The siege and storming of Pleret was a siege and storming that occurred in Pleret during the Java War. It was the first time that Diponegoro didn't avoid a pitched battle and it resulted in Dutch victory.[2]
| Siege and storming of Pleret | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Bestorming van Pleret (1900) by G. Kepper, depicting the Dutch assault on Pleret in 1826 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Netherlands | Javanese rebels | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Josephus Jacobus François de Stuers | Diponegoro | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 700 killed[1] | |||||||
Background and battle
editPleret was abandoned as a capital but still played another role during the Java War (1825–1830) between the Dutch and the Javanese forces under Prince Diponegoro.[3] Pleret was occupied by Diponegoro in 1825.[4] He kept his weapons and livestock there. Diponegoro used it as a base to attack convoys supplying the nearby Imogiri held by the Dutch.[3] In April 1826, the Dutch attacked Pleret under General Josephus Jacobus van Geen.[3] Diponegoro did not engage in combat and withdrew to the west.[3] Van Geen entered Pleret and took the weapons and livestock kept there as booty.[3] Lacking forces to keep the town, he withdrew to Yogyakarta.[3] Thereafter Diponegoro reocuppied the town and fortified it.[3] Diponegoro gave particular importance to this city.[5] In June 1826, Dutch forces with a strong contingent of Madurese auxiliaries besieged the town. On 9 June, the besiegers detonated a mine under the ramparts, causing a breach through which they attacked.[3] After a day of "bloody fighting", the attackers completely occupied Pleret.[3] This battle was Diponegoro's first major defeat in the war. The Dutch left a garrison of 700 men, and there was no further attempt from Diponegoro to retake Pleret.[3]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Carey, Peter (2020). Noor, Farish A. (ed.). Racial Difference and the Colonial Wars of 19th Century Southeast Asia. Amsterdam University Press. p. 63. ISBN 9789048550371. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
- ^ Tate, D. J. M. (1971). The Making of Modern South-East Asia: The European conques. Oxford University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780196381138. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Dumarçay 1989, p. 197.
- ^ Dumarçay 1989, p. 191.
- ^ Aveling, Harry (1979). The Development of Indonesian Society (From the Coming of Islam to the Present Day). University of Queensland Press. p. 74. ISBN 9780702213472. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
Bibliography
edit- Dumarçay, Jacques (1989). "Plered, capitale d'Amangkurat Ier". Archipel (in French). 37 (1). PERSEE: 189–198. doi:10.3406/arch.1989.2570. Retrieved 13 April 2012.