Arakkal Kingdom: Dynasty Led By Muslim Women

By Grace Mubashir, New Age Islam 16 June 2023 Arakkal Swaroopam (Kingdom) was the only Muslim ruling dynasty in Kerala. It was a full-fledged country that resisted colonial invasions and lingered till independence. It was a royal kingdom with independent coinage, the court system, army and navy. Still, the family ceremonial position and managed vast swathes of hereditary property. Arakkal Museum ----- The Arakkal Kingdom (Kingdom Of Cannanore, Sultanate of Laccadive & Cannanore) is the one and only Muslim independent maritime state in Kerala which existed before the invasion of British colonialism. Cannanore, namely Kannur was its main centre. It consisted of Kannur City, some northernmost provinces and Lakshadweep- the most prominent Island in the Arabian Sea. The Arakkal Kingdom played a pivotal role in reforming the Cannanore port a major among other foreign countries which exported more precious handcrafts and local goods to other neighboring countries. The Kingdom was under the full surveillance of Chirakkal Dynasty (Kingdom Of Kolathiri). Later on, it gradually became more independent and powerful which came to be entitled as The Arakkal Kingdom, fully fledged with naval and cavalry forces. The family follows matriarchal tradition. The oldest person in the female lineage assumes power, irrespective of gender. Like the Travancore kingdom, the Arakkal family also continued this tradition. In the history of the dynasty, the kingdom was ruled by Bivis (princess) at various points of time. Genesis Various folklores are available about the origin of the dynasty. But the common thread of all stories converges at amicable religious harmony between Hindus and Muslims. In the first phase of its origin, Mammalis (vassals) of Kolathiri Kings of Kochi assume significance. The Arakkal family was a branch of the Kolathiri kingdom, converted to Islam. According to one oral history, Kolathiri King gifted the Arakkal to one Mammali when he saves a drowning princess. As per the caste system of North Kerala, one who offers ‘Pudava’ (clothes) to a woman is regarded as her groom. As Mammali saved the princess and offered the dresses to cover her, the Kochi ruler gifted the Arakkal village as a gift. The princess in question later converted and accepted the name of Fathima with the blessings of the Hindu ruler of the Kochi kingdom. Another folklore goes like this: Kolathiri King gifted some villages to Mammali in Ezhimala and Madayi. Today these places are called Arakkal Kettu (Arakkal Palace). Muslim Mammalis serves the Hindu Kolathiri rulers and fought along with Kochi rulers against the adversaries. The fifth Mammali, Ali Moosa, captured the Agathi, Kavarathi, Minicoy and Kalpeni islands of Lakhwadeep and gifted them to Kolathiri. The story of family signifies the shared heritage of Hindu-Muslim love and cooperation. For the prosperity of subjects, the rulers shredded religious propensities and religion was not a marker of identity. The lamp still burned in the Arakkal place is an everlasting witness to this impressive religious fraternity of the bygone period in Kerala. The founder of the Arakkal royal family was a king named Muhammad Ali. In Malabar Manual, Logan has given a list of rulers up to that time. The first five are: (1) Muhammad Ali (2) Uzzan Ali (3) Alimusa (4) Kunhimusa (5) Alimusa. It is also recorded that the last king conquered the Maldives in 1183-84. All the rulers of Arakkal Swarupam had Aliraja added to their names. There are differences of opinion among historians regarding this. commentators say that Adi Raja was the first Muslim ruler of Kerala. After conversion from Dharmapatnam, this family settled in Kannur. They built forts and places of worship there and tried to make Kannur an important port city. As a result of this Kannur and Arakkal dynasties got a significant position in the industrial and political spheres of medieval Kerala. Kannur's prosperity was due to its trade with countries like Egypt, Africa and Arabia. Kannur town played an important role in the export of pepper, coffee, cardamom, betel nut, timber, rope products, etc. Kannur port was a place where traders could anchor safely even if there were storms, floods and rough seas. Arakkal Swarupam, who was able to seize foreign markets, and was able to attract Muslim merchants and sailors from different parts of Malabar to Kannur. Arakkal kings were called Ali Rajas because of their sea trade and naval power. The main advantage of the Arakkal dynasty was that they were able to bring the archipelagos into the Arabian Sea under their control. There is little basis for the speculation that Maldives and Lakshadweep may have been purchased from Kolathiri by the Arakkal kings. Only those who had naval superiority could conquer these islands in the Arabian Sea. A strong naval force was also needed to maintain this supremacy over the archipelago, so the Arakkal kings who took care in that regard were able to rule as the owners of the sea for a while. The strait separating Minicoy and Lakshadweep is described as the 'Mammali Canal' in Portuguese records. It is clear from this how much sovereignty Ali Raja's