After the Banjars had thus obtained possession of the archipelago, the trade in its products attracted settlers from the surrounding islands, who soon contrived to displace the aborigines, and drive them to the inaccessible mountains for protection.
When the Chinese took possession of the northern parts of Borneo, under the Emperor Songtiping, about the year 1375,[44] the daughter of that prince was married to a celebrated Arabian chief named Sherif Alli, who visited the shores of Borneo in quest of commerce. The descendants of this marriage extended their conquests not only over the Sooloo Archipelago, but over the whole of the Philippines, and rendered the former tributary to Borneo. In three reigns after this event, the Sultan of Borneo proper married the daughter of a Sooloo chief, and from this union came Mirhome Bongsu, who succeeding to the throne while yet a minor, his uncle acted as regent. Sooloo now wished to throw off the yoke of Borneo, and through the intrigues of the regent succeeded in doing so, as well as in retaining possession of the eastern side of Borneo, from Maludu Bay on the north to Tulusyan on the south, which has ever since been a part of the Sooloo territory.
This event took place before Islamism became the prevailing religion; but which form of idolatry, the Sooloos pretend, is not now known. It is, however, believed the people on the coast were Bud[d]hists, while those of the interior were Pagans.
The first Sultan of Sooloo was Kamaludin, and during his reign one Sayed Alli, a merchant, arrived at Sooloo from Mecca. He was a sherif, and soon converted one-half the islanders to his own faith. He was elected sultan on the death of Kamaludin, and reigned seven years, in the course of which he became celebrated throughout the archipelago. Dying at Sooloo, a tomb was erected to him there, and the island came to be looked upon by the faithful as the Mecca of the East, and continued to be resorted to as a pilgrimage until the arrival of the Spaniards.
Sayed Alli left a son called Batua, who succeeded him. The latter had two sons, named Sabudin and Nasarudin, who, on the death of their father, made war upon each other. Nasarudin, the youngest, being defeated, sought refuge on Tawi Tawi, where he established himself, and built a fort for his protection. The difficulties were finally compromised, and they agreed to reign together over Sooloo. Nasarudin had two sons, called Amir and Bantilan, of whom the former was named as successor to the two brothers, and on their deaths ascended the throne. During his reign another sherif arrived from Mecca, who succeeded in converting the remainder of the population to Islamism. Bantilan and his brother Amir finally quarrelled, and the latter was driven from Sooloo to seek refuge in the island of Basillan, where he became sultan.[45]
On the arrival of the Spaniards in 1566, a kind of desultory war was waged by them upon the various islands, in the hope of conquering them and extending their religion. In these wars they succeeded in gaining temporary possession of a part of Sooloo, and destroyed the tomb of Sayed Alli. The Spaniards always looked upon the conversion of the Moslems to the true Catholic faith with great interest; but in the year 1646, the sultan of Magindanao succeeded in making peace, by the terms of which the Spaniards withdrew from Sooloo, and were to receive from the sultan three cargoes of rice annually as a tribute.
In 1608, the small-pox made fearful ravages, and most of the inhabitants fled from the scourge. Among these was the heir apparent, during whose absence the throne became vacant, and another was elected in his stead. This produced contention for a short time, which ended in the elected maintaining his place.
This tribute continued to be paid until the flight of Amir to Basillan, about the year 1752, where he entered into a secret correspondence with the authorities at Samboangan, and after two years a vessel was sent from Manilla, which carried him to that capital, where he was treated as a prisoner of state.
In June, 1759, an English ship, on board of which was Dalrymple, then in the service of the East India Company, arrived at Sooloo on a trading voyage. Dalrymple remained at Sooloo for three months, engaged in making sales and purchases. The Sultan Bantilan treated him with great kindness, and sought the interest of Dalrymple to obtain the liberation of his brother, who was now held prisoner by the Spaniards at Manilla, by telling him of his brother’s wife, who had been left behind when Amir quitted the island, and had been delivered of twins, after he had been kidnapped by the Spaniards. Dalrymple entered into a pledge to restore Amir, and at the same time effected a commercial treaty between the East India Company and the Sooloo chiefs. By this it was stipulated that an annual cargo should be sent to Sooloo, and sold at one hundred per cent. profit, for which a return cargo should be provided for the China market, which should realize an equal profit there, after deducting all expenses. The overplus, if any, was to be carried to the credit of the Sooloos. This appears to have been the first attempt made by the English to secure a regular commercial intercourse with this archipelago.
In the year 1760, a large fleet of Spanish vessels sailed from Manilla, with about two thousand men, having the Sultan Amir on board, to carry on a war against Sooloo.