Jhr. Johan Cornelis van der Wijck (11 January 1848, in

Buitenzorg Bogor City (), or Bogor (, ), is a landlocked city in the West Java, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.

– 2 October 1919, in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

) was a Dutch

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

of the

Royal Netherlands East Indies Army The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (; KNIL, ; ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. The KNIL's air arm was the Royal Netherl ...

(KNIL) and governor of

Aceh Aceh ( , ; , Jawi script, Jawoë: ; Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, Old Spelling: ''Atjeh'') is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the northern end of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capit ...

and related territories.

Career

Van der Wijk was educated at

Koninklijke Militaire Academie The Royal Military Academy ( or ''KMA'') is the service academy for the Dutch Army, the Dutch Air Force and the Royal Marechaussee. Located in Breda, Southern Netherlands, the KMA has trained future officers since 1828. Description The KMA o ...

and in 1869 he was promoted to second lieutenant. In 1874 he was promoted to

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

and became commander of the IIIrd military department. Van der Wijck became

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in 1888,

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in 1892 and lieutenant colonel in 1894. In 1895 and 1898 he was military commander of

Palembang Palembang (, Palembang: ''Pelémbang'', Mandarin: 巨港 (Jùgǎng), Hokkien: 舊港 (Kū-káng), Jawi: ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers on both banks of the Musi River in the ea ...

and in 1880 he became commander of the infantry in

Magelang Magelang () is one of six cities in Central Java, the Central Java Province of Indonesia that are administratively independent of the regencies in which they lie geographically. Each of these cities is governed by a mayor rather than a Subdivi ...

. In 1898 he was promoted to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

and in 1900 as major general he became commander first of the first and then of the second military department on

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

. Then he became chief of the weapon of the infantry as well as chief of the second department of the Dutch war ministry in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

. After Van der Wijck temporarily became head of the KNIL in 1903 he was thanked by the government for the quality of his command. In 1904, during the absence of the civil and military governor of Aceh, Van Heutsz, Van der Wijck temporarily assumed his responsibilities. A year later he was honorarily discharged from the function. In 1905 he became lieutenant general, commander of the army and head of the Department of War in the Dutch East Indies. In the same year he became a member of the central committee of the Dutch East Indies

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

. At his own request, Van der Wijck was honorably discharged from the army in 1907 and was thanked for his services to the country. He became a Knight of the

Order of the Dutch Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands (, ) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815. The Order of the Netherlands Lion was until recently awar ...

and received the Aceh Medal for his military achievements in the Kraton during the

Aceh War The Aceh War (), 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 ...

. He also received the

Expedition Cross The Expedition Cross () officially known as the Cross for Important Military Operations () was a military decoration of Kingdom of the Netherlands. Created by royal decree on 19 February 1869, by King William III, the cross was awarded for partic ...

. He was honorably mentioned for his military actions in the XII and XXVI

Mukim A mukim is a type of administrative division used in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The word ''mukim'' is a loanword in English language, English. However, it was also originally a loanword in Malay language, Malay from the Arabic word ...

s in Aceh in 1879. He died on 2 October 1919 and was buried at the Algemene Begraafplaats (General Cemetery) in The Hague.

Military decorations

* Knight of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands (, ) is a Dutch honours system, Dutch order of chivalry founded by William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815. The Order of the Netherlands Lion wa ...

with clasps: "Honorable Mention", "Aceh 1876-96" * AZ Recruiting Ribbon

Aceh Medal 1873–1874 * Officierskruis baton

Medal for Long, Honest and Faithful Service with the figure XXXV

References

* Ibrahim, Alfian. "Aceh and the Perang Sabil." ''Indonesian Heritage: Early Modern History''. Vol. 3, ed.

Anthony Reid Robert Anthony Maxwell Reid is a British racing driver, born on 17 May 1957 in Glasgow, Scotland. He was educated at Loretto School in Edinburgh. He lives in England. Formula cars He spent many years in Formula Three and other junior single-s ...

, Sian Jay and T. Durairajoo. Singapore: Editions Didier Millet, 2001. 132-133 *1907. ''De legercommandant J.C. van der Wijck.'' Het Nieuws van de Dag voor Nederlands Indië (06-04-1907) *1919. ''Jonkheer J.C. van der Wijck overleden.''

Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant ''NRC'', previously called ' (), is a daily morning newspaper published in the Netherlands by Mediahuis NRC. It is widely regarded as a newspaper of record in the country. History was first published on 1 October 1970 after a merger of the Amst ...

(03-10-1919) 1848 births 1919 deaths People from Bogor Royal Netherlands East Indies Army generals Royal Netherlands East Indies Army officers Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Aceh War Graduates of the Koninklijke Militaire Academie {{Netherlands-hist-stub