sarawak, and the Federal Territory of Labuan. The small independent nation of Brunei comprises two enclaves in Sarawak. To the south and southeast is the Indonesian portion of Borneo, Kalimantan. East Malaysia lies to the east of Peninsular Malaysia, the part of the country on the Malay Peninsula. The two are separated by the South China Sea.
Sir James Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak, was a British soldier and adventurer who founded the Raj of Sarawak in Borneo. He ruled as the first White Rajah of Sarawak from 1841 until his death in 1868.
Sir Charles Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak, GCMG, born Charles Anthoni Johnson, ruled as the head of state of Raj of Sarawak from 3 August 1868 until his death. He succeeded his uncle, James Brooke, as the second White Rajah.
Sir Vyner Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak, GCMG, full name Charles Vyner de Windt Brooke was the third and last White Rajah of the Raj of Sarawak.
The White Rajahs were a hereditary 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 Briton 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 in 1841 and received independent kingdom status.
The flag of Sarawak, officially known as Ibu Pertiwi, is the official flag of Sarawak, a state in Malaysia. It is based on the flag of the Raj of Sarawak of the White Rajah, and includes the yellow of Southeast Asian royalty — a similar yellow and diagonal black are in the flag of Brunei, although Brunei's yellow is of a brighter shade.
The dollar was the currency of the Raj of Sarawak from 1858 to 1953. It was subdivided into 100 cents. The dollar remained at par with the Straits dollar and its successor the Malayan dollar, the currency of Malaya and Singapore, from its introduction until both currencies were replaced by the Malaya and British Borneo dollar in 1953.
British Borneo comprised the four northern parts of the island of Borneo, which are now the country of Brunei, two Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak, and the Malaysian federal territory of Labuan. During the British colonial rule before World War II, Sarawak was known as the Raj of Sarawak (1841–1946), Sabah was known as North Borneo (1881–1946), and Labuan was known as the Crown Colony of Labuan (1848–1946). Between World War II and their independence from Britain, Sarawak became the Crown Colony of Sarawak (1946–1963) whereas Sabah and Labuan combined to form the Crown Colony of North Borneo (1946–1963). The Kingdom of Brunei (1888/1906–1984) was a protectorate of the United Kingdom since the 1888/1906 Protectorate Agreement, and was known as British Protectorate State of Brunei.
The Sarawak Rangers were a para-military force founded in 1862 by the second White Rajah of the Raj of Sarawak, Charles Brooke.
The Battle of Borneo was a successful campaign by Japanese Imperial forces for control of Borneo island and concentrated mainly on the subjugation of the Raj of Sarawak, Brunei, North Borneo, and the western part of Kalimantan that was part of the Dutch East Indies. The Japanese main unit for this mission was the 35th Infantry Brigade led by Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi.
The Raj of Sarawak, also the Kingdom of Sarawak or State of Sarawak, located in the northwestern part of the island of Borneo, was an independent state founded in 1841, in a treaty of protection with the United Kingdom starting from 1888. It was established from a series of land concessions acquired by an Englishman, James Brooke, from the Sultan of Brunei. Sarawak was recognised as an independent sovereign state by the United States in 1850 and by the United Kingdom in 1864. The Kingdom is now the Malaysian state of Sarawak.
Ibu Pertiwiku is the official state anthem of Sarawak, Malaysia. The song was adopted in 1988, alongside the adoption of the new State Flag as well, in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of Sarawak's Independence within Malaysia. The music was composed by Sarawak songwriter Dato' Haji Wan Othman, while the lyrics were written by Ismail Hassan.
The Most Excellent Order of the Star of Sarawak was established by Charles Vyner Brooke, The Rajah of Sarawak, on 26 September 1928 as the highest order of chivalry within the Raj of Sarawak. The motto of the order was "Haraplah Sa-lagi Bernafas", which was also the Sarawak state motto, a translation of the Latin phrase Dum Spiro Spero, which literally means "As long as I breathe, I hope".
The anti-cession movement of Sarawak was a movement in Sarawak to fight against the British attempt to govern Sarawak as a crown colony rather than a protectorate ruled by the White Rajahs. The movement lasted from 1 July 1946 until March 1950.
The Crown Colony of Sarawak was a British Crown colony on the island of Borneo, established in 1946, shortly after the dissolution of the British Military Administration. It was succeeded as the state of Sarawak through the formation of the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.
British protectorates were protectorates—or client states—under protection of the British Empire's armed forces and represented by British diplomats in international arenas, such as the Great Game, in which the Emirate of Afghanistan and the Tibetan Kingdom became protected states for short periods of time. Many territories which became British protectorates already had local rulers with whom the Crown negotiated through treaty, acknowledging their status whilst simultaneously offering protection, e.g. British Paramountcy. British protectorates were therefore governed by indirect rule. In most cases, the local ruler, as well as the subjects of the indigenous ruler were not British subjects. British protected states represented a more loose form of British suzerainty, where the local rulers retained absolute control over the states' internal affairs and the British exercised control over defence and foreign affairs.
The British Military Administration (BMA) was the interim administrator of British Borneo between the end of the Second World War and the establishment of the Crown Colonies of Sarawak and North Borneo in 1946. Specifically, the entity lasted from 12 September 1945 to 1 July 1946. Labuan became the headquarters of BMA. The headquarters was mostly managed by the Australian Imperial Force (AIF). The area under this administration today comprises Labuan, Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei. Sarawak was administered by Australians under British Borneo Civil Affairs Unit (BBCAU).
Sarawak Day is a holiday celebrated on 22 July annually by Sarawak, celebrating the establishment of de facto self-government on 22 July 1963.
The 1941 constitution of Sarawak is the first known written constitution in the Raj of Sarawak in Borneo. Written in the English language, the Constitution was proclaimed by the then third white rajah of Sarawak, Charles Vyner Brooke on 24 September 1941, which ends the century of sole sovereignty of Brooke's rule and for the people of Sarawak to their own constitutional government.
