The history of Sunda Kingdom spanned almost a millennium, between 7th to 16th century. It is not sure however, whether the Sunda Kingdom was actually a continuous polity or not, nor whether its rulers belongs to a single continuous lineage of dynasty or not. This is because the scarcity of evidences, historical records and archaeological findings that plausibly connected to this kingdom.
One of the few remnant is the 7th century Bojongmenje Hindu temple near Bandung that was discovered in 2002. It was one of the earliest temple structure in Java, older than temples of Dieng in Central Java, and possibly linked to the Sunda Kingdom.
The earlier period is unclear, and quite speculative at its best. Much owed to only two manuscripts dated from much later period, the Carita Parahyangan and Wangsakerta manuscripts. The history of later period however, after the late 14th century, is quite clear. Especially after the reign of King Wastu Kancana and Jayadewata (Sri Baduga Maharaja). This is contributed mainly to the availability of historical sources, including numbers of foreign reports, especially Portuguese Suma Oriental; several stone inscriptions especially Batutulis; and native primary historical manuscripts of Bujangga Manik and Sanghyang Siksakanda ng Karesian.
Location
Sunda kingdom located in western parts of Java, which today corresponds with the Indonesian provinces of West Java, Jakarta and Banten. West Java was one of the first contact points in Indonesia for Indian traders and their cultural influences. This important geographical fact is not a coincidence, as west Java was an important turning point of maritime trade route connecting India with China via Maritime Silk Road. West Java also Southern Sumatra are located on the edge of southern coasts, a landfall when one vessel sailing from coastal Southern China to the south. From there the voyage turned west towards Sumatra, through Malacca strait and crossing Bay of Bengal to India. As a matter of fact, centuries later, it was here that the Dutch and British first set foot in the archipelago. Previously, the Hindu Tarumanagara kingdom was flourished in the same location, which widely regarded as the predecessor of Sunda Kingdom.
Historiography
Knowledge of the kingdom among Sundanese people has been kept alive through Sundanese Pantun oral tradition, the chant of poetic verses about the golden age of Sunda Pajajaran, and the legend of Prabu Siliwangi, the most popular king of Sunda.
Several stone inscriptions mention the kingdom, such as Juru Pangambat, Jayabupati, Kawali, and Batutulis. Most account and records of the Sunda Kingdom came from manuscripts dated from a later period circa 15th to 16th century, such as Bujangga Manik, Sanghyang Siksakanda ng Karesian, Carita Parahyangan, and Kidung Sunda.
The history of Sunda Kingdom is also recorded in Pustaka Rajyarajya i Bhumi Nusantara, a book within the Wangsakerta manuscript, composed in the late 17th century in Cirebon. However, currently the Wangsakerta manuscript is generally discounted as a valid historical source among historians as it is suspected to be fraudulent.
Local account
The earliest reference to the name "Sunda" being used to identify a kingdom is the Kebon Kopi II inscription dated 854 Saka (932 AD). The inscription was in old Javanese script, but the language used was Old Malay. It translates as follows:
The inscription chandrasengkala (chronogram) written 458 Saka, however some historians suggested that the year of the inscription must be read backward as 854 Saka (932 AD) because the Sunda kingdom could not have existed in 536 AD, in the era of the Kingdom of Tarumanagara (358-669 AD).
Another reference to the kingdom is the Jayabupati inscription which consists of 40 lines written on four pieces of stone found on the Cicatih river bank in Cibadak, Sukabumi. The inscription is written in old Javanese script. The four inscriptions are now stored at the National Museum in Jakarta, under the codes D 73 (Cicatih), D 96, D 97 and D 98. The contents of the inscriptions (according to Pleyte):
The date of the Jayabupati inscription may be 11 October 1030. According to Pustaka Nusantara, Parwa III sarga 1, Sri Jayabupati reigned for 12 years, from 952 to 964 saka (1030 - 1042 AD). The inscription has an East Javanese style in lettering, language, and style, and mentions the current king by name.
Copperplate letters dating to the 15th century, including royal instructions, also imply the existence of the Sunda Kingdom. The copperplate inscription of Kebantenan I (Jayagiri) reads that Raja Rahyang Niskala Wastu Kancana sent an order through Hyang Ningrat Kancana to the Susuhunan of Pakuan Pajajaran to take care of dayohan in Jayagiri and Sunda Sembawa, banning the collection of collecting taxes from the residents because they were knowledgeable about the (Hindu) religion and worshiped the gods.
Kebantenan II inscription (Sunda Sembawa I) copperplate inscription announces Sri Baduga Maharaja (1482–1521), the king staying in Pakuan, approving an already delineated sacred estate (tanah devasasana) put at the disposal of the wiku (priests), which must not be split as it houses facilities for worship, which belong to the king. Kebantenan III inscription (Sunda Sembawa II) copperplate announces the king of Sunda's sanctions of holy construction in Sunda Sembawa. The Kebantenan IV (Gunung Samaya) inscription says that Sri Baduga Maharaja, who ruled in Pakuan, sanctioned a sacred place (tanah devasana) at Gunung (mount) Samya (Rancamaya), the mentions a similar sacred estate to the one described in the Kebantenan II inscription.
