Azlan Shah of Perak

Azlan Shah
  • ازلن شاه
Al-Maghfur-Lah (The Forgiven One)
Azlan Shah in 2008
Yang di-Pertuan Agong IX
Reign26 April 1989 – 25 April 1994
Installation18 September 1989
PredecessorIskandar
SuccessorJa'afar
Sultan of Perak
Reign3 February 1984 – 28 May 2014
Installation9 December 1985
PredecessorIdris Shah II
SuccessorNazrin Shah
Lord President of the Supreme Court
In office
12 November 1982 – 2 February 1984
Nominated byMahathir Mohamad
Appointed byAhmad Shah of Pahang
Preceded byMohamed Suffian Mohamed Hashim
Succeeded bySalleh Abas
Born(1928-04-19)19 April 1928
Batu Gajah, Perak, Federated Malay States
Died28 May 2014(2014-05-28) (aged 86)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Burial29 May 2014
Spouse
(m. 1955)
IssueSultan Nazrin Shah
Raja Azureen
Raja Ashman Shah
Raja Eleena
Raja Yong Sofia
Names
Raja Azlan Shah ibni Raja Yussuff Shah
Regnal name
Sultan Azlan Muhibbuddin Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Yussuff Izzuddin Shah Ghafarullahu-lah
Posthumous name
Almarhum Sultan Azlan Muhibbuddin Shah Al-Maghfur-Lah ibni Almarhum Sultan Yussuff Izzuddin Shah Ghafarullahu-lah
HouseHouse of Siak-Perak
FatherSultan Yussuff Izzuddin Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Jalil Karamatullah Nasiruddin Mukhtaram Shah Radziallah Hu'an-hu
MotherToh Puan Besar Hatijah binti Toh Indera Wangsa Ahmad
ReligionSunni Islam
Raja Azlan Shah of Perak
Personal details
EducationMalay College Kuala Kangsar
Alma materUniversity of Nottingham (LLB)
OccupationLawyer, judge
WebsiteGaleri Sultan Azlan Shah

Sultan Azlan Muhibbuddin Shah ibni Almarhum Sultan Yussuff Izzuddin Shah Ghafarullahu-lah (Jawi: سلطان ازلن محب الدين شاه ابن المرحوم سلطان يوسف عز الدين شاه غفر ﷲ له; 19 April 1928 – 28 May 2014) was Sultan of Perak from 1984 until his death in 2014, and the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia), from 1989 to 1994.

The child of a royal father and a commoner mother, he grew up in Perak, Malaysia. During school he played field hockey, subsequently playing for the Perakian team. He trained to be a lawyer in the United Kingdom. Upon returning to Malaysia, he soon became a judge and quickly rose through the legal ranks. In 1965, he became the youngest person appointed to the High Court of Malaya, and in 1982 he became the youngest ever Lord President of the Federal Court, the country's highest judicial rank.

He became Sultan of Perak in 1984 after the death of his first cousin once removed Sultan Idris Shah II. Subsequently, he was elected to be the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in 1989, serving a five-year term before returning to his post as Sultan of Perak. In 2009, he exercised his royal authority to prevent the dissolution of the Perak State Legislative Assembly, sparking a constitutional crisis. Ultimately, the legal system ruled Sultan Azlan had acted properly.

During his career, Sultan Azlan Shah was awarded more than 3 dozen Malaysian and foreign honours. Dozens of buildings and other projects were named after him, including a genus of insects. He was known as the "Father of Malaysian Hockey" for furthering field hockey at home and abroad and was the patron of dozens of organisations. With his wife Tuanku Bainun Binti Mohd Ali, Sultan Azlan had five children.