Muhammad Tajuddin

He succeeded his father, Omar Ali Saifuddin I, to the throne in 1778, and served until 1804 before abdicating in favor of his son, Muhammad Jamalul Alam I.

Omar Ali Saifuddin I abdicated prior to his death and left the government in the hands of his oldest son, Pengiran Muda Besar Muhammad Tajuddin, who went on to become the sultan of Brunei.

According to a gravestone inscription, a son of Bendahari Omar Ali died in 1192 AH (1778 AD), under the rule of Tajuddin, as Jamil Al-Sufri points out.

[11] Tajuddin entrusted Abdul Latif with the task of acquiring a house in Mecca to serve as a waqaf property where a Bruneian home,[12] known as a rumah wakaf, was built.

[15] He passed the throne to his infant son,[16] Pengiran Muda Tengah Muhammad Jamalul Alam, on Thursday, 15 Muharram 1219 (25 April 1804).

His son's premature death left his grandson, Pengiran Muda Besar Omar Ali Saifuddin, as the heir, but the young sultan was still a minor.

Tajuddin's concerns arose from Pengiran Digadong Ayah's multiple marriages to ensure male heirs, which led him to suspect that his stepbrother might seek to establish his own bloodline on the throne.

However, after Tajuddin's death in 1807, Pengiran Digadong Ayah renamed his home the royal palace, signalling his intent to solidify his claim to the throne.

[20] Kanzul Alam's numerous marriages and sons further hinted at his aspirations to secure the succession for his own lineage, despite the expectation that he would return the throne to the rightful heir.