Battle of Aceh (1521)

the Battle of Aceh was a military engagement between the rising Sultanate of Aceh and the expeditionary Portuguese force in the northern Sumatra city of Aceh, the Portuguese were soundly defeated alongside its leader.

Battle of Aceh (1521)

the Cakra Donya Bell, it is said that the Portuguese once captured this bell and lost it in a battle with the Acehnese
DateJune 1521
Location
Banda Aceh, Sumatra
Result Acehnese victory
Belligerents
Portuguese Empire Aceh Sultanate Sultanate of Aceh
Commanders and leaders
Jorge De Brito Ibrahim Syah
Strength
200 men 1000-8000 men
8 elephants
Casualties and losses
60 or 70 killed Unknown

Background

the Portuguese conquered Malacca in 1511. They rapidly gained the hatred of Muslim traders who preferred to move to other port cities in the region, most importantly Aceh, the city was a strategic location at the northern tip of Sumatra, which gave it access to trade in the Indian Ocean area and the Red Sea, which would soon enter a fierce war with the Portuguese and Aceh being the most persistent of all Malayan enemies.[1]

the conflicts between Aceh and Portugal started in 1519 when a Portuguese ship under Gaspar de Costa was lost near Aceh and attacked by the Acehnese with its crews killed, Gaspar was captured and later ransomed, and it was not long after this another ship under Joano de Lima was attacked near Aceh. All its crews were massacred,[2] These incidents enraged the Portuguese and prompted an attack on Aceh.[3]

Battle

a Portuguese fleet consisting of 200 men was gathered and led by Jorge de Brito, the Portuguese left their base in India, Goa, they arrived in Sumatra in June where they met the Acehnese troops led by Ibrahim, the brother of Ali Mughayat Syah,[4] the Acehnese troops consist of 1000 men and 8 elephants[5] while other sources state as high as 8000,[6] the Acehnese at first tried to negotiate, they sent a Portuguese prisoner with gifts, however, he changed sides and persuaded Jorge to attack them,[7], Jorge was swayed as well by his men, as it would be easy to defeat the Achenese and sack its capital since it was a rich city, however, the Portuguese underestimated the Achenese, and they launched their assault on Aceh,[8] and in a furious fight the attack was broken and Jorge de Brito was killed in the assault,[9] alongside 60[10] or 70[11] were killed.

the Portuguese troops left much loot for the Acehnese, various Portuguese weaponry scattered on the battlefield in addition, the Acehnese also found a large bell called Cakra Donya which can be still seen today, the retreating Portuguese escaped to their fort in Pidie.[12]

Aftermath

the Achenese chose to follow up with their victory and in the same year Ibrahim gathered 1000 men and 50 elephants and marched into Pidie capturing the fort, killing its governor Manuel Henriquez alongside 35 men, and 1524 they attacked Pasai fort with 15000 men and forced its governor Andre Henriquez to surrender,[13] the Acehnese victories in northern Sumatra established their supremacy and saved Sumatra from European Hegemony for several centuries and had the support of the Muslim traders from old trading centers of Pidie and Pasai.[14]

See also

References
  1. Amirul Hadi, Aceh and Portuguese, a study of the struggle of Islam in Southeast Asia, p. 51
  2. Amirul Hadi, p. 53
  3. Dien Majid, Catatan pinggir sejarah Aceh, perdagangan, diplomasi, dan perjuangan rakyat, p. 36
  4. Ahmad Ali Murtadho, Kabut Gelap Nusantara (Kota Gresik dalam arus Penjajah), p. 19
  5. Amirul Hadi, p. 53
  6. Dien Majid, p. 37
  7. Teuku Iskandar, De Hikayat Atjeh. ‘S-Gravenhage: Nederlandsche Boek-en Steendrukkerij V. H. H. L. Smits, p. 34-5
  8. Jose Manuel Garcia, Fernão de Magalhães, Herói, traidor ou mito: a história do primeiro homem a abraçar o mundo
  9. Dien Majid, p. 37
  10. John Villers, Aceh, Melaka and the "Hystoria dos cercos de Malaca" of Jorge de Lemos, Portuguese Studies, Vol. 17, p. 76
  11. Jose Manuel Garcia.
  12. Dien Majid, p. 37
  13. Amirul Hadi, p. 53
  14. Amirul Hadi, p. 55
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