Bandung Sea of Fire

 Bandung Sea of Fire

 

 The Bandung Sea of Fire incident was one form of the great struggle of the Indonesian people in defending the country after independence. The Bandung Sea of Fire incident occurred on March 23, 1946.

 This incident was motivated by Indonesia's post-independence security and defense conditions which were still not completely stable.

 In fact, in some areas it is still dominated by power struggles and battles with invaders and allies.

 Allied and TKR clash

 The situation broke out when Dutch people who had just been released from the detention camp began to carry out actions that disrupted security. As a result, clashes between Allied troops and TKR could not be avoided.

 On the night of November 24 1945, TKR and other struggle agencies launched attacks on Allied headquarters in northern Bandung, including the Homan Hotel and Preanger Hotel which were the Allied headquarters.

 Three days after the attack on the Allied headquarters, MacDonald delivered an ultimatum to the Governor of West Java to immediately vacate the North Bandung area, including armed troops, no later than 12.00 on November 29 1945.

 With this ultimatum, the Allies divided the city of North Bandung into their territory, while South Bandung was under the control of the Indonesian government.

 However, the Indonesian fighters did not give up. Indonesian troops actually responded to the ultimatum by establishing guerrilla posts in various places.

 Then in December 1945, several battles occurred in various places, including Cihaurgeulis, Sukajadi, Pasir Kaliki and Viaduct.

 The Allies tried to capture the Railway Hall but the attempt failed. The Allies also tried to free Dutch internees (exiled people) in Ciater. Until early 1946, fighting flared up more and more sporadically.

 The End of the Bandung Sea of Fire Incident

 On March 23 1946, the allies delivered a second ultimatum to Prime Minister Syahrir that no later than 24.00 on March 24 1946, Indonesian troops must have left South Bandung 10 to 11 kilometers from the city center.

 With the excuse of saving the Indonesian Republic Army (TRI) from destruction, Syahrir urged Nasution to fulfill the Ultimatum. However, Syahrir was of the opinion that TRI was not yet able to match the strength of the Allied troops.

 In the end, Indonesia and its allies did not reach an agreement. However, TRI took a middle path, namely

 

 left Bandung by burning down Bandung before the city was abandoned.