Sultan Sir Abu Bakar Al-Khalil Ibrahim Shah ibni Almarhum Maharaja Tun Daeng Ibrahim GCMG KCSI (Jawi: المرحوم سلطان سر أبو بكر الخليل إبراهيم شاه ابن المرحوم تمڠڬوڠ تون داءيڠ إبراهيم سري مهاراج جوهر; 3 February 1833 – 4 June 1895)[citation needed] was the Temenggong of Johor.

[8] In 1851, the Temenggong delegated Abu Bakar, then eighteen-years-old, to assist him in negotiation efforts against Sultan Ali Iskandar, who was making attempts to claim sovereignty rights over Johor.

During this period, several British officers praised of Abu Bakar's excellent diplomatic skills, as mentioned in William Napier's diaries, who was the senior law agent of Singapore.

Napier had accompanied Abu Bakar to fetch Tengku Teh, the mother of the deposed Sultan of Lingga, Mahmud Muzaffar Shah, to Johor shortly after her son began to exert sovereignty claims over Pahang.

The alliance caused Abu Bakar concern that the fall of Tun Koris in Pahang would threaten his own political position in Johor.

Abu Bakar gave official recognition and support for the Johor branch of the Ngee Ann Kongsi, which was seen as a secret society in Singapore at that time.

The Kapitan Cina and the Singapore Chamber of Commerce were particularly disturbed by the new regulations, and accused Abu Bakar of attempting to impose a trade monopoly over Johor.

As a result of these constant irritations, Abu Bakar persuaded the Straits Governor to sign an agreement to terminate Ali Iskandar's pension.

He recruited some of his close relatives and his classmates from the Teluk Blanga Malay school into the bureaucracy, and also set up an advisory council which included two Chinese leaders.

In the early 1870s, Straits Governor Sir Harry Ord said of Abu Bakar (who became a Maharaja in 1868) that he was the "only Raja in the whole peninsula or adjoining states who rules in accordance with the practice of civilized nations.

"[5] During a state visit to England in 1866, Abu Bakar was commonly addressed as the "Maharaja" of Johor and led him to realise that the Malay title of Temenggong poorly known in the Western world.

Raja Ali supported Abu Bakar's cause, after they did a cross examination and concluded that the past office holders had wielded actual control over the affairs of Johor, rather than the Sultans of the Bendahara dynasty.

Abu Bakar also secured approval from the Governor of the Straits Settlements for his change in title, and was officially proclaimed as the Maharaja of Johor on 30 June 1868.

[23] Shortly after his proclamation as Maharaja, Abu Bakar laid plans for the construction of a wooden railway between Johor Bahru and Gunung Pulai after some Europeans had raised proposals to set up a retreat and sanatorium.

[24] In the mid-1870s, the Straits Governor, William Jervois contemplated making Maharaja Abu Bakar overlord of the chiefs in Negeri Sembilan after the British failed to quell the sectarian violence in Sungai Ujong.

His oldest son, Tengku Alam Shah, disputed the legitimacy of the chieftains' wishes and staked his hereditary claims over Muar.

[28] Weld voiced his intent to place a Resident in Johor, which prompted Abu Bakar to make a trip to England in August 1884 to negotiate new terms with the British Colonial Office.

Abu Bakar, who was weary of the increasingly hostile political environment imposed by Weld, considered the importance of the superior moral authority that was accorded to a "Sultan" than to a "Maharaja".

Queen Victoria consented to his wishes, and a treaty was signed on 11 December 1885 which formalised relations between Great Britain and Johor, was concluded between Abu Bakar and the Colonial Office.

[36] A proclamation ceremony was held on 13 February 1886, where Abu Bakar made an official announcement on his adoption of the title "Sultan" in place of "Maharaja".

[38] Abu Bakar employed the service of a Chinese contractor and long-time acquaintance, Wong Ah Fook, to oversee the development of Johor Bahru.

In addition, Wong was contracted to oversee the construction of the state mosque and several palaces including the Istana Tyersall under the direction of Abu Bakar.

Reportedly, Queen Victoria was quoted to have highly valued the silver model Albert Memorial which Abu Bakar sent to her during her Golden Jubilee in 1887.

[10] Shortly before his death in May 1895, Queen Victoria sent her personal physician to attend to Abu Bakar's medical needs, who was by then very ill when he arrived in London.

[1] Abu Bakar visited Ottoman Turkey during his European tour in 1866, where he met Sultan Abdülaziz who presented him with Ruggyyah Hanum, a Circassian princess as a gift.

[45] He made two separate European tours in 1891 and 1893 with a personal physician by his side, during which he met Emperor Francis Joseph, King Umberto, Pope Leo XIII and Sultan Abdul Hamid II, and was conferred the awards of Commander of the Cross of Italy, Imperial Order of the Osmans (Turkey) and the Commander of the Cross of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

[53] During his state visit to the Ottoman Empire in September 1893, Abu Bakar married his fourth wife, Khadijah Khanum, who was of Circassian heritage.

[8] He established a Western-styled bureaucratic system and civil service, and consolidated the state's agricultural economy, which consisted of gambier and pepper plantations headed by Chinese leaders, known as "Kangchu" in Teochew Min.

[36] The Colonial Government also made a failed attempt to impose a British Resident in Johor in 1885; the state maintained its independence in its internal affairs until 1914.

The British governor, Sir Harry Ord had once written to the Secretary of State of Great Britain and described Abu Bakar as an "English gentleman" in his tastes and habits.