Datu Muhammad Salleh, leader of a series of major disturbances in North Borneo, was shot dead in Tambunan, but his followers did not give up for five more years.

The Mat Salleh Rebellion was a series of major armed disturbances against the British North Borneo Chartered Company administration in North Borneo, now the Malaysian state of Sabah. It was instigated by Datu Muhammad Salleh, a local chief from the Lingkabo district and Sugut River. He led the rebellion between 1894 until his death in Tambunan in 1900. The rebellion then continued on for another five years until 1905.

North Borneo was a British protectorate in the northern part of the island of Borneo,. The territory of North Borneo was originally established by concessions of the Sultanates of Brunei and Sulu in 1877 and 1878 to a German-born representative of Austria-Hungary, businessman and diplomat, Gustav Overbeck.

Tambunan is the capital of the Tambunan District in the Interior Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 35,667 in 2010. It is located 80 kilometres east of the state capital, Kota Kinabalu, 48 kilometres south of Ranau and 48 kilometres north of Keningau. At an average altitude of 750 metres, this valley town, which is part of the Crocker Range, experiences a mild tropical climate all year long. The valley is peppered with terraced paddy fields and 70 villages. The dense forests of bamboo around Tambunan town are a legacy of the British colonial period, during which an edict stated that 20 bamboo sprouts had to be planted for every bamboo cut.