Omar Ali Saifuddien III

Omar Ali Saifuddien III was the 28th sultan of Brunei, reigning from 1950 to 1967. Using growing oil revenue, he funded schools, hospitals and roads, and he granted the 1959 constitution that gave Brunei internal self-government. He decided in 1963 against joining Malaysia and abdicated in 1967 in favour of his son Hassanal Bolkiah, remaining an influential adviser, and is remembered as the architect of modern Brunei.