Sultan Muzaffar Shah III (13th Sultan of Perak)

After the passing of Sultan Alauddin Mughayat Shah (the 12th Sultan of Perak) in 1728, his younger brother, Raja Muda Raja Inu, was installed as the 13th Sultan of Perak with the title Sultan Muzaffar Shah III. Upon his installation as the Sultan of Perak, he resided in Berahman Indera, now known as Bota Kanan. The younger brother of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, Raja Bisnu, was appointed as the Yang Dipertuan Muda (Sultan Muda) with the title Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah. Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah, who resided in Pulau Tiga, had four sons: Raja Iskandar, Raja Kimas, Raja Alauddin, and Raja Bongsu. During the reign of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, the Bugis, led by Daing Celak (the second Yamtuan Riau) along with Bugis forces from Selangor, attacked the state of Perak in 1742. At the same time, Sultan Muzaffar Shah III was experiencing a disagreement with his younger brother, Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah. The Bugis took advantage of this rift by supporting and siding with Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah.

Due to the alliance formed between the Bugis and Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah, the latter was installed as the Sultan of Perak with the title Sultan Muhammad Shah. This marked the first time in the history of Perak that two sultans ruled the state simultaneously. This situation caused the authority of the Perak Sultanate to be split in two. You may refer to the article

Perak Once Had 2 Sultans in the Mid-18th Century

for further details. According to records in the book Misa Melayu, Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, who resided in Berahman Indera, moved to Kuala Kangsar following his disagreement with his younger brother. While in Kuala Kangsar, Sultan Muzaffar Shah promoted his "Orang Besar Empat" (Four Great Chiefs): Raja Alang became the Bendahara, Megat Pintal became the Orang Kaya Besar, Megat Mu'tabar became the Temenggung, and Pakih Yusuf became a minister. Meanwhile, the Perak chiefs residing in Pulau Tiga installed Yang Dipertuan Muda Muhammad Shah as sultan with the title Sultan Muhammad Shah. At that time, the state of Perak had two sultans. When the state of Perak had two ruling sultans, the area from a place called Pachat upstream (north) was under the rule of Sultan Muzaffar Shah, while the area from Pachat downstream (south) to Kuala Perak was under the rule of Sultan Muhammad Shah.

The disagreement between these two royal brothers did not last long. Sultan Muhammad Shah himself later proposed a reconciliation to his elder brother. After reconciling, Sultan Muhammad Shah ceased using the title of sultan and reverted to the title of Yang Dipertuan Muda. Sultan Muzaffar Shah III then consented to appoint Raja Iskandar (the son of Sultan Muhammad Shah) as the Raja Muda, and all administrative matters of the Perak state government were handed over to Raja Muda Iskandar. Not long after, Raja Muda Iskandar was married to the daughter of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, named Raja Budak Rasul. The younger brother of Raja Muda Iskandar, named Raja Kimas, was appointed as the Raja Kecil Muda. After Sultan Muzaffar Shah III returned to Berahman Indera, he appointed new "Orang Besar Empat" to replace the chiefs he had previously appointed in Kuala Kangsar. The newly appointed officials were Megat Pendia as Bendahara with the title Bendahara Paduka Seri Maharaja, Tan Marasin as Orang Kaya Besar with the title Orang Kaya Besar Seri Maharaja Diraja, Tan Bantan as Temenggung with the title Temenggung Paduka Raja, and Sharif Husain as a minister with the title Orang Kaya Menteri Seri Paduka Tuan. During the reign of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III in 1743, a Bugis Raja named Daing Selaili, with the title Haji Besar, came to fight robbers and pirates operating around Pulau Sembilan, Perak. As a result of Daing Selaili's assistance, he was later married to the younger sister of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, Raja Tengah. Daing Selaili was then appointed as the mufti of Perak. Daeng Selaili was also made a Perak chief with the title Maharaja Lela Tan Tela Putera Pancung Tak Bertanya and served as a personal bodyguard to the Sultan of Perak. Unlike other chiefs, Daeng Selaili was granted the authority to execute anyone who committed an offense against the sultan without needing prior permission from the sultan.

The Misa Melayu records also mention that during the reign of Sultan Muzaffar Shah III, Sultan Berkabat Anak Raja Kecil Minangkabau, along with Bugis rajas named Daing Matkah and Daing Celak, came to attack Bukit Gantang in Perak. However, those who came to attack Bukit Gantang were defeated by the people of Perak under the leadership of Raja Muda Iskandar, Raja Kecil Muda, and Bendahara Megat Pendia.

After ruling the state of Perak for 26 years, Sultan Muzaffar Shah III passed away in Berahman Indera (Bota Kanan) in 1756 and was laid to rest there with the title Marhum Haji Allah.