Semarang Residency (Dutch : Residentie Semarang) was an administrative subdivision (Residency) of the Dutch East Indies located on the northern coast of Central Java and named after its capital city Semarang. [1] It existed from 1818 to 1942, although its borders were changed many times during that period.
The territory around Semarang was the core of the Demak Sultanate in the sixteenth century; after its decline the Mataram Sultanate came to claim it. [2] As the Dutch East India Company (VOC) became a greater presence in Java in the seventeenth century, they allied themselves with Mataram in exchange for trade and territorial concessions. [2] Although Mataram continued to control most of central and eastern Java, they ceded the city of Semarang and its surrounding villages to the VOC in January 1678. [2] [1] At first it was only a small enclave, but gradually the VOC demanded expansions until Pakubuwono II was forced to yield all of the northern coast around Semarang to them in the 1740s. [2] They were not initially structured as a residency, but as a Governorate (the Gouvernement of Java's Northeast Coast), with Semarang as its seat. [1] [2] When the French under Napoleon took control of the Indies and appointed Herman Willem Daendels as governor, he abolished the former administrative divisions and created prefectures, including Semarang, Japara, and Pakalongan. [3]
After the end of the French and British interregnum in the Dutch East Indies in 1817, Java was reorganized once again into Residencies. Semarang became one such Residency, although it was much smaller than its later extent, and was bordered by Pekalongan Residency to the west and Djapara Residency to the northeast. [3]
In January 1901 the former Djapara Residency was added to Semarang Residency. [1] A municipal council was established for the city of Semarang in 1906 followed by a regional council for Semarang Residency in 1908. [1]
At around the time of World War I it was divided into a number of subdivisions [1] (afdeelingen), most of which still exist as Regencies in Indonesia today:
In the late 1920s Semarang Residency became considerably smaller because of administrative restructuring. [3] The 1925 Decree on the Administrative Organization allowed for the subdivision of existing residencies in the Indies. However, it took time to implement and was not put in place in Central Java province (Provincie Midden-Java) until 1928. [4] Parts of the former Semarang Residency were incorporated into the new Koedoes Residency and Blora Residency; Semarang only retained Semarang Regency, most of Kendal Regency, and Salatiga. [3] [5] In 1931 the borders were changed once again; Koedoes and Blora residencies were abolished, Semarang absorbed part of their territories, and the new Djepara-Rembang Residency to the northeast absorbed the rest. [3]
After during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies and the Indonesian National Revolution, the Residencies in Java ceased to exist; after independence Indonesia added the former territory of the Semarang Residency to Central Java province, and retained the subdivisions as regencies (Semarang Regency, Demak Regency, and so on).
Central Java is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in the south, East Java in the east, and the Java Sea in the north. It has a total area of 32,800.69 km², with a population of 36,516,035 at the 2020 Census making it the third-most populous province in both Java and Indonesia after West Java and East Java. The province also includes the island of Nusakambangan in the south, and the Karimun Jawa Islands in the Java Sea. Central Java is also a cultural concept that includes the Special Region and city of Yogyakarta. However, administratively the city and its surrounding regencies have formed a separate special region since the country's independence, and is administrated separately. Although known as the "heart" of Javanese culture, there are several other non-Javanese ethnic groups, such as the Sundanese on the border with West Java. Chinese Indonesians, Arab Indonesians, and Indian Indonesians are also scattered throughout the province.
Semarang is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Dutch colonial era, and is still an important regional center and port today. The city has been named as the cleanest tourist destination in Southeast Asia by the ASEAN Clean Tourist City Standard (ACTCS) for 2020–2022.
The Sultanate of Mataram was the last major independent Javanese kingdom on the island of Java before it was colonised by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force radiating from the interior of Central Java from the late 16th century until the beginning of the 18th century.
Blora is a regency in the northeastern part of Central Java province in Indonesia. Its capital is Blora. The regency is located in the easternmost part of Central Java, and borders the Bengawan Solo River and the East Java province. It covers an area of 1,820.59 km2 and it had a population of 829,728 at the 2010 Census and 884,333 at the 2020 Census.
