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Guardians of the Sultanate - Brunei

Why the Gurkhas have served in Brunei for more than 60 years

Few overseas deployments have endured as quietly, or as successfully, as the British Army’s Gurkha presence in Brunei. Today, a battalion of The Royal Gurkha Rifles remains permanently based in the tiny Southeast Asian nation, surrounded by the dense rainforests of Borneo. To many, it may seem an unusual posting, but its origins lie in one of the Cold War’s lesser-known conflicts and a bond of trust forged in battle. This article starts with an understanding of the British presence in Borneo today before exploring the historic context.

Brunei today

Brunei today

The British Forces Brunei garrison is centred on a battalion of The Royal Gurkha Rifles, supported by other elements from the Brigade of Gurkhas and British Army units. This includes a troop of Queen’s Gurkha Signals, a boat detachment from The Queen’s Gurkha Engineers, support from Queen’s Own Gurkha Logistics Corps in the form of drivers, chefs and stores specialists, and members from the Gurkha Staff and Personnel Support. There is also an Army Air Corps Helicopter Squadron, and the Jungle Warfare Division of the Infantry Battle School.

The battalion provides the United Kingdom with a permanent military presence in Southeast Asia, strengthening defence cooperation with Brunei as well as regional partners.  It also supports one of the British Army’s premier jungle warfare training environments, where soldiers from across the Army learn to operate in dense tropical rainforest under realistic conditions.

For Brunei, the arrangement represents a trusted defence partnership that has endured for more than six decades. For the British Army, it preserves invaluable expertise in jungle operations while maintaining an important strategic foothold in the Indo-Pacific.

The Gurkha’s story in Borneo begins not with the Borneo Confrontation, but with a rebellion.

A call for help

On 8 December 1962, armed members of the North Kalimantan National Army (TNKU), the military wing of the Brunei People’s Party, launched a coordinated uprising across Brunei. Their objective was to overthrow Sultan Sir Omar Ali Saifuddien III, seize key government buildings and oil installations, and prevent Brunei from joining the proposed Federation of Malaysia. At the time, Brunei was a British Protected State. While the Sultan governed internal affairs, Britain was responsible for the country’s defence. When the revolt erupted, the Sultan appealed for British military assistance.

The response was immediate. Within hours, soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 2nd King Edward VII’s Own Gurkha Rifles (The Sirmoor Rifles) were airlifted from Singapore. Their rapid deployment proved decisive. Working alongside Royal Marines and other British Army units, the Gurkhas secured Brunei Town, recaptured government buildings, protected vital oilfields at Seria and rescued hostages held by the rebels. Within days, the uprising had effectively collapsed. The speed, professionalism and discipline of the Gurkhas earned the lasting gratitude of both the Sultan and the people of Brunei.

From revolt to regional conflict

Although the Brunei Revolt was swiftly defeated, it marked only the beginning of a much larger struggle.

Indonesia’s President Sukarno opposed the formation of Malaysia, viewing it as an extension of British influence in Southeast Asia. Following the failure of the Brunei uprising, Indonesia adopted a policy of Konfrontasi, the Indonesian Confrontation, a campaign of cross-border incursions, sabotage and guerrilla warfare against Malaysia and British forces across Borneo.

The Gurkhas, already seasoned by years of jungle operations during the Malayan Emergency, were ideally suited to the demanding terrain. Their skill in operating through thick rainforest, often on long-range patrols in some of the world’s most inhospitable environments, made them indispensable.

Between 1962 and 1966, Gurkha battalions conducted countless patrols, ambushes and reconnaissance missions along the mountainous border between Malaysian Borneo and Indonesian Kalimantan. Many of these operations took place in remote jungle where endurance, navigation and fieldcraft were as important as combat itself. Their contribution helped prevent the conflict from escalating into a wider regional war and remains one of the Brigade of Gurkhas’ defining post-war campaigns.

Why the Gurkhas stayed

When the Indonesian Confrontation ended in 1966, many expected Britain’s military presence in Brunei to diminish. Instead, something remarkable happened. The relationship forged during the Brunei Revolt had created a deep level of trust between the British Gurkhas and the Bruneian monarchy, and the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation was ratified in 1979. When Brunei achieved full independence in 1984, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah chose to retain a permanent British military presence through a bilateral defence agreement. Crucially, the Gurkhas did not remain because Britain insisted, they remained because Brunei invited them to stay. That agreement continues today.

A legacy built on trust

The continued presence of the Gurkhas in Brunei is often viewed simply as a military deployment. In reality, it is the legacy of a relationship forged during a moment of national crisis. In December 1962, Gurkha soldiers answered the Sultan’s call for help. They helped defeat an armed revolt, defended Borneo during the Indonesian Confrontation, and demonstrated professionalism under exceptionally difficult conditions. Those actions established a reputation for loyalty and reliability that has endured across generations.

More than sixty years later, every Gurkha serving with The Royal Gurkha Rifles in Brunei is part of that same story – a story that began with a desperate request for assistance and evolved into one of the British Army’s longest-standing overseas commitments.

The Gurkhas remain in Brunei today not because of history alone, but because history created a partnership that both nations continue to value.

© The Gurkha Museum Trust Winchester - Registered Charity Number 1169920 (formerly 272426)