THE PEOPLE

 The Lombok War

    In 1894 the Dutch landed an elaborate military expedition in Lombok and sent an ultimatum to the Lombok Radia, who was under the influence of Gusti Gede Djilantik, Radja of Karangasem, a friend of the Dutch. The terms of the ultimatum were accepted and the Radja agreed to pay a " war indemnity " of one million guilders. Conferences were held between the Balinese and the Sasaks, and everybody seemed satisfied. The army remained in the capital for a few weeks giving military demonstrations while waiting for the payment of the indemnity. Soon there were rumors of dissension between the old Radja and the princes, and the Balinese began to appear less friendly; the camps were no longer visited by the princes, and one day the women did not even come to market. This was the signal for the Dutch to prepare for the defence.

That night they were attacked by fierce rifle-fire through holes made in the thick walls of the palaces and houses around the Dutch encampments. Orchestras played continuously and all night the great alarm-drums were beaten. The Dutch returned the fire as well as they could in the darkness, trying to demolish the stone walls of the palace, but without much success. Captain W. Cool, an eyewitness, relates: " The noise was deafening and bullets were falling fast around us. . . . Added to all this was the ear-splitting sound of the tomtoms and the war cries of the Balinese as an accompaniment to the hammering and boring of the walls." Every bivouac was besieged by an invisible foe. On the dawn of the third day the army retreated towards the sea, leaving nearly one hundred dead and three hundred wounded. Among the dead was General Van Ham, second in command.

A regiment was taken prisoner and was marched along the lines of Balinese soldiers; Captain Cool tells us that " they were all armed, yet they maintained a respectful attitude. Not an offensive word was said or a threatening hand raised." The starving prisoners were fed with white rice and drinks of orange and coconut water. The wounded were provided with fresh bandages. After a sojourn in the palace they were released with a letter from the Crown Prince stating that he was releasing the prisoners as a gesture of friendship and as proof that he wished to end hostilities. But the letter was ignored by the commander-inchief, and at the seashore the decimated army erected new fortifications protected by the warships at anchor.

When the news of the defeat reached Java and Holland, the press flared up with indignation against " the sinister treachery of the Balinese. Immediately large reinforcements of men and heavy artillery were sent from Java. New fortifications were built and the Sasaks were forced to fight against the Balinese. The offensive was started against the capital, the army advancing cautiously, bombarding the villages along the way, and burning them to the ground after the Sasaks had looted them. Mataram and Cakra Negara, the two residences of the princes, were shelled and the Dutch succeeded in blowing up their arsenals and rice stores. The city of Mataram was captured first. Men and women, caught unawares, stabbed themselves rather than fall into the bands of the soldiers. Once occupied, Mataram was ordered razed to the ground. Every wall was laid low and all the trees chopped down. The work of destruction took over a month.

Next came the attack on Cakra Negara, the last important city of the Balinese in Lombok. They defended it tenaciously, but could not long resist the effects of artillery, and every palace and house that showed resistance was soon in flames. The Crown Prince, Anak Agung Ketut, the greatest enemy of the Dutch, was killed. The city was taken, the old Radja captured and exiled to Batavia, where he soon died of a broken heart. Thus ended Balinese rule in Lombok. The new conquest cost the Dutch 214 dead and 476 wounded, besides 746 who died of sickness and fatigue.