The primary source that contains information about the daily life of late 15th to early 16th century Sunda Kingdom was found in Bujangga Manik manuscript. The names of places, culture and customs, was described in great detail, it is one of the important specimen of Old Sundanese literature. The main character is Prince Jaya Pakuan alias Bujangga Manik, a Sundanese Hindu hermit, who, though a prince at the court of Pakuan Pajajaran, preferred to live a life of a man of religion. As a hermit he made two journeys from Pakuan Pajajaran to central and eastern Java and back, the second one including a visit to Bali. After his return he practised asceticism on a mountain in western Java, where his bodily existence came to an end.
The manuscript dated from pre-Islamic Sunda. The language represents an older stage of Sundanese. It displays a marked influence from Javanese but does not contain one word which is traceable to Arabic. In the content of the story, too, Islam is completely absent. This manuscript specifically the mention of Majapahit, Malacca and Demak allow us to date the writing of the story in the 15th century, probably the later part of this century, or the early 16th century at the latest.
Chinese account
According to F. Hirt and W. W. Rockhill, there are Chinese sources concerning the Sunda Kingdom. At the time of the Southern Sung dynasty, the inspector of trade with foreign countries, Chau Ju-kua, collected reports from sailors and merchants who had visited foreign countries. His report on far countries, Chu-fan-chi, written from 1178 to 1225 AD, mentions the deepwater harbour of Sin-t’o (Sunda). Chu-fan-chi reported that:
According to this source, the kingdom of Sunda produced high quality black pepper. The kingdom located in the western parts of Java near Sunda Strait, corresponds to today Banten, Jakarta and west part of West Java province. According to this source, the port of Sunda was under Srivijaya mandala domination. Port of Sunda was highly possible refer to port of Banten instead of Kalapa. Its capital is located 10 kilometres inland southward in Banten Girang near Mount Pulosari.
The Chinese book “shun-feng hsiang-sung" from about 1430 AD relates:
According to this source the port of Sunda was located west of Kalapa and later identified as port of Banten.
European account
European explorers, mainly Portuguese based in Malacca, also reported the existence of the Sunda Kingdom. Tomé Pires (1513) mentioned a Western Java kingdom that had established trade relation with them as ... Regño de Çumda ..., which means "The Kingdom of Sunda". Also the report of Antonio Pigafetta (1522) that mentioned Sunda as a pepper producing region.
Tomé Pires from Portugal wrote in his report “Summa Oriental (1513–1515)”:
The Portuguese report is dated from a later period of the kingdom, shortly before its fall to forces of the Sultanate of Banten.
Formation and growth According to the Wangsakerta manuscript, King Tarusbawa from Sunda Sambawa, a vassal kingdom of Tarumanagara, succeeded his father-in-law as the 13th king of Tarumanagara. Tarumanagara's prestige and power had been declining, likely due to a series of invasions from Srivijaya. Wishing to restore the glory of King Purnawarman, who reigned from the Purasaba (capital city) of Sundapura, in 670 AD Tarusbawa renamed Tarumanagara to the Sunda Kingdom. This event is confirmed by a Tang Chinese source mentioning Tarumanagara's last envoy was in 669 AD. Tarusbawa sent his emissary to the Chinese Emperor at the time to advise him of his ascension to the throne in 669 AD. He was crowned on the ninth of the month of Jyesta, in 591 Saka, which corresponds to 18 May 669 AD.
Separation of Galuh and Sunda Kingdom According to the Wangsakerta manuscript, Wretikandayun, the lord of another former vassal kingdom of Tarumanagara, Galuh Kingdom, used the establishment of the Sunda Kingdom as an excuse to split eastern Taruma from Tarusbawa's Sunda. Since the crown prince of Galuh was the son-in-law of Queen Shima of Kalingga, a Hindu kingdom in central Java, Wretikandayun, supported by Kalingga, demanded that the remnant of what was known as Tarumanagara's territory be divided into two kingdoms. Finding himself in an unfortunate position and unwilling to risk a civil war, King Tarusbawa granted Wretikandayun's demand. In 670 AD, Tarumanagara was divided into two kingdoms: the Sunda Kingdom in the west, and the Galuh Kingdom in the east, separated by the Tarum (Citarum) River.
Sanna and Purbasora
Wretikandayun, the King of Galuh has two sons; Sempakwaja and Mandiminyak. Despite being the eldest son, Sempakwaja was not chosen as the successor because he was toothless, a shameful physical defect considered unsuitable for a king at that time. Thus, his younger brother, Mandiminyak (r. 702–709) inherited the Galuh throne from Wretikandayun instead. Sempakwaja then established a rural principality of Galunggung Kingdom.
Sempakwaja has a son named Purbasora, while King Mandiminyak also has a son named Sena or Bratasena. However, there was a circulating rumours in the palace; that actually instead of cousins; Purbasora and Sena were actually brothers. This was because Prince Sena was the result of a forbidden affair between Mandiminyak and his own sister in-law; the beautiful wife of Sempakwaja.
After the death of Mandiminyak, Prince Bratasena or Sena (r. 709–716), ascends as the new king; as the third monarch of Galuh. According to Carita Parahyangan and Wangsakerta manuscripts; King Sena of Galuh married to Princess Sannaha of Kalingga in Central Java, and they had Sanjaya as their son and heir. In an attempt to nurture a good relations with the neighboring Sunda Kingdom, King Sena established a friendship with King Tarusbawa of Sunda.