sailors had in the seas. Against Colonial Forces This naval supremacy was challenged by the arrival of the Portuguese. Trade with foreign countries also began to lose. It was Aliraja's family that created the strongest navy to face this newly emerging European power on the seas and waged wars lasting over a century. Realizing that the power most detrimental to their trade existence was the Ali dynasty, the Portuguese gathered all their power and organized naval wars against this dynasty. In 1553, they drove out the sailors of the Ali Raja from Lakshadweep and occupied the island. But they could only hold on to the island for a few years. Ali Raja's navy defeated the Portuguese and recaptured the island. It is described in the book Tuhfatul Mujahideen when the harassment of the Portuguese pestered, Ali Raja sought help from Sultan Adil Shah of Bijapur. The Bijapur-Egyptian fleets came forward to help Ali Raja and thus Ali Raja was able to resist the Portuguese advance. These naval conflicts that lasted for a century and a half were the only reason why the Portuguese could not establish their dominance in Kerala and India. But these wars adversely affected the economic structure of Kannur, which was progressing through trade and commerce, and disrupted the growth of the Arakkal dynasty. The Dutch, who succeeded the Portuguese, had strengthened their friendship with the Ali dynasty from the very beginning. This friendship was fueled by the fact that both groups were enemies of the Portuguese. It was the Ali kings who helped the Dutch against the Portuguese and provided them with necessary trade assistance. In 1663, the Dutch conquered the Portuguese fort near the city of Kannur. The name of the fort was 'Fort Angelo'. Hamilton, Baladue and other travelers have given many descriptions of this fort and the city of Kannur, which was the seat of Ali Raja. According to a treaty signed in 1664, friendly and commercial relations were established between the Dutch and Arakkal Swarupam. But he did not fully respect this treaty as Ali Raja was prohibited from procuring pepper and other spices from the lands of Kochi Raja and Zamorin. The same year the Dutch made another treaty with the Raja of Ali. However, instead of feeding the Dutch with all the pepper that could be stored, Ali Raja shipped most of it abroad under his control. Due to this, it can be understood from the memorandums written by the governors of that time about the Dutch administration in Malabar that the Dutch did not get the profit expected from their Kannur factory. The Arrival Of Hyder Ali The Arakkal dynasty has often maintained friendly relations with the neighboring Kolathiri dynasty. Mammals of the Arakkal family were the chief stewards of the Kolathiri kings. They controlled their trade and naval activities. But with the entry of European powers, there were changes in the policies of the local kings throughout Kerala. Desperate to settle their dues, the local kings sought the help of foreign powers. In this environment, the Arakkal kings who were fighting the Portuguese had to oppose the local kings who were their allies. By the late 18th century, the French and English had established trading posts at Mahi and Thalassery. This also became a new threat to the Arakkal family which gave more importance to trade. All the Muslims of Malabar considered Kannur as their refuge and it became annoying to the other Kerala kings. Hyder Ali (1722-82) came to power in Mysore at a time when there were ongoing conflicts between the local kings of Kerala and foreign powers on one side and the Arakkal dynasty on the other. Hyder Ali was invited to Malabar by Kapu Tampan, the younger king of the Kolathiri clan, and Raja Ali. Using this opportunity to expand his jurisdiction, Hyder Ali set out to attack Malabar in 1766. Ali Raja mobilized twenty thousand infantry and his naval force to aid Hyder Ali's attack and work towards Hyder Ali's goal of conquering Malabar. Hyder Ali who had conquered Malabar, handed over the administration of the kingdom to Ali Raja and appointed his brother as the commander of the Mysore navy in the Arabian Sea. The Kolathiri king returned from Travancore in 1774 and informed Hyder Ali that he should restore the rule of his country and pay the tribute correctly, and Ali replaced the king and gave the position to the Chirakkal king. During the period from 1766 to 1790, Arakkal Swarupam had grown into an irresistible force in the Malabar region as a close friend of the Mysore rulers. But as the political fortunes of Mysore changed, so did the power of the Arakkal Swarupam. In the Second and Third Mysore Wars, the foundations of the Arakkal family were shaken by the strong attack of the English. Both these times the British were able to conquer Kannur palace even though it was very difficult. At the beginning of the Third Mysore War (1790), Aber Crombie's army conquered Kannur and allied with Bivi, the ruler. After the war, when Malabar came under the control of the English, the Arakkal dynasty also came under English rule. This dynasty came to a position where the English East India Company dictated its policies and the dynasty lost independence. The Matriarchal