Jayakatwang
Encyclopedia
Jayakatwang was the king of short lived second Kingdom of Kediri of Java
, after his overthrow of Kertanegara, the last king Singhasari
. He was eventually defeated by Raden Wijaya
, Kertanegara's son-in-law using Mongol troop that was invading Java
. Raden Wijaya would went to turn against the Mongol and found Majapahit, the greatest empire in Java.
, the first king of Singhasari. Jayakatwang was probably a descendant of the Kediri royal line, and thus held ambition to restore his line to power and rulership of Java.
His name is derived from Sanskrit
Jaya (victory) and Javanese
ketawang, (rising, or appearing).
Kediri is located in fertile rice
-producing area in Brantas River banks, approximately 80 km to the west of Singhasari, but separated from it by the Arjuno-Welirang
volcanoes and Mount Kawi
.
, was a man with ambition. In 1289, Mongol emissary came to Java to demand his submission to the Great Khan of the Yuan dynasty
. Kertanegara reject it, cut their ears and send them back to China. Anticipating Mongolian revenge, he preparing to thwart the forthcoming invasion by conquering important ports and kingdoms in Maritime Southeast Asia
. His most important expedition was Pamalayu expedition
to Sumatra
in 1292, where he send Javanese army to conquer Sumatra from various successor states of Srivijaya
.
When the bulk of Javanese army in overseas, Jayakatwang seize his chance and launched the coup against Singhasari. He launched diversionary attack to the northern Java, where his troops draw the remaining Singhasari troops left in the island. With Singhasari defenseless he attack the capital city.
Kertanegara was killed along with many courtiers in his palace, apparently when they were drinking palm wine
in a religious Tantric Buddhism ceremony. Jayakatwang then declare himself ruler of Java and king of the restored Kediri.
Among few surviving relatives of Kertanegara was Raden Wijaya, who fled to Madura
where he was sheltered by its regent, Arya Wiraraja. Following Wiraraja plea, Jayakatwang forgive Wijaya, who in return submitting himself to Jayakatwang. Jayakatwang gave Wijaya land in Tarik forest in Brantas delta, to built a village that was later called Majapahit, from the sour beal tree that grow in the area.
sent by Kublai Khan
finally arrived in Java. Sailing from Quanzhou
, and after journey from China through Champa
and Karimata, landing at the port of Tuban
in early 1293. Raden Wijaya seeing this event as opportunity to revenge Kertanegara's death and claim the throne of Java. He soon offered submission and allied himself with the Mongol, who didn't aware on the recent political change in Java.
The Mongolian expedition consisted of 20.000 army with 1.000 boats and a year of grain provision. The expedition consisted mostly of southern Chinese conscript. They arrived at port of Tuban
and soon preparing their fleet to enter the rivers of Java.
With Wijaya as guide, Mongol troop declared war against Jayakatwang. Wijaya's and his Mongol allies defeated captured Jayaktwang's navy in Surabaya
at delta of Brantas river. Following the victory they easily marched along Brantas to Kediri in Java's interior. After heavy fight, they besieged
and conquered Kediri. Jayakatwang was captured and then executed, in March 1293.
Thus the troops sent to Java that was intended to punish the king that insulted the Mongol (Kertanegara), ended up revenging his death and killing his usurper (Jayakatwang).
, especially in the rise of Majapahit under Raden Wijaya.
In disguise of returning to his domain in Majapahit to prepare tribute for the Mongol, Raden Wijaya would went to betray his Mongol allies, who were exhausted after the war with Jayakatwang. He would drive them from Java and establishing Majapahit as the one of the greatest empire that rise from modern territory of Indonesia.
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
, after his overthrow of Kertanegara, the last king Singhasari
Singhasari
Singhasari was a kingdom located in east Java between 1222 and 1292. The kingdom succeeded Kingdom of Kediri as the dominant kingdom in eastern Java.-Foundation:...
. He was eventually defeated by Raden Wijaya
Raden Wijaya
Raden Wijaya was a Javanese King, the founder and the first monarch of Majapahit empire. The history of his founding of Majapahit was written in several records, including Pararaton and Negarakertagama...
, Kertanegara's son-in-law using Mongol troop that was invading Java
Mongol invasion of Java
In 1293, Kublai Khan, the Great Khan of the Mongol Empire and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty, sent a large invasion fleet to Java with 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers...
. Raden Wijaya would went to turn against the Mongol and found Majapahit, the greatest empire in Java.
Background
Since 1271, Jayakatwang was viceroy (or governor) of Kediri, a vassal state of Singhasari. Kediri was formerly the dominant kingdom in Java until overthrown in 1222 by Ken ArokKen Arok
Ken Arok was the founder and first ruler of the Singhasari Kingdom, an ancient Hindu-Budhist kingdom in the East Java area of Indonesia. He was considered as the founder of Rajasa dynasty of both the Singhasari and Majapahit line of monarchs. He came from humble origins but subsequently rose to...
, the first king of Singhasari. Jayakatwang was probably a descendant of the Kediri royal line, and thus held ambition to restore his line to power and rulership of Java.
His name is derived from Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Jaya (victory) and Javanese
Javanese language
Javanese language is the language of the Javanese people from the central and eastern parts of the island of Java, in Indonesia. In addition, there are also some pockets of Javanese speakers in the northern coast of western Java...
ketawang, (rising, or appearing).
