A Little Bit of History

I recently came across a couple of articles about the history of this archipelago. I thought I'd share just a few of the major events of the last 5 centuries.

1. Our city recently celebrated it's 490th anniversary this year- that means the city was founded in 1527!

2. Note, however, that the first reference to any settlement at the mouth of the Ciliwung River ( where the city is located today) dates back to the 12th century- a port for the Hindu kingdom of Pajajaran.

3. Dutch traders were first here in 1596. A couple of years later shipments of spices were sent from the islands back to The Netherlands. Nutmeg, cloves and mace were the most luxurious and expensive spices in Europe and were only available on the Banda Islands.  In 1602 the Dutch East Indies Co (VOC)was formed in Amsterdam. In 1610, permission was given to the Dutch to build a warehouse in the Chinese section of this city. Eight years later the Dutch turned the warehouse into a fort and raised the city and subsequently founded the city of Batavia on the same site. As the spices were transplanted to other locations, reliance on the initial source became less important and the Dutch switched to commodities like sugar and tea.

4, The city wall of Batavia was constructed ( 1635-1645). One wall still exists and is part of the Maritime Museum.

5. Things were pretty good for the Dutch throughout the 17th and 18th centuries but in 1799, the VOC was bankrupt in part due to corruption. The Dutch government bought out remaining VOC shareholders and established a colonial administration in the Dutch East Indies.

6. By the 18th century, living in the city became less desirable and populations moved inland and away from the mouth of the river.

7. In the early 19th century (1811-1816), the Dutch East Indies came under British rule, but later Dutch authority was restored. We drive on the left here due to this brief period of British rule.

8. There are few landmarks still existing today but we've seen some of them including the old Town Hall built between 1707 and 1710. It is now a history museum. Check very early posts for photos of the old town square and some other old buildings.

9. Jump to the 20th century.In 1928 it was declared that the country was one people, one language. It was the first time the concept of a national language was introduced. It was significant because it attempted to unite a diverse group of peoples with over 300 difference languages and dialects.

10. Between 1942 and 1945, the Japanese occupied the Dutch East Indies. During this time the name of the city was changed back to what it is today. As the second world war ended, Indonesia sought independence- August 17, 1945. The Dutch didn't really want to lose the Dutch East Indies, but they ceded independence and Indonesia became a republic.

11. The name "Indonesia" was adopted from a term coined by James Richardson Logan in an 1850 edition of The Journal of the Indian Archipelago and Eastern Asia.

11. We are seeing the start of the decorating leading up to Independence day on August 17. We've seen the first of the red and white bunting! There will be buntings, flags, billboards, banners,flowers, lighted figures and other lighted displays. We will also see a lot of fireworks from the apartment!