Bital was a fortified kampong southwest of the Kraton and near Ketapang Doewa. During the early Aceh War, it was one of the hostile places that threatened the Dutch ally Toekoe Nek of Marassa. The Dutch attacked it on 12 February 1874, took it, and then quickly lost it again.
Why Bital mattered
Bital mattered because it stood close enough to affect the western side of the Dutch position after the fall of the Kraton. It also mattered politically, because it threatened the district of Marassa, where Toekoe Nek had allied himself with the Dutch.
The expedition of 12 February 1874
At the request of Toekoe Nek, Dutch troops marched against Bital on 12 February 1874. They crossed open rice-fields, came under heavy fire from the edge of the village, and stormed the position. According to Dutch accounts, strict orders were given not to damage houses or property. The kampong was then handed over to the men of Toekoe Nek.
The problem came immediately afterward. Because the Dutch withdrew again to Penajoeng, the Acehnese soon returned, and the gain was lost.
Later criticism
Writers such as Brutus and Borel used Bital as an example of a victory that was not turned into lasting control. In their view, it showed the weakness of a campaign that could take ground but not hold or exploit it.
Later fighting
Bital remained part of the contested western zone during 1874. A later attempt to surprise it after the Conquest of Langkroek (28 September 1874) failed, because the Acehnese were more alert by then. The place was only cleared more firmly during later Dutch advances under Pel.
Significance
Bital is significant because it was one of the small but revealing places through which the wider problem of the second expedition became visible. The Dutch could win a local fight there, but not turn it into a stable result. That made Bital important both militarily and in later criticism of the campaign.
See Also
- Expedition to Bital (12 February 1874)
- Ketapang Doewa
- Toekoe Nek Radja Moeda Setia
- Marassa
- Penajoeng
- Brutus
- G. F. W. Borel
- Conquest of Langkroek (28 September 1874)
- 1874
Source
Onze vestiging in Atjeh, critisch beschreven, by G. F. W. Borel (The Hague: D. A. Thieme, 1878), pp. 54–57, 64–65, 176, 202, 266.
Open brief aan den Generaal Knoop over de Atjeh-kwestie, door Brutus (L. van Bakkenes en Co., 1874), pp. 17–18.