History

Archaeological findings trace the history of modern-day Jakarta back to the fifth century. The ancient monument at Tanjung Priok Port (close to Cilincing Coastline) disclosed that by the 16th century, it became a thriving port city known as Sunda Kelapa Harbor. At that time, the Hindu kingdom of Pajajaran ruled the area from a place now known as Bogor, in the hills outside Jakarta.

By the time Columbus headed to the East in search of spices, Sunda Kelapa had already developed into a major trading port. Among the first foreigners to set foot here were the Portuguese. In 1522, they made a mutually beneficial agree ment with the Pajajaran Kingdom; in return for access to valuable spices, the Portuguese defended the Hindus from the Islamic sultanate of Demak.

Nevertheless, on June 22, 1527, the Javanese Prince Fatahillah of the Demak Sultanate successfully defeated the Portuguese armed forces at the site of the Sunda Kelapa Harbor. The city was then renamed Jayakarta, meaning "a glorious victory." This eventful day came to be acknowledged as Jakarta's Founding Anniversary, and Fatahillah Park was named after the heroic prince.

The Dutch Years

The end of the 16th century recorded another milestone: The Dutch landed at Sunda Kelapa port in 1596 and established the United East India Comp any (Vereinigde Oost Indies Compagnie or V.O.C.) in 1602 to join the lucrative spice trade.

Years passed, and the V.O.C. grew stronger. At the pinnacle of its strength, in 1635, the Dutch transformed Jayakarta, or Batavia as they called it, into a walled canal city covering some 700 hectares of land. A ride down the Ciliwung River evokes the nostalgic aura that once divided the city in two parts: east and west. The Dutch-style Jembatan Pasar Ayam, originally engineered to bridge both sides, remains preserved today as a historical landmark.

During the 18th century, Batavia grew into an overpopulated city and the quality of life deteriorated. Of particular concern to the Dutch was the rapid growth of the Chinese community, which threatened to tip the ethnic and economic balance of power. Attempts by the Du tch to suppress the number of Chinese resulted in a bloodbath in 1740. At least 5,000 Chinese were killed, 500 in Batavia City Hall, now the Jakarta History Museum. The Chinese were then confined to ghettos, the site of today's Glodok.

In the early 19th century Governor-General Herman Willem Daendels developed a new residential area called Weltevreden, the center of which is now the Lapangan Merdeka.

The British Years

In 1811, the British arrived and took over the land previously controlled by the Dutch. Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who governed from 1811 to 1816, resided in Bogor Palace, where his first wife Olivia died. She was buried at Taman Prasasti. As a memorial, Raffles erected a special monument in Bogor Botanical Garden .

After only five years in Batavia, the British handed the land back to the Dutch, who ruled until Japanese occupation during World War II.

The New Beginning

By the early 1900s, young Indonesian scholars began to question Dutch dominion. Historians refer to 1908 as the "Year of Awakening," when a group of medical students founded the first independence organization for the people's political aspirations, Budi Utomo. These students held meetings in the medical school which is now STOVIA Museum of the History of National Awakening.

During Japane se occupation, the fight for independence intensified. Paramilitary Indonesian youth groups held regular meetings in a house in Menteng, now converted into the Museum of the 1945 Struggle for Independence.

When the Japanese finally surrendered on August 14, 1945, Admiral Tadashi Maeda brought Soekarno and Mohammad Hatta—the founding fathers of modern Jakarta—to his house on Jalan Imam Bonjol. Here, they drafted the Declaration of Independence. On the morning of August 17, 1945, the manuscript was read aloud at Jalan Proklamasi, a spot marked by the Soekarno-Hatta Monument. The next day, Soekarno became the first president of the Republic of Indonesia and Mohammad Hatta the first vice-president.

A number of ambitious development projects were undertaken during Soekarno's presidency, inclu ding Hotel Indonesia, Senayan Sports Complex and Sarinah department store. Towards the end of his tenure an attempted coup resulted in the murder of a number of army generals, allegedly by communists. In memory of the massacred generals, the Lubang Buaya Memorial Park and Museum was established.

After Soekarno's administration ended in 1966, General Haji Mohammad Soeharto brought economic and political stability to the country after years of chaos. Under his unilateral leadership, Indonesia developed a self-sufficient rice crop. His power came to an unfortunate end, however, as a result of a prolonged financial and economic crisis triggered by the Asian economic meltdown in 1997. In a subsequent wave of public protests and riots, he was left with little choice but to terminate his 32 years in power. On May 21, 1998, he ha nded over presidential control to his vice-president, Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie.

Jakarta Today

For the first time in history, a democratically elected government led by President Abdurrahman Wahid now rules the republic. In a more open society, Indonesians hope that the country will once again return to the path toward prosperity.