Conquest of the 22 Moekims (March-June 1879)

Properties2
tagsevent, aceh-war, dutch, military, colonial, 19th-century, van-der-heijden, 22-moekims, groot-atjeh
aliasesConquest of the 22 Moekims (March-June 1879), 22 Moekims campaign, Verovering der 22 Moekims, Campaign against the 22 Moekims, 1879 22 Moekims campaign

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The Conquest of the 22 Moekims of March–June 1879 — de verovering der 22 Moekims — was the military campaign by which the Dutch forces under General van der Heijden, between March and half June 1879, subdued the 22 Moekims — the inland Sagi (third) of Groot-Atjeh — and thereby completed the Dutch conquest of all Groot-Atjeh except the Kemala hinterland of Pedir to which the irreconcilable principal chiefs withdrew. The campaign, the principal military success of Van der Heijden’s governorship, brought the entire valley of Groot-Atjeh under Dutch control for the first and only time before the final pacification under Van Heutsz after 1898.

The Strategic Situation (July 1878)

Groot-Atjeh consists of three — or rather four — divisions: the Sultan’s own territory and the three Sagi’s of the 25, 26, and 22 Moekims. The first two lay on the sea; the last inland. The Dutch had mainly occupied the 25 Moekims and the Sultan’s territory. All of Groot-Atjeh was now to be brought under.

The decision to undertake the campaign against the 22 Moekims was taken in the aftermath of the Habib Abdul Rachman crisis of June 1878, in which the Arab religious leader had openly invaded the Dutch stelling in Groot-Atjeh with a great force, taken the mountain passes, and besieged Kroeng Raba. The Netherlands Indies government had been compelled to acknowledge that no question could any longer be of a conciliatory, purely defensive posture, and had instructed Van der Heijden to drive Habib Abdul Rachman out or to render him harmless. Reinforcements had been sent, and by mid-August 1878 there were again over 10,000 troops in Atjeh.

In the last half of July 1878 a number of important points outside the stelling were conquered and occupied, but further operations were postponed until the rainy season was over and everything was properly prepared. Habib Abdul Rachman was driven from Kroeng Raba and out of the passes, and then out of the stelling. He opened negotiations and submitted in October 1878.

The Campaign (March – June 1879)

Only in March 1879 could the conquest of the 22 Moekims be begun. It was completed by half June 1879. The enemy, fighting as he withdrew, fought with great courage but was everywhere defeated and driven out. After his kampongs and possessions had been destroyed, he fled to the mountains. Along the Atjeh-rivier a line of posts was occupied.

The Conquest of the 26 Moekims (1-4 July 1879)

On 1 July 1 July 1879 the campaign against the 26 Moekims began, and was completed with full success in four days. Then there was still an expedition to Selimoen, far in the interior. Remote chiefs submitted. All of Groot-Atjeh was Dutch. “De schrik was er in” (the terror was in them). The irreconcilable principal chiefs withdrew to Kemala, the hinterland of Pedir. The return march from Selimoen was a true triumph.

The Consolidation

With this, however, the work was not finished. The position had to be consolidated. Through endless patrols the peace and security that now prevailed everywhere had to be maintained; the returned population had to accustom itself to the new situation. By the construction of roads the communication had to be facilitated. The Dutch had to remain vigilant. No mistakes might be made. All this would take time and had to have its natural course. Over-hasty action from too great a desire for economy could spoil everything again.

Significance

The conquest of the 22 Moekims is the principal military success of Van der Heijden’s governorship and the high-water mark of the Dutch military position in Groot-Atjeh before 1898. Together with the conquest of the 26 Moekims of 1 July 1 July 1879 and the expedition to Selimoen, it brought the entire valley of Groot-Atjeh under Dutch control for the first and only time before the final pacification. The conquest would, however, prove transient: under the civil government of Pruijs van der Hoeven and Laging Tobias (1881–1884), the endless patrols that Van der Heijden had deemed necessary to maintain the peace were virtually abolished, the enemy reorganised, and the concentration system of 1884 contracted the Dutch stelling back to the perimeter of 1876.

See Also

Source

De Atjeh-Oorlog: Kort Overzicht van Oorsprong, Verloop en Gevolg, door J. A. Kruijt. ‘s-Gravenhage: Loman & Funke, 1896. Chapter VI, “Het bestuur van generaal van der Heijden, van Juni 1877 tot April 1881.” OCR-filename: 20260716_140310_DLP-101-De_Atjeh_oorlog_Nemotron-OCR-v2_OCR.txt, pp. 30–31.

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