The Mandarsah Poetih (literally “white bedehuis” or “white mosque”) was a small stone mosque to the south of Kota Radja, already partially ruined by artillery fire, which was captured by Dutch troops under Kolonel PEL on 28 January 28 January 1875 and put in a state of defence by Tweede-Luitenant C. J. Snijders of the Compagnie Mineurs en Sappeurs as part of the southward extension of the Dutch perimeter in January 1875. The post continued to be harassed by Atjeh fire from the fortified kampongs of Gitjiel Olejlo, Lamara Olejlo, and Lohong, leading directly to the Lamara Olejlo fortification of 15 February 1875.
The Building
The biographer Van den Berg describes the Mandarsah Poetih as “een door artillerievuur reeds ten deele vernield steenen gebouwtje” — a small stone building already partially ruined by artillery fire. The name “Mandarsah Poetih” (wit bedehuis) marks it as a mosque or prayer-house of stone — a more solid construction than the usual Atjehese timber-and-bamboo kampong mosque — and the partial ruin by artillery fire suggests that it had already been the object of one or more earlier Dutch bombardments.
The Fortification of 28 January 1875
The capture of 28 January 28 January 1875 was followed by the engineer operation of putting the building in a state of defence. Snijders “voerde overeenkomstige werkzaamheden uit” — that is, he executed the corresponding works to those he had done at Pungej Blang Tjoet five days earlier. The small size of the building and its partial ruin made it a less ambitious work than the Missigit Longbatta redoubt, but its position served as part of the southern line of posts covering the Dutch perimeter.
Subsequent Operations
The Mandarsah Poetih continued to be harassed by Atjeh fire from the fortified kampongs of Gitjiel Olejlo, Lamara Olejlo, and Lohong, leading to the reconnaissance of 14/15 February 15 February 1875 and the Lamara Olejlo fortification of 15 February 1875.
See Also
- Cornelis Jacobus Snijders
- J. L. J. H. Pel
- Missigit
- Missigit Longbatta
- Pungej Blang Tjoet
- Lamara Olejlo
- Capture of Mandarsah Poetih (28 January 1875)
- Lamara Olejlo fortification (15 February 1875)
- Benting
- Bataillon Mineurs en Sappeurs
- Aceh War
- Koeta Radja
- 1875
Source
D. van den Berg, Cornelis Jacobus Snijders (1852–1939): Een leven in dienst van zijn Land en zijn Volk (Voorburg: September 1944), p. 32. Koninklijke Bibliotheek shelfmark 0301 4872.