Istana Kuning, Alor Setar

Istana Kuning, Alor Setar (2 August, 2015)


Istana Kuning (GPS: 6.1237, 100.36813) is a royal palace in Alor Setar, Kedah. It is located along its namesake Jalan Istana Kuning in the heart of the city. A stone's throw away is the now dilapidated Istana Sepachendera.

Istana Kuning, which means the "yellow palace", was so named for good reason: yellow is the main colour scheme for the palace. It is not a coincidence of course that yellow is the royal colour among Malay royalties.

According to the Yayashari blog, Istana Kuning was built by Sultan Muhyiddin Mansur Shah. (I am searching for more substantiation over the matter, as the said sultan reigned in the 17th century, whereas Alor Setar was only established in 1735.) Yayashari attributed the source to the Sejarah Nagara Kedah blog, which stated that Balai Besar was built in 1668 by troops of the Manchu emperor brought specially to the area and were housed at Pekan Cina. The Balai Nobat was likewise originally built during that period, and the present structure is the third reconstruction.¹ Istana Kuning is the birth place of the late Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, who became the first Prime Minister of Malaysia. Today it is no longer being used as a royal residence, and serves as the office of Persatuan Kerabat Diraja Kedah. Next to Istana Kuning is a surau that is also no longer being used.

According to an old acquaintance, Tunku Ismail Jewa (who served with me on the board of the Penang Heritage Trust ca. 2005), Istana Kuning was the favourite palace of the late Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah (1882-1943).⁶ According to him, the old residents of Alor Setar prefer to call it Istana Kampung Baru. This was where the late sultan would spend his time during the day.

The compound of Istana Kuning is much smaller than it once was, as land had been taken for the construction of a public garden to commemorate the silver jubilee of Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah (1927-2017).

The gate of Istana Kuning, Alor Setar (2 August, 2015)


View of Istana Kuning from Menara Alor Setar (2 August, 2015)


Istana Kuning as seen from the rear (2 August, 2015)


Side view of Istana Kuning (2 August, 2015)


Disused auxiliary buildings in the compound of Istana Kuning. Menara Alor Setar is in the background. (2 August, 2015)


A stone bridge leading towards the surau in the compound of Istana Kuning. (2 August, 2015)

Istana Kuning on Google Maps Street View

Istana Kuning

Istana Kuning is on the Map of Alor Setar

References and Further Reading

I have come across the following blogposts which would be useful if you wish to gather more information on Istana Kuning.

1. Yaya Shari's Blog on Istana Kuning:
https://haiyayashari.blogspot.my/2016/06/istana-kuning-alor-setar-kedah.html

2. Sejarah Negara Kedah:
https://sejarahnagarakedah.blogspot.my/

3. Art Melayu Blog:
https://artmelayu.blogspot.my/2011/03/istana-kuning-alor-setar.html

4. Jejak Waris: Menjejak Balai Nobat Yang Asal:
https://www.jejakwaris.com/sejarah.html

5. Raja Bersiong, Berahman Indera dan Balai Nobat:
https://sejarahnagarakedah.blogspot.my/2007/05/raja-bersiong-berahman-indera-dan-balai.html

6. Selected Articles on Historical Events, Places and People Associated with Kedah, by Tunku Ismail Jewa

Back to Discover Alor Setar mainpage; list of Palaces in Alor Setar, Palaces in Kedah and Palaces in Malaysia

 Latest updates on Penang Travel Tips

About this website

Dear visitor, thank you so much for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye and my hobby is to find out about places, write about them and share the information with you on this website. I have been writing this site since 5 January 2003. Originally (from 2003 until 2009, the site was called AsiaExplorers. I changed the name to Penang Travel Tips in 2009, even though I describe more than just Penang but everywhere I go (I often need to tell people that "Penang Travel Tips" is not just information about Penang, but information written in Penang), especially places in Malaysia and Singapore, and in all the years since 2003, I have described over 20,000 places.

While I try my best to provide you information as accurate as I can get it to be, I do apologize for any errors and for outdated information which I am unaware. Nevertheless, I hope that what I have described here will be useful to you.