Looking at Jakarta today it is difficult to imagine that this sprawling urban area once started out out as a humble quarter built for Dutch employees in 1611. Jacques l'Hermite purchased 50 fathoms (1 fathom = 6 feet) square of land on the east bank of the Ciliwung River. It was in this area that the Dutch built Nassau, a stone structure which both housed employees of the Company and stored goods. When Nassau became inadequate for the size of their production, the company built another building, called Mauritz, parallel to the first. This was the starting point of the development of Batavia by the Dutch:
a map created in 1619 of Old Batavia
In 1619, when the Dutch officially named the city Batavia, they also developed a blueprint for the area. It resembled a Dutch city as closely as was possible in this stagnant climate, with a fortress, and a network of roads and canals neatly laid out in a geometric pattern. The canals were created to defend the city and solve drainage problems. The canals were built of limestone coral and ran through the middle of the roads. There was a constant movement of boats from the interior and smaller boats unloading goods from oversea ships. The canals were flanked by evergreen trees and benches on which the Dutch could sit and relax in the cooler evenings.
The Canals as depicted by F.J Bertuch, 1824
Both the town and the fortress
were surrounded by walls of coral rock, appearing impenetrable to visitors.
The fortress was situated on the north side, facing the sea, and surrounded
by moats. It contained a chapel, a prison, and warehouses as well as the
governer's home. The square of the fortress was ajoined to the city center
by a wide avenue intersected with streets. This center was thriving with
fish, corn, and fowl markets, slaughterhouses, an area for workers to twist
ropes, and a place for building ships.
the new settlement in Westevreden
Dwellings in the city were made of various construction materials; some were made of split bamboo, plastered with clay, and covered in leaves of coconut trees. These homes had a low entrance and sometimes had no doors or windows. Other homes were large with decorative ornaments and vast pleasure gardens.
Many of the Dutch settlers attempted to recreate their homeland by clustering thier red-tiled houses in close proximity on the banks of the canal. Although this practice was successful in Holland, the climate in the tropics proved to make this lifestyle impossible. The canals became so clogged with wast that the settlers dumped into them that they became a health hazzard. Human waste was dumped into the canals every evening, large lizards and crocodiles made the water dangerous, and the city walls prevented a free flow of fresh air through the town.
This proved to create many health problems within the city's population and mortality rates began to soar. Batavia became known as the "White Man's Grave" for good reasons:
chart of Captain Cook's account of deaths in the Batavia area by ethnic backgrounds
This deterioration of the city caused the inhabitants to look elsewhere for place to live. They eventually turned to Weltevreden, an area south of the original settlement with a higher altitude and a more fresh air. The old city was turned into an area used only for business during the daytime hours and eventually fell into decay.
In the new area of Weltevreden the Dutch laid out wide roads, a railway, and canals. The roads typicallly lined the canals and were decorated with shade bearing trees similarly to the old town.
Map of the new Batavia, notice Westevreden in the upper left hand side of the map.
The new Batavia became a hub for tourism and trade on the island of Java. Visitors arrived by boat in the newly developed port, Tanjung Priok, and traveled down the railways, roads and canals to their accomodations.
Click here to learn about the new growth of Jakarta and the Jabotabek 2003 plan