Java War

The Java War (Javanese: ꦥꦼꦫꦁꦗꦮ; Dutch: De Java-oorlog; Indonesian: Perang Jawa), also known in Indonesia as the Diponegoro War (Javanese: ꦥꦼꦫꦁꦢꦶꦥꦤꦼꦒꦫ; Indonesian: Perang Diponegoro), was an armed conflict in central and eastern Java from 1825 to 1830, between native Javanese rebels headed by Prince Diponegoro and the Dutch East Indies supported by Javanese princely states. It is considered a watershed in Javanese history, culture, and society.

During the early nineteenth century, declining Dutch power along with increased centralization of colonial authorities through brief French and British controls had changed the political order established after the 1755 Treaty of Giyanti, at the expense of the native Javanese princely states. After the deaths of Sultans of Yogyakarta Hamengkubuwono III and IV, along with the return of Dutch presence, Hamengkubuwono III's eldest son Diponegoro became estranged from Yogyakarta's regency of Hamengkubuwono V and with the colonial government. With a millenarian movement emerging and claimed visions of a holy war, Diponegoro would launch his rebellion following tensions caused by a government road project in July 1825.

Shortly after the outbreak of the revolt, rebel forces laid siege to Yogyakarta, which was lifted following the arrival of a large Dutch relief force under H. M. de Kock. Diponegoro and his forces moved north towards Surakarta, defeating Dutch forces in a series of engagements throughout mid-1826 before being defeated west of the city. Other leaders affiliated with the rebellion took up arms in Java's north coast and in East Java. The war transitioned into a guerilla war, with Dutch forces failing to stamp out guerilla activity due to Diponegoro's popular support and Dutch manpower shortages.

By 1827, Dutch forces began employing an extensive strategy of field fortifications (Bentengsteelsel), gradually limiting Diponegoro's ability to maneuver and control territory. The war turned against Diponegoro, and his territorial control began to shrink as rebel forces became confined to the west of Yogyakarta. Further rebel setbacks in 1828 and 1829 saw their remaining armies depleted, with many key commanders surrendering or killed in action. Following a defeat in September 1829, Diponegoro led just a small group of guerillas. During an attempt at negotiations, Diponegoro was captured while meeting with de Kock in Magelang, and he was exiled to Sulawesi where he died in 1855.

The war had disastrous consequences for Java, marking the last significant armed resistance to Dutch rule until the Indonesian National Revolution over a century later. The princely states lost much of their remaining powers and territories, giving the Dutch uncontested rule over the island. At least 200,000 Javanese civilians were killed by violence or resulting disease and starvation, with military losses of 15,000 dead for the Dutch military and around 20,000 dead for the rebels. While the costs of waging the war for the Dutch were heavy, the implementation of the Cultivation System in its immediate aftermath generated enormous revenues for the colonial government.

The 1755 Treaty of Giyanti divided the Mataram Sultanate in Java into Vorstenlanden (princely states): the Sultanate of Yogyakarta and the Sunanate of Surakarta, and later Mangkunegaran (1757). It brought a period of peace after the Javanese Wars of Succession, and allowed for major population growth in Java. Due to Dutch relative weakness in the late eighteenth century, the princely states possessed de facto sovereignty. The Fourth Anglo-Dutch War, the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, and the Dutch East India Company's bankruptcy in 1799 further weakened the Dutch position, with Dutch colonial authorities in Batavia requesting assistance from the princely states to defend Dutch territories in Java.

Under Napoleonic Netherlands, Herman Willem Daendels became Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies. Daendels aimed to weaken the princely states and prepare defences against a British invasion. Daendels harshly enforced colonial authority, boosting anti-Dutch sentiment in the Yogyakarta court and causing an abortive armed revolt by Yogyakarta bupati Rongga Prawiradirja [id] in 1810. The following year, Daendels was replaced, and British forces seized Java the same year. Tensions remained between Yogyakarta and British administrators, and a British force of 1,200 troops sacked the Yogyakarta keraton on 20 June 1812, deposing Sultan Hamengkubuwono II in favor of his son Hamengkubuwono III. During their four-year control, the British split off part of Yogyakarta to form the Pakualaman, introduced a cash-based land tax which caused hardship to peasants, and forced the princely states to limit the size of their militaries and cede territory.

Prince Diponegoro (born 1785) was the eldest son of Hamengkubuwono III. Through his mother, he claimed ancestry from the Wali Songo, early apostles of Islam in Java. In 1805, he made a pilgrimage to the southern coast of Java. He wrote that he received visions there from Sunan Kalijaga and Ratu Kidul. He also wrote of warnings of the destruction of Yogyakarta and ruin for Java. Shortly prior to the British sack of Yogyakarta, he was offered the position of crown prince under his father, but he refused the offer, passing the position on to his child younger brother. Likely, he had been offered the position due to the aid he provided to the British. Hamengkubuwono III would die in 1814, and with his successor still being a boy, a regency was installed with Paku Alam I as regent.