Kediri is located in fertile rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
-producing area in Brantas River banks, approximately 80 km to the west of Singhasari, but separated from it by the Arjuno-Welirang
Arjuno-Welirang
Arjuno-Welirang is a stratovolcano in the province of East Java on Java, Indonesia. It is a twin volcano, with the 'twins' being Arjuno and Welirang. There is at least one other stratovolcano in the area, and there are around 10 pyroclastic cones nearby. They are located in a 6 km line between...
volcanoes and Mount Kawi
Mount Kawi
Mount Kawi or Gunung Kawi is a stratovolcano in East Java on Java island, Indonesia. It is a massive volcano, adjacent to Mount Butak. There is no historical record of its eruptions....
.
Rebellion against Singhasari
Kertanegara, the fifth ruler of SinghasariSinghasari
Singhasari was a kingdom located in east Java between 1222 and 1292. The kingdom succeeded Kingdom of Kediri as the dominant kingdom in eastern Java.-Foundation:...
, was a man with ambition. In 1289, Mongol emissary came to Java to demand his submission to the Great Khan of the Yuan dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
. Kertanegara reject it, cut their ears and send them back to China. Anticipating Mongolian revenge, he preparing to thwart the forthcoming invasion by conquering important ports and kingdoms in Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia refers to the maritime region of Southeast Asia as opposed to mainland Southeast Asia and includes the modern countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, East Timor and Singapore....
. His most important expedition was Pamalayu expedition
Pamalayu expedition
The Pamalayu expedition was a military expeditionary force sent by King Kertanegara of Singhasari to conquer the Sumatran Melayu Kingdom. It was decreed in 1275, though perhaps not undertaken until later.Little is known about the results of the expedition...
to Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
in 1292, where he send Javanese army to conquer Sumatra from various successor states of Srivijaya
Srivijaya
Srivijaya was a powerful ancient thalassocratic Malay empire based on the island of Sumatra, modern day Indonesia, which influenced much of Southeast Asia. The earliest solid proof of its existence dates from the 7th century; a Chinese monk, I-Tsing, wrote that he visited Srivijaya in 671 for 6...
.
When the bulk of Javanese army in overseas, Jayakatwang seize his chance and launched the coup against Singhasari. He launched diversionary attack to the northern Java, where his troops draw the remaining Singhasari troops left in the island. With Singhasari defenseless he attack the capital city.
Kertanegara was killed along with many courtiers in his palace, apparently when they were drinking palm wine
Palm wine
Palm wine also called Palm Toddy also called "Kallu" written in Malayalam and கள்ளு in Tamil or simply Toddy is an alcoholic beverage created from the sap of various species of palm tree such as the palmyra, and coconut palms...
in a religious Tantric Buddhism ceremony. Jayakatwang then declare himself ruler of Java and king of the restored Kediri.
Among few surviving relatives of Kertanegara was Raden Wijaya, who fled to Madura
Madura
Madura is an Indonesian island off the northeastern coast of Java. The island comprises an area of approximately 4,250 km². Madura is administered as part of the East Java province. It is separated from Java by the narrow Strait of Madura.-History:...
where he was sheltered by its regent, Arya Wiraraja. Following Wiraraja plea, Jayakatwang forgive Wijaya, who in return submitting himself to Jayakatwang. Jayakatwang gave Wijaya land in Tarik forest in Brantas delta, to built a village that was later called Majapahit, from the sour beal tree that grow in the area.
Mongol invasion
Mongol expedition of the Yuan dynastyYuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
sent by Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan , born Kublai and also known by the temple name Shizu , was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China...
finally arrived in Java. Sailing from Quanzhou
Quanzhou
Quanzhou is a prefecture-level city in Fujian province, People's Republic of China. It borders all other prefecture-level cities in Fujian but two and faces the Taiwan Strait...
, and after journey from China through Champa
Champa
The kingdom of Champa was an Indianized kingdom that controlled what is now southern and central Vietnam from approximately the 7th century through to 1832.The Cham people are remnants...
and Karimata, landing at the port of Tuban
Tuban
Tuban is a town located on the north coast of Java, in Tuban Regency, approximately 100 km west of Surabaya, the capital of East Java. Tuban is surrounded by Lamongan in the east, Bojonegoro in the south and Rembang, Central Java in the west....
in early 1293. Raden Wijaya seeing this event as opportunity to revenge Kertanegara's death and claim the throne of Java. He soon offered submission and allied himself with the Mongol, who didn't aware on the recent political change in Java.
The Mongolian expedition consisted of 20.000 army with 1.000 boats and a year of grain provision. The expedition consisted mostly of southern Chinese conscript. They arrived at port of Tuban
Tuban
Tuban is a town located on the north coast of Java, in Tuban Regency, approximately 100 km west of Surabaya, the capital of East Java. Tuban is surrounded by Lamongan in the east, Bojonegoro in the south and Rembang, Central Java in the west....
and soon preparing their fleet to enter the rivers of Java.
With Wijaya as guide, Mongol troop declared war against Jayakatwang. Wijaya's and his Mongol allies defeated captured Jayaktwang's navy in Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
at delta of Brantas river. Following the victory they easily marched along Brantas to Kediri in Java's interior. After heavy fight, they besieged
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
and conquered Kediri. Jayakatwang was captured and then executed, in March 1293.
Thus the troops sent to Java that was intended to punish the king that insulted the Mongol (Kertanegara), ended up revenging his death and killing his usurper (Jayakatwang).
Legacy
Jayakatwang restoration of Kediri was short-lived, but the event that happened during his reign played important part in the history of Java and IndonesiaIndonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, especially in the rise of Majapahit under Raden Wijaya.
In disguise of returning to his domain in Majapahit to prepare tribute for the Mongol, Raden Wijaya would went to betray his Mongol allies, who were exhausted after the war with Jayakatwang. He would drive them from Java and establishing Majapahit as the one of the greatest empire that rise from modern territory of Indonesia.