Jakarta History

The first recorded settlement at what is now Jakarta was the port of origin can be traced to a Hindu settlement as early as the 4th century.

By the 14th century,The first European fleet in 1513, which were four Portuguese ships from Malacca. Malacca had been conquered by Alfonso d'Albuquerque in 1511, when they were looking for spices and especially pepper. The relationship between the Kingdom of Sunda and Portugal became more intense when another Portuguese visited Sunda, named Enrique Leme with the intention to give a present. He was welcomed well in 1522 and because of that, the Portuguese received the right to build a warehouse and to expand the fort in Kalapa (the name of the location). This was regarded by the Sundanese as a consolidation of their position against the raging Muslim troops from the rising power of the Sultanate of Demak in Central Java. it was a major port for the Hindu kingdom of Sunda.

After that, in 1527, the Muslim troops which came from Cirebon and Demak, under the leadership of Fatahillah attacked Sunda Kingdom. The king was expecting the Portuguese to show up and help them to hold Fatahillah's army as an agreement was in place between Sunda and the Portuguese. However, the Fatahillah's army succeeded and conquered the city on June 22, 1557 and Fatahillah deciced to change the name "Sunda Kelapa" into "Jayakarta" ("Great Deed" or "Complete Victory").

The follower of the Sultan of Banten (the location of Jayakarta), Prince Jayawikarta was also majorly involved in the history of Jakarta. In 1596, many Dutch ships arrived in Jayakarta, with the intention of trading spices, more or less was the same with Portuguese's intention. In case of this, the Prince took the Dutch arrival seriously as the Dutch had constructed many military buildings. Apparently, Prince Jayawikarta had a connection with the British and allowed them to build houses directly across from the Dutch buildings in 1615. Later, when relations between Prince Jayawikarta and the Dutch deteriorated, his soldiers attacked the Dutch fortress which covered two main buildings, named Nassau and Mauritus. With the help of 15 ships from the British, Prince Jayakarta's army was able to defeat the Dutch, which at that time was under the governance of Jan Pieterszoon Coen (J.P. Coen) in 1618. From that time on, the Prince had a friendship agreement with the British.

The follower of the Sultan of Banten (the location of Jayakarta), Prince Jayawikarta was also majorly involved in the history of Jakarta. In 1596, many Dutch ships arrived in Jayakarta, with the intention of trading spices, more or less was the same with Portuguese's intention. In case of this, the Prince took the Dutch arrival seriously as the Dutch had constructed many military buildings. Apparently, Prince Jayawikarta had a connection with the British and allowed them to build houses directly across from the Dutch buildings in 1615. Later, when relations between Prince Jayawikarta and the Dutch deteriorated, his soldiers attacked the Dutch fortress which covered two main buildings, named Nassau and Mauritus. With the help of 15 ships from the British, Prince Jayakarta's army was able to defeat the Dutch, which at that time was under the governance of Jan Pieterszoon Coen (J.P. Coen) in 1618. From that time on, the Prince had a friendship agreement with the British.

Later, things changed for the Prince, when the Sultan of Banten sent soldiers and summoned Prince Jayawikarta for establishing a close relationship with the British without an approval from the Banten authorities. The relationships of both Prince Jayawikarta and the British with the Banten government became worse. As a result, the prince decided to move to Tanara, a small place in Banten, until his death. This assisted the Dutch in their efforts to establish a close relationship with Banten. In addition to this, the Dutch also had hired many soldiers from Japan, Germany, Scotia, Denmark and Belgium. Finally, they was able to conquer the city with a calm approach and changed the name to "Batavia", which it remained for 300 years.http://www.jakartaexpat.com/jakarta/jakarta-history.html