Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid in battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood.
— George S Patton, US World War II general
Libau anak Nuing better known as Rentap, was born in the Batang Kanyau district of West Kalimantan, bordering the Sarawak border at Lubuk Antu in the late 1790s.
According to legend, a week before his birth, Rentap’s mother Imbong heard the cries of her son in her womb.
As the story goes, as soon as Rentap was born, the infant was placed in a ‘meligai’ (special apartment) in the attic of the longhouse.
Imbong placed ‘piring’ offerings under the suspended baby cot to ensure that her child would be protected from evil.
Soon after this, a python — representing the snake deity Kelieng, was found wound around the cot.
The Iban believe if a snake appears, it is actually the ‘Orang Panggau’ (spirit-heroes) taking the form of a reptile.
Cobras, including King Cobras, pythons and coral snakes are mostly associated with the ‘Orang Panggau’.
Two nights after this, the infant suddenly disappeared and Imbong had another dream in which Kumang told her not to worry because her son had been taken to the heavenly home of ‘Panggau Iibau’.
In order to appease the spirits, it was customary to hold a Gawai festival as certain rituals and taboos had to be strictly observed.
After this, the wife of Kelieng, Kumang, spoke to Imbong and said: “You will have a son called Rentap (Earth Tremor) for the world will tremble when they hear his name.”
Libau would be blessed with the powers of ‘kebal’ — which made him invulnerable to weapons like swords, spears or bullets.
In 1815, Rentap by then a teenager, joined Dana’s expedition of 100 fast-moving ‘Bangkong’ war boats who raided Pontianak where the Skrang youth gained notoriety.
In an encounter with a shipload of Malays, Rentap killed the nephew of the Sultan of Pontianak who carried a keris, the handle of which was forged from gold.
From that incident, he earned the first ‘Ensumbar’ ‘Libau Panggau Dara’ meaning a young ‘Bujang Berani’ hero.
The Sarawak Museum Journal (SMJ, Special Monograph No. 7, 1994; 167) states: “At this time the Orang Kaya Pemancha’s (Dana Bayang from Saribas) leading warrior Libau Rentap and his fighting men from Skrang killed a boatful of Pontianak Malays and gained a gold-handled kris.”
When James Brooke was officially installed as ‘Rajah of Kuching’ on September 18, 1842, he found opposition to his leadership, particularly from the influential Brunei Arab-Malays who were subservient to Brunei viceroy to Sarawak Pengiran Mahkota, aligned to the infamous Sea Dayak head-hunters.
Just before Brooke’s arrival, the Karibas-Skrang Sea Dayaks had raided Bung Bratak in upper Sarawak and killed thousands of Land Dayaks, the Bidayuh.
In May 1843, James Brooke sought the assistance of Captain Henry Keppel to crush the Saribas and Skrang Iban.
Brooke wrote: “This is to inform our friend that there are certain great pirates — the people of Sarebus and Sakarran — in our neighbourhood seizing goods and murdering people on the high seas.
“They have more than three hundred war-prahus and extend their ravages even to Banjarmasin (Dutch Borneo); they are not subject to the government of Bruni (Borneo); they plunder the vessels trading between Singapore and the good people of the country.”
In the first expedition in 1843, Keppel’s forces defeated the Saribas in the villages of the Padeh, Paku and Rimbas tributaries.
A year later on August 7, 1844, Keppel launched a second expedition against Sharif Sahap of Patusan. Together with Keppel was 15-year-old Charles Johnson, Brooke’s favourite nephew.
Together with the steamer Phlegethon and the Jolly Batchelor, Keppel captured Patusan who were allies of Rentap, the Skrang warlord who commanded about 10,000 fighting men and warriors.
During the capture of Patusan’s five forts and 64 brass guns, Keppel’s senior officer Captain John Ellis became the first European to be killed right before Charles’ eyes.
Keppel in his book ‘The Expedition of Borneo in the HMS Dido’ said: “In this sharp and short affair we had only one man killed, poor John Ellis, a fine young man and captain of the main-top in the Dido. He was cut in two by a cannon-shot while in the act of ramming home a cartridge in the bow gun of the Jolly Batchelor.
“Standing close to poor Ellis at the fatal moment was a fine promising young middy Charles Johnson (Brooke), nephew of Mr. Brooke’s who fortunately escaped unhurt.”
A week later on August 14, another officer Lieutenant Charles Frederick Wade was killed at Undup when he was shot.
Captain Keppel in describing the tragic incident said they had pushed ahead on foot when they encountered several boats with the piratical Dayak and Malay rebels. Instead of waiting for the main force to arrive, Wade dashed forward.
Keppel added: “But my rash, though gallant friend deemed otherwise; and without the notice of caution of my upheld hand, dashed in advance, discharging his gun and calling upon our men to follow.”
Both the men crossed a 60-yard stretch of open land before reaching the foot of a steep ascent leading to the enemy’s longhouse. It was here that Wade was struck by two bullets and killed instantaneously as he fell at Keppel’s feet.
Three days later, Keppel’s forces proceeded up the Skrang River where the British suffered one of their biggest losses.
A forward party led by Datu Patinggi Ali accompanied by an Englishman George Steward, was sent in front to watch out for the enemy while waiting for the main party of 30 Brooke native vessels to arrive.
Keppel had instructed Patinggi Ali to advance cautiously with his light division and to fall back upon the first appearance of Rentap’s warriors.
Suddenly, as if the deities were with Rentap, a most fearful thunderstorm struck and Keppel noticed that it “was accompanied by the most vivid flashes of lightning I ever witnessed”.
Caught by a strong down current, Ali’s boats had entered a narrow pass when Rentap’s men launched huge bamboo rafts across the river cutting off their retreat.
With Rentap at the helm, his men threw spears and stones crushing Ali’s boats. Six large war ‘bangkongs’ with 100 warriors, three on each side, then bore down on the small sinking flotilla.
In the ensuing battle, Patinggi Ali and Steward were killed and decapitated — a total of 31 men were killed and 56 injured in this tragedy which was Rentap’s greatest victory.
Describing the scene when he arrived just after Patinggi Ali’s group was attacked, Keppel said:
“About twenty boats were jammed together forming one confused mass; some bottom up, the bows and sterns of others only visible, mixed up pell-mell with huge rafts and amongst which was nearly all our advance division.
“Headless trunks as well as heads without bodies were lying about in all directions; parties were engaged hand to hand, spearing and ‘krissing’ each other; others were striving to swim for their lives; entangled in the common melee was our boats; while thousands of Dyaks were rushing down to join in the slaughter, hurling their spears and stones on the boats below.” (Keppel 1948, II: 111)
In another foray, Keppel who was leading a charge of eight soldiers, lost his right-hand man Lt Wade who was killed by two rifle-shots and fell dead at his feet.
Lt Wade was given a solemn and ceremonial burial and a heavy price to pay for the four dead Europeans in one expedition alone.
The views expressed here are those of the columnist and do not necessarily represent the views of New Sarawak Tribune.
