The island of Lombok is predominantly inhabited by the
Sasak, the majority which adopted
Islam since the 16th century. Following the decline of the , Balinese rulers from the west and
Makassarese rulers from the
Bima Sultanate of
Sumbawa in the east compete for political influence in Lombok throughout the 17th to 18th century. By the early 19th century, the Cakranegara court – a branch of eastern Bali’s
Karangasem Kingdom – emerged as Lombok's most powerful polity. While the court's influence was strongest in western Lombok with their base in
Mataram, the court was able to rule the whole island from around 1839. Through robust tax system and trade activities, the Cakranegara court managed to accrue considerable wealth and build itself into perhaps the richest court in eastern Malay archipelago at the time. Relations between the ruling Balinese elite and Sasak population were amicable in western Lombok, but the situation were more contentious in eastern Lombok, where Sasak chiefs resented Balinese rule and the imposition of their taxes. The Sasak of east Lombok incited rebellious streaks in 1855 and 1871, but the Cakranegara court was able to subdue these rebellions before widespread damage occurred. Local chronicles also ascribe rising discontent to the appointment of Prince Anak Agung Made Karangasem as the Raja's representative in 1884, during the reign of Ratu Agung Gede Ngurah Karangasem (?-1895). The prince was remembered as having clear favouritism towards Balinese subjects and frequently imposed disproportionately cruel sentences for any dissent from Sasak subjects. The raja, already advanced in age and too caught up with his personal agenda for hegemony in Bali, did not do much to allay Prince Made's misdeeds towards the Sasak. Around the 19th century,
colonial Dutch government began to pursue imperialist policies which favored territorial expansion and subjugation of the archipelago's indigenous polities. Initially, the Dutch acted as allies to Cakranegara while also limiting its foreign relations. Cakranegara had trade connections with the British (based in
Singapore), but British influence were cut off when Dutch presented its own treaty, signed in 1843. The treaty recognizes the sovereignty of Cakranegara and ensure freedom from Dutch interventions in internal matters, in exchange of sole allegiance to the Dutch, the suspension of '''', and sending of delegations to
Batavia once every three years. Cakranegara would gave support to the Dutch during the
Dutch intervention in Bali (1849), and was rewarded with the overlordship over
Karangasem. Despite this allegiance and the 1843 treaty, Dutch colonial administration continued discussing strategies that could justify further intervention into Lombok, especially after 1880s when rumours began to circulate that the island was rich in minerals. ==Praya incident and Sasak rebellion==