These articles have been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication in MJHA, but are pending final changes, are not yet published and may not appear here in their final order of publication until they are assigned to issues. Additionally, titles, authors, abstracts and keywords may change before publication.

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The Logic of Modern Constitutional Legitimacy: From Magna Carta to the Bill of Rights (1215–1689)

Yu Qingsheng & Zhang Zhiyu*

*Coresponding Author: Zhangzhiyu78@outlook.com

Abstract

Spanning the five centuries between Magna Carta (1215) and the Bill of Rights (1689), this study re-examines the making of England’s constitutional order and argues that legitimacy was not the product of seamless progress or episodic rupture, but of a continual re-appropriation of inherited forms. It identifies three overlapping paradigms—feudal contract, parliamentary sovereignty and rights universalisation—through which successive generations re-articulated political obligation while maintaining a rhetoric of continuity. Medieval jurists first used the language of mutual obligation to circumscribe royal prerogative; Tudor and early-Stuart polemicists then adapted that vocabulary to elevate Parliament; by the late seventeenth century, appeals to the “ancient constitution” fused with natural-law theory, translating corporate privileges into individual rights. The analysis draws on royal charters, plea rolls, parliamentary journals and printed pamphlets, integrating legal exegesis with social-historical method to show how selective memory served as a legitimising resource. By uncovering the bricolage that transformed a feudal pact into a constitutional monarchy, the article challenges linear Whig narratives and contributes to comparative debates on state formation, the politics of tradition and the contingent evolution of constitutional norms in early modern Europe.

Keywords: Magna Carta: Bill of Rights; England's constitutional; natural-law theory; Whig

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Pemberontakan Brunei 1962: Peranan Pengaruh Luaran terhadap Gerakan Subversif Parti Rakyat Brunei

Ahmad Syakir Ja’afar* & Azmi Arifin

*Corresponding Author: ahmadsyakirjaafar@gmail.com

Abstrak

Kajian ini meneliti pengaruh Sarawak Communist Organization (SCO) dalam Pemberontakan Brunei 1962. Pemberontakan tersebut berkait rapat dengan arus anti-kolonialisme serantau, khususnya melalui perkongsian ideologi dan sokongan luar dari Brunei, Indonesia, dan Filipina. Pada peringkat awal, kerjasama SCO dengan pihak luar menyediakan asas penting bagi strategi pemberontakan yang digerakkan oleh Parti Rakyat Brunei (PRB). Kajian ini menggunakan kaedah kualitatif berasaskan sumber arkib dan perpustakaan, termasuk bahan daripada Arkib Negara Cawangan Sarawak, Pustaka Negeri Sarawak, Repositori Arkib Negeri Sarawak, Perpustakaan Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Cawangan Sarawak, serta Perpustakaan Hamzah Sendut. Data yang diperoleh dianalisis secara naratif dengan penekanan terhadap aspek sebab dan akibat. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa, walaupun sokongan awal daripada pihak luar meningkatkan keyakinan PRB untuk melancarkan strategi bersenjata dan memperkukuhkan gerakan subversif berorientasikan komunisme, pemberontakan tersebut akhirnya gagal. Kekurangan sokongan domestik dan merosotnya pengaruh luar menyebabkan kemerosotan karier politik PRB, menunjukkan bahawa strategi subversif yang dijalankan tidak berhasil dan kehilangan legitimasi dalam kalangan rakyat Brunei.

Kata kunci: Sarawak Communist Organization; Parti Rakyat Brunei; Pemberontakan 1962; Komunisme; anti-kolonialisme

 

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An Overview of the Development of Modern Chinese Education in Penang, 1900–1945

Yang Yang*, Azmi Arifin & Tan Chee Seng

*Corresponding Author: yang10@student.usm.my

Abstract

This study revisits the developmental trajectory of Chinese-medium modern education in Penang from the early twentieth century to the end of the Second World War. Structured chronologically, the article divides this historical process into four distinct phases: the Formative Stage (early 1900s–1911), the Period of Rapid Growth (1912–1925), the Golden Age (1926–1940), and the Dark Period (1941–1945). By analysing school histories, community records, and colonial educational policies, this study reveals how Chinese education in Penang evolved from the traditional aims of moral instruction and cultural preservation towards a more diversified and utilitarian model of schooling. Findings show that Penang stood at the forefront of modern Chinese education within the Straits Settlements during its formative years. The economic strength of the Chinese community and shifts in social consciousness collectively drove the modernisation of educational structures. By the 1920s, Penang’s Chinese schools had expanded rapidly in both scale and hierarchy, demonstrating remarkable institutional maturity and communal resilience. During the 1930s, Chinese education entered its peak, characterised by a comprehensive and multi-tiered system that encompassed primary, secondary, vocational, and teacher training levels. However, this educational framework was systematically dismantled during the Japanese occupation, when policies of cultural assimilation and wartime repression brought about institutional collapse and cultural rupture. This research reconstructs a coherent historical narrative of early modern Chinese education in Penang, filling a significant gap in the historiography of Penang’s education between the 1900s and the Second World War. Beyond enriching the understanding of local educational development, it also provides new empirical insights into the dynamics of educational modernisation within the Chinese community under colonial rule.

