De Alaslanden

The Alaslanden (“Alas lands,” modern Tanah Alas) was the colonial designation for the interior Alas valley region of Gouvernement Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, inhabited by the Alas people, south of the Gajo lands and east of the Great Atjeh coastal plain. It is the long, fertile valley of the Lao Alas — the great river that, rising on the slopes of the G. Losèr as the W. ni Agoesen, runs south-eastward through the heart of the gouvernement to its confluence with the Lao Renéën — and one of the five afdeelingen of the gouvernement, established after the colonne van Daalen of 1904 brought the Alas valley under Dutch authority. In the Encyclopaedisch Bureau’s account of the Sumatra road plan, the Alaslanden appear as the inland terminus of the Alasweg — the 137 K.M. road built from Kaban Djahe on the Karo-hoogvlakte (Karo highlands) to Kota Tjane in the Alaslanden at a cost of f 1,173,000, and reported by the Bureau as “in the main completed” by the end of the 1904–1914 decade. De Buitenbezittingen describes the Alaslanden as one of the four cultuur-centra of the interior, an “oase te midden van het ongastvrije, woeste landschap” — an oasis amid an inhospitable, savage landscape.

Geography

The Alas valley forms the northern extension of the Western lengtedal of the Barisan range, beginning as the Renoen-dal of the Daïri-landen to the south and continuing northward past the bergreus G. Losèr into the dal of the middle W. ni Tripa. The Lao Alas itself rises on the G. Losèr and flows south-east between the Wilhelmina-keten — “een zwaren muur tusschen de vruchtbare Alasvallei en het woeste heuvelland van boven-Langkat en Tamiang” — and the Western randgebergte of the Daïri-landen. Its bevolking, of heterogeneous origin (Batak, Menangkabau, Atjehsch, Pak-Pak), is concentrated in well-cultivated kampongs along the rivier; the sawahs of the Alas valley provide completely in the rijstbehoefte of its inhabitants, and “daarenboven vrij bewoners van het bergland” — feed besides the inhabitants of the mountain country round about.

The Gajo- en Alaslanden and the 1904–1905 Expedition

The Alaslanden and the adjacent Gayo highlands together formed the Gajo- en Alaslanden, the mountainous region in the interior of Atjèh inhabited by the Gayo and Alas peoples, which constituted the last major centre of resistance during the Aceh War. Before the 1904 campaign, De Buitenbezittingen records, the Dutch “wisten goed als niets” — knew effectively nothing — of the inhabitants of the Alas valley.

In early 1904, Van Daalen — then a lieutenant colonel — led a column of 120 marechaussées on a four-month expedition through both the Gayo and Alas lands. The operation was designed to break the last organised resistance and bring the interior under Dutch control; Van Daalen’s tactics proved effective, and the expedition brought the country “ineens geheel onder onze macht” (at once entirely under our power). The campaign attracted criticism in the Netherlands, particularly after the “Wekker” articles of 1907, for the severity of its methods and casualties among the local population, but the subsequent Atjéh-enquête found such allegations to be largely exaggerated. Civil administrators subsequently, including H. Colijn, worked on integrating the region into the broader Aceh governance structure. A permanent administrative post was established, and the Korte Verklaring system was extended to the region’s chiefs.

The Radja Tjèq and the Two Landschappen

The original territorial overlords of the Alas valley were the Radja Tjèq (Radja Kémala) — the roi fainéant who, by the time of the Dutch arrival in 1904, “had afstand gedaan van alle directe bestuursmacht” — and his vassals the Kédjoerön Bambél and the Kédjoerön Batoe Mboelan (whose deputy was the Kédjoerön Radja Bintang). The two landschappen — Batoe Mboelan in the north (under direct Radja Tjèq rule around the residential kampong) and Bambél in the south (held in leen by the Kédjoerön Bambél) — were each governed by a Rijksraad of four Péngoeloe si-émpat, of which the Radja Tjèq himself reserved the fourth seat. The legend of the colonisation — the Bataq founders Alas, Kroeas, Pagan and Képala Dèsa; the later Menangkabau immigration under Radja Déwa; the Atjehsche Toenggal Alas invested with the southern half — is given in the source at length.

