III. Protecting the Emerald Empire
The Netherlands’ most precious jewel
The 17th century is known in the Netherlands as the Golden Century and with good reason. Though the Netherlands – or the Republic of the United Provinces as it was called in that period – lacked the territorial size or population of powers like Spain, France or England, it was very much a great power which was often envied by them. It’s merchant fleet were omnipresent while the Dutch navy was more than a match for it’s competitors. Though the Netherlands didn’t face economic decline as such in the following 18th century – or Silver Century [1] –, until 1830 it was the richest country in the world, there certainly was stagnation compared to other countries. The resulting decline in economic and diplomatic status would continue during the 19th century and it’s Industrial Revolution, as the Kingdom of the Netherlands lacked the population and natural resources to be an earlier adopter of steam-powered industry.
As the United Kingdom of the Netherlands came to a dramatic end, the choice was made for the geopolitical anonymity of neutrality. This would remain a broadly supported policy for over a hundred years. At least, in Europe. Because there was something that separated the Netherlands from other geopolitical minnows like Belgium, Denmark or Sweden: the Indies. For with the Dutch East Indies, the Netherlands possessed the third largest colonial empire (in terms of population) and one of the few truly profitable colonial possessions. The Dutch were certainly not being neutral and aloof in the ‘Girdle of Emerald’, as the colony was affectionally nick-named. The possessions of the once-omnipotent VOC[2] had been transferred to the Dutch state after it’s bankruptcy and would be more and more expanded throughout the 19th century.
The size of the European Netherlands (the windmill) compared to the size of ‘Tropical’ Netherlands (the palmtree).
Expansion of the Dutch East Indies
During the expansion, the Dutch initially didn’t have much to fear, militarily speaking. Dutch military technology or arms production was far from a frontrunner, but it’s technological advantage over native powers was significant enough that the outcome of a military conflict was almost [3] never in doubt. European powers, against which the Netherlands did
not enjoy any technological advantage, were dissuaded from interfering in the East Indies by the policy of neutrality and British economic interests. The security of the colony was further enhanced by the fact that the situation in Europe forced the great powers to keep their capital ships mainly in their home waters, to guard against each other. Because of this, it could be argued that in around 1880 the Royal Netherlands Navy was in possession of the most powerful ship in the region, the
Zr. Ms. Koning der Nederlanden[4]! This couldn’t be argued for long though.
Lithographic of Zr. Ms. ramtowership Koning der Nederlanden, 1876
The Netherlands wasn’t the only country that was expanding it’s empire in Asia. The same can be said for the British, French, American and even the Japanese at this point. As more and more of Asia was colonized, competition for the remainder increased. As a consequence of that competition between great powers, the arms race increased. In an attempt to gain dominance over the others, new, and increasingly powerful, ships were build. This had the side effect that there were now second-rate capital ships available for service overseas. The navy in the Dutch East Indies was becoming outgunned and outpaced, and with it the defense of the prized colony. That defense, and any solution to its weakness, was further complicated by the fragmentation of its organization. The Dutch naval forces were divided in three separate commands:
- The Auxiliary Squadron. Formed by ships of the Koninklijke Marine that were detached to the Indies. This force was under control of the Ministry of Navy and meant to guard the colony against an external enemy.
- The Indische Military Marine, or Indian Military Navy. Controlled by the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, with the ships being paid for by the Ministry of Colonial Affairs, while the personal was in service of the Navy. The Indian Military Navy assisted in the efforts to expand Dutch authority in the archipelago.
- The Gouvernementsmarine, or Governmental Navy. Naval police force paid for and under control of the Governor-General.
Including the
Koninklijke Nederlands-Indisch Leger, the Royal Dutch Indian Army [5] (KNIL), there were four military organizations reporting to two separate ministries (the Ministry of Navy and the Ministry of Colonial Affairs), each with their own wants and interests. This fragmentation made the question of how to defend the Indies a problem of enormous proportions. To solve this gordian knot two commissions were convened, one on the question of how the naval forces should be organized, the other for the defense of the Indies as a whole. As we shall see, while the solutions of these commissions were not without merit, the Dutch government proved not to be an Alexander.
‘Coups de main’
Frederik Herman Pieter van Alphen, Commander of the Navy in the Indies 1883-1885
In the discussions regarding the defense of the Netherlands, it is clear that neither the KNIL nor the Navy were inclined to see the problem as something they should solve together. Both organizations were afraid that the other would make them a secondary or even auxiliary force and thus made all possible efforts to achieve their own primacy. This way of thinking clouded their perception of the casus to be solved, as both the KNIL and the Navy saw only those types of conflicts as likely, which put their own service in the center of it’s defense.
For the commander of the Navy in the Indies,
schout-bij-nacht [6] Fredrik van Alphen, the only two likely scenarios were (a) violations of the country’s neutrality in the outer regions of the colony and (b)
coups de main, a surprise attack on one or two ports on Java. Both scenarios offered different advantages to the Navy in their struggle against the KNIL. The first (a) stressed the importance of the Outer Regions, where the ships of the Navy with all their mobility could operate, and the, pretty much Java-based KNIL, could not. A
coups de main meanwhile, had the advantage that such a operation by a foreign power, unable to concentrate forces without giving away the element of surprise, would be within the realm of possibilities for the KM to defeat.
