Hassan IX: Sultan and Traitor

Sultan Hassan IX known by his royal title — Siri Dhirikusa Loka Maha Radhun was a member of the Hilaalee dynasty and one of the most controversial rulers in Maldivian history. His brief reign in the early 1550s and his subsequent alliance with the Portuguese would have consequences far beyond his own struggle for the throne. After losing power, Hassan converted from Islam to Christianity, took the Portuguese name Dom Manoel, and sought Portuguese military assistance to recover his kingdom. His actions ultimately contributed to the establishment of Portuguese rule over the Maldives in 1558, beginning one of the darkest periods in the country’s history.

Early life and accession to the throne

Hassan IX was a grandson of Sultan Kalu Muhammad and the brother of Sultan Muhammad III. In a period of intense rivalry within the Maldivian royal family, Muhammad III was assassinated by Hassan, who subsequently seized the throne in approximately 1551. Hassan’s reign as Sultan was short, lasting only about a year.

His accession took place during a period when rival factions within the royal family were increasingly turning toward foreign powers for assistance in their struggles for political supremacy. The Portuguese had already established a powerful presence along the Indian Ocean, particularly from their bases at Goa and Cochin, and had developed an interest in the Maldives because of its strategic location and valuable maritime trade.

Hassan himself soon became involved with the Portuguese.

Seeking Portuguese assistance

Hassan’s struggle to maintain his position led him to seek Portuguese support. Portuguese records indicate that an agreement had been made involving the supply of 600 bahars of coconut rope (coir) annually in return for Portuguese assistance in supporting his claim to the throne. Coir was particularly valuable because of its importance in maritime activity and shipbuilding.

Hassan eventually fled to Cochin, where the Portuguese had an important base. His political alliance with the Portuguese then became increasingly intertwined with religion.

Renunciation of Islam and conversion to Christianity

In 1552, Hassan IX renounced Islam and converted to Christianity while in Portuguese India. Following his baptism, he adopted the Portuguese Christian name Dom Manoel. He became the first Maldivian ruler, and the only member of a Maldivian royal family in this period, known to have renounced Islam and embraced Christianity.

For a Muslim sultan whose traditional position was closely connected with the protection of faith and its people, this was an extraordinary act.

His conversion also had a political consequence: Hassan now had a powerful foreign patron in the Portuguese, who were themselves engaged in an expansionist campaign across the Indian Ocean.

From the Maldivian perspective, Hassan’s actions could therefore be regarded as a profound betrayal of both his religion and his country. Rather than accepting his removal from power, he sought to regain the throne with the assistance of a foreign Christian empire.

Portuguese attempts to restore Hassan

After Hassan’s conversion, the Portuguese began supporting his efforts to regain the Maldivian throne.

One Portuguese expedition was sent toward Malé with the objective of bringing Maldivian leaders into contact with Hassan and encouraging their submission and conversion. The expedition was intercepted by Maldivian forces, and its members were killed.

Hassan nevertheless continued to seek Portuguese assistance.

The struggle soon became a wider conflict between rival Maldivian factions and the Portuguese. According to scholarly accounts, three Portuguese expeditions were ultimately involved in the attempts to restore Hassan, and two Maldivian sultans were killed during these conflicts.

The final stage of this struggle came during the reign of Sultan Ali IV, popularly known as Ali Rasgefaanu.

The death of Ali Rasgefaanu and the Portuguese invasion

Ali Rasgefaanu became Sultan in 1557 and opposed the Portuguese attempts to restore Hassan. In 1558, Ali Rasgefaanu was killed during the fighting against the Portuguese. His death removed the principal military obstacle preventing the Portuguese from establishing themselves in Malé.

Following his death, the Portuguese invaded the Maldives and established their rule.

Hassan IX was restored to the throne in name, but he was no longer the independent Muslim sultan he had once been.

He was now King Dom Manoel, the Christian ruler supported by the Portuguese.

In 1558, Dom Manoel was installed as the nominal ruler of the Maldives. However, he did not return to Malé to govern personally. He remained in Portuguese India, while a Catholic named Andiri Andirin (Andreas Andre) acted as his regent in the Maldives.

