Andi Depu (August 1, 1907 – June 18, 1985) was an Indonesian revolutionary and leader of the

Mandarese people The Mandarese are an ethnic group in the Indonesian province of West Sulawesi in Sulawesi. The Mandar language belongs to the Northern subgroup of the South Sulawesi languages group of the Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian language fam ...

against the Dutch during the

Indonesian National Revolution The Indonesian National Revolution (), also known as the Indonesian War of Independence (, ), was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during A ...

. She was the first female high king or

Maharani Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...

in Indonesia.

Early life

Depu was born on August 1, 1907, in Tinambung, Polewali Mandar, in present-day

West Sulawesi West Sulawesi (), covering a land area of 17,152.99 km2 with its capital at Mamuju, is a province of Indonesia on the western side of Sulawesi (formerly Celebes) island, consisting 6 regencies ('' kabupaten''), namely Polewali Mandar, Ma ...

. She was a royal child of the 50th king of Balanipa, Laqju Kanna Idoro. As a child, Depu enjoyed climbing trees, riding horses and playing war games. She was also sociable and enjoyed hanging out with different people in Mandar.

Revolution

In 1923, Andi Depu married Andi Baso Pabiseang. Her married life eventually turned strained because of their contradicting beliefs—she was willing to defend the land against Dutch imperialism, while her husband was in favor of Dutch colonial governance over the Indonesian Archipelago—leading to their divorce. Depu and her son, Andi Parenrengi, joined the movement against the government of 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 ...

. Depu did not raise much suspicion as a dissident due to her gender. In 1939, Depu was crowned as ruler of Balanipa. After Imperial Japan overthrew the Dutch during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Depu led the establishment of the pro-Japanese '' Fujinkai'' in Mandar to tackle the struggles of women in the region. She was also an active supporter of the Islamic youth organization

Jong Islamieten Bond Jong Islamieten Bond (JIB) or ''Islamic Youth Association'' was a youth organization during the Dutch East Indies ruling established in Batavia on January 1, 1925. The organization was established by Indonesian young students with the first goa ...

. Depu founded and led the '' Kris Muda'' (), with the goal of defending Indonesia's independence following the

proclamation of Indonesian Independence The Proclamation of Indonesian Independence (, or simply ''Proklamasi'') was read at 10:00 Tokyo Standard Time on Friday 17 August 1945 in Jakarta. The declaration marked the start of the diplomatic and armed resistance of the Indonesian Nati ...

in 1945. The movement expanded to a number of places outside Mandar. When the Dutch returned to the East Indies after the end of the Japanese occupation, Depu made the Balanipa Palace the headquarters for Indonesian independence fighters in Mandar. Under her leadership, she was momentarily able to defend Mandar from reassertion of Dutch control. In one instance, the Dutch army saw the

flag of Indonesia The national flag of Indonesia is a simple Bicolour (flag), bicolor with two horizontal bands, red (top) and white (bottom) with an overall ratio of 2:3. It was introduced and hoisted in public during the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence ...

raised on a small pole in front of her house and demanded she lower it, but Depu grabbed the flag and waved it in front of them as a sign of defiance. In the end, however, the Dutch were able to capture Depu. In December 1949, she was arrested by the

Netherlands Indies Civil Administration The Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (, NICA) was a semi-military organisation, established in April 1944, tasked with the restoration of civil administration and law of Dutch colonial rule after the capitulation of the Japanese occupation ...

and was tortured. She was later released.

Death

Depu died on June 18, 1985, and was buried at the Panaikang Heroes Cemetery in

Makassar Makassar ( ), formerly Ujung Pandang ( ), is the capital of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andi Depu 1907 births 1985 deaths 20th-century Indonesian women 20th-century Indonesian people Indonesian collaborators with Imperial Japan Indonesian independence activists Indonesian monarchs People from West Sulawesi People of the Indonesian National Revolution Women in war in Indonesia Women soldiers