Datu Patinggi Abang Ali bin Abang Amir[1] (or commonly known as Datu Patinggi Ali [2]) was a key figure in the Sarawak Malays' resistance against the Brunei Empire, which occurred throughout Pengiran Indera Mahkota and Raja Muda Hashim's reign in the 1830s.
[5] A prince of the Royal House of Minangkabau, Datu Undi (also called Raja Jarom)[6] moved to Borneo with his people and settled near the Sarawak River.
However, as soon as Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddin II Brunei realized that antimony ore and gold had been discovered in the Bau area, the Sultan named Pengiran Indera Mahkota as the new Governor of Sarawak in 1827,[11][12] replacing Datu Patinggi Ali, allowing Brunei to take control of the antimony mines and commerce.
The administrative center of Sarawak was relocated by Pengiran Indera Mahkota in 1826 from Lidah Tanah to Santubong and subsequently to Kuching.
The full control of mining activities and antimony trade in Bau was made feasible by Pengiran Indera Mahkota when they seized power from Ali to govern Sarawak.
[15] Mullen, a supporter of Ali, said that Bidayuh and Malays were made to work long hours in the antimony mine.
The insistence of Pengiran Indera Mahkota that his followers pay extremely high taxes infuriated Ali even more.
[15] Following 10 years of hardship as a slave worker, Ali rallied his supporters from Siniawan to oppose Pengiran Indera Mahkota.
Patinggi Ali, one of Datu's disciples, first constructed defense fortifications in Siniawan, Lidah Tanah, and other locations—an additional location upstream Bau.
At last, Brooke is said to have defeated his army at the Lidah Tanah citadel with the aid of 600 part-time troops who back him and are Iban, Malay, and Chinese.
[16] By late 1840, Datu Patinggi Ali had promised to terminate the conflict, but only if Pengiran Indera Mahkota and his family left Kuching and were spared along with him and his supporters.
[24] Additionally, a number of other names belong to Kuching local authorities who are descended from the Datu Patinggi Ali dynasty.
The title of Datu Imam is held by a number of his children as well as other brothers including Abdul Karim and Muhammad Taim.