The bataljon Barissans van Madura was a battalion of inlandsche (indigenous) hulptroepen raised on the island of Madura and sent to Atjeh in two drafts — the first arriving on 29 January 1874 during the closing phase of the second expedition, the second on 10 December 1875 as part of the reinforcements for generaal Pel’s great offensive of December 1875 – February 1876. The Barissans — together with the Javaansche hulptroepen of Mangkoe Negoro and Pakoe Alam — formed the inlandsche complement to the European troops of the Indische leger, and their despatch to Atjeh is repeatedly noted by Borel as a marker of the chronology of the war.
The First Arrival (29 January 1874)
The first bataljon Barissans van Madura arrived in Atjeh on 29 January 1874 — the same day as the failed reconnaissance of the Atjeh-rivier above the Kraton, in which a colonne of two bataljons infanterie with a batterij veld-artillerie met unexpectedly strong resistance near Lampoe Idjoe and was forced to retreat with losses of two officers and “ruim 20 minderen” killed or wounded. The arrival of the Barissans — together with the 6de bataljon Infanterie that arrived on 1 February 1874 — was part of the belated despatch of elements of the Padangsche brigade from Padang to Atjeh, after generaal van Swieten’s decision to leave the third brigade behind had been partially reversed by the unfolding of the campaign. The Barissans’ despatch to Atjeh at this moment, however, did not lead to offensive employment: by 15 February 1874 van Swieten had “stak het zwaard voor goed in de scheede” and applied the afwachtende houding (wait-and-see posture). The Javaansche hulptroepen of Mangkoe Negoro and Pakoe Alam were sent back to Java in February 1874, but the Barissans of Madura remained and were absorbed into the bezettingskorps.
The Second Arrival and the Great Offensive (10 December 1875)
A second bataljon Barissans van Madura arrived in Atjeh on 10 December 1875, followed by the 9de bataljon Infanterie on 21 December 1875. These reinforcements were the troops Pel had been promised by gouverneur-generaal van Lansberge at the Buitenzorg planning session of July 1875, when the GG agreed to “den oorlog met Atjeh op de meest doortastende wijze te voeren.” With the Barissans and the 9de bataljon in hand, Pel was able to launch the great offensive against the VI, IV and IX Moekims on 26 December 1875 — three converging colonnes under Vetter, F. J. E. Mekern and Engel. The Barissans served in the colonnes of the offensive: part of the Barissans formed, with the 13de bataljon and one section of artillery, the rechter-colonne under B. E. Mekern on 13 February 1876; the remainder of the Barissans formed, with the 12de bataljon and two sections of artillery, the midden-colonne under Jeltes advancing from Kota Alam along the right bank of the Atjeh-rivier against Pango and Longbatta Mesigit. On hearing of the Atoeh catastrophe the same day, B. E. Mekern changed route, marched on Atoch, cleared the terrain and recovered the bodies of kapitein van Swieten’s detachment for proper burial — a task in which the Barissans would have borne a share.
Inlandsche Hulptroepen in the Atjeh War
The Barissans van Madura exemplify the role of inlandsche hulptroepen in the Atjeh-oorlog. Raised from the populations of the principalities of the Indies archipelago — Madura, the Javanese principalities under Mangkoe Negoro and Pakoe Alam — they supplemented the European and Ambonese or other “Afrikanen” troops of the regular Indische leger. The Javaansche hulptroepen were sent back to Java in February 1874 as part of van Swieten’s force reduction; the Barissans, by contrast, were retained, reinforced, and eventually employed in the offensive operations of 1875–1876 that Borel credits to Pel. Their despatch in two drafts, separated by almost two years, marks the two strategic moments at which metropolitan and colonial reinforcement became available: the belated partial reversal of van Swieten’s Padang decision in January 1874, and the GG’s endorsement of Pel’s offensive plan in December 1875.
See Also
- Indische Leger
- Bezettingskorps in Atjeh
- Padangsche brigade
- Generaal Pel
- Gouverneur-Generaal van Lansberge
- Majoor B. E. Mekern
- Majoor Jeltes
- Pel’s offensive against the VI, IV and IX Moekims (1875–1876)
- Atoeh catastrophe (13 February 1876)
- 1874
- 1875
Source
Onze vestiging in Atjeh, critisch beschreven, by G. F. W. Borel, Kapitein der Artillerie. ‘s-Gravenhage: D. A. Thieme, 1878. pp. 33, 35–36, 58, 263, 289, 313, 317.