Hotel der Nederlanden

Hotel der Nederlanden, Hotel Dharma Nirmala
Hotel der Nederlanden, Hotel Dharma Nirmala
	The Rijswijk entrance of Hotel der Nederlanden, showing the main building before its remodelling in 1922.
General information
Status	Demolished
Type	Hotel
Architectural style	Indies Empire style, New Indies Style
Location	Jalan Veteran
Coordinates	6°10′05″S106°49′30″E / 6.167956°S 106.824918°E
Completed	1794
Demolished	1969

Last updated November 21, 2024

Hotel der Nederlanden (also Hotel Dharma Nirmala during its last 10 years) was a historic hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia. Hotel der Nederlanden was one of the three grand hotels in Batavia during the last period of the colonial rule, the other being Hotel des Indes and the Grand Hotel Java. The hotel had operated for more than a century, after which it was demolished in 1969 and was replaced with the Bina Graha presidential office.^[1]

History

Private residence

The hotel started as a private residence of Pieter Tenzy; the building was built in 1794. In 1799, the house was acquired by Willem Hendrik van Eijsseldijk, member of the Raad van Indie.^[2]^[3]^[4] Between 1811 and 1815, the house was bought by Thomas Stamford Raffles for 27,000 rupee to be used as his own private residence when he was working as a lieutenant-governor of Java between 1811 and 1816.^[1] Raffles expanded the courtyard and added several sculptures at the entrance.^[2] It was sold to the government of the Dutch Indies in 1816 when he left the country.^[4]

Colonial hotel

In 1837, the house was renovated into a hotel known as Hotel Palais Royale;^[3] which would start the beginning of the building as one of the grandest hotel in Batavia.^[1] The name Hotel der Nederlanden was acquired in 1846.^[5]^[4] In 1906, the dining hall of the hotel was remodeled by Indies architect Moojen.^[6] In 1922, the main building of the hotel on the Rijswijk entrance was remodeled.^[1]

Post-independence

In the 1950s, the hotel rating was downgraded to a "B" class hotel, as seen in the 1951 government rankings. It was ranked behind the Hotel des Indes, which was the only "A" class hotel in Jakarta at that time. In 1958, the hotel's name was nationalized into Hotel Dharma Nirmala to remove all Dutch colonial nuances while keeping the HDN initials which had been used in the glassware and crockery.^[1]

Later, a restaurant wing was added to the hotel. This restaurant, known as The Ambassador, was among the few building in Jakarta that was equipped with air-conditioning unit.

Later, Hotel Dharma Nirmala was converted into the headquarter of the Tjakrabirawa Regiment. In 1969, the hotel was demolished and the Bina Graha presidential office and museum was built in its place between 1969 and 1970.^[4]^[3]

The building complex

The hotel was located directly east of the Paleis van de Gouverneur Generaal (now Istana Negara).^[3] The hotel has two entrances, the tree-lined Koningsplein entrance (now Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara) and the canaled Rijswijk entrance (now Jalan Veteran) where the main building was located.

During its golden age in the early 20th-century, the hotel boasted facilities such as bungalows, pavilions, stables, and coach-houses. The pavilions were freestanding buildings known for its wide verandas and a private bathroom, creating the comfort of private residences. A bungalow contains three lodge rooms. In the 1920s, all of the lodge rooms were equipped with electric lights, running water, call bells, and sanitation "on the most modern principles".^[7]

The 1906-restored dining hall forms the main part of the main building. Designed by Indies architect Moojen (architect of the Kunstkring Art Gallery and Cirebon railway station), the grand dining hall was capable of seating two hundred people. The kitchens were led by European chef and European assistants. The restaurant served mainly European dishes as well as the Indies Rijsttafel.^[5]

Hotel der Nederlanden owned a tiffin room located in Oud Jakarta's business district on Binnen Nieuwepoortstraat (now Jalan Pintu Besar Utara).^[5]

Related Research Articles

Istana Negara is one of the seven presidential palaces of Indonesia. It is located on Veteran Street in Central Jakarta, with Merdeka Palace located south. It is part of the presidential palace compound which has a total area of 68,000 m², along with three other buildings: Bina Graha which was formerly used as the President's Office, Wisma Negara on the western side which is used as the state guest house, and the office for the Ministry of State Secretariat of Indonesia. Istana Negara faces north towards the aforementioned street, while the Merdeka Palace faces Merdeka Square and the National Monument (Monas).