Dutch Organisation, 1914

De Buitenbezittingen records that the Dutch, “onbekend met de werkelijke verhoudingen” — unfamiliar with the actual relations — initially treated the two Kédjoeröns as wholly independent landschapshoofden authorised to sign the Korte Verklaring, reducing the Radja Tjèq to the rank of an ordinary Péngoeloe si-émpat — a misstep whose political consequences were, however, not damaging. The reorganisation of 1914 (entirely in werking since that year) created two new landschappen: the landschap Batoe Mboelan was dissolved, its territory transferred to Bambél, and the Kédjoerön moved his residence to Poeloe Nas (where he signed a new Korte Verklaring for that landschap), while the old Batoe Mboelan was reorganised into four mérga’s under bezoldigde Péngoeloe’s si-émpat. The Alaslanden were now divided into the landschap Poeloe Nas (four mérga’s: Klis under Imöm Balei, Képala Dèsa under Batin, Kling under Kérétan, Tjébéro under Béntjirim) and the landschap Bambél (four mérga’s: ‘Ngkran under ‘Ngkran, Béroeh under Biaq Moeli, Sékédang under ‘N Djaar, and Sélian under the Radja Tjèq of Batoe Mboelan). The Kédjoerön retained direct rule over the kampongs of Bambél and Téroetoeng; the Radja Tjèq over those of Batoe Mboelan.

Account from De Buitenbezittingen (1917) — The Alasweg

The Encyclopaedisch Bureau’s account of the Sumatra road plan lists the Alasweg as project no. 13 in its numbered list of fifteen Sumatra road projects: “Weg Kaban Djahe–Kota Tjane (Alasweg). Length 137 K.M.; cost f 1,173,000. For the connection of the Alas lands with the Karo-hoogvlakte and the wegennet of the East Coast. In the main completed.” The Alasweg thus opened the Alaslanden to direct road communication with the Karo highlands and the road network of the East Coast of Sumatra — that is, with the southern rather than the northern coast of Atjeh.

The Alasweg — driven from Kota Tjane (the bestuurszetel of the afdeeling) to Kaban Djahe on the Karo-hoogvlakte, and there connected to the wegennet of the Oostkust van Sumatra — opened the isolated valley to the east, “waardoor de handelsbeweging zich voor het grootste deel daarlangs verplaatst,” ending the schadelijke en onderdrukkende werking of the Singkelsche bong-bong-stelsel. The bevolking of the afdeeling was about 10,000 (3,000 men, 3,000 women, 2,000 boys, 2,000 girls) over 6,000 km² — about 1.7 per km², the sparsest of the five afdeelingen. The registered adult Atjehers of the afdeeling numbered 3,170 at the end of 1915.

The Alasweg and the Gajo-weg (project no. 14, from Bireuen to Takengon) together represent the two principal road projects of the 1904–1914 decade in the Atjehnese interior — both designed to open the highland interior of Atjeh to road communication with the coast. The Alasweg is the southern complement to the Gajo-weg: where the Gajo-weg opens the Gajo lands to the northern coast, the Alasweg opens the Alaslanden to the southern (East Coast) network.

Account from Atjèh and the War with Japan (1949) — Alasvalley

The Alasvalley is the long, low-lying valley of the Lawé Alas river in Central Atjèh, the focus of the Dutch defense of Sumatra in March 1942 where General Overakker personally led the final resistance against the Japanese invasion after the fall of Java, and the home territory of the Alas people whose subdistrict, with headquarters at Koeta Tjané, was merged with the Gajó Loeós in 1941 to form the new combined subdistrict Gajó Loeós and Alaslanden. Piekaar’s Atjèh and the War with Japan treats the Alasvalley as the keystone of the entire Dutch strategy of prolonged guerrilla warfare in the Atjèh highlands.

The Valley and the Subdistrict

The Alasvalley, the principal settlement area of the Alas people, lay in the deep southeast of the Atjèh residency; “in contrast to the low-lying Alas valley, the Gajó Loeós valley lies at 800 to 1000 m. altitude with a surrounding mountain range of 2000 to 3000 m.” The subdistrict Alaslanden — with headquarters Koeta Tjané — had only been merged with the Gajó Loeós subdistrict — with headquarters Blang Kédjérèn — in 1941 “through a merger of the subdistricts Alaslanden … and Gajó Loeós … made possible by the already in the previous chapter … mentioned establishment of the road connection Koeta Tjané-Blang Kédjérèn.” The new district, “which in total had 43,500 inhabitants, consisted of only three landschappen: Bambél (14,000) with the headquarters Koeta Tjané and Poeloe Nas (6,500) in the Alas valley and the landschap Gajó Loeós (23,000).”

