Mataram
Mataram
two Indonesian states on Java, one existing from the eighth to the 11th century and the other from the 16th to the 18th century.
The first Mataram state, lasting from about 725 to 1042, was formed out of an appanage of the Kalinga state, which had disintegrated. It was an early feudal state with strong elements of Oriental despotism. The ruler was the secular and spiritual head of the state. The dynasties were Hindu; a Buddhist dynasty ruled the state only in the eighth and ninth centuries. The socioeconomic structure was based on the commune. Mataram maintained relations with other parts of the archipelago and with Cambodia, India, and China. In its efforts to expand its territory on Java and gain hegemony over the Malay Archipelago, Mataram clashed with the Sumatran state of Srivajaya at the turn of the 11th century. Airlangga, who came to the throne in 1019, attempted to unite all Java into a single state. Mataram and Srivajaya delineated their spheres of influence: Mataram’s rule was recognized in the central and eastern parts of the archipelago, and Srivajaya’s in the western part. In 1042, Airlangga divided Mataram into two states, Kediri and Djanggala. Many temples were built at the time of the first Mataram state, including Borobudur and Prambanan.
The second Mataram state (1575-1755) arose after a long period of feudal strife which began with the disintegration of Majapahit and the weakening of the coastal city states through Portuguese incursions. Mataram was a developed feudal state and the first large Javanese state ruled by a Muslim dynasty. The centralizing policy of its rulers Senapati (ruled 1575-1601) and Agung (ruled 1613-45) extended the state’s power over central Java as far as Bantam and eastern Java and brought about the destruction of the last Hindu states on Java. In 1641, Agung adopted the title of sultan. He fought unsuccessfully against the Dutch East India Company, besieging Batavia in 1619 and in 1628-29. In the 1670’s the Dutch intervened in the dynastic conflicts, helped the sultanate in its struggle against an uprising led by Trunodjoyo, and placed on the throne their protege, who ceded to the company several important regions of Mataram. The same period also saw a new anti-Dutch uprising led by Surapati, followed by three Javanese wars of succession (1703-05, 1719-23, 1749-55), in which the Dutch actively intervened. As a result Mataram lost the greater part of its possessions and became a vassal of the company. In 1755 it was divided into the states of Jogjakarta and Surakarta, both dependent on the Dutch.
IU. V. MARETIN