System The Arakkal family followed a matriarchal system of descent: the eldest member of the family, whether male or female, became its head and ruler. While male rulers were called Ali Rajah, female rulers were known as Arakkal Beevis. Sultana Aysha Aliraja was the ruler until her death on the morning of September 27, 2006. Here the eldest member of the family, be it male or female, is entrusted with the leadership of the family. Therefore, the Arakkal dynasty has had leadership and rule by women for many periods. If the eldest member was a woman, she usually assumed the burden of the kingdom. They were described as the ‘Great Wife’. As part of the transfer of power, the sword, shield and silverware will be handed over to the new sultan at the coronation ceremony the next day. An unbroken dynasty tradition. And the rarest of a rare succession of female rulers. War, peace, trade and international exchange were all safely in the hands of the Sultans. Many Bivis were conversant in several languages, including Persian and Hindustani. The unique face of female members in Arakkal Swarupam is perhaps surprising not only to the conservative mind of the Muslim community but even to the modern women's status argument among Muslims. Women achieved many things that men could not achieve in Arakal Swarupam. War, truce, trade, international exchange, even the justices in the courts of the country were under the supervision of the female charioteer. Arakkal family was literally ruled by the wives. According to the Malabar Joint Commission document, the minister or the husband of the daughter is the Chief Justice of the day. Sharia-compliant judgments are reviewed in court by a group of scholars. That is to say, the scholars are only in the capacity of judicial officers under Bivi. One-third of the Arakkal kings were matriarchs of the house. Sharia-compliant matriarchy was followed by the house. Male and female ascended each other's thrones according to the female line. All 19 kings who ruled for almost three-quarters of the 17th century (1777) were men. Interestingly, the Biwees ruled a large part in the period when the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British circled to usurp Arakal's glory and the political weakness of Arakal. This is because imperialism introduced many cheats and exclusionary policies by trampling on the inherent feminine weakness of wives. However, some women faced colonialism more aggressively than men. In 1728, the first Arakkal Bivi (Harabichi Katavubi Adirajabivi-1728-1732) who came to power had to contend with colonialism. Finally, she had to sign a treaty with the English. It was Sultana Impichibivi Adiraja who had to surrender Lakshadweep to the English after constant resistance, legal wars and contract violations. In 1793, Junummabi, the then 23rd ruler, suffered a lot of torture when she was surrounded in Kannur Palce and the Arakkal army was massacred. They were imprisoned in the fort. It was under Bivi who fought for three years continuously against the atrocities committed by the Portuguese in the Arabian Sea against the Mappilas. On the way to Mecca, the sea warriors killed Bivi's son. On that day, Bivi Sulthal Ali appealed to Adil Shahi to save the Muslims from Portuguese slavery. The Sultan accordingly came up to Goa and confronted the Portuguese. Theirs was a complicated time of contracts and court battles. Historical records show that many of the Arakkal wives were bilingual. Some wives were educated in Hindustani and Persian. Some English documents mention that Major MacLeods, who attacked Kannur in the 1780s, spoke Bivi without the help of a interpreter. Later they became proficient in English as well. Harabichi Kadavoombi (1728-1732) Janummabi (1732-1745) Junummabi (1777-1819) Mariambi (1819-1838) Ayishabi (1838-1862) Impichibivi (1907-1911) Aishabivi (1921-1931) Mariyumbimmavi (1907-1911) 46-1957) amino acids (1957-1980) Ayeshamuthubevi (1998-2006) and Zainaba Ayeshabeevi (2006-2010) are the female gems who have inherited the Arakkal title. 11 of the 37 crown princes were women. A look at the reigns of the early crown princes may have left out the names of some of the intervening ones. Because it is recorded in the records that Abu-Bakr Ali Adiraja the ninth of Arakkal ruled for 93 years, Muhammadali Adiraja the eighth for 87 years and Isa Abu-Bakr Adiraja the seventh for 81 years. This reign is fascinating, given the extent of their longevity. However, the example of those who have 'centralized' the rule in women is much more. Currently, studies are rare on matriarchal Islam in India as colonialism supported the patriarchal interpretation of history. More. Studies are to be conducted about how women defied orthodoxy and legal supremacy to claim royal titles. These studies will enable a women-friendly interpretation of Islam in South Asia. ----- A regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com, Mubashir V.P is a PhD scholar in Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and freelance journalist. URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/arakkal-kingdom-dynasty-muslim-women/d/130006 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism