Michiels’s campaign against the Atjehnese on Sumatra’s Westkust (1839–1840) was the military operation by which the Luitenant-Kolonel (later Kolonel) Michiels — the same officer who would later command the Dutch forces in the final phase of the Padri-oorlog — drove the Atjehnese from their positions at Baroes, Tapoes, and Singkel on the west coast of Sumatra, and annexed these places to the Dutch possessions. The campaign is recorded in Terwogt’s Het Land van Jan Pieterszoon Coen as the episode by which “de invloed der Atjehers buiten hun gebied van de Westkust afgeweerd” — the influence of the Atjehnese outside their territory was warded off from the Westkust — and Singkel was annexed.
Background
The relationship between the Dutch and the Atjehnese had, Terwogt records, been “reeds lang zeer gespannen” (long very tense), as the Atjehnese had repeatedly threatened the Dutch establishment at Tapanoeli and had even allied themselves with the Padri’s to attack several places. The complexity of the relationship is noted: the establishment of the Dutch on the Westkust had been the cause of the downfall of the Atjehnese power there, and already from the 17th century the Atjehnese had considered the Dutch as their greatest enemies. “Hoe verder dezen zich nu Noordwaarts uitbreidden, des te meer achtten zij zich ook bedreigd en nam hun verbittering tegen het Nederlandsch gezag toe” — the further the Dutch expanded northward, the more the Atjehnese considered themselves threatened, and the more their bitterness against the Dutch authority increased.
By the nota behind the tractaat of 1824, the Dutch had bound themselves to respect the independence of Atjeh, but at the same time had taken upon themselves the care for the safety of trade — a difficult position, as the slightest attempt to punish the Atjehnese for their repeated attacks and robberies would be considered by England as a violation of the agreement. As the Dutch administration, in its expansion along the coasts of Sumatra, had principally the trade in view, a commission was sent out in 1837 to visit the various harbours and to investigate the trade on the spot. The result of the commission’s findings was the decision to occupy the harbours of Baroes, Tapoes, and Singkel — which were not directly subject to Atjeh, and whose actual population consisted of Malays.
The campaign
In April 1839, an expedition departed for Baroes, whose chiefs had, after the fall of Bondjol, invoked the protection of the Dutch against the Atjehnese, and the place was taken in submission. An Atjehnese attempt to take the fortification erected at Batoegrigi failed. Not discouraged by this, the Atjehnese renewed their attacks on Baroes and even constructed fortifications there. In an assault on these, the dappere (brave) Luitenant-Kolonel Roeps lost his life, whereupon Michiels himself went there with fresh troops and, on 10 April, took the benting (fortification) of the Atjehnese after a desperate defence. From there, they advanced to Tapoes, but when Michiels arrived, the Atjehnese had already withdrawn.
Singkel was next, where the enemy had gathered in considerable numbers. Only in May could the attack be undertaken, for lack of sufficient naval force. Soon the enemy’s courage failed, and the Malay population submitted. From that time, Singkel was reckoned among the Dutch possessions. “Hiermede was de invloed der Atjehers buiten hun gebied van de Westkust afgeweerd en Singkel geannexeerd” — herewith, the influence of the Atjehnese outside their territory was warded off from the Westkust, and Singkel was annexed.
Significance
For AcehWiki, Michiels’s campaign of 1839–1840 is significant as the operation by which the Dutch drove the Atjehnese from their positions on the Westkust of Sumatra and annexed Baroes, Tapoes, and Singkel — the three harbours that were not directly subject to Atjeh but whose trade the Atjehnese had controlled. The campaign is a prelude to the Atjeh-oorlog of 1873–1891: it marks the northward expansion of the Dutch on the Westkust, the resulting Atjehnese bitterness, and the beginning of the direct Dutch-Atjehnese military confrontation that would, three decades later, culminate in the Atjeh-oorlog. The campaign is likewise notable for the role of Michiels — the officer who would later command the Dutch forces in the final phase of the Padri-oorlog and who is the subject of the corpus’s existing entry.
See Also
- Het Land van Jan Pieterszoon Coen (Terwogt)
- Dr. W. A. Terwogt
- Andreas Victor Michiels
- Padri War on Sumatra’s East Coast
- Aceh War
- Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824
- Baroes
- Tapoes
- Singkel
- Batoegrigi
- Tapanoeli
- 1837
- 1839
- 1840
Source
Het Land van Jan Pieterszoon Coen, door Dr. W. A. Terwogt (Hoorn: P. Geerts, [1891]). Hoofdstuk XIII: “Het jaar 1840 kenmerkte zich door een tocht van den Kolonel Michiels tegen de Atjehers… Hiermede was de invloed der Atjehers buiten hun gebied van de Westkust afgeweerd en Singkel geannexeerd.”