James Brooke (1803–1868) was born in India and served as a cavalry lieutenant in the Bengal Army during the First Anglo-Burmese War, before retiring to England to recover from a serious wound. In 1833, he used an inheritance to purchase the schooner "Royalist" and began trading in the Far East. In August 1839, Brooke arrived in Kuching, Sarawak and gave his assistance in crushing a Malay rebellion against the Sultan of Brunei. In 1841, the Sultan gave Brooke the governorship of Sarawak and the following year ceded complete sovereignty of Sarawak to Brooke, the first White Rajah.