The Sultan of Kelantan (سلطان كلنتن) is the constitutional head of Kelantan state in Malaysia. The executive power of the state is vested in him as the monarch of the state. The current sultan, Muhammad V, is the 29th Sultan of Kelantan. He is the Head of Islam in the state and the source of all titles, honours and dignities of its people. He was the 15th Yang di-Pertuan Agong or the monarch and head of state of Malaysia from 13 December 2016 to his abdication on 6 January 2019, after his election on 14 October 2016 at the 243rd (special) Conference of Rulers.

History

Kelantan was historically a powerful state with trade links with early Chinese, Indian and Siamese civilisations. After being a tributary of the Majapahit and Srivijaya Empires in the 13th and 14th centuries, it fell under the power of Siam and then Malacca in the 15th century. Following the Portuguese conquest of Malacca in 1511, Kelantan dissolved into several petty fiefdoms. These were conquered again by the Siamese and made subject to neighbouring Pattani. In 1760, the raja at Kubang Labu, variously identified by accounts as either Long Muhammad or Long Pandak, succeeded in reuniting the disparate territories under a single ruler. Four years later, he was overthrown by Long Yunus, an aristocratic warlord of Pattani origin, who seized the throne and proclaimed himself Raja of Kelantan. Following the death of Raja Yunus in 1795, control of the state was passed to Terengganu. In 1800, Long Muhammad, son of Yunus, declared himself Sultan Muhammad I. He was eventually accepted by the Siamese as ruler of a separate tributary, in 1812. In September 2010, Sultan Ismail Petra was constitutionally deposed by the State Succession Council in favour of his eldest son, Tengku Muhammad Faris Petra (now the current sultan). The elder sultan had failed to sufficiently recover from a debilitating stroke from the previous May. This was followed by several months of litigations made by lawyers acting on behalf of the former sultan.

Residences

Succession

The succession order of Kelantan sultanate is determined by agnatic primogeniture. No female may become ruler, and female line descendants are generally excluded from succession. According to Laws of the Constitution of Kelantan (in Malay language: Undang-undang Tubuh Perlembagaan Negeri Kelantan), the Sultan of Kelantan must be Malay, royal in blood, descendant of the Kelantan sultanate, male and a Muslim. The crown prince is also subjected to the same rule. The constitution states that the Sultan must come from the line of Sultan Ismail Petra, only if there are no longer eligible descendant of him, then the sultan should be chosen from the descendant of Sultan Yahya Petra and so on. The order of the descendants, in descending order of degree of kinship : Sultan Ismail Petra, Sultan Yahya Petra, Sultan Ibrahim, Sultan Ismail, Sultan Muhammad IV.

Current order of succession

The current order of succession is as follow:

• previous Sultan
• current Sultan

List of dynasties and rulers

Sultans and Rajas of the Malay Kingdom of Langkasuka Dynasty

Sultans and Rajas from Jembal Dynasty

Sultans and Rajas of Patani Dynasty

18th century

19th century

20th century

21st century

List of modern Kelantan sultans (1899–present)

Timeline of Kelantan monarchs