The Defense of March 1942

When, “after the fall of Java, namely, General Overakker decided to also withdraw the troops elsewhere on Sumatra via Kaban Djahé to Central Atjèh, in order to try to hold out in the Atjèh highlands for as long as possible. The focus of the defense thus came to lie in the Alasvalley and the Gajó Loeós, where General Overakker would personally lead the defense.” The plan was that “in a meeting between both military commanders it had been decided, despite the capitulation of the entire army having been ordered, to continue the fight. The area of the Alasvalley was best suited to tie down as many Japanese troops as possible for as long as possible with a small number of troops.” General Overakker “hoped to tie down as many enemy troops as possible, so that they would not be available for operations in other areas (Australia!).” The enormous internment camp at Lawé Sigalagala, some 20 km. south of Koeta Tjané — originally built for German internees, now housing “several thousand women and children of Indonesian military personnel, as well as about a hundred European evacuees” — became a heavy constraint on the troops’ freedom of movement.

The Breakthrough and Capitulation

“On 14 March general Overakker had moved his headquarters from Kaban Djahé to the Alasvalley and first established it at Koeta Tjané, later at the former Japanese undertaking ‘Boekit Toesam’.” The Japanese troops advanced from Siborongborong and “Only at the border between Tapanoeli and Sumatra’s West Coast did the Japanese notice their mistake and turned their attention to the Alasvalley.” “On 25 March a Japanese breakthrough took place from the valley of the Lawé Rénoen, a left-side tributary of the Lawé Alas, to the road Kaban Djahé-Koeta Tjané, at a distance of 80 km. before Koeta Tjané.” This breakthrough made “a further retreat to the last stronghold, the Gajó Loeós, necessary. The headquarters was moved to Blang Kédjérèn. On 26 March our last troops left Koeta Tjané.” When General Overakker “decided on 27 March to surrender, there was no longer any enemy to be acknowledged in the Blang, so that the surrender could only be offered on 28 March. Thus in Atjèh the final phase of the fighting on Sumatra would be fought.”

Account from the Notulen der bestuursvergaderingen (1914) — Alaslanden

Alaslanden (Alas Lands) was a region in the interior of Atjeh, inhabited by the Alas people. In the proposed administrative reorganization discussed at the Medan meeting (14 January 1914), Resident Van der Plas proposed that the Alaslanden be added to the Deli afdeeling as part of “Deli benevens de Karo- en de Alaslanden” (Deli together with the Karo and Alas Lands) with a population of approximately 370,000. This proposal would have removed the Alaslanden from Atjeh’s administrative jurisdiction and placed it under a division centered on the Deli region, reflecting the geographic and economic connections between the Alas valley and the east coast plantation belt rather than with the Atjeh highlands.

The Alas People and Their Territory

The Alaslanden comprised the valley of the Alas River, a substantial watercourse that flowed through the interior of northern Sumatra, carving a fertile valley between the mountain ranges that separated the Atjeh highlands from the east coast lowlands. The Alas people who inhabited this valley were ethnically and linguistically distinct from both the Acehnese of the coast and the Batak peoples of the southern highlands, occupying a cultural and geographic intermediary position that made their territory a natural frontier zone between different ecological and cultural regions. The Alas language, belonging to the Batak subgroup of Austronesian languages, reflected these connections with the Batak world to the south, while the Islamic faith of many Alas communities created ties with the Muslim Acehnese to the north.

The Alas valley’s geography made it a natural corridor of communication between the interior highlands and the east coast lowlands of Sumatra. The river valley provided a relatively accessible route through the Bukit Barisan mountain range, linking the Atjeh interior with the plantation districts of Deli and Langkat. This geographic reality had shaped the economic life of the Alas communities, who engaged in trade with both the coastal regions to the east and the highland territories to the north and west. By the early twentieth century, the economic pull of the rapidly developing east coast plantation economy was increasingly felt in the Alaslanden, as the demand for labor and trade goods created opportunities that connected the valley more closely to the world of Sumatra’s Oostkust than to the more remote administrative center of Koeta-Radja.

