Dutch Intervention In Bali (1858) on:
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Dutch intervention in Bali of 10–26 December 1858 was the fourth 
When the deposed prince of Jembrana, who had gone into exile in Buleleng, invaded his former princedom, the people failed to rise in support. The Dutch had the chiefs of Buleleng banish him from Bali. One ''pungawwa'', Njoman Gempol of Bandjar Djawa, opposed this and tried to foment popular unrest against the Dutch by spreading rumours (true or false) of Dutch misrule on Java. Summoned by the Dutch authorities he refused to appear, and when the chiefs were asked to extradite him they refused. Towards the end of 1858 three warships, three transports and two ''kruisboten'' (cutters) under Lieutenant Captain (''Kapitein-luitenant ter zee'') van Hasselt left Java for Buleleng with a force consisting of the 13th Infantry Battalion and two mortars under Lieutenant Colonel
punitive expedition
A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beha ...
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) on the island. This expedition was directed against certain chiefs (''pungawwa'') of Buleleng
Buleleng Regency (; , ''Kabupatén Buléléng''), is a regency () of the province of Bali, Indonesia. It stretches along the north side of the island of Bali from the Bali Strait in the west (separating Bali from East Java) almost to the eastern ...
who were fomenting revolt and opposition to the Dutch-appointed regent.
After the Dutch intervention of 1849, the prince of Bangli
Bangli Regency (; ) is the one and only landlocked regency (''kabupaten'') of the province of Bali, Indonesia. It covers a land area of 520.80 km2, and had a population of 259,392 in 2024. It is bordered by Badung Regency to its west, Giany ...
was given charge of the administration of Buleleng. Unable to win the confidence of either the chiefs or the people, he resigned in 1854 and the Dutch appointed a regent
In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
under the supervision of a Dutch ''controleur'' (comptroller). In Jembrana
Jembrana Regency (; ) is a regency (''kabupaten'') in the southwest of Bali, Indonesia. It has an area of 841.8 km2 and had a population of 329,353 in 2024.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Jembrana Dalam Angka 20 ...
the people revolted against the oppressions of the restored prince, and the Dutch replaced him with another regent and two advisors, one Dutch the other approved by the local chiefs.
When the deposed prince of Jembrana, who had gone into exile in Buleleng, invaded his former princedom, the people failed to rise in support. The Dutch had the chiefs of Buleleng banish him from Bali. One ''pungawwa'', Njoman Gempol of Bandjar Djawa, opposed this and tried to foment popular unrest against the Dutch by spreading rumours (true or false) of Dutch misrule on Java. Summoned by the Dutch authorities he refused to appear, and when the chiefs were asked to extradite him they refused. Towards the end of 1858 three warships, three transports and two ''kruisboten'' (cutters) under Lieutenant Captain (''Kapitein-luitenant ter zee'') van Hasselt left Java for Buleleng with a force consisting of the 13th Infantry Battalion and two mortars under Lieutenant Colonel Karel Felix van Steijn van Hensbroek
Karel may refer to:
People
* Karel (given name)
* Karel (surname)
* Charles Karel Bouley (born 1962), American talk radio personality known on air as Karel
* Christiaan Karel Appel (1921–2006), Dutch painter and sculptor
Business
* Karel Elec ...
. The total number of troops was 707 infantryman under 12 officers. Political control of the expedition fell to assistant residents Bosch and van Bloemen Waanders.
On 11 December 1858 the Dutch forces landed without resistance and began marching on Bandjar Djawa. They intended to arrest Njoman Gempol, but he fled into the ''kampung
A kampong (this term is in Za'aba Spelling, ''kampung'' in both modern Malay and Indonesian) is a term for a type of village in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore and a "dock" in Cambodia. The term applies to traditional villages, especi ...
s''. The show of force—and sacking of villages—was enough to get the chiefs to comply with the order to extradite Gompal. He was betrayed by some farmers and handed over. By the end of December the troops had returned to Surabaya
Surabaya is the capital city of East Java Provinces of Indonesia, province and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. Located on the northeastern corner of Java island, on the Madura Strai ...
. Gompal and his fellow chief, Ida Mahe Rai, were exiled to Java.
Notes
{{reflistSources
*W. A. Terwogt. 1900. ''Het land van Jan Pieterszoon Coen. Geschiedenis van de Nederlanders in oost-Indië.'' Hoorn: P. Geerts. *G. Kepper. 1900. ''Wapenfeiten van het Nederlands Indische Leger, 1816–1900''. The Hague: M. M. Cuvee. *A. J. A. Gerlach. 1876. ''Nederlandse heldenfeiten in Oost Indë.'' 3 vols. The Hague: Gebroeders Belinfante. Conflicts in 1858 History of Bali Dutch conquest of Indonesia December 1858 1858 in Asia