Aceh War

Aceh War

Artist's depiction of the Battle of Samalanga in 1878
Date1873–1904
Location
Result
  • Dutch victory
  • Imposition of Dutch rule over Aceh
Territorial
changes
Dissolution of Aceh Sultanate;
Aceh was annexed into the Dutch East Indies
Belligerents
Commanders and leaders
J.H.R. Köhler 
Jan van Swieten
J.L.J.H Pel 
K. van der Heijden (WIA)
H. Demmeni (DOW)
J.J.K. De Moulin 
J.B. van Heutsz[1]
J.C. van der Wijck[1]
Gotfried van Daalen[1]
George Frederik Willem Borel
Sultan Mahmud Syah #[3]
Alauddin Muhammad Da'ud Syah II Surrendered[4]
Tuanku Hasyim Banta Muda
Teuku Umar [5]
Cut Nyak Dhien[6]
Teungku Chik di Tiro X
Cut Nyak Meutia 
Panglima Polem Surrendered
Strength
3,000 troops (First Aceh Expedition)[3]
13,000 (Second Aceh Expedition)[3]
12,000 European KNIL troops (1903)[2]
23,000 Indonesian KNIL troops[2]
10,000–100,000 troops[7]
Casualties and losses
37,000 killed (2,200 european) (including by cholera)[2] 60,000–70,000 killed (including by cholera)[2]
10,000 refugees[2]

The Aceh War (Indonesian: Perang Aceh), also known as the Dutch War or the Infidel War (1873–1904), was an armed military conflict between the Sultanate of Aceh and the Kingdom of the Netherlands which was triggered by discussions between representatives of Aceh and the United States in Singapore during early 1873.[8] The war was part of a series of conflicts in the late 19th century that consolidated Dutch rule over modern-day Indonesia.

The campaign drew controversy in the Netherlands as photographs and accounts of the death toll were reported. Isolated bloody insurgencies continued as late as 1914[1] and less violent forms of Acehnese resistance continued to persist until World War II and the Japanese occupation.

  1. ^ a b c d e Ibrahim, Alfian. "Aceh and the Perang Sabil." Indonesian Heritage: Early Modern History. Vol. 3, ed. Anthony Reid, Sian Jay and T. Durairajoo. Singapore: Editions Didier Millet, 2001. p. 132–133
  2. ^ a b c d e f Vickers (2005), p. 13
  3. ^ a b c Ibrahim (2001), p. 132
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ricklefs145 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Anthony Reid (2005), p. 336
  6. ^ Anthony Reid (2005), p. 352
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ricklefs144 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Ricklefs (2001), p. 185–88