Pakubuwono IV

Pakubuwono IV (also transliterated Pakubuwana IV) (31 August 1768 – 1 October 1820) was the third Susuhunan (ruler of Surakarta) . He reigned from 1788 to 1820.

He was born in 1768 as Gusti Raden Mas Subadya, the eldest son of Pakubuwana III by his queen consort, Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Kencana, a daughter of Tumenggung Wirareja. She had Demak lineage, and was also known as Ratu Beruk, a creator of a famous batik Truntum whose life story featured in the Babad Kanjeng Ratu Beruk.

In 1775, he was appointed as heir apparent by the title Kanjeng Gusti Pangeran Adipati Anom Hamengkunegara Sudibya Rajaputra Narendra Mataram ingkang Kaping II ing Surakarta Hadiningrat.

People called him Sunan Bagus because of his handsome appearance; moreover, he ascended the throne at the young age of 20 in 1788.

Unlike his father, he was a competent ruler with big ambitions.^[1] As a devout Muslims, he appointed four clerics as his trusted advisors; they were: Tumenggung Wiradigda, Kyai Bahman, Kyai Panengah, and Kyai Nur Sholeh.^[2] Another source also included Tumenggung Sujanaprana. This action triggered tension between him and the court senior officials, as many of them believed in mystique. The clerics had a great influence on his decision, such as forbidding alcohol and opium, war exercises every Saturday, and changing the soldiers' Dutch clothing into Javanese. He would go to the Kasunan mosque to perform Friday prayer, and sometimes act as khatib. If they, the palace officials, didn't comply with religious teachings, they were prosecuted, removed, and even dismissed, as experienced by Tumenggung Pringgalaya and Tumenggung Mangkuyudha. The VOC, along with Yogyakarta and Mangkunegaran, were worried about his new regulations.^[1] From September 16 until October 10, 1790, the VOC sent a delegation led by Jan Greeve, the Governor and Director of Java’s Noord-en Ooskust, demand the handover of the four clerics. As the negotiation failed, the palace was surrounded in all directions by the VOC, Yogyakarta, and Mangkunegaran soldiers. Only with the advice from Raden Ngabehi Yasadipura I, he finally agreed to hand over them, so that the siege was lifted. Through Prince Purbaya, Prince Mangkubumi, and Prince Bumi Nata, the clerics were handed over to the Dutch fort on November 26, 1790, and, fortunately, because of his earlier argument on their behalf, they weren't executed.

In 1812, he was involved in the outbreak of the Sack of Yogyakarta, widely known as Geger Sepehi or "Sepoy".^[3] The name referred to soldiers, mostly Indian infantrymen armed in the British East India Company. The starting point was actually the internal conflict between Hamengkubuwana II and the Adipati Anom, since the heir appointment was done by the intervention of Hamengkubuwana I. This divided the Yogyakarta court into two factions, one supporting the Sultan and another supporting the Adipati Anom. The Adipati Anom was more welcome to the Dutch; as a result, after the anti-Dutch rebellion rose, Daendels forced the Sultan to make the crown prince as the regent, which he had to agree. In late 1811, as the Dutch were defeated, Hamengkubuwana II deposed him as regent but still a crown prince.

Hamengkubuwana II wasn't in a good relationship with the British.^[4] Sunan Pakubuwana IV saw an opportunity, sent the Patih Dalem, Kanjeng Raden Adipati Cakranegara, to meet the Adipati Anom and Prince Natakusuma to express his support.^[4] He also ordered Raden Tumenggung Ranawijaya and Raden Tumenggung Sasradiningrat to formulate a strategy with the Sultan by correspondence. The Sunan promised support and troops if Yogyakarta and the British went to war. Prince Natakusuma, aware of the Sultan and Sunan's collaboration in rebelling, immediately reported it to Crawfurd. Subsequently, Crawfurd told Raffles to overthrow the Sultan and install the crown prince instead.

^[5] On the other hand, there was a conflict between Surakarta and Mangkunegaran since he cancelled the marriage arrangement between his eldest daughter, Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Pembayun, and Bendara Raden Mas Sarengat, grandson and heir of Mangkunegara II, due to political reasons of the fear of losing inheritance if the bride died first. Insulted and angry, Mangkunegara II sought revenge by establishing a relationship with Raffles and sent his troops to join the British attack on Yogyakarta.

^[4] In the morning on June 16, 1812, the British troops performed a demonstration at the Surakarta town square, made the young Sunan tremble, and eventually betrayed his ally, sending four hundred Surakarta soldiers to Yogyakarta. Four days later, Sultan Hamengkubuwana II was defeated and exiled to Penang. Afterwards, the Adipati Anom ascended the throne as Hamengkubuwana III and Prince Natakusuma was appointed as Paku Alam I.