The Proposed Transfer to Deli

The proposal to transfer the Alaslanden from Atjeh to the Deli afdeeling was rooted in the recognition of these geographic and economic realities. Resident Van der Plas, who as Resident of Sumatra’s Oostkust was intimately familiar with the economic connections between the interior highlands and the east coast plantation belt, argued that the Alaslanden belonged more naturally within the administrative orbit of Deli than within that of Atjeh. The proposed afdeeling “Deli benevens de Karo- en de Alaslanden” would have created a large and economically coherent administrative unit encompassing the Deli plantation district, the Karo highlands, and the Alas valley, with a combined population of approximately 370,000. This arrangement would have aligned administrative boundaries with the economic geography of the region, placing the Alas communities under the authority of officials based in the east coast lowlands who were best positioned to understand and manage the region’s economic connections.

The transfer of the Alaslanden to Deli was part of a broader pattern of boundary adjustments proposed during the Bestuursreorganisatie Sumatra (1913-1914) that sought to rationalize administrative divisions by aligning them with economic and geographic realities rather than with the historical patterns of military conquest. The onderafdeeling Tamiang was similarly proposed for transfer to the Langkat afdeeling, and the town of Langsa was identified as another candidate for reassignment. These adjustments collectively represented a significant redrawing of the boundary between the former Gouvernement Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden and the territories of Sumatra’s Oostkust, recognizing that the historic border—drawn during the military phases of the Atjeh War—did not always correspond to the economic and social geography of the border regions.

The Karo-Alas Connection

The proposed combination of the Alaslanden with the Karo lands in the Deli-based afdeeling reflected the recognition that these two highland regions shared significant geographic and economic characteristics. Both the Karo and Alas highlands served as hinterlands for the east coast plantation economy, supplying labor, trade goods, and agricultural products to the lowland markets. Both regions were inhabited by Batak-related peoples whose cultural and linguistic affiliations connected them more closely to each other and to the Batak lands to the south than to the Acehnese territories to the north. The creation of a combined “Karo- en Alaslanden” administrative unit within the Deli afdeeling would thus have produced an administratively coherent territory that recognized these underlying geographic and cultural realities, rather than maintaining the artificial separation imposed by the existing boundary between the Gouvernement Atjeh and Sumatra’s Oostkust.

Account from Atjeh by H.C. Zentgraff (1938)

Zentgraff describes the Alaslanden from personal travel along the road from Lawé Aoenan (also known as Goenoeng Setan) to Blang Kedjeren. The road runs along the left bank of the Alas river: rechts loopt de lange keten van het Wilhelminagebergte; links jaagt de Alas haar water met donderende stem over de ontelbare rotsblokken in de breede, ondiepe bedding. At Liang — a hamlet with a keudétje — lies the border between the Alaslanden and the Gajoe Loeös; op de keudé waar men nasi goreng kan eten is op een plank geschilderd: Grenssteen. Douane.

From Koenké, about a thousand metres above sea level, the great wildreservaat vanaf den rechteroever der Alas tot den Goenoeng Loser stretches out, waarin olifant en rhinoceros veilig zijn voor den pawang badak. It was here that Zentgraff heard the lontjeng maréchaussée — the cycade that chirped at ten minutes before six: op het geluid dezer cycade gaat de schildwacht op post.

The Alaslanden were also accessible from Koeala Simpang on the east coast. The vrouwentransport for the Blang Kedjeren division went by prauw from Koeala Simpang to Kaloeë, then on foot to Pendeng, then over the Boer ni Gadjah (Elephant Mountain): op het hoogste punt van het pad gekomen, zag je Blang Kedjeren en omgeving liggen. Of the brigades that marched through the valley Zentgraff writes: Het was een genot, een goede maréchaussée-patrouille onder zulke leiding in het bosch te zien: a thin line of heroes.

Atjeh, door H.C. Zentgraff. Gedrukt bij Drukkerij “De Unie”, 1938, Batavia.