The position of Van Alphen was welcomed by the Ministry of Colonial Affairs, which struggled with the question how to pay for the defense of the enormous archipelago. If the only threat would be from relatively weak forces, the military apparatus wouldn’t have to be build up to greatly either, with all its financial challenges that would entail. For this reason there were many in the Navy and certainly the KNIL, which opposed the views of Van Alphen. Despite that, the idea of the
coups de main as the principle scenario to be defeated, would cast a long shadow on the defense of the Dutch East Indies.
The ‘Fundamentals’ of 1892
As the 19th century was nearing its end, Dutch expansion in the East Indies was nearly at completion. With that, the internal threats to the colony lessened, but the external threats grew larger. It was clear that a concerted and revised effort to defend the Dutch possessions in Asia was necessary. Two successive state-commissions were appointed by the government of the Netherlands to lay the groundwork from which that defense could be formed. The first (or naval) commission would look into the Navy’s organization and role in the defense of the Dutch East Indies, while the second (or defense) commission would see into the defense of the colony as a whole. The composition of the defense commissions is interesting to note, as it consisted of not only representatives of the Navy and KNIL, but also of the Inspector of Engineers, lieutenant-general Joachim Kromhout, of the Dutch Army. This last addition is curious, as the Dutch Army had practically nothing to do with the defense of the Indies. In case of a war against a foreign enemy, there were plans to send officers and maybe a brigade of men to aid in the defense, but nothing more substantial than that. In fact, Dutch conscripts were constitutionally banned from deployment to the colonies. The participation of Kromhout only makes sense when one considers the bad relationship between the KNIL and the Navy, as those two needed a neutral arbiter!
Lieutenant-General Joachim Kromhout, peacekeeper avant la lettre
If there had been the hope that these two commissions would result in a firm bedrock for the military power of the Dutch East Indies to grow on, those were dashed, with the two commissions and the government all sharing in the blame.
The naval commission was soon split in two groups, with a majority wanting to keep the Indian Military Navy and with that, a focus on internal security, while the minority warned for the increasing external threat. In spite of that there was still a unified advice to the government: The Indian Military Navy would phase out over time, with the Aceh War winding down. With that, the two remaining naval structures would the Auxiliary Squadron and the Governmental Navy, with the colonial administration paying more into the former. This constituted a tacit acceptance of the
coups de main as the main threat to the colony as was stated by the minister of Colonial Affairs.
Unexpectedly the defense commission was act more unified than expected. It could be the work of ‘peacekeeper’ Kromhout but that hasn’t been proven. Regardless, the commission came to a military (meaning army and navy combined) union of purpose in case of war against a foreign power. In that case the main defensive effort would be focused on the island of Java, and more precisely Batavia as the center of Dutch colonial administration. The Navy would act directly against the invasion forces close to their landing zones. The KNIL would do the same but only once internal stability and colonial authority was certain. Here we clearly see the role of the KNIL as a police-army. The Navy should consist of a mixed fleet in two parts:
- Four ‘strijders’ or ‘fighters, meaning large slow-moving armored ships supported by fast but unseaworthy torpedoboats. The characteristics of these ships made stationing near their expected area of operations (West-Java) necessary.
- Six cruisers to defend the Outer Regions against coups de main, protect neutrality and escort troop shipments from the Outer Regions to Java. They could also be used to scout against the enemy force moving towards Java but that wasn’t deemed as necessary, the commission had already decided where that was going to land!
As the role of the two commissions was only advisory, their recommendations had to be turned into policy by the government. This policy became know as the ‘
Grondslagen’ or ‘Fundamentals’ for the defense of the Indies against a foreign enemy. These were broadly the following:
- Centre of this defense would be West-Java but only in a late stadium would KNIL forces be concentrated there to avoid internal instability.
- There would be a second naval base at Tjandong Priok (near Batavia) to accommodate naval forces countering an enemy invasion nearby.
These two fundamentals are not surprising to us by themselves. The devil is in the details however. Where the defense commission wanted all efforts to be made for the defense of West-Java, was this less pronounced in the final policy. Soerabaja (on East-Java) was the main base of the Navy and building up Tandjong Priok to that level was to costly for the liberal government. This also weakened the union of purpose between the KNIL and the Navy as stated in the report of the defense commission. Besides that, there was a glaring error in both the work of the commissions and the fundamentals: the position of Java as the only part of the colony that was truly important. For slowly but surely, the importance of the Outer Regions relative to the capital island grew and grew.[7]
- Also named because of the large sums earned by lending money to foreign powers.
- Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, United East India Company.
- Almost is the right word, for the Netherlands would fight a bloody guerilla war in Atjeh (or Aceh) from 1873. Though the last major engagement would be in 1914 (more than 40 years later!), one could argue that the area was never truly pacified. Even before the Japanese would land on Sumatra in 1942 (OTL of course 😉 ) there was a popular uprising which ended tenuous Dutch rule forever. Might do a chapter on Atjeh if it becomes relevant.
- King of the Netherlands.
- While the Dutch Indian Army received the title of ‘Royal’ in 1836, when it was added to its standard, colloquially it was called the Dutch Indian Army or Indisch Leger/Indian Army. Only in the 1930s would the abbreviation KNIL become widespread.
- Rear-admiral. Literally: sheriff-by-night, though it is also thought that schout is from the Dutch word schouwt or to survey..
- Everything in the update is as OTL.
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I first planned to write an update up to the First World War but fear that it might make it too long in time and length. Feedback on the latter very appreciated, just like feedback on anything else!