^[6] Pakubuwana IV's romantic story with the princess of Madura was told in Bedaya Duradasih, a classical dance he created personally. The story began by the time he was still a crown prince or Adipati Anom, when his father, Pakubuwana III, brought Raden Ajeng Handaya, daughter of Adipati Cakradiningrat of Pamekasan, to the court to be trained in palace customs, with the intention that she would later be matched with the Adipati Anom. The arrangement was a part of long political marriages between Mataram and Madura since the reign of Sultan Agung.

Later on, the Sunan summoned them; however declined by the Adipati Anom because he had no interest in Handaya, describing her as unattractive, dark-skinned, and possessing a voice likened to that of a man. Sunan Pakubuwana III, who was disappointed with his son, undertook an ascetic retreat and prayed to transform Handaya into a beautiful lady. He received a divine revelation that Handaya should perform fasting and bathe each morning before sunrise with flower-infused water. The bath must be performed using golden bokor as her bathing vessel and with the help of an elder woman at least the rank of Nyai Mas Tumenggung, who has discipline in fasting. In addition, she was also required to drink jamu. Afterwards, a miracle happened, she turned into an extraordinary beauty.

The Sunan summoned them both again, but he refused her once more, having already fallen in love with the lady opposite him without realizing it was her, as his father didn't tell. After he truly fell and expressed his desire to marry her, the Sunan granted him marriage. As the primary wife of Adipati Anom, Raden Ajeng Handaya was officially renamed as Raden Ayu Adipati Anom. Upon learning the truth, he continued the marriage in happiness.^[7] However, she died about a year and a half after giving birth to their only child, as well as his heir, Raden Mas Sugandhi. In his grief, he made a special request to allow her body to be buried in the porch of Kasunanan Surakarta Mosque in Laweyan instead of Astana Pajimatan Imogiri, reserved for the Mataram monarch and his immediate family descendants, most likely the reason was because of the distance, as Laweyan is closer to Surakarta. He visited her cemetery everyday at the first forty days after her death date, and continued until he stopped when his father died, which means he would be crowned as the next monarch and wasn't allowed to visit cemetery again.

In 1888, he ascended the throne as Pakubuwana IV.^[7] In a sororate marriage, three years later, in 1791, he married Raden Ajeng Sakaptinah, the late Raden Ayu Adipati Anom's younger sister, and installed her as queen consort, named as Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Kencana. Due to his favor for his late wife, he broke a succession rule by appointing Handaya's son as the crown prince. This is very important since the Mataram succession rule prioritized a son born to the reigning primary consort after the monarch's ascension (queen consort), although born younger, ahead in the line of succession over a son of the primary consort before his ascension (crown princess consort).

Royal Consorts

1. Kanjeng Raden Ayu Adipati Anom Hamengkunegara
   maiden name Raden Ajeng Handaya, daughter of Raden Adipati Cakradiningrat I of Pamekasan. A crown princess consort who died before his ascension, posthumously elevated to queen consort by her son, styled as Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Pakubuwana.
2. Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Kencana Wungu
   maiden name Raden Ajeng Sakaptinah, younger sister of Handaya. A queen consort, and later queen dowager by the title Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Hageng.

Notable Concubines

1. Mas Ayu Rantansari
   daughter of Ngabehi Jayakartika.
2. Raden Ratnadiningsih
   daughter of Raden Tumenggung Mangkuyudha III.

Notable Children

1. Gusti Raden Mas Sugandhi
   son of GKR. Pakubuwana, styled as Kanjeng Gusti Pangeran Adipati Anom Hamengkunegara, then Pakubuwana V.
2. Bendara Raden Mas Kuseini
   son of MAy. Rantansari, styled as Bendara Kanjeng Pangeran Harya Hangabehi, then Pakubuwana VIII.
3. Gusti Raden Mas Malik-i-Salikan
   son of GKR. Kencana Wungu, styled as Kanjeng Gusti Pangeran Harya Purbaya, then Pakubuwana VII.
4. Bendara Raden Mas Lamdani
   son of R. Ratnadiningsih, styled as Bendara Kanjeng Pangeran Harya Kusumayudha.
5. Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Pembayun
   daughter of GKR. Kencana Wungu.
6. Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Sekar Kedhaton
   daughter of GKR. Kencana Wungu, died young.

• Miksic, John N. (general ed.), et al. (2006) Karaton Surakarta. A look into the court of Surakarta Hadiningrat, central Java (First published: 'By the will of His Serene Highness Paku Buwono XII'. Surakarta: Yayasan Pawiyatan Kabudayan Karaton Surakarta, 2004) Marshall Cavendish Editions Singapore ISBN 981-261-226-2