Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II

Who is Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II?

Sultan Muhammad Jiwa Zainal Adilin II was the 19th Sultan of Kedah. He reign from 1710 to 1778 and is widely known as the founder of Alor Setar and many current landmarks in the city are attributed to him. He was also the all time longest reigning Malay ruler in Malayan history and one of the longest reigning monarchs in the world after having ruled for a total of 68 years.

Alor Setar was founded in 1735 by Sultan Muhammad Jiwa and was the Kedah’s eighth administrative centre since the establishment of the Kedah Sultanate in 1136. The earlier administrative centres were located in Kota Bukit Meriam, Kota Sungai Emas, Kota Siputeh, Kota Naga, Kota Sena, Kota Indera Kayangan and Kota Bukit Pinang.

After founding the city, Sultan Muhammad Jiwa went on to build his palace, Istana Kota Setar. The original building was a wooden structure which had undergone demolitions several times due to attacks by the Bugis and the Siamese. The current concrete building was completed during the reign of HRH Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Mukarram Shah.

This palace is also renowned as the Istana Pelamin Palace when the space of the palace was extended to add a pavilion and several rooms when HRH Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah wanted to marry off his five princes and princesses. After 1941, this palace was used as a school and an office for several organizations including the office for the Kedah chapter of St John's Ambulance and the Scout movements. On 25 July 1983, this palace was declared the Kedah Royal Museum.