Account from Zelfbestuursverordeningen Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden (1930) — the 1914 cattle regulations of the Alaslanden

In the 1930 compilation of Zelfbestuursverordeningen Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, the Alaslanden appear as the originating seat of two of the earliest-dated regulations in the entire collection: the slachtbelasting (cattle-slaughter tax) of 1 March 1914 (Reg. No. 5), and the vervoer-en-slachtverordening (cattle-transport and slaughter regulation) of 16 September 1914 (Reg. No. 16) — the earliest-dated regulation in the compilation and the only regulation seated directly in the Alas highlands. The signatory clause of Reg. No. 16 locates the Alaslanden explicitly: “Kami pemerentah sendiri dari tanah-tanah jang satoe-satoenja: Bambel dan Poeloe Nas dari Afdeeling tanah Alaslanden. Bambel en Poeloe Nas der Afdeeling Alaslanden.” — we, the self-governing [chiefs] of the territories of: Bambel and Poeloe Nas of the Afdeeling tanah Alaslanden [Bambel and Poeloe Nas of the Afdeeling Alaslanden].

Administrative reorganisation, 1914 to 1930

The administrative geography of the Alaslanden was reorganised between the originating 1914 regulations and the 1930 compilation. A footnote on Page 119 of the compilation — the clearest single statement of administrative-territorial reorganisation — clarifies the change: “(2) De atdeeling Alaslanden bestond in 1914 uit de tegenwoordige onderafdeeling van dien naam.” — in 1914 the afdeeling Alaslanden consisted of the present-day onderafdeeling of that name. That is: the 1914 afdeeling Alaslanden was coterminous with what by 1930 had become the onderafdeeling Alaslanden within the broader afdeeling Gajo- en Alaslanden — the administrative reorganisation that subordinated the formerly free-standing Alaslanden afdeeling to the broader highland afdeeling. The 1914 signatory clauses call the territory Afdeeling Alaslanden; the 1930 Inhoud (table of contents) calls it onderafdeeling Alaslanden.

The slachtbelasting of 1 March 1914 (Reg. No. 5)

The slachtbelasting of 1 March 1914 is the older of the two Alaslanden-seated regulations, and the only one in the compilation dealing with a slaughter-tax on cattle, buffels, and tame pigs. Its full Dutch title — reconstructed from the OCR-mangled heading — is Zelfbestuursverordening van 1 Maart 1914 houdende regeling der belasting op het slachten van runderen, buffels en tamme varkens in de landschappen der onderafdeeling Alaslanden, zooals gewijzigd bij de zelfbestuursverordening van 28 April 1924 (Self-government regulation of 1 March 1914 regulating the tax on the slaughter of cattle, buffaloes and tame pigs in the landschappen of the onderafdeeling Alaslanden, as modified by the self-government regulation of 28 April 1924). The regulation was authorised by the Gouverneur-Generaal per Gouv.-Secr. telegram 13 April 1912 No. 454 and missive 15 July 1913 No. 1726 — i.e. the G.-G.’s authorisation preceded the regulation by nearly two years, a longer lead-time than for any other regulation in the compilation.

The signatory clause names the oeleebalang of the two Alaslanden gebieden: the landschap Kedjoerön Batoe Mboelan and the landschap Kedjoerön Bambel — the same two Kédjoeröns whose integration into the Dutch colonial administration through the Korte Verklaring system is described in the De Buitenbezittingen account above. The Malay signatory clause names the slaughter-tax exemption for animals subject to a death-sentence by the native village tribunal: “binatang jang dipotong menurut poetoesan vonnis jang ditetapkan oleh moesapat negeri” — animals slaughtered pursuant to a verdict pronounced by the moesapat negeri (village tribunal). The regulation sets a rate of 6 gulden per rund/buffel and 3 gulden per varken, with reduced rates (2/1 gulden) for wounded animals. The regulation was modified by the zelfbestuursverordening van 28 April 1924 (approved 30 May 1924).

The vervoer-en-slachtverordening of 16 September 1914 (Reg. No. 16)

The vervoer-en-slachtverordening of 16 September 1914 is the earliest-dated regulation in the entire 1930 compilation. Its full Dutch title — Zelfbestuursverordening van 16 September 1914 op het vervoer en op het slachten van runderen en buffels in de zelfbesturende landschappen der onderafdeeling Alaslanden (goedgekeurd door den Gouverneur van Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden) (Self-government regulation of 16 September 1914 on the transport and slaughter of cattle and buffaloes in the self-governing landschappen of the onderafdeeling Alaslanden, approved by the Governor of Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden). The signatory clause names two Alaslanden landschappen — Bambel and Poeloe Nas — the very two territories whose creation under the 1914 reorganisation is described above.