Keywords: Penang; Chinese education; Straits Settlements; Chinese community in Penang; Second World War

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Political Play in Perak History: Pangkor Treaty 1874 at a Glance

Waqqas Zulfiquer

Corresponding Author: waqqasbinzulfiquer03@gmail.com

Abstract

Perak stands as a state uniquely defined by its rich historical narrative, particularly from a colourful political perspective. This study focuses intensively on the Pangkor Treaty, signed in 1874, an event that serves as the starting mark to the control of British government over the Malay States. Despite its profound impact on the subsequent governance and socio-political structure of the region, the Treaty is often treated cursorily in official history. Its crucial role is frequently summarized in a highly brief and simplified manner, resulting in a significant scholarly gap that warrants further, dedicated academic exploration. To address this deficiency, this research aims to bring a fresher perspective, opened for further and deeper studies in relation to this topic. The core primary source is the original content of the 1874 Treaty document itself, which is systematically cross-referenced with established historical analyses. This cross-referencing approach forms the backbone of the study, enabling the triangulation of information to ensure a comprehensive, objective, and accurate re-evaluation. The ultimate objective is to offer a clearer, more nuanced, and critical point of view toward this event that had shaped the history of both Perak and the other Malay states. It is therefore the strong recommendation of this study that this part of political play in our history be further examined and into formal academic research in the future.

Keywords: Perak, Pangkor Treaty, Ngah Ibrahim, Sultan Abdullah, Chinese Secret Societies

 

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Naratif Baharu: Revisionisme dan Sejarah Melayu

Azizi Yazit

Corresponding Author: aziziyazit@gmail.com

Abstrak

Kajian ini meneliti peranan aliran revisionis dalam membentuk naratif baharu sejarah Melayu sebagai satu usaha ilmiah untuk menilai semula historiografi yang sekian lama dibentuk oleh warisan kolonial dan perspektif Eropah-sentrik. Sejak era penjajahan, penulisan sejarah tempatan banyak dipengaruhi oleh tafsiran orientalis yang menekankan kepentingan kolonial, meletakkan Eropah sebagai ukuran kemajuan, dan menenggelamkan suara masyarakat pribumi serta kelompok yang dianggap mencabar kuasa penjajah, termasuk nasionalis kiri dan nasionalis berorientasikan agama. Dalam konteks ini, revisionisme muncul sebagai pendekatan kritikal untuk meneliti semula tafsiran sejarah arus perdana berdasarkan bukti-bukti baharu, termasuk dokumen arkib British seperti Colonial Office. Pendekatan ini berperanan menyaring naratif penjajah dan mengembalikan keadilan sejarah kepada kelompok terpinggir, khususnya masyarakat pribumi yang mengalami penjajahan secara langsung. Melalui revisionisme, sejarah Melayu dapat ditulis semula secara lebih tepat, adil dan berpaksikan perspektif pribumi. Sehubungan itu, pendekatan revisionis merangkumi tiga proses analisis utama. Pertama, “membaca dengan melawan arus,” iaitu menganalisis sejarah berdasarkan logik dan rasionaliti sambil menilai perspektif pribumi. Kedua, makna-makna dalam sejarah yang telah ditentukan oleh kolonial didekonstruksi untuk menghasilkan tafsiran berpaksikan perspektif pribumi. Ketiga, naratif baharu dihasilkan melalui rekonstruksi tafsiran arus perdana berdasarkan makna-makna baharu tersebut. Kajian ini menegaskan bahawa revisionisme bukanlah usaha untuk memutarbelitkan sejarah, tetapi merupakan proses ilmiah untuk membetulkan persepsi yang dibentuk oleh warisan kolonial, ideologi, dan kepentingan politik tertentu. Kesimpulannya, aliran revisionis memainkan peranan penting dalam memperkukuh disiplin sejarah Malaysia dengan membebaskan historiografi tempatan daripada dominasi kolonial dan Eropah-sentrik. Ini juga berpotensi menghasilkan naratif baharu yang lebih seimbang, berasaskan sumber, dan berpaksikan penyelidikan akademik.

Kata kunci: revisionisme, revisionis, naratif baharu, historiografi kolonial, perspektif pribumi