The Battle of the Missigit on 10 April 1873 was the Dutch attack on the fortified mosque (missigit) outside the Kraton of Atjeh on the second day of the first Aceh expedition, in which the troops under Major-general General Köhler met unexpected stubborn resistance, took the mosque by fire and storm, and then abandoned it the same afternoon for exhaustion. The battle was renewed on 14 April 1873 and the mosque carried; but on the same day General Köhler was mortally wounded while inspecting the position from the plateau east of the mosque.
Background
On 10 April [1873] the troops advanced on the Kraton. It was thought that the march would be no more than a military parade. Only one day’s rations had been ordered, and “if the troops did not return the same day,” rations were to be sent after them. Considerable delay was already encountered at the bridge over the lagune on the inner side of the beach — a bridge of four jukken with a plank of 0.40 m. width, “therefore unsuitable for the crossing of troops.” It lacked the engineers the time and materials to make it passable for the artillery in time, so that the guns had to be taken apart; moreover it was slippery with all the slime that the soldiers, who had had to wade through the mud of the lagune, had brought upon it. While the march had begun at seven o’clock, it was half past eleven before the whole column had passed the bridge.
The First Attack
At one o’clock the vanguard came upon a fortification, the missigit or mosque, which had therefore to be attempted. “Here too an unexpected stubborn resistance was met. The attempts at omtrekking failed, while the troops themselves were attacked from all sides, from the wood’s edge and the neighbouring kampongs; the guns proved to have little effect, and the high wall made a storming practically impossible.” At last, about half past one in the afternoon, light-balls succeeded in setting the attappen roof of the mosque alight. As the enemy’s fire then diminished, the storm column succeeded in climbing an areng-palm to the wall and entering the missigit, which was now abandoned by the enemy. The same afternoon, however, it was again abandoned by the Dutch and immediately occupied by the enemy.
The reason was that the Dutch troops, exhausted by the long march, the oppressive heat, the subsequent fight, and the unbearable warmth that, at least initially, prevailed in the conquered position as a result of the burning of the missigit, were so exhausted that, when the enemy began to press again from all sides, it was thought that the troops might not be divided, but all were united to hold the northern burial-mound on the sawah before the missigit. “Thus this day too ended, without a decisive advantage having been obtained.”
The Second Attack, 14 April 1873
The following days were spent on the necessary rest of the troops, the repulse of enemy attacks, the making of reconnaissances, and the preparation of a new attack. On 14 April [1873] at five in the morning the troops returned to the attack. After the mortars, now more favourably placed, had made some throws, the storm column approached the wall. The storm-ladders, which had arrived since the 10th, were placed and held by the mineurs, because the enemy within the wall tried to throw them over with his lances. The ladders were climbed, but the great number of enemies, who awaited our men with lance and klewang and threw large sharp stones over the wall, prevented them from jumping inside. The soldiers who had climbed to the top of the wall fired, while those below loaded the guns; but the moments they needed to exchange the fired small-arms (muzzle-loaders) were fatal to them. Soon the foremost were wounded; they fell from the ladders or tried to come down, which naturally caused some confusion. But repeatedly the soldiers climbed the ladders anew and continued the fight. When at last a company armed with breech-loaders had climbed the wall and opened rapid fire, the enemy had to give way, so that the soldiers had the opportunity to jump inside, and the missigit was soon in Dutch hands.
The Death of Köhler
That same morning the supreme commander arrived at the missigit, “where the chief of staff informed him of the situation. He then went with the various authorities to the east side of the missigit, on the plateau, from which one could best survey the ground and observe the enemy’s position. A few moments later General Köhler was mortally wounded and gave up the ghost almost immediately.” The bullet was probably fired by a sharpshooter from a position that the Dutch had not had time to clear. About 5 o’clock on the same day, which passed in continual fighting with the enemy, the second commander, Colonel E. C. Van Daalen, arrived at the missigit to take over the supreme command.
Significance
The battle of the missigit was the high-water mark of the first Aceh expedition. The Dutch carried the fortified mosque, but at the cost of their commander; and the failure of the stormings of the supposed voorwerk of the Kraton on 16 April 1873 and the council of war of 18 April 1873 that decided against renewed attack sealed the fate of the expedition. The transport fleet left the roadstead of Atjeh on 29 April 1873. The lesson was not lost on the second expedition of November 1873: all troops were equipped with breech-loading rifles, the artillery was considerably reinforced, and the force was increased to 6354 infantry besides officers.
See Also
- J. H. R. Köhler
- First Aceh Expedition (1873)
- Battle of Kotta Mogat
- E. C. van Daalen
- E. C. O. von Bredow
- Kraton of Aceh
- Missigit
- Aceh War
- Second Aceh Expedition (1873-1874)
Source
De geschiedenis van Nederland in onzen tijd, by J. A. de Bruyne, Directeur der Hoogere Burgerschool te Zierikzee. Deel IV. 1872-1883. Nieuwe uitgave. Schiedam: J. F. Dupont, 1912, Hoofdstuk I, pp. 14-15.