Figure 1.-- The Java War was a major threat to Dutch control of the Indonesian archepeligo. It was fought before rapid fire weapons were invented that gave Europeans an unasailable military advantage. Java was the richest and most populace island in the archepeligo. This painting by Dutch artist Nicolaas Pieneman (1809–60) is entitled "The submission of Diponegoro to Lieutenant-General Hendrik Merkus Baron de Kock". This occurred March 28, 1830 and ended the Java War (1825–30). Gen. De Kock reportedly hung it in his study. Click on the image for an enlarged detail of the Prince and his family.

Contacts with the West would strongly affect Nusantara. The European voyages of discovery brought European contact with Nusantara for the first time. The Portuguese were the first to arrive (early-16th century). Indonesia's abundant spices attracted Portuguese traders and they movedeast seekingtrade with China. The Portuguese conquered Malacca, located on the Malay peninsula (1511). This was at the time a part of Nusantara. The spice trade was an important part of the European desire to trade with the East without an Arab intermidiary. At a time before refrigeration or even canning, Europeans prized spices for flavoring sometimes unappealing food. But flavoring was only part of the spice story. Spices like cloves, nutmeg and mace were widely believed to prevent or cure terrible diseases like plague, venereal disease, and other infirmities. As a result, spices were emensely valuable. The Dutch followed closely behind the Portuguese and landed at Banten shore in Java (1512).The Dutch and Portuguese vied for control of what is now Indonesia and the valuable spice trade. Dutch control was finally settled by the Dutch-Portuguese Wars associated with the Dutch War for Independence (17th century). The Dutch thus wrested control of the spice trade from Portuguese. The first Dutch arrivals were traders working as part of the (Vereniging Oost Indische Compagnie (Royal East Indies Company, VOC). The Dutch for the next two centuries traded with the native people and establisheda a virtual monopoly on the spice trade (into the 18th century). There were several Dutch pacification campaigns when local principalities attempted to interfere with trade. The major threat to the Dutch was the Java War (1825-30). Indonesia was eventually formally colonized by the Dutch and became known as the Dutch East Indies (DEI). The Dutch began to more more formally rule the DEI (19th century). Dutch planters began growing sugar and coffee in plantatios on Java. For a time these plantations produced three-fourths of the world supply of coffee which is why coffee is coloquially known as java. Nationalist feelings begn to develop in the early-20th century. This was supressed by the Dutch who began arrested leaing nationalists like Sukarno. The nationalist achieved little political progress, but gradually popular attitudes changed. The DEI was a vast archipelago inhabited by hundreds of ethnic groups who had little in common for most of Dutch colonial rule. Gradually in the early-20th century the idea of Indonesian national identity began to grow, generated by opposition to Dutch rule as the common thread. (This is similar to the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars which stimulated European nationalist sentiment in the early-19th century.) Hasyim Asy'ari founded Nahdlatul Ulama as a kind of reaction to the reaction to the modernist Muhammadiyah organization (1926). Also in the early-20th century the Dutch in the DEI and the British on their area of Borneo began developing valuable oil resources. The Great Depression which began on Wall Street in America spread to other countries (1929). Economies like the DEI based on exporting raw materials suffered. Sukarno was arrested by the Dutch and tried for poltical offenses. He delivered his famous nationalist speech, 'Indonesia Accuses', which was given as part of his defenxe (1930).

Nusantara

Contacts with the West would strongly affect Nusantara.

European Voyages of Discovery

The European voyages of discovery brought European contact with Nusantara for the first time. The Portuguese were the first to arrive (early-16th century).

Spice Trade

Indonesia's abundant spices attracted Portuguese traders and they movedeast seekingtrade with China. The Portuguese conquered Malacca, located on the Malay peninsula (1511). This was at the time a part of Nusantara. The spice trade was an important part of the European desire to trade with the East without an Arab intermidiary. At a time before refrigeration or even canning, Europeans prized spices for flavoring sometimes unappealing food. But flavoring was only part of the spice story. Spices like cloves, nutmeg and mace were widely believed to prevent or cure terrible diseases like plague, venereal disease, and other infirmities. As a result, spices were emensely valuable.

The Dutch

The Dutch followed closely behind the Portuguese and landed at Banten shore in Java (1512).The Dutch and Portuguese vied for control of what is now Indonesia and the valuable spice trade. Dutch control was finally settled by the Dutch-Portuguese Wars associated with the Dutch War for Independence which also involved a fight for Brazil (17th century). The Dutch thus wrested control of the spice trade from Portuguese. The first Dutch arrivals were traders working as part of the (Vereniging Oost Indische Compagnie (Royal East Indies Company, VOC). The Dutch for the next two centuries traded with the native people and established a a virtual monopoly on the spice trade. There were violent actions. Perhaps the worst was Dutch maassacre of the population of the Banda Islands. One author reprts that the islanders, some 15,000 poeople, were 'killed, tortured, raped, suppressed, enslaved at home, sold as slaves abroad, forced into hard labor ....' [Bayuni] VOC control continued into the 18th century. There were several Dutch pacification campaigns when local principalities attempted to interfere with trade. The major threat to the Dutch was the Java War (1825-30). Indonesia was eventually formally colonized by the Dutch and became known as the Dutch East Indies (DEI). The Dutch began to more more formally rule the DEI (19th century). Dutch planters began growing sugar and coffee in plantatios on Java. For a time these plantations produced three-fourths of the world supply of coffee which is why coffee is coloquially known as 'java'. The Dutch in the DEI and the British on their area of Borneo began developing valuable oil resources (early-20th century). An Indonesian reader complains that Indonesia's colomnial history has not been studied in any detail. Dutch historians focued on the Netherlsnds and did very little work on the DEI and there were no Indionesian historians at the time. [Bayuni]

Independence Movement

Nationalist feelings began to develop in the early-20th century. This was supressed by the Dutch who began arrested leaing nationalists like Sukarno. The nationalist achieved little political progress, but gradually popular attitudes changed. The DEI was a vast archipelago inhabited by hundreds of ethnic groups who had little in common for most of Dutch colonial rule. Gradually in the early-20th century the idea of Indonesian national identity began to grow, generated by opposition to Dutch rule as the common thread. (This is similar to the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars which stimulated European nationalist sentiment in the early-19th century.) Hasyim Asy'ari founded Nahdlatul Ulama as a kind of reaction to the modernist Muhammadiyah organization (1926). Sukarno was arrested by the Dutch and tried for poltical offenses. He delivered his famous nationalist speech, 'Indonesia Accuses', which was given as part of his defenxe (1930).

The Great Depression

The Great Depression which began on Wall Street in America spread to other countries (1929). Economies like the DEI based on exporting raw materials suffered.

World War II

Independence War

Sources

Bauyuni, Endy. A forgotten history of oppression, Jakarta Post (Seoptember 2018). Mentioned in The Week (September 14, 2018), p. 15. It is interestinhg that Bayuni writes about the importance of accurate history. But we note that while he writes about the 0.15 million Indinesians killed in the Independence War, he is silent about the 5 million Indoinesians that perished in the famine caused by the Japanese during the World War II occupation of the country.

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Created: 4:07 AM 10/15/20154
Last updated: 4:07 AM 10/15/2015