Colonial War Booty: Military Violence in the Colonies

Some of these conflicts lasted a long time, such as the Java War (1825-1830) and the Aceh War (1873-1914). More often than not, however, they took the form of shorter military operations, violent invasions and occupations by colonial forces. These wars destabilised the local administrative structures, and there were hundreds of thousands of victims on the Indonesian side. The Dutch army destroyed important local buildings during these colonial wars, and plundered, pillaged and looted property on a massive scale. Much of this colonial war booty was taken to the Netherlands to serve as trophies or mementos. The Dutch continued their warfare during the Indonesian War of Independence (1945-1949), when the Netherlands refused to accept Indonesia’s independence.