Brunei National Day

This day commemorates the day Brunei seceded from Great Britain and became an independent nation. It was a protectorate of the United Kingdom for over two decades before it gained full independence from colonial rule. There are massive celebrations in the capital of Bandar Seri Begawan and the Sultan of Brunei marches in the celebrations. It used to be an incredibly wealthy nation, but from the 1600s it started to decline and the British got involved in the 1800s during a succession conflict over the rightful Sultan. In 1888 Sultan signed an agreement with Britain, which gave them control over Brunei’s foreign affairs and introduced British citizens into the country. Japan briefly occupied the country in World War II, but the British soon took over. By this time political parties had been formed, and a constitution was written declaring the country as an independent state, but Britain was still responsible for things like foreign affairs, security and defence. Eventually the country gained complete independence.