The Merdeka Palace, is one of seven presidential palaces in Indonesia. It is located on the north side of the Merdeka Square in Central Jakarta, Indonesia, and was used as the official residence of the president of the Republic of Indonesia.

Menteng is a district in the administrative city of Central Jakarta, Indonesia. Menteng is surrounded by the districts of Senen and Matraman to the east, Tebet and Setiabudi to the south, Tanah Abang to the west, and Gambir to the north. Menteng is bound by the West Flood Canal to the west, Ciliwung River to the south and east, and Kebon Sirih Road to the north. Menteng is the district seat of the Central Jakarta government.

Sawah Besar is a district (kecamatan) of Central Jakarta, Indonesia. Its neighborhoods are among the most historic, containing the 1820-established Pasar Baru, the new colonial city – Weltevreden – and the old course of the Ciliwung River. Landmarks include the Lapangan Banteng, the government's 19th century, low-rise A.A. Maramis Building and its high palmed-lawned vista, and Jakarta Cathedral.

Jakarta is Indonesia's capital and largest city. Located on an estuary of the Ciliwung River, on the northwestern part of Java, the area has long sustained human settlement. Historical evidence from Jakarta dates back to the 4th century CE, when it was a Hindu settlement and port. The city has been sequentially claimed by the Indianized kingdom of Tarumanegara, the Hindu Kingdom of Sunda, the Muslim Sultanate of Banten, and by Dutch, Japanese and Indonesian administrations. The Dutch East Indies built up the area before it was taken during World War II by the Empire of Japan and finally became independent as part of Indonesia.

Ancol is a coastal lowland area located to the east of Kota Tua Jakarta in northern Jakarta, in Indonesia. The coastal lowland stretched from Kota Tua Jakarta to the west and Tanjung Priok to the east. Today, Ancol contains the main beach resort of Jakarta. Taman Impian Jaya Ancol, the largest integrated tourism area in Southeast Asia, is located in Ancol.

Colonial buildings and structures in Jakarta include those that were constructed during the Dutch colonial period of Indonesia. The period succeeded the earlier period when Jakarta, governed by the Sultanate of Banten, were completely eradicated and replaced with a walled city of Batavia. The dominant styles of the colonial period can be divided into three periods: the Dutch Golden Age, the transitional style period, and Dutch modernism. Dutch colonial architecture in Jakarta is apparent in buildings such as houses or villas, churches, civic buildings, and offices, mostly concentrated in the administrative city of Central Jakarta and West Jakarta.

The Jakarta Art Building, historically known as Schouwburg Weltevreden, is a concert hall in Sawah Besar, Central Jakarta, Indonesia, built during the colonial period in Batavia, Dutch East Indies.

Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said or Jalan Rasuna Said is one of the main avenues of Jakarta, Indonesia. It was constructed during the 1970s. It is located in the Golden Triangle of Jakarta. The road was named after Hajjah Rangkayo Rasuna Said, a National Hero of Indonesia. The road runs 4.9 km (3.0 mi) from Setiabudi, South Jakarta, to Tendean, Mampang Prapatan, South Jakarta. The Rasuna Said Street is also one of the Odd–even Traffic Restriction Scheme implementation zones.

Pieter Adriaan Jacobus "Piet" Moojen was a Netherlands-Indies architect, painter and writer. He studied architecture and painting in Antwerp. He lived and worked in the Dutch East Indies from 1903 to 1929. He was one of the first architects to implement Modernism in the Dutch East Indies. Moojen became widely known for his work on the Dutch entry at the Paris Colonial Exposition in 1931. He was active as an architect between 1909 and 1931.