Demak is a regency located in the Indonesian province of Central Java, on northern coast of the island. It is bordered by Jepara regency and the Java Sea to the north, Kudus and Grobogan regencies to the east, Grobogan and Semarang regencies to the south, while to the west are Semarang Regency and the city of Semarang, to which the districts of Mranggen and Sayung are essentially suburban. The regency covers an area of 897.43 km2 and had a population of 1,055,579 at the 2010 Census; the latest official estimate is 1,162,805. It was originally the centre of the Demak Sultanate, once a dominant power in the region. Due to its strong relation with the spread of Islam in Java and the Wali Sanga, it is sometimes referred to with the nickname Kota Wali.
Parahyangan is a cultural and mountainous region in West Java province on the Indonesian island of Java. Covering a little less than one sixth of Java, it is the heartland of Sundanese people and their culture. It is bordered to the West by Banten province, to the North by the northern coast region of Subang, Cirebon and Indramayu, to the east by Central Java province, and to the south by the Indian Ocean.
Freemasonry was introduced by the Dutch to what is today Indonesia during the VOC era in the 18th century, and spread throughout the Dutch East Indies during a wave of westernisation in the 19th century. Freemasons originally only included Europeans and Indo-Europeans, but later also indigenous people with a Western education.
Oud Eik en Duinen is a cemetery in The Hague, the Netherlands, formerly called Eik en Duinen and also nicknamed "the Dutch Père-Lachaise". The cemetery is built around a chapel constructed around 1247 by William II of Holland in honor of his father, Floris IV, Count of Holland. This chapel was partially demolished in 1581, and in the 17th century the area was again used as a cemetery. When Eik en Duinen was full, a new cemetery, Nieuw Eykenduynen, was constructed in 1891 across the road, and since then the old cemetery is known as "Old" Eik en Duinen.
Fort Willem II of Ungaran is a late 18th-century Dutch-built fort located in Ungaran, in the Semarang Regency, Central Java, Indonesia. It was constructed to guard a trade route in central Java. The fort is the place where Prince Diponegoro was imprisoned while waiting for his judgment in Batavia and further exile to Makassar. The fort is currently used as a dormitory for the families of Indonesian police personnel.
The Timor and Dependencies Residency was an administrative subdivision (Residency) of the Dutch East Indies located in the Eastern half of Lesser Sunda Islands east of Lombok, it was separated in 1819 from the Governorate of Moluccas (Gouvernement der Molukken. Its capital was at Kupang.
Kudus is the capital and the namesake of the Kudus Regency in Central Java, Indonesia. Its name has an Arabic etymology connected to its foundation by the legendary figure Sunan Kudus. It also houses the mosque established by Sunan Kudus named Menara Kudus Mosque, one of the most important and influential mosques in Indonesia. According to the 2010 census, its population was 92,776.
The Samarang–Joana Stoomtram Maatschappij, N.V. was from 1879 to 1959 a private tram company on the Dutch East Indies, providing passenger and freight trains on a 417 kilometres (259 mi) long network with a gauge of 3 feet 6 inches (1,067 mm).
Preanger Regencies Residency, sometimes referred to as Preanger Residency and renamed Priangan Residency after 1931, was an administrative division (residency) of the Dutch East Indies located in Parahyangan, West Java which existed from 1817 to 1925. Its capital was in Cianjur until 1856 and thereafter in Bandung. The residency contained the municipality of Bandung and the regencies of Bandoeng, Soemedang, Tasikmalaja, Tjiamis and Garoet.
Koedoes Residency was an administrative division (Residency) of Central Java province of the Dutch East Indies with its capital at Kudus, which existed between 1928 and 1931. It was significantly larger than the present-day Kudus Regency, as it also contained Demak Regency and Jepara Regency.
Bantam Residency, sometimes spelled Banten Residency, was an administrative division (Residency) of the Dutch East Indies which existed from 1817 to 1942; it was located at the western point of Java and its capital was at Serang. Its borders largely correspond to the present-day Indonesian province of Banten.
Blora Residency was an administrative division (Residency) of Central Java province of the Dutch East Indies with its capital at Blora, which existed between 1928 and 1931. It was significantly larger than the present-day Blora Regency, as it also contained Grobogan Regency and Purwodadi.
Buitenzorg Residency was an administrative division (Residency) of the Dutch East Indies located in western Java which existed from 1817 to 1867 and from 1925 to 1942. Its seat was at Buitenzorg which was also the seat of the colonial government of the Indies after 1905.