Dutch intervention in Bali (1849)
Dutch intervention in Bali (1849) | |||||||
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Buleleng killing himself with 400 followers, in an 1849 puputan against the Dutch. Le Petit Journal, 1849. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Netherlands Lombok |
Kingdom of Buleleng Kingdom of Jembrana Kingdom of Klungkung Kingdom of Karangasem | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Andreas Victor Michiels † | I Gusti Ketut Jelantik † | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
100 ships 3,000 sailors 5,000 well-trained soldiers | 33,000 men | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
34 | 1,000s |
The Dutch intervention in Bali in 1849 was a major Dutch military intervention in Northern and Southern
The expedition arrived off
The Dutch landed in Buleleng and marched on Singaraja, only to discover that the whole town had been abandoned. The Dutch occupied the town, but soon faced a dilemma by the arrival of a Balinese delegation. Dutch General Andreas Victor Michiels had been ordered not to enter into negotiations with the Balinese, but to capture dead or alive the Rajas of Buleleng and Karangasem and Patih Jelantik. Hoping to lure these leaders into his grasp Michiels agreed to talk. In an apparent effort to awe his enemy Michiels ordered thousands of his troops to line the western side of the Singaraja main road. However, the plan to capture Jelantik and the Raja had to be abandoned, as they arrived with over 10,000 troops of their own who lined the other side of the street. With the two opposing armies standing literally face to face an extremely dangerous situation had developed. Michiels now had no choice but to pretend he was interested in negotiation since any attempt to capture the Balinese leaders would be sure to give way to a bloody pitched battle. Thus Michiels met with the Balinese and informed them that if they followed the general agreements laid out in the 1841-1843 treaties and destroyed all their fortifications then the government would be appeased. With the rejection of the ultimatum by the Balinese, war became the only option. On 15 April around 4,000 Netherlands Indies soldiers began the steep march to Jagaraga where they met with stiff Balinese resistance. [4][2]
When they saw their situation was desperate, the Balinese committed the first Puputan, or mass-suicide, the Dutch would witness in their conflicts with Bali.[2] In this encounter, the Dutch lost 34 men, and the Balinese thousands, including the wife of Jelantik, who was part of the Puputan.[3] I Gusti Ketut Jelantik and the ruler of Buleleng managed to escape to allied Karangasem.[3]
Southern Bali campaign
Reluctant to follow them over land, the Dutch returned to their ships and sailed to Southern Bali, where they landed in
The Dutch continued their campaign into
Treaty
The death of Jelantik nevertheless represented a considerable blow to Balinese resistance.
See also
Notes
- ^ Bali & Lombok by Ryan Ver Berkmoes p.31
- ^ a b c d e f g h i International Dictionary of Historic Places: Asia and Oceania by Trudy Ring p.69 [1]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j A short history of Bali: Indonesia's Hindu realm Robert Pringle p.98ff [2]
- ^ Bali at War: A History of the Dutch-Balinese Conflict of 1846–49. By Alfons van der Kraan. Victoria: Monash University Paper No. 34. Amazon Press, 1995. x, 240 pp. [3]