Lapangan Banteng is a historic square located in a historic area formerly known as Weltevreden, today Sawah Besar subdistrict, Central Jakarta, Indonesia.

The Harmony Society was an elite social club in Batavia, Dutch East Indies. It was the oldest clubhouse in Asia when it was demolished. The construction of the group's building included the former bricks of the wall of Old Batavia. It was demolished for road widening and parking area in 1985. Activities at the club included cards and billiards. Indigenous people were excluded from the club.

Indies Empire style is an architectural style that flourished in the colonial Dutch East Indies between the middle of the 18th century and the end of the 19th century. The style is an imitation of the neoclassical Empire Style which was popular in mid-19th-century France. Conformed to the tropical setting of Indonesia, the style became known in the Dutch East Indies as the Indies Empire style.

Kim Tek Ie Temple, also called Vihara Dharma Bhakti, also known as 金德院, is a klenteng located in the China Town neighborhood of Glodok, Jakarta, Indonesia. Completed in 1650, Vihara Dharma Bhakti is the oldest Chinese temple in Jakarta.

The A.A. Maramis Building is an early 19th-century building in Jakarta, Indonesia. It hosts the headquarters of the Indonesian Ministry of Finance.

Jakarta City Hall is the seat of the Jakarta City government. The complex contains the official office of the governor and the vice governor of Jakarta, and the main administrative office. Jakarta City Hall is located south of Merdeka Square.

Jalan Gajah Mada and Jalan Hayam Wuruk, formerly Molenvliet West and Molenvliet Oost respectively, is a major thoroughfare located in Jakarta, Indonesia. The two streets with its canal, the Batang Hari, connect Glodok and Kota Tua Jakarta to the north with Harmoni Junction to the south. Completed in late 1640s, the canal-street Gajah Mada and Hayam Wuruk is Jakarta's oldest major thoroughfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">G. Kolff & Co.</span> Publishing house and book shop in the Dutch-Indies

G. Kolff & Co., was a firm specializing in bookselling, publishing and printing based in Batavia.

Marine Hotel was one of the former landmark of the Molenvliet, a 17th-century built canal located in Batavia, the Dutch East Indies. Marine Hotel was located at the south end of Molenvliet West, approximately at the location of the old building of Bank Tabungan Negara. The building has been demolished.

Hotel Sriwijaya is a three-stars hotel located in Jakarta, Indonesia. The building of Hotel Sriwijaya has always been a hotel for over 125 years. Hotel Sriwijaya is the oldest surviving hotel building in Jakarta.

References

1 2 3 4 5 Merrillees 2015, p. 56.
1 2 Dinas Museum dan Sejarah 1986, p. 5.
1 2 3 4 Teeuwen, D. I. Hotel der Nederlanden, now Bina Graha, in Batavia – Jakarta during the Dutch Period
1 2 3 4 "Der Nederlanden, Hotel". Ensiklopedi Jakarta. Dinas Komunikasi, Informatika dan Kehumasan Pemprov DKI Jakarta. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
1 2 3 Merrillees 2012, p. 80.
↑ Akihary 1990, p. 130.
↑ Merrillees 2012, p. 81.

Cited works

Akihary, Huib (1990). Architectuur & Stedebouw in Indonesië 1870/1970. Zutphen: De Walburg Pers. ISBN 9072691024.
Dinas Museum dan Sejarah (1986). Sejarah Singkat Gedung-Gedung Tua di Jakarta[Brief History of Old Buildings in Jakarta]. Jakarta: Pemerintah Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta.
Merrillees, Scott (2012). Greetings from Jakarta: Postcards of a Capital 1900-1950. Jakarta: Equinox Publishing. ISBN 9789793780887.
Merrillees, Scott (2015). Jakarta: Portraits of a Capital 1950-1980. Jakarta: Equinox Publishing. ISBN 9786028397308.