Sawah Cultivation and Supply in Aceh was the traditional system of wet-rice agricultural production (sawahs) in the fertile river valleys of the Aceh Sultanate—notably within the IV Moekims, VI Moekims, XXII Moekims, and XXVI Moekims—which provided the economic foundation and food supplies for Acehnese resistance forces during the Aceh War.
Strategic Importance in the Second Expedition
Following the capture of Kraton of Aceh in January 1874 during the Second Aceh Expedition, Dutch observers noted the agricultural richness of the surrounding lowlands. In his 1876 study, the author of Atjeh gedurende de tweede expeditie en later emphasized that in early 1874, the sawahs around Kotta Radja were well cultivated and the rice (padi) stood in splendid condition.
General J. van Swieten recognized that as long as Acehnese agricultural production remained undisturbed, leaders such as Panglima Polem and Teuku Imam Lueng Batoh could indefinitely feed their guerrilla bands and reject Dutch demands for capitulation.
Target of Military Campaigns Under Pel
During General Pel’s Campaign in Aceh in 1875 and 1876, the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army systematically targeted the sawah economy of the interior mukims. When General J. L. J. H. Pel marched through the IV Moekims, VI Moekims, and during the March through the XXII Moekims in February 1876, Dutch troops occupied granaries, destroyed fortifications protecting rice fields, and forced the civilian population to abandon their sawahs, thereby disrupting the supply chain of Acehnese resistance forces.
See Also
- IV Moekims
- VI Moekims
- XXII Moekims
- J. van Swieten
- J. L. J. H. Pel
- Panglima Polem
- General Pel’s Campaign in Aceh
- March through the XXII Moekims
Source
Atjeh gedurende de tweede expeditie en later, Een Oud Officier, Batavia: Ogilvie & Co., 1876, pp. 60-66.