On October 7, 1861, Charles Brooke embarked on a journey from Fort James at Nanga Skrang, using the warship Lightning with a crew of 40 that he had purchased for eighty (80) pounds.
Their destination was Saribas for the Third Sadok Expedition, and they planned to use Saribas as the route to climb Bukit Sadok.
Charles continued his journey and later joined the Iban leaders from Banting, Lingga, and Sebuyau in their own war boats. They spent the night at Fort Lingga (1849), which was built by James Brooke with the help of Lela Pahlawan Abang Usin and his fighters.
During this expedition, Tuan Muda Charles’s war strategy was to assault and conquer Sadok, rather than murdering or burning Iban longhouses at the foot of Bukit Sadok, as was done during the previous expedition.
This time, their warriors would use arsenals such as cannons and musket guns. However, if Bujang Sadok failed to destroy the fortress, they would have to wait for Libau’s men to come out in case of food shortages or after enduring a period without food.
On the afternoon of October 23, 1861, some warriors reached the foot of Bukit Sadok with war arsenals after traveling by land.
They discovered that it was easy to carry the Bujang Sadok as there was already a hill paddy farming route used that year, which made it unnecessary to cut down large trees.
Around mid-day the next day, they heard continuous sounds of gongs followed by loud yells and shouts from Libau’s men at the peak of Bukit Sadok.
In fact, the sounding of gongs was used by Libau and his men to send messages to their supporters that their enemies (the Rajah’s men led by Charles Brooke) were coming to raid.
That evening, Charles called for a meeting with Iban and Malay war leaders.
This time, Abang Aing was assigned to lead the Malay warriors. Tuan Muda also mentioned that he would try to talk to Libau and persuade him to surrender to Rajah Brooke amicably. Jabu Apai Umping agreed to persuade Nanang and Luyoh to support Rajah Brooke.
Charles requested Jabu and Ngadan to visit Nanang’s fort at Genting Kara in the evening, so they went to meet Nanang and Luyoh and persuaded Nanang to surrender in support of Rajah Brooke.
Uyu Apai Ikom was present with Nanang and Luyoh during the meeting with Jabu and Ngadan. At first, Nanang seemed reluctant to agree because he was still furious that Tuan Muda had killed his brother Aji Apai Limpa at Nanga Sungai Langit, Layar.
After thorough persuasions and discussions, Nanang, Luyoh, Unting, and Uyu finally agreed to lend support to Rajah Brooke.
In Nanang’s mind, defending the fortress at Genting Kara would be futile considering the heavy arsenals brought by Charles this time.
At the same time, Nanang, Luyoh, and some of their men were unhappy about Libau divorcing his wife Sawai.
The Pig-Killing Ceremony, Bebanchak Babi, between Nanang and Charles Brooke took place on October 26, 1861.
On October 28, 1861, OKP Nanang, Abang Aing, and other Iban leaders from Banting, Lingga, and Sebuyau woke up early to prepare for the assault on Libau’s Sadok Fortress on the same day.
Around 4:30 in the morning, Charles instructed his warriors to prepare the Bujang Sadok at the site already prepared by Chinese gold mining laborers from Bau.
It was a misty morning, and they were able to see the clouds covering the top of Sadok Fortress, although faintly.
At approximately 7:30 am, the eruption from the Bujang Sadok marked the first shot aimed at Sadok Fortress, followed by sixteen (16) other shots from the cannon.
They continued firing continuously, causing destruction to the Sadok Fortress.
During the bombardment, the lead warrior and principal gunner of Libau named Rajau were killed, and his blood soaked the box containing the cannon shots owned by Libau.
Some records state that Libau put up a white flag to surrender during the Third Sadok Expedition, but it was confirmed that he never surrendered.
The white flag was actually raised by Nanang and Luyoh.
After witnessing the extensive destruction caused by Bujang Sadok, Libau and his men began planning to leave the fortress they had built four years earlier.
Before leaving, he placed an axe at the mouth of the cannon Bujang Timpang Berang to block it, stating, “As long as the mouth of this cannon is blocked, we should not go against the Rajah.”
The Third Sadok Expedition, led by Charles Brooke, took place in October 1861. The objective of the expedition was to conquer the Sadok Fortress, located on Bukit Sadok in Sarawak.
Unlike previous expeditions, Charles Brooke planned to use a strategy of assault rather than burning or attacking Iban longhouses.
The expedition began with Charles Brooke and his crew traveling from Fort James at Nanga Skrang to Saribas using the warship Lightning, which he had purchased.
He joined forces with Iban leaders from Banting, Lingga, and Sebuyau and spent a night at Fort Lingga, originally built by James Brooke.
The strategy of the expedition involved using war arsenals such as cannons and musket guns to assault and conquer Sadok Fortress.
If the fortress couldn’t be destroyed, they planned to wait for Libau’s men to come out due to food shortages.
On October 23, warriors reached the foot of Bukit Sadok with war arsenals, and the following day, they heard gongs and shouts from Libau’s men at the fortress.
Charles Brooke called a meeting with Iban and Malay war leaders to discuss the situation.
He expressed his intention to talk to Libau and persuade him to surrender peacefully. Efforts were made to convince other Iban leaders, such as Nanang and Luyoh, to support Rajah Brooke.
Eventually, Nanang agreed to lend support, and the Pig-Killing Ceremony between Nanang and Charles Brooke took place on October 26.
On October 28, preparations were made for the assault on Sadok Fortress. The cannons, including the Bujang Sadok, were fired continuously, causing extensive destruction.
During the bombardment, Rajau, a lead warrior and principal gunner of Libau, was killed. There are conflicting reports about Libau’s surrender, with some stating that he raised a white flag, but it was confirmed that he never surrendered. Nanang and Luyoh actually raised the white flag.
Witnessing the destruction caused by the cannons, Libau and his men planned to leave the fortress. Before leaving, Libau blocked the mouth of one of the cannons to signify that they should not go against the Rajah as long as it remained blocked.
The views expressed here are those of the columnist and do not necessarily represent theviews of New Sarawak Tribune.
