James Brooke was a real person. Many of the characters in this story existed and many of the incidents really happened. It is, though, a work of fiction. Anyone who wants to know the real James Brooke can read his published journals or turn to one of the many biographies such as The Burthen, the Risk, and the Glory by Nicholas Tarling.
For those who enjoy separating fact and fantasy, a good rule of thumb is if it seems totally implausible, it’s probably true. And many of the bits that aren’t have been written down to make them more credible rather than exaggerated to make them more exciting.
The real James Brooke had a brief but distinguished career with the East India Company army, distinguished himself in battle, was invalided home, and resigned his commission, all much as described. He returned to the Far East in the Findlay in 1834 and the account of her voyage and his disagreement with Kennedy is substantially accurate. The storm scene, though, is a complete fiction.
He returned to England and remained there until the death of his father left him with the money to buy the Royalist in which he sailed to Singapore. The incident with the Napoleon had, indeed, drawn Hassim to the attention of the Singapore community and that was why Brooke sailed on to Sarawak. I have seen the name of that country transcribed phonetically in various ways. For what it’s worth, I prefer Sa-ra-wa. Malay enthusiasts will end with a throaty sound, not dissimilar to the Welsh a.
I have given Raja Muda Hassim, the Bendahara of Brunei, the title of Sultan, as the gradations of the Malay court are impossibly confusing to the European reader.
The Royalist sailed from Singapore for Borneo in July 1839. By then, Brooke was 36. Nowadays he would be regarded as impossibly old, so I have made him younger.
His interpreter was of mixed British and Malay descent. He certainly wasn’t my protagonist, who is an entirely fictional creation, but he does share the name Williamson.
Hassim invited Brooke to help in quelling the rebels and Brooke’s tiny force was eventually decisive in the rebel defeat at Balidah. The plotting in the court, the judicial murder of Makota, and the details of the ‘coronation’ are, though, almost complete inventions. Hassim did, indeed, attempt to renege on his promise, but the resolution of the struggle was the result of immensely long and tortuous negotiations rather than the drama of a novel.
Brooke devoted his life to developing Sarawak and his rule is still respected in modern, independent Malaysia. Many of the details of his attempts to bring Sarawak into the 19th Century, such as the setting up of a postal service, are historically accurate.
Henry Keppel was a real person and his visit to Sarawak in the Dido was as impressive as described, although the ship did not actually moor in Kuching. He was an ambitious sailor and did become an Admiral. At the time, though, he was Captain Keppel. As commander of the Straits Naval Squadron, he probably had more personal responsibility than most modern Admirals, which is why I have given him an elevated rank. He did publish his adventures to considerable popular acclaim but as to the rest of his character … it’s pure imagination. The expedition against the Saribas Dyaks happened too, although I have taken liberties with the details, and it really did end with a noble speech about punishing piracy, after which the village was burned to the ground. James Brooke’s excitement is also a recorded fact.
James really did call his boat the Jolly Bachelor. You couldn’t make it up!
The Revolt was a real event. James fled through a bathroom window and, as described, swam a creek to escape his pursuers. His adventures thereafter, though, are entirely imaginary.
Brooke felt betrayed by the British government, as outlined in the story. Keppel, though, came to his aid with the Dido and the Phlegethon. The various events described combine actual incidents from several different actions and a deal of artistic license.
The massacre at Beting Marau was on an even larger and bloodier scale than I suggest. It led to questions in Parliament, and Cobden described it in the terms used in the story. There was significant public agitation about it. The Aborigines’ Protection Society, for example, was a real organisation that condemned the massacre.
Many of the details of the Inquiry, including Brooke’s tirades against it, are a matter of record. Brooke did not, however, remain in Singapore for the outcome. His exoneration arrived after his return to Sarawak. The emotional impact of the events, though, was much as described.
James Brooke finally returned to England and is, indeed, buried on Dartmoor.