The Maldives was effectively brought under Portuguese domination, with Portuguese representatives controlling the capital and imposing their authority over the islands.

The consequences of Hassan IX’s actions

Hassan IX’s original objective had been to recover his throne.

Instead, his struggle helped bring a foreign power into the Maldives.

His political decisions created an opportunity that the Portuguese were able to exploit. By turning to Portugal for military assistance, and subsequently converting to Christianity, Hassan became dependent upon a foreign empire for his claim to the Maldivian crown.

The result was devastating for Maldivian sovereignty.

In 1558, the Portuguese established their rule over the Maldives.

For the next fifteen years, the country experienced foreign domination, economic exploitation and attempts at religious conversion. The Portuguese were ultimately unable to maintain their rule without local collaborators, but the occupation would not have been possible without the political divisions that had developed within the Maldivian royal family. Modern scholarship therefore emphasizes that Portuguese expansion was facilitated by internal dynastic rivalry and by Maldivian elites seeking foreign assistance in their own struggles for power.

The end of Dom Manoel’s rule

Portuguese rule continued until 1573, when Muhammad Thakurufaanu al-Auzam and his brothers led the resistance against the Portuguese.

Andiri Andirin, the regent who had governed the Maldives in Dom Manoel’s name, was killed, and the Portuguese were expelled from Malé. The restoration of Muslim rule marked the end of the Portuguese occupation.

The fifteen-year Portuguese period had finally come to an end.

The dark Legacy he left behind

Sultan Hassan IX remains one of the most controversial figures in Maldivian history.

His reign began with the violent seizure of the throne from his brother. After losing power, he sought assistance from the Portuguese, converted from Islam to Christianity, and became Dom Manoel. His continued attempts to regain the throne eventually brought Portuguese military intervention to the Maldives.

When the Portuguese finally succeeded in 1558, Hassan was restored as king. But only as a nominal ruler living in Portuguese India, while the Portuguese exercised actual power in the Maldives through their representatives.

Thus, Hassan’s attempt to regain his crown ultimately came at an enormous cost.

The struggle that began as a personal battle for the Maldivian throne became one of the principal circumstances that led to the loss of Maldivian independence and the beginning of Portuguese occupation in 1558.

With the brief exception of the four-month Malabar occupation in 1752, the Portuguese occupation of 1558–1573 was the only prolonged period in which the Maldives lost effective control of its government to a foreign power. Even during the later British protectorate, Maldivians retained control over their internal administration, while Britain assumed responsibility for foreign affairs and defense.

For this reason, Hassan IX occupies a unique and deeply controversial place in Maldivian history: he was not simply a former sultan who converted to Christianity, but the ruler whose pursuit of foreign assistance helped open the door to Portuguese domination of the Maldives.

Sultanate of the Maldives

Sultan: Sultan Hassan IX Siri Dhirikusa Loka Maharadhun (King Dom Manoel)
Dynasty: Hilaalee Dynasty


Durations: 
1551-1552 (First Reign)

Predecessor:
Sultan Mohamed III
Hilaalee Dynasty

Successor:
Maldives ruled by a Council of Ministers

Sultan Abu Bakr II
Hilaalee Dynasty 
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1558-1573 (Second Reign) (Portuguese Occupied Sultanate of the Maldives)
Ruling in Absentia 
Regent: Andhiri Andhirin

Predecessor:
Sultan Ali IV
Hilaalee Dynasty

Successor:
Kateeb Muhammad Thakurufaanu
Utheemu Dynasty 
___________________________________

1573-1583 (Third Reign)
in Absentia
Regents: Muhammad Thakurufaanu & Hassan Thakurufaanu
de facto ruler: Muhammad Thakurufaanu (1573-1585)

Predecessor:
Kateeb Muhammad Thakurufaanu
Utheemu Dynasty 

Successor:
King Dom João (in Absentia)
Hilaalee Dynasty

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Vocabulary

Siri: Glorious

Radhun: King

Dhirikusa: Powerful

Rasgefaanu: King