Construction Of Churches In The Sultanate Of Banten

Painting of churches in the archipelago during the Dutch colonialism of the VOC and the Dutch East Indies. (Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - No one doubts that Banten is one of the largest pepper dealers in the archipelago. The image made traders from various nations in the world come to Banten. From China, England, to the Netherlands. The openness of the Banten Sultanate is behind it.

Sultanate gates are always open to all traders. Indiscriminately. Especially after Banten began to perpetuate the peace agreement with the VOC trading airline. The Banten Sultanate did not even prohibit the Dutch from building churches.

The attractiveness of Banten pepper is second to none. This commodity has become the mainstay of the Banten Sultanate to become a major kingdom in the archipelago. Traders from all over the world are also interested. Asia and Europe especially. Their ships often go back and forth in Banten. The Banten Sultanate welcomed them with open arms. Indiscriminately. Especially religion.

The huge trade gains of pepper are the estuary. Even pepper is often used as a lesson for sultanate diplomacy. In order to build friendship, he thought. Therefore, the famous Banten Sultanate is a wise kingdom.

As a form of kindness, the Sultanate of Banten cooperates a lot with the traders who come. They were often greeted with great fanfare. Sometimes, at times, traders are given a piece of land to build a house or warehouse.

The Dutch trading company, the VOC, is aware of this. The intention to monopolize pepper trading in Banten was attended. However, the risks to be faced by the VOC are quite large. The VOC also tactics. They then chose Jayakarta to be a colony and succeeded.

After that, they played the Devide et Impera (political fighting) strategy to monopolize the Banten trade. The Company chose to side with Sultan Haji against his father, Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa.

In terms of state politics, he firmly opposes all forms of foreign colonialism against his country. Returning Jayakarta into Banten rule is the main goal, and therefore he never wanted to compromise with the Dutch. In 1645 Banten relations with the Netherlands got hotter.

In 1656 Banten troops moved around Batavia. In 1657 the Netherlands offered a peace agreement, but the agreement only benefited the Dutch, so it was rejected by the sultan. In 1580, the great war began (the Netherlands was in the hands of Sultan Hajj). This war ended on July 10, 1659, marked by the signing of the ceasefire agreement," said Tri Hatmadji in the book Ragam Pusaka Budaya Banten (2007).

The cooperation agreement opened up many spaces for the Dutch in Banten land. As a thank you, Sultan Haji allowed the VOC to occupy a fort. Fort Speelwijk, his name. Inside the fort, the Dutch were granted permission to establish a place of worship: church.

Emkuli juga memberikan kewenangan kepada Belanda untuk mengatur perdagangan pepper di wilayah tertentu. Belanda pun sempat diberikan kewenangan mengatur perdagangan pepper di Lampung. Kewenangan itu sebagai bukti bahwa hubungan VOC dan Banten semakin harmon.

Both Banten and the VOC also often send gifts to each other. The Banten Sultanate often gave quite a lot of pepper as a gift. On the other hand, the Dutch also gave European gifts for the number one person in Banten.

The harmonious relationship continued until the VOC government was replaced by the Dutch East Indies government. The Dutch increasingly have the authority to regulate Banten. In fact, the authority to establish a church is the full responsibility of the colonial government. Not a sultanate anymore.

The presence of the State Church near the Serang City square is proof of that. The church was founded in 1846. Everything from costs to employee salariesis borne by the Dutch East Indies government. Moreover, the Dutch who live in Banten are increasing day by day.

When the status of Dutch rule in Banten moved from the VOC to the Colonial Government, church construction, both as a regency building for Christian worship and as an institution, it was then the responsibility of the Colonial Government. The first stall from the center of Dutch East Indies was built in Serang City, which was marked by the establishment of the Residentie van Bantam office.

On the initiative of the Protestant Church in the Dutch Indies (Indische Kerk) based in Batavia, in 1846 a'state church' was established near Serang City Square. The management of the'state church' was appointed and paid by the Dutch Colonial Government. The construction of a church in Serang City is not without reason, because more than 200 Europeans (especially the Dutch). At that time they lived in the capital city. Most of them are Protestant adherents who have the right to get spiritual services from the Colonial Government," explained Mufti Ali in the book Misionarism in Banten (2021).