Temenggung is an ancient Malay

Malay language

Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...

 title of nobility, usually given to the chief of public security. The Temenggung is usually responsible for the safety of the monarch as well as the state police and army. The office was usually a stepping stone to the higher title of Bendahara

Bendahara

Bendahara is an administrative position within classical Malay kingdoms before the intervention of European powers during the 19th century. A bendahara was appointed by a sultan and was a hereditary post. It was the office that is held by bendahara family...

, or Grand vizier

Grand Vizier

Grand Vizier, in Turkish Vezir-i Azam or Sadr-ı Azam , deriving from the Arabic word vizier , was the greatest minister of the Sultan, with absolute power of attorney and, in principle, dismissable only by the Sultan himself...

.

In the Sultanate of Johor, the Temenggung of Muar held a fief (centered in Segamat

Segamat

Segamat is a town and district located in the north of the state of Johor in Malaysia, bordering two other states of Malaysia . It is located roughly 172 kilometres from Johor Bahru, the capital city of Johor State. It is 95 km travel distance via North-South Expressway from Johor Bahru to...

) for approximately 2 centuries and the Temenggung of Johor was of the head of fief (Johor mainland) between 1760 and 1868. The full rendition of the Johor Temenggung was Temenggung Seri Maharaja. Although the Temenggung was the head of the fief's administration, the Temenggung held the kingdom of Johor

Johor

Johor is a Malaysian state, located in the southern portion of Peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the most developed states in Malaysia. The state capital city and royal city of Johor is Johor Bahru, formerly known as Tanjung Puteri...

 and Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

 by virtue of his being a vassal

Vassal

A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...

 of the Sultan. During that time, the sultan was practically a puppet. In 1868, Temenggung Abu Bakar

Sultan Abu Bakar of Johor

Sultan Sir Abu Bakar ibni Daing Ibrahim was the 21st Sultan of Johor. He was also informally known as "The Father of Modern Johor", as many historians accredited Johor's development in the 19th century to Abu Bakar's leadership...

 declared himself as a maharaja

Maharaja

Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...

, assumed control over Muar and declared himself an independent ruler. In 1885, he assumed the title of sultan

Sultan

Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...

with the blessing of Britain.