Lovers in Paradise

Author’s NoteOn the 27th May 1905 a Chinese Steamer was shipwrecked on the beach of Sanur about four miles from Badung in Bali. The Balinese looted the wreckage as they had done for centuries, but the Dutch Government claimed a huge indemnity from the Radja of Badung. He considered such a request an insult and refused to pay. This was the excuse the Dutch were waiting for and in 1906 they sent an expeditionary force into South Bali. Surrounded on all sides by the Dutch, the defenders, seeing that their cause was lost, decided to die rather than surrender. During the night of the 20th September the Prince set fire to the Palace and next morning opened the gates. Thousands of Balinese advanced slowly towards the Dutch guns. The men, sparkling with jewels, wore their ceremonial red, black and gold costumes, the women, carrying their children, wore pure white sarongs and were also covered in jewels and pearls. On a Throne supported by the tallest warriors, the Radja, a slender young man, sat pale and silent. Suddenly within fifty yards of the Dutch the Radja drew his kris from its scabbard. This was the signal and the Balinese drew their swords. They shared a curious exaltation at the thought of death. They dedicated themselves and the sacrifice of their bodies was but the shadow of reality. It was an offering to the Gods in the age-old struggle between good and evil. The Dutch Captain gave the order to fire and the slaughter began. The Radja fell and so did hundreds of his followers. Wounded women stabbed their babies for fear that they should survive and husbands killed their wives. The Balinese warriors and children, brandishing spears and knives, charged the firing cannon. Three times the Dutch ceased fire in an attempt to stop the slaughter, but the Balinese had decided to die. Apart from a few babies there were no survivors of the m******e. This was the end – the Dutch were now the Masters of all Bali. Today the square in Des Pasar, the former Badung where it took place, has become a football ground. In 1920 and in 1924 more temporary permits were given out to Catholic and Protestant Missionaries to carry on their work in Bali, but all their efforts were doomed to failure. In 1945 the Dutch East Indies established their independence. The Republic was proclaimed five years later and the whole archipelago took the name of Indonesia.