The regulation protects the Alaslanden cattle/buffel breeding stock by three prohibitions in Fatsal 1: (a) to slaughter cattle or buffels judged by the Zelfbestuur or its appointed official to be fit for breeding; (b) to bring outside the afdeeling cattle or buffels of the breeding kind; (c) to sell to persons other than those belonging to the indigenous population. The regulation establishes a model transport-bewijs (transport-permit) system, issued cost-free by the kampong-head (within a landschap), the zelfbestuurder (within the onderafdeeling), or the European bestuursambtenaar (outside the onderafdeeling). The penalty is f 1–f 100 or three months’ arbeidstelling (forced labour on landschapswerken), with half the boete to the aanbrenger (informer) — a Dutch-colonial enforcement-incentive. The comparative table on Page 123 of the compilation extends parallel regelingen to Meureudoe, Lammeulo, Padangtidji, Idi, Langsa, Tamiang/Temleng, Takingeun, Serbeudjadi, Gajo LoeBus, Tjalang, Meulaboh, Tapaktoean, and the Zuidelijke Atjehsche landschappen — all dated 1914.

Significance of the 1914 regulations

The Alaslanden’s significance in the regulatory record rests on the empirical demonstration — through the dual prohibition on export outside the afdeeling and on sale to non-Inheemsche persons, and through the transport-bewijs system administered by the kampong-head / zelfbestuurder / European bestuursambtenaar hierarchy — of the colonial-zelfbestuur joint protection of the Alaslanden cattle-breeding stock, the economic foundation of the Alas valley. The slachtbelasting and vervoer-en-slachtverordening of 1914 thus complement the De Buitenbezittingen account of the same reorganisation, providing the regulatory text through which the colonial state gave legal form to the new administrative geography of the Alaslanden.

Account from Verkenningen in Atjeh (1923)

Alas-landen — the Alas lands — is the highland region south of the Gajo country, watered by the Alas river, with its chief place at Kota Tjane. The Alas people are, like the Gajos, an inland people of northern Sumatra, Mohammedan by religion, who came early under the overlordship of the Atjehnese sultans. The onderafdeeling Alaslanden is one of the four onderafdeelingen of the afdeeling Gajo- en Alaslanden as reconstituted in 1922.

Account in du Croo’s Generaal Swart (1943)

Van Daalen crossed the passes of the Barisan ranges with two hundred marechaussées carrying six days’ provisions and operated almost independently for five and a half months. Under the division of 1908 the Alaslanden formed part of the afdeeling Bambél; in 1910 they became an independent afdeeling under an officer-gezaghebber. In December 1914 two young Alassers forced their way into the Moesapat hall at Koeta Tjanè and wounded controleur Christan. Darlang operated successfully in the Alaslanden in 1911. In 1936 the Alaslanden were one of the last four sub-divisions still governed by officers.

See Also

• Radja Tjèq of Alas
• Batoe Mboelan
• Bambél
• Poeloe Nas
• Gajo Loeës
• Alasweg
• G. C. E. van Daalen
• Colonne van Daalen naar de Gajolanden en Alaslanden (1904)
• Koeta Tjané
• Blang Kédjérèn
• Gajó Loeós
• Kaban Djahé
• Major-General Overakker
• Lawé Sigalagala
• Wegenplan Sumatra
• Kota Tjane
• Gajo-landen
• Takengon
• Bireuen
• Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden
• Oostkust van Sumatra
• Departement der Burgerlijke Openbare Werken
• Pacificatie van Atjeh
• 1904
• 1914
• 1941
• 1942
• 28 March 1942
• Van der Plas
• Gouvernement Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden
• Noord-Sumatra (proposed gewest)
• Bestuursreorganisatie Sumatra (1913-1914)
• Tamiang
• Langsa
• Oostkust van Atjeh
• Koeta-Radja
• 1 March
• 16 September
• 1922
• 1924
• 1930
• Kédjoerön Bambél
• Kédjoerön Batoe Mboelan
• Moesapat
• Slachtbelasting
• Verkenningen in Atjeh (1923)
• Zelfbestuur
• Zelfbestuursverordeningen Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden
• H. N. A. Swart
• General Swart, Pacifier of Atjeh (1943)
• Atjeh

Account from Land en Volk van Atjeh Vroeger en Nu

Region east of Gajoland; first (heathen) inhabitants said to have come from Bataklanden near Toba-meer. First settlement at Batoe Mboelan (white stone). Later settlers from Rau (Menangkabau) under Radja Dewa brought Islam. Has a different, more elegant physical type and friendlier nature than Gayo. Since 1934 part of afdeeling Oostkust van AtjehLong elongated valley in southern Aceh; population is Muslim. Coffee (robusta) cultivation started well there but coffee berry borer destroyed the industry. Coffee cultivation now largely in hands of a Japanese concern.Onderafdeeling in interior; isolated, accessible only by 217 km auto road to Medan; benefits from S.O.K.timber demand.Onderafdeeling in the afdeeling Oostkust van Atjeh. Populated mainly by Batak and Menangkabau colonists. Van Daalen’s colonne broke resistance here in 1904. Divided in 1912 into marga’s under penghoeloe si’mpat. Briefly under civiel- en militair bestuur during the 1925-1927 troubles.

Source: J. Jongejans, Land en Volk van Atjeh Vroeger en Nu (Baarn: Hollandia Drukkerij N.V., c. 1938), pp. 79, 84, 97, 108, 142, 155, 184, 195, 203, 295, 305, 327, 329, 337, 347.

Source

De Buitenbezittingen, Deel II, Aflevering 2: Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, bewerkt door het Encyclopaedisch Bureau, Mededeelingen van het Bureau voor de Bestuurszaken der Buitenbezittingen (Weltevreden: Landsdrukkerij, 1917), pp. 2–5, 8, 22–24, 33, 36, 38, 114–125. De Buitenbezittingen 1904 tot 1914, Deel I, bewerkt door het Encyclopaedisch Bureau, Mededeelingen van het Bureau voor de Bestuurszaken der Buitenbezittingen, Aflevering X (Weltevreden: Landsdrukkerij, 1917), pp. 53–56 (section “De aanleg van wegen op de Buitenbezittingen”). J. B. van Heutsz als Gouverneur Generaal 1904-1909, by J. C. Lamster (Amsterdam: P. N. van Kampen & Zoon N.V., 1938), pp. 32, 50, 253. Rijksarchief, Den Haag. Atjèh and the War with Japan, by Dr. A. J. Piekaar, translated from the Dutch original Atjèh en de oorlog met Japan (1949) (‘s-Gravenhage/Bandung: N.V. Uitgeverij W. van Hoeve; English edition), Chapter IV, Chapter V § 3. Notulen der bestuursvergaderingen ter bespreking van de verdere voorbereiding eener hervorming van het bestuurswezen in Nederlandsch-Indië (Batavia: Landsdrukkerij, 1914), pp. 114, 358.

Zelfbestuursverordeningen Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, Serie A No. 9 of the Mededeelingen van de Afdeeling Bestuurszaken der Buitengewesten van het Departement van Binnenlandsch Bestuur, Weltevreden: Landsdrukkerij, 1930, esp. Regs. 5 and 16 (pp. 25 and 95). OCR-filename: 20260719_030404_DLP-112-Zelfbestuursverordeningen_Atjeh_en_onderhoorigheden_Nemotron-OCR-v2_OCR.txt.

Verkenningen in Atjeh, by Dr. R. Broersma (De Locomotief, October 1923), passim.

Generaal Swart, Pacificator van Atjeh (“General Swart, Pacifier of Atjeh”), by M. H. du Croo, Colonel K.N.I.L. (retired), with the collaboration of H. J. Schmidt, Titular Colonel K.N.I.L. (retired), with a foreword by His Excellency Lieutenant-General K.N.I.L. (retired) G. K. Dijkstra (Maastricht: N.V. Leiter-Nypels, 1943), Chapter III, XI, XII, XIII, XVII.

Land en Volk van Atjeh Vroeger en Nu, by J. Jongejans, Oud-Resident van het Gewest Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, with a foreword by Dr. H. Colijn (Baarn: Hollandia Drukkerij N.V., c. 1938), pp. 79, 84, 97, 108, 142, 155, 184, 195, 203, 295, 305, 327, 329, 337, 347.