President Joko Widodo alias Jokowi awarded the title of national hero to six fighters. The awarding took place on Friday, November 10 2023, which coincides with National Heroes’ Day.
One of these fighters was Ida Dewa Agung Jambe from Bali. Ida was given the title of national hero because of her service in the Puputan Klungkung war in 1908.
Ida Dewa Agung Jambe is a direct descendant of the founder of the Klungkung Kingdom, namely Ida I Dewa Agung Jambe. Ida I founded the Klungkung Kingdom in 1686. Ida I was a descendant of the Gelgel Period and the Waturenggong dynasty
Ida Dewa Agung Jambe was the king of Klungkung IX. He has the title Dewa Agung Putera IV. At that time, Ida Jambe led a kingdom with a very narrow territory. Other kingdoms in Bali were already controlled by the Dutch, such as the Kingdoms of Buleleng, Karangasem, Bangli, Gianyar, Badung and Tabanan. Meanwhile, Dewa Agung had to let go of the Sibang and Abiansemal areas because they were asked by the Dutch.
On April 1 1908, Ida Jambe was forced to sign a cooperation agreement which was detrimental to the Klungkung Kingdom. The Dutch East Indies government finally monopolized the opium trade in Klungkung, and established an opium sales office on the beach. This automatically made the Dutch control the waters of the Klungkung kingdom. This Dutch domination gave birth to a people’s movement that opposed Dutch policies.
On April 13-16 1908, Dutch troops carried out security patrols in the Klungkung area. This sparked anger from the people and Ida Jambe because they were seen as violating the sovereignty of the Klungkung Kingdom. The angry people then attacked the Dutch troops who were on patrol. The attack killed 10 Dutch troops, including the platoon commander with the rank of lieutenant who was also killed.
The Dutch, who did not accept this, then accused the Klungkung Kingdom of rebellion and decided to issue an ultimatum for King Dewa Agung Jambe II to surrender before April 22 1908. However, on April 17 1908 the Dutch launched an attack on the Klungkung Kingdom and killed around 100 residents.
The next day, Klungkung City began to be bombarded with continuous cannon fire from Klungkung waters. Residents living on the coast began to fear and fled to Klungkung City. On April 20, 1908, the Dutch East Indies Government brought in thousands of troops from Batavia and the landing was carried out until April 26, 1908.
On April 28, 1908, the Klungkung Puputan War began. In the morning, the Dutch army entered Klungkung City. Meanwhile, their warships in Kusamba waters continued to bombard them with cannon fire. Ida Jambe and his loyal followers, numbering around 200 people, fought back. On the advice of her uncle, Cokorda Jambe, Ida Jambe stuck her heirloom keris into the ground so that a large hole would appear which would result in heavy casualties from her enemies.
Ida Dewa Agung Jambe came out of the palace gates. However, his knees and chest were hit by gunfire, but he continued to try to get up before collapsing again from the gunfire. Ida Jambe died in front of the palace. Ida Jambe’s residence, Inem Smarapura, was also destroyed by the Dutch. Ida Dewa Agung Jambe was the last generation of king Ida I Jambe who held the title Sesuhunan Bali-Lombok.
Source: tempo.co
