Airlangga

Born 1001; died 1049. King of the medieval state of Mataram on the island of Java.

In 1019, Airlangga ascended the throne of Mataram, and in 1022 he inherited the island of Bali from his father. By 1037 he had unified large parts of eastern and central Java. Known in the history of Indonesia as the “collector of Javan lands,” Airlangga claimed both temporal and divine power. Under his rule, Mataram became the dominant force in the central and eastern parts of the Malay Archipelago, although Srivijaya continued to predominate in the western part. An alliance was forged between the two states in 1035, when Airlangga took as his second wife a princess from Srivijaya. Airlangga encouraged the development of agriculture, trade, literature, and art, and he patronized Hinduism.

Shortly before his death, Airlangga divided his kingdom between his illegitimate sons. (Neither of his legal wives had borne him any children.) The two states thus formed were Djanggala and Kediri (Panjalu). Having divided his kingdom, Airlangga withdrew to an isolated monastery and became an ascetic.