Machtsvertoon in IX Moekims (29 May 1896)

Properties2
tagsevent, dutch, achehnese, colonial, military, aceh-war
aliasesMachtsvertoon in IX Moekims, Show-of-force in IX Moekims, 29 May 1896 machtsvertoon, IX Moekims demonstration

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The Machtsvertoon in IX Moekims (29 May 1896) — the show-of-force in the district cluster of the IX Moekims — was a four-day Dutch demonstration of force conducted on 29 May 1896 by a colonne under Lt.-Col. J. B. van Heutsz — Chef van den Staf Kapt. H. C. Kronouer; adjudant 1e Luit.-Adj. F. Kilian — in the immediate aftermath of the three-day offensive and four days before the opening of the razing of Lam-Asan. The colonne comprised the 3e Bataljon under Maj. G. A. Hansen (15 officers, 440 men), the 14e Bataljon under Maj. G. P. M. van der Noordaa (16 officers, 414 men), half of the 9e Bataljon under Kapt. H. Ph. de Moulin (6 officers, 249 men), a cavalry platoon under 1e Luit. C. W. F. Happé (30 riders), the 4e Bergbatterij under Kapt. A. Bangert (3 officers, 101 men, 6 vuurmonden), and engineers under 1e Luit. A. S. Ruzette (30 men). Its objective: to destroy the versterkingen of Paja Krah, Lam-Blé, and Masdjid Behé, the fortified market of Lam-Poe-Oe, and to burn the houses of T. Gih and T. Nja Gedong at Lam-Tehen-Wer.

Background

By the last week of May 1896 the Regeeringscommissaris had accomplished the principal military objective of the spring campaign: the three-day offensive had broken Teungkoe Oemar’s stelling at Lam-Pisang, Oemar’s house had been captured and destroyed, and his warriors had retreated behind the Kroeng-Raba. The strategic initiative was firmly in Dutch hands. Vetter now resolved to consolidate the political position in the moekims adjacent to the area of operations — to demonstrate to the hoeloebalang and oelama of the IX Moekims that the Government was the stronger party and that cooperation with Oemar’s resistance would be punished.

The IX Moekims — a cluster of nine moekim lying to the south-east of the Lampoeng / Lampisang region — had long been a centre of Achehnese resistance. Its versterkingen at Paja Krah, Lam-Blé, and Masdjid Behé — the latter built around the principal mosque of the district — formed a chain of fortified works that controlled the approaches to the interior. The fortified market of Lam-Poe-Oe was the commercial centre of the district and a known meeting-place of the resistance. The houses of T. Gih and T. Nja Gedong at Lam-Tehen-Wer — both prominent Achehnese figures — were symbols of the political leadership of the resistance in the IX Moekims.

The Composition of the Colonne

The colonne for the machtsvertoon was placed under Lt.-Col. J. B. van Heutsz — recently distinguished as the commander of the Bergcolonne at the Slag bij Tjot Tjako. His Chef van den Staf was Kapt. H. C. Kronouer of the General Staff; his adjudant was 1e Luit.-Adj. F. Kilian. The composition was substantial: the 3e Bataljon under Maj. G. A. Hansen (15 officers, 440 men); the 14e Bataljon under Maj. G. P. M. van der Noordaa (16 officers, 414 men); half of the 9e Bataljon under Kapt. H. Ph. de Moulin (6 officers, 249 men); a cavalry platoon under 1e Luit. C. W. F. Happé (30 riders); the 4e Bergbatterij under Kapt. A. Bangert (3 officers, 101 men, 6 vuurmonden — i.e., guns); and engineers under 1e Luit. A. S. Ruzette (30 men). The total force was approximately 1,260 men — a substantial column for a machtsvertoon in a single district.

The Course of the Operation

The colonne advanced on 29 May 1896 into the IX Moekims. The cavalry under Happé reconnoitred ahead; the infantry followed in march order; the artillery of the 4e Bergbatterij under Bangert was brought up to shell any versterking that offered resistance. The versterkingen at Paja Krah, Lam-Blé, and Masdjid Behé were taken and destroyed — the latter a particularly delicate operation, given the religious sensitivity of the mosque around which the work had been built. The fortified pasar of Lam-Poe-Oe was occupied and its fortifications dismantled. The houses of T. Gih and T. Nja Gedong at Lam-Tehen-Wer were burned — a deliberate act of personal tuchtiging against two of the principal political figures of the resistance in the IX Moekims.

The operation was, in tactical terms, a success: the versterkingen were destroyed, the houses were burned, and the colonne returned to the consolidated line without serious loss. The machtsvertoon had the additional political effect of demonstrating to the hoeloebalang and oelama of the IX Moekims that the Government retained the capacity to reach into the district at will and to chastise those who cooperated with the resistance. The operation was conducted in parallel with the machtsvertoon in the III Moekims Daroe under Lt.-Col. C. J. Laceulle — a second colonne operating simultaneously in the adjacent district.

Significance

The Machtsvertoon in IX Moekims on 29 May 1896 was, in operational terms, a small affair — a four-day demonstration in a single district, with no major battle and no significant casualties. In strategic and political terms, however, it was an integral part of the consolidation phase that followed the three-day offensive. The destruction of the versterkingen at Paja Krah, Lam-Blé, and Masdjid Behé degraded the Achehnese defensive infrastructure in the IX Moekims; the burning of the houses of T. Gih and T. Nja Gedong at Lam-Tehen-Wer struck at the political leadership of the resistance; and the demonstration of force — over 1,200 men, six guns, and 30 cavalry — confirmed to the hoeloebalang of the district that the Government was the stronger party. The machtsvertoon was, in this sense, a small operation with a large political purpose: the consolidation of the Dutch position in the immediate aftermath of the three-day offensive and the preparation of the ground for the larger operations of June — the tuchtiging of Lam-Krak and the tuchtiging of the V Moekims Montassik.

See Also

Source

ATJEH ‘96, door A. Kruisheer, Kapitein der Infanterie O.I.L., met 2 kaarten en 4 portretten (Weltevreden: N.V. Boekhandel Visser & Co, 1913). Instituut Kern, Leiden. OCR-filename: 20260715_163243_DLP-89-Atjeh_96_Met_2_kaarten_en4_DOORA_KRUISHEER_Kapiteinder_Infanterie_nemoretriever-ocr-v1_OCR.txt, pp. 219–223.

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