Ancient Indonesia

In the 7th century AD, the Hindu-Buddhist kingdom of Sriwijaya emerged in Sumatra as the first Indonesian commercial sea power capable of controlling most of the trade in Southeast Asia. This dominance was largely due to its strategic location in the Strait of Melaka (Ricklefs, 2008). During this period, the Mataram and Sailendra dynasties were in their halcyon years. While trade brought wealth to Sriwijaya, kingdoms from the island of Java, such as Mataram, had far more human labor in their agrarian societies. By the end of the 900s, the Mataram kingdom mysteriously disappeared. The center of power shifted from Central to East Java. This era also marked the syncretism of Hinduism and Buddhism and the burgeoning development of Javanese culture (Kumar, 1997).

Colonial Indonesia

In the early 1500s, the Portuguese arrived in Indonesia, driven by the enormous demand in Europe for spices such as nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and mace (Reid, 1993). They decided to take control of the central source of spices, the Moluccas. In 1511, they captured Melaka, a critical port city, and subsequently seized the Moluccas. However, in the early 1600s, the Dutch overtook the Portuguese. In 1602, the Dutch East India Company was established to manage trade with Indonesia. By 1641, they had retaken Melaka. Despite their early success, by 1700, the Dutch East India Company had fallen into deep debt. In 1806, the Dutch and British declared war over Indonesia. The British easily conquered all Dutch territories in Indonesia. During their reign, the British abolished slavery. However, in 1816, the British returned Indonesia to the Dutch (Vickers, 2005).

Many Indonesians opposed the return of the Dutch. Nevertheless, the Dutch eventually regained control. The Javanese War began in 1829, but it ended swiftly with a Dutch victory in 1830. The Dutch soon introduced the Kultuurstelsel, or cultural system, forcing Indonesian farmers to set aside 20% of their land to grow crops for export. Indonesians were coerced into cultivating spices popular in Europe, such as indigo, tea, pepper, cinnamon, and sugar (Elson, 2008). Fortunately, by the early 1900s, Indonesians were treated somewhat better under the Ethical Policy, which aimed to enhance their well-being by investing more resources into the colony's development (Cribb, 2000).

However, the new policy had minimal impact on the lives of most Indonesians. It did, however, fuel the growing clamor for independence. In 1942, the Japanese invaded Indonesia. Initially, Indonesians viewed the Japanese as liberating heroes, but they soon realized that the Japanese were brutal and exploitative. On August 17, 1945, Sukarno declared Indonesian independence, becoming the first president, with Hatta as vice-president. Nonetheless, the Dutch opposed Indonesian independence. In November, the Indonesians and Dutch signed the Linggajati Agreement. The Dutch recognized the new government, but only in Java, claiming the rest of present-day Indonesia as their own. After a failed attempt in 1948, the Dutch tried to reclaim Indonesia. However, by this time, Indonesians had become adept in guerrilla warfare and were supported by the United States. Soon after, the Dutch withdrew. Finally, on November 2, 1949, the Dutch formally recognized Indonesia as an independent country (Ricklefs, 2008).

References:

• Cribb, R. (2000). Historical Dictionary of Indonesia. Scarecrow Press.
• Elson, R. E. (2008). The Idea of Indonesia: A History. Cambridge University Press.
• Kumar, A. (1997). Java and Modern Europe: Ambiguous Encounters. Curzon Press.
• Reid, A. (1993). Southeast Asia in the Age of Commerce, 1450-1680: The Lands below the Winds. Yale University Press.
• Ricklefs, M. C. (2008). A History of Modern Indonesia. Stanford University Press.
• Vickers, A. (2005). A History of Modern Indonesia